Fenix English Edition 2, 2017

The Crime & Punishment Issue

CSI Fantasy
This article takes a systemless look at “forensic magic” from British and European folklore, dating from the Middle Ages up to the 19th and early 20th centuries. In a low-magic fantasy game, some of them might actually work, and any of them can be used to provide interesting bits of colour to an investigative adventure. In a high-magic game, player characters will probably have access to more powerful magic that can achieve the same ends more reliably, but techniques like those described here might be used in rural communities and in the poorer quarters of a city, where “proper magic” is a luxury beyond the reach of ordinary folk.

Text: Graeme Davis, Art: Anders Larsson


As God is my Witness - The Judicium Dei in Medieval Europe
The Judicium Dei, or trial by ordeal, was perhaps one of the most colourful aspects of the medieval legal system, as well as one of the most misunderstood. The later use of various types of ordeal in witch-trials has led to the widespread impression that trial by ordeal was no more than a means of tormenting a prisoner whose fate was already sealed. While this may way have been the case in the 16th and 17th centuries, the original Judicium Dei of Anglo-Saxon law formed a coherent body of legislation revolving around the certainty of divine intervention on behalf of an innocent party.

Text: Graeme Davis, Art: Anders Larsson


Crime & Punishment – Why it Matters & Magical Items in Mythras
Death should be savoured, like a fine wine, from the perspective of the players themselves. There are many more ways to die than just a sword in the guts, and the dread of impending death is often overlooked. In this article you find a couple of examples of how to instill that fear of ultimate demise, drawn from literary sources that begin at the very dawn of history ...

Text: Pete Nash, Art: Anders Larsson