Czôrny Las

Beyond the last road lie peat-dark waters, abandoned halls, stones thrown by giants, and paths that open only after the third horn.

Czôrny Las is a standalone solo adventure game about drawing and exploring a forest shaped by Kashubian and Pomeranian folklore. You enter as Józwa or Jéwka, carrying a weapon, one useful possession and no claim upon the forest.

Begin at the Old Crossroads. Follow an unresolved path, discover a new Place and draw it on your growing map. Face Enemies, trade in Villages, hear Rumours and decide whether to leave the old Tales alone—or follow them deeper into Czôrny Las.

The ordinary journey remains at the centre of play: travel, danger, returning through known country, gathering what you need and recording the deeds by which people come to know your name.

Eight Tales beyond the road
Rumours can lead you to eight optional Tales, each tied to a particular Place and built around its own small physical procedure or mini-game:
return the Borrowed Cauldron without looking back;
dig for peat treasure without speaking or laughing;
earn a Stolem’s respect with a single throw;
descend among the roots to seek the King Below;
escape the Wild Hunt across a shifting forest of cards;
force or follow the Diamond in the Net;
cross the tide and ring the Bells beneath Old Hel;
sit down to a dangerous game of cards with Pùrtk.

The Tales are optional. You can ignore them, abandon them or risk them when the journey has given you the right place, objects and knowledge.

What you need
At minimum:
paper and a pencil;
one d4;
* three d6.

Some Tales also use a standard deck of playing cards without Jokers, up to six d6 in total and a few small markers. Coins, beads, spare dice or scraps of paper all work.

No other rulebook is required.

Inside the book
Complete rules for solo travel, map drawing, Encounters, combat, trade and Advancement
Eight Rumour-driven Tales with distinct mini-games
Alternative Enemy tables and folklore-inspired Charms
A two-page guide to the names, beings and old wards of Czôrny Las
Printable player aids and a Journey Record
56 illustrated pages
* Public-domain artwork, fully credited in the book

The download includes both a single-page PDF for reading and printing and a spread PDF for viewing on screen.

Czôrny Las means Black Forest in Kashubian. The game draws on documented Kashubian and Pomeranian beliefs, stories and names; sources and adaptation notes are included in the book.

The game is based on Dark Fort by Pelle Nilsson and Corny Groń by Jakub Skurzyński