Quod Natura Non Dat, Salmantica Non Praestat
A downloadable adventure/game
In the 15th century Salamanca, Crown of Castile (Spain), a group of seven students is chosen by the vicar Clemente Potosí to secretly meet in the crypt of the church of San Cebrián every Saturday to study the occult and become magic users. Players must survive their last night in the crypt and pay their tuition. The real Master, who has been hiding behind Clemente's guise, reserves one last surprise...
What is Quod Natura Non Dat?
Quod Natura Non Dat is a one-shot adventure designed for one to seven players, along with a Game Master (GM), to be played in one or two sessions. It is set in a historical backdrop and features a lightweight rules system that allows for immediate play. Moreover, the adventure can seamlessly integrate into a larger campaign using a different setting and system, serving as an ideal origin story for the magic-user(s) within the party. OSR stats have been included with this in mind.
The zine
Format
- 34-pages digital zine
- Black & White with red and yellow accents
- 8000+ words
- 8 art pieces plus cartography
PHYSICAL COPIES AVAILABLE VIA LULU
Key Features
- 3-page super light rules for immediate play.
- The system uses a deck of cards and a d10, allowing players to make strategic choices while still embracing an element of randomness during the checks.
- 12 different rooms to explore with puzzles, traps, social encounters, and monsters.
- Rooms can be chosen selectively or randomly so the GM may pick up their favorite ones or replay the adventure differently.
- Short introduction to the city and the student life of the period, immersing players in the setting without overwhelming them with excessive historical information.
- Stunning art by Łukasz Piwiński and Chema González.
- Professional editing by Wayne Robert.
- Clean and convenient layout with one room per page or spread for easy reference.
- Compatible with OSR systems.
Credits:
Chema González - Writing, art & layout
Wayne Robert - Editing
Łukasz Piwiński - Art
Purchase
In order to download this adventure/game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $6 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Development log
- Hard Copies Available!Sep 28, 2023
- Small cosmetic changesSep 04, 2023
Comments
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Really like this concept, both as a self contained module and the historical setting! The rooms are very flavorful and have fun encounters and puzzles! And the little mini system is great too!
I did have one question relating to the ending. On first reading it seemed to me like it most likely doesn't matter what you do in the rooms that whether or not you "win" will just be determined by luck. Unless you manage to murder all your classmates and take their money...but then the players don't know that going in so they'd be unlikely to do that on purpose. I'm worried that that it might be unsatisfying to discover that you could have just picked the "easy way" repeatedly and then took your chances at the end. Curious how this worked out at your table or if there are alternatives folks have used (I might also be misreading something).
Thanks! I love your work, I bought this game in large part on the strength of Yokai Hunters Society and wasn't disappointed 😊
Thanks a lot for your super kind words. So happy you enjoyed it!
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BIG SPOILERS AHEAD!!!
Certainly, students may discover that they can opt for the "Easy Way" in any room to ensure their safe passage. However, if they choose this path, they'll likely struggle to end the night with enough money to cover their tuition fees. Each time they pass through that door, one of their precious coins disappears!
The students have other options rather than resorting to violence to seize the money, even though that might align with the Devil's intentions, right? Hahaha! They could attempt to persuade their fellow students to loan them the money or gang together to confront the Devil.
There's an aspect of the legend that I omitted, but I'm contemplating whether it would be cool to include it as an appendix for an extra session, especially if one of the players becomes the "chosen one." According to the legend, Don Juan Manuel, "The Lucanor Count," was one of those selected to serve the Devil, yet he managed to outsmart Him and escape... In fact, his book can be found in one of the rooms!
This is amazeballs! I love how you chose to place it in a sort of real-world historical setting. I'd love to see more adventures do this. Real world history has SO MUCH CRAZY SHIT going on, why do we even have a fantasy genre anyway? :) Lovely art too! Just, the somewhat empty page on the spread above could use some filler or graphic design intervention to make it look less... empty.
Thanks a lot for your kind words. The empty pages might not be necessary at the end, depending on the binding. If finally we need a multiple of four, I will definitely fill them out. One of the options is to include a map of the city, even though it’s not critical for the adventure.
this is awesome! i would *love* more Spanish historical stuff like this <3
Thanks!!