This absolute banger of Welsh folklore is the second on my summer reading list:
If you are a fantasy gamer, here is why you should find yourself a copy.
1. Lots of Fantasy Game Items Are In Here
I've only read the first 3 tales, and already I've seen a Bag of Holding and a Black Cauldron (which supposedly inspired Disney's cult foray into dark fantasy of that name). There was also a giant iron house used to trap and kill a giant, a disappearing castle with a golden bowl that freezes anyone who touches it, as well as a horde of magical crop-eating mice and a shining white boar. I can't say I understand all of it, as there is a millennium between myself and the writers of these tales, but they are all compelling even to modern readers.
2. Lots of Fantasy Writers Were Inspired By It
Just reading The Mabinogion you can tell that it has provided inspiration to great fantasy authors. Especially important to me, Michael Moorcock based his Corum chronicles on Welsh mythology, and the scene of Corum being frozen by Arioch's heart was an echo of the Mabinogion's golden bowl that froze any who touched it. Ditto Elric's promise to return to Cymoril after a year, which is echoed in the many promises made between the lovers Pwyll and Rhiannon to reunite after 1 year when certain conditions are met. I am sure I'll find many other instances as I continue reading.
3. It Models Great Roleplaying and GMing
I find a lot of modern roleplaying gets bogged down in a slavish attention to either replicate the 'real world' or flatter the egos of players and GMs. Characters in The Mabinogion inhabit their worlds completely, and follow its internal, mythic logic.
In terms of roleplaying what is on your character sheet, the second tale, Branwyn the Daughter of Lyrr, models this excellently. When Branwyn's gigantic brother sails his fleet to Ireland to check up on his sister after hearing of her mistreatment, the simple (low INT) fisherfolk tell the Irish king "a wood we have seen upon the sea, in a place where we never yet saw a single tree... We saw, Lord, a vast mountain beside the wood, which moved, and there was a lofty ride atop the mountain, and a lake on each side of the ridge." The Irish king & his retainers are dumbfounded, and upon asking the wise Branwyn to decipher, she explains that the 'wood' are the masts of her brother's ships, and the mountain none other than her sibling, with the lakes being his gigantic eyes.
Just imagine how compelling would it be if GMs tailored all descriptions through the INT of those giving them?
Additionally, the magic items are not simple fire and forget technology with no downsides of many games. The Black Cauldron revives any dead on the same day, but they come back without the ability to speak. The Bag of Holding can only be used for a specific purpose, and let's just say that unless your are filling yours with mounds of meat and unwanted suitors, you not using it in a Mabinogion way.
Get A Copy For Your Appendix N
The original Appendix N referenced the fantasy literature that sprang from older works such as the Arthurian Chronicles and The Mabinogion. Why not take a step back to their folklore inspirations, and infuse your games with the ancient aura of Welsh mythology?
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