After having tackled the review of Coriolis: The Third Horizon together, we couldn’t help but talk to you about Coriolis: Mercy of the Icons, the first official campaign for the mysterious and fascinating science fiction role-playing game from Free League Publishing. Once again we thank the editor who sent us the digital and physical material so we could talk to you about it.

The work consists of three volumes: Emissary Lost, The Last Cycade and Wake of the Icons. You can find them all in the Swedish editor’s official store for approximately 33 euros each. As always, all the modules are present to be able to play the adventures on the Foundry Virtual Tabletop. I would also like to point out the bundle which includes practically all the published material (except Wake of the Icons) for around 140 euros. Among the many materials available there are also beautiful maps, which can be purchased separately.

As can be imagined, it is difficult to present an entire game campaign without slipping into spoilers. I’ll try anyway because I think this triptych is very interesting to play and be amazed from the first to the last page.

We will therefore tackle each volume together as it was created, focusing not so much on the game rules (of which you can find more details in the review of the core manual), but more on the structure of the plot and the stylistic and graphic choices of this imaginative and visionary work.

Each chapter of this saga has its structure and also presents some scenarios and, as we will see, other contents.

Coriolis: Emissary Lost

Street reporters call it The Mysticides. Scores of mystics have been found dead, or disappeared without a trace. Who is hunting the mystics of Coriolis? And why? When a friend of the player characters disappears, it becomes personal. Can they solve the mystery before it is too late?

With this title already framing the themes that will be addressed, we immerse ourselves in the review and prelude to the Coriolis: Mercy of the Icons campaign. Coriolis: Emissary Lost consists of two main scenarios: The Wake of the Martyr and The Kuan Connection. It is a story full of intrigue and action, which leads the characters to move away from Coriolis to explore the Third Horizon. They will also come into contact with themes and NPCs that will return throughout the campaign.

Structure of the Scenarios

The incipit of the plot coincides with the arrival through the portals in the Taoan system of a group of infiltrators serving the Eternal Emperor of the First Horizon. Without going into too much detail about the actual plot, I would like to point out that the first scenario proposed, Wake of the Martyr, has a sandbox approach that allows players to come into contact with the Coriolis space base. The plot revolves around a series of rather complex intrigues, constructed like Chinese boxes; we find a fair number of NPCs that the master will have to manage and of which we must not lose track if we intend to tackle the entire campaign. There are a total of 86 pages that throw the characters into saving the Emissary who disappeared on Coriolis by following tracks that lead to the jungles of Kua.

The Kuan Connection takes up the next 92 pages and drags the characters into the jungles of Kua, the planet in whose orbit the Coriolis station is located. Also in this case the plot involves a sandbox approach. The characters will move between the jungle and the sunken city of Sultra to meet the warriors of the Holy Light. After a fundamental meeting, they will be invited to take on an essential task for the salvation of the entire system.

Each scenario is divided into three acts which can help the Game Master to pace the sessions and manage the plot twists.

Review of the Materials Included in the First Volume of Coriolis: Mercy of the Icons

The volume also contains a generator of side missions connected to the main plot and A Song for Jarouma, an additional scenario that describes the incident that led to the arrival of the Emissaries in the Third Horizon. It can be played as a flashback epilogue and can be handled in a single session.

Free League Publishing never disappoints when it comes to providing materials and handouts for its editorial lines. Also in this case the volume is full of maps and handouts that reproduce the Coriolis space station and the planet Kua. Also included are the documents with which the characters will have to deal to find the clues necessary to continue.

Coriolis: The Last Cyclade

Ash falls like snow over the mourners lining the shores of Dar Bahri, while smoke from the funeral pyres rises toward Dabaran’s bloodred sun. Far above in the darkness of space, a lone ship waits to enter the portal to Uharu. Its crew stands ready to complete their mission: the ghost ship Zafirah has been found – those who reach her first will most likely unveil the truth behind one of the horizon’s most ominous mysteries…

Coriolis: The Last Cyclade is the second volume of the Coriolis: Mercy of the Icons campaign. As in all self-respecting trilogies, especially those with a cinematic edge, this is the densest and darkest chapter. Unlike the first volume, this chapter of the campaign is divided into three distinct parts: The Uharan Echo, The Cyclade Dance and In the Shadow of the Zenith. In just over 240 pages the Third Horizon comes to life; the factions and intrigues reveal themselves before the eyes of the characters, who will have to learn very quickly to juggle and adopt winning strategies.

In an attempt not to anticipate in too much detail what awaits the players and the characters, I can however give an overview of the structure of the scenarios and its many advantages and its few defects.

Structure of the Scenarios

The Uharan Echo occupies around sixty pages and is in turn divided into three acts. In his first two, the plot is investigative and the tone is horror and a good part involves negotiations and negotiations. The third act instead turns to politics and the need to make morally difficult choices.

The Cyclade Dance unfolds over the next ninety pages and has a more particular structure. It is an adventure and event generator; twelve narrative hooks can be developed by the Game Master and four adventures that can be played as they are. In this way, the characters have the opportunity to know and, perhaps, influence the power games of the factions. At the same time, they can realize the terrible consequences that these clashes have on their surroundings.

These sixteen possible plots are classified according to level: they go from level 0 to level three. I would like to point out that it is certainly not necessary to play all the proposed adventures; however, to proceed with the plot, one must play Fire of the Icons. Time is marked by thirteen events which slowly alter the political dynamics of the environment in which the characters move.

In the Shadow of the Zenith closes the volume with approximately 60 pages. Even though this is also an investigative adventure, it conveys decidedly different sensations. From the search for one person to a race for survival, the tone rises in a constant crescendo resulting in major changes that aim to reshape the Third Horizon.

Review of the Great Strengths and Small Defects of the Second Volume of Coriolis: Mercy of the Icons

Coriolis: The Last Cyclade expertly mixes different styles and narrative structures and the adventure generator with the events that mark time; in general it puts the right pressure on the players, to avoid downtime. Of course, the Game Master must know how to manage the narrative hooks and transform the stories to make them truly compelling, but it is a small price to pay to enjoy the atmosphere of the Third Horizon.

While it is true that the individual adventures contained in Coriolis: The Last Cyclade can be played individually, it is not an approach that I recommend. One of the best things about this module is that the context progressively reveals itself before the eyes of the characters. It also places characters with the fundamental choice of which faction to belong to, making it clear to players that their characters’ actions, no matter how small, will cause ripple effects and impact the entire universe.

Coriolis: Wake of the Icons

Nightmares and premonitions wake you in a cold sweat, panic tightening your chest. It began with rolling fields and an invitation. An outstretched hand – whose hand? Then a starry sky and the emptiness of space. You couldn’t breathe, your heart racing as you recognized a planet – the emerald – Kua, waiting for you. Glittering wings in the darkness surrounding you. Hundreds of butterflies followed by enormous shell-covered titans. A locust swarm coming to devour the Third Horizon.” 

Coriolis: Wake of the Icons is the final chapter and culmination of the Coriolis: Mercy of the Icons campaign. The volume is split into three main scenarios: A Song for Kua, The Tenth Icon and The Horizon War, plus the epilogue.

To introduce this part of the campaign we find a large section that summarizes the events that temporally separate the events that happened in Coriolis: The Last Cyclade and the incipit of Coriols: Wake of the Icons. As with the previous volumes, I don’t want to give spoilers; know that the Game Master is supported completely and exhaustively to fill any space between the episodes of the campaign. A practical 7-page summary defines the details of the conditions in which three Horizons find themselves, the consequences of what has happened up to now to the various factions in the game and a summary of the factions involved.

To further help the Game Master manage the crescendo of events and a significantly increasing number of NPCs, a series of suggestions are listed. These are tips for managing scenarios, scenes, events and NPCs. I believe that on balance it can be extremely useful even for the most expert masters; in this way, it is possible to fully enjoy the materials offered and make the most of this pressing campaign finale.

Structure of the Scenarios

A Song For Kua takes up about thirty pages and brings the characters back to the planet Kua, where they left off. They travel through its jungles to explore deep underground ruins to discover the cave that was once the home of the Emissary. In the darkness of the Abhrra, they will experience something that will change the Third Horizon forever. The structure of the plot returns to being linear; the growing tension becomes palpable. It’s a bit as if the characters found themselves on a floor that gradually tilts, forcing them to change often the point of equilibrium.

The Tenth Icon unfolds in approximately 60 pages and allows the characters to discover backstories and truths hidden until that moment. While these are a handful of scenes, each of them is closely interconnected. To help Game Masters and players a lot there are splendid maps and a decidedly congruent number of summaries. This trick is very useful if the players have not kept track of the events and insights throughout the entire campaign.

The Horizon Wars closes the campaign with its 80 pages with a dramatic ending in which the characters decide what the future of the Third Horizon will be. I find it very satisfying that it is the characters’ job, based on the choices made throughout the campaign, to decide how the story will end. They will be the ones to determine which factions will survive the inevitable conflict. This scenario deviates from the traditional structure; in fact, it presents a series of secondary missions that you can tackle at your leisure, as well as actual space battles. Depending on the level of success of the characters and the choices they make in the first few, the outcome of the space battles will be decided.

Review of the Additional Rules of the Third Volume of Coriolis: Mercy of the Icon

Coriolis: Wake of the Icons presents some new mechanics designed above all to manage combat between space ships and in this review, I want to give you a quick overview. The choice is dynamic and considers the clashes as interludes between one narrated part and another. To manage large fleets during the conflict, the latter is divided into phases summarized in a practical table; with the help of a special map, it is then possible to follow the evolution of the story.

The role of the Game Master becomes truly fundamental because he will have to act as a facilitator in these combat phases (defined as meta-game) between one character’s mission and another. It is decisive to be able to keep track of how the conflict evolves; players will of course know what happens but it’s important that their characters also have some information in play so they can react and act based on the events of the war.

Coriolis: Mercy of the Icon Aesthetic Review

There is no doubt that the aesthetic imprint of Coriolis: The Third Horizon has remained in all the volumes that make up this campaign. As with the basic manual, it is a large, highly graphic project. Not only the full-page print dotted with stars but also the choice to frame the text and include an impressive number of illustrations make Coriolis an editorial line with an impact.

As in the core rulebook, the various sections of the text are framed or highlighted with particular characters to immediately divide what is the narrated part, what is the regulation and what is the setting. Once again the work of Martin Grip and Gustaf Ekelund is masterful.

Conclusions of the Review of Coriolis: Mercy of the Icons

Rickard Antroia‘s pen holds one’s breath in suspense from the first to the last page. Undoubtedly you can sense the broad and articulated vision of the project and I appreciated the desire to make the setting of Coriolis: The Third Horizon alive and vibrant

The materials offered are of the highest quality and the detail of the maps (whether of environments or spaceships) is such that they can be used in the proposed format without the need to enlarge them. I admit that especially in the last volume Coriolis: The Wake of the Icons, the distribution of the text seemed a bit dispersive to me. The huge amount of information, then, left me a little disconcerted at the idea of having to manage it all and convey it to the players.

Coriolis: Mercy of the Icons is certainly a great campaign. It is undoubtedly exciting to play but requires a certain commitment in terms of preparation on the part of the Game Master and a good level of attention from the players.

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