The World of Synnibarr

The World of Synnibarr (sometimes referred to simply as Synnibarr) was a multi-genre role-playing game published by Wonderworld Press and written by Raven c.s. McCracken.[1] A second edition of the game, co-written by Bryce Thelin, was published in 1993. It is noted largely for its exceptionally poor design.[2]

The World of Synnibarr
The World of Synnibarr, 2nd edition
Designer(s)Raven C.S. McCracken
Bryce Thelin
Publisher(s)Wonderworld Press
Publication date1991 (first edition)
1993 (second edition)
Genre(s)Multi-genre
Websitesynnibarr.com

The game features an unusual amount of variety in play. It combines elements of fantasy, science-fiction, super-hero and other genres and does occasionally lend itself to power gaming.[3]

A third edition of the game (tentatively known as Synnibarr Invicta) was funded by a Kickstarter in 2013, which was expected to be released in 2014-2015, but remains only partially complete as of June 2020.[4]

Setting

Synnibarr is actually Mars 50,000 years in the future, hollowed out and turned into a spaceship to take humanity to a safe place after the Earth had been destroyed. Civilization is beginning to be rebuilt after a series of disasters and technology is practiced as a religion. Synnibarr is also noted for bizarre monsters, including the Giant Mutant Fire Clam and the Flying Grizzly (capable of shooting laser beams from its eyes). Guilds and organizations play a major role in the Synnibarr 'Worldship'. Mortals are often able to interact with immortals, demi-gods and even the gods themselves.

System

Most rolls are of percentile dice (d100) though some are additive while others use a roll-under mechanic. The third edition game mechanic replaces the previous percentile system with a streamlined skill-based system, where resolve and experience create cogency levels that are pitted against opposing cogency levels for determining results.

McCracken and a group of other people have been playing and developing Synnibarr since the mid 90s. In December 2012 a Kickstarter was launched to publish a new edition. The project was expected to span three books, an "Ultimate Adventurer's Guide", a "Worldship Atlas", and a "Book of Fate".[4] The "Ultimate Adventurer's Guide" was published in August 2018, but as of December 2019 backers had received neither books nor updates for some time.[5][6]

Reception

Some consider it a bad example of a role playing game.[7]

Reviews
gollark: You can have "universal truth" with things like logical statements, where you can come up with things that are always true given some set of axioms. For physical/sciencey things you can just do "it's very unlikely for this to not be the case".
gollark: They... can be... good for explaining things. They aren't proofs but demonstrations.
gollark: Your analogies are bad because you can't derive ultimate universal truth from a few instances of something being true.
gollark: I guess something something precision errors.
gollark: Hmm, according to this normal CDF thing the probability of a negative IQ is just "zero".

References
  1. McCracken, Raven c. s. (February 2011). Eat Butterflies: Tales of Vampire, Mages and Mutants. Swooping Grizzly Publications. ISBN 0-615-45124-1.
  2. MacLennan, Darren (2001-08-03). "Review of The World of Synnibarr by Darren MacLennan". Rpg.net. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
  3. Mier, Roger (2004-08-20). "Review of The World of Synnibarr by Roger Mier". Rpg.net. Retrieved 2011-12-22.
  4. "Republishing: The World of Synnibarr". Kickstarter. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
  5. McCracken, Raven c.s. The Ultimate Adventurers' Guide: The World of Synnibarr. Ascensionnw. ISBN 978-0996417303.
  6. "Republishing: The World of Synnibarr (Comments)". Retrieved 2020-06-25.
  7. Hale-Evans, Ron (2011). Mindhacker: 60 Tips, Tricks, and Games to Take Your Mind to the Next Level. Wiley Publishing. p. 147. ISBN 978-1-118-16641-3.
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