Recently, I was able to conduct a brief interview with Melina Sedó of Vortex Verlag. Check out the (time of writing) upcoming crowdfunding project, Serenissima Obscura here.

First, for those who don’t know, could you tell me a bit about Vortex Verlag and its history, and touch on your previous book, The Straight Way Lost?

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to present our work.

Vortex Verlag is a German indie publishing house owned by the two brothers, Michel and Ben Strack-Zimmermann. It had already been in existence many years ago and at the time published the German Version of Unknown Armies. Vortex Verlag in its current form re-grouped in 2021 due to COVID-19.

Yes, really!

Because my regular profession was on a complete hold, my friend Ben asked me to write an adventure for him. I spontaneously decided that it would be a hero’s journey in renaissance Italy including the netherworlds of Dante’s Divina Commedia. (I am a bit of a nerd about everything that concerns Italy.) Little did we know that The Straight Way Lost would develop into a massive setting guide and adventure of 400 pages with an international team involved. Our goal was to create something truly beautiful and inspiring, and we are proud of the first original Vortex production. We finally kickstarted the book in 2023, which was super exciting. It can, of course, still be purchased in our shop and on DTRPG.

And because we had too much fun creating TSWL, we decided to produce even more sourcebooks and adventures. We believe that the next project will be just as marvellous, but very different.

What is the “elevator pitch” for Serenissima Obscura? I notice, for example, that it does not appear to be intended as a campaign, like The Straight Way Lost, but as a setting guide and several smaller scenarios, with an option to connect them.

Serenissima Obscura is a setting guide and modular adventure set in a fantastical horror version of Venice in 1507. This is an era of enlightenment and discovery, a time when magic fills the world and Venice shines bright by day. But when night comes, more than just shadows fill the streets and canals. And whilst the mortals fight for supremacy in this most glorious city, an ancient evil awakens in the dark twin of the metropolis. No one is safe when the stones come to life and nightmares crawl out of the lagoon.

Whilst TSWL was an epic and uplifting, but more linear adventure, we wanted to do something entirely different with Serenissima Obscura.

For one thing, the setting guide offers a wealth of inspiration for GMs to create their own adventures. It is full of detailed description of the city with marvellous street maps, “setlets” and campaign frames, tons of NPCs and adventure hooks.

Secondly, we offer almost thirty adventure modules that can be used independently or combined into a campaign by using an overarching background plot that is loosely linked to our previous work. These 2-8 pages long sections each detail a specific event or situation, a protagonist, a location, a monster, a concept, or an entire sub-plot.

Depending on the group’s preferences, the focus of the game can either be on investigation in the mundane world or horror in the darkest shadows of the city, or any combination of these features. Groups may even choose a dungeon-like play-style in a truly horrifying location. We have marvellous street maps and battle maps by Mark Smylie and a smart system to develop an adventurer’s hub in Venice. Who would not want to own a stately house on a canal? We include a magnificent cutaway illustration of the palazzo, as well as floor plans and descriptions of rooms to shape a new home.

Ok. I would rather not spill all the beans, but freedom of choice was our motto for Serenissima Obscura.

With The Straight Way Lost being centered on Florence, what made you choose Venice for a follow-up? What opportunities and challenges did that choice present?

This is an easy question! I love the city and GMed a long-running Vampire campaign in historical Venice. This is why I had already researched the city in detail. My shelves are filled with books about the history, culture, and architecture of Venice! For many years, I intended to publish a setting based in Venice, and now I finally have the chance to do so!

The very particular location and history of Venice makes the project super appealing. The republic has always been a link between the east and the west and somewhat of a marvel. Despite the ever-changing tide of the sea and of alliances, the Serenissima managed to survive for almost one thousand years. (At least if you believe in the Venetian myth.) This makes it the perfect spot for mysterious stories that spin over centuries.

The challenge for me was mostly to choose from so much material based on the historical background, my imagination, the contributions of my co-writer Andreas Wichter and the background of the Magical Renaissance following the history of TSWL. I could spend years writing, but we don’t want to lose the momentum we gathered with our first project, so I have to restrain myself!

In working on Serenissima Obscura, did you learn any especially interesting or surprising things about the City of Venice and its history?

As I said: I was already very knowledgeable in that division, but I have once more learned a lot, in particular when it comes to Venice’s economic and political position in the renaissance.

My former Venetian Vampire campaign was set in the 19th century, after the fall of the Serenissima. Then, Venice was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, an occupied territory in economical and political decline. This time inspired the poets of the Romance and established Venice as a symbol for death and decay. This was ideal for a Vampire setting.

So, now, it was fascinating to research Venice in the years around 1500, a period in which the city was truly glorious, full of life and among the major players in the Mediterranean. And: The Serenissima’s expansion was powered by the pursuit of profit. Every citizen, even the nobility, was defined by commerce, which is why we present a new class for 5e – the merchant. This might remind you of Ferengi culture in Star Trek, but Venice’s citizens were proud explorers and visionaries. And this is why the merchant class represents the remarkable men and women who turned this improbable city in the lagoon into a center of prosperity and into a true republic. The intricate system of checks and balances that governed the Serenissima is an excellent example of an early democratic state. But of course, the true world is not that bright and golden. There is no true equality and participation of all. There are shadows and outsiders and the pariahs of the system, which makes the city even more interesting as an RPG setting. I found it fascinating to integrate these ideas into the background of Serenissima Obscura.

I noticed that Nephilim and Half Dwarves are returning. Does Serenissima Obscura take place in the same fantastical alternate history as The Straight Way Lost? Do you imagine characters who took part in the events in 1492 Florence might eventually find their way to 1507 Venice to involve themselves in the events of Serenissima Obscura?

Serenissima Obscura is based on the historical fantasy setting developed for The Straight Way Lost. But the world has changed significantly in the 15 years that lie between both events.

In 1492, magic and non-human species were in hiding and the world appeared very much the same as the one you find in any history book. But, based on the assumption that the leader of Florence, Lorenzo de’ Medici, was rescued by a group of adventurers in 1492 and did not die in the same year, history has deviated from the “real” timeline up until 1507. Lorenzo’s survival and marriage to a non-human triggered numerous significant events that influenced history. A devastating war could be avoided and magic as well as other species came out of hiding, which in turn caused schism and turmoil in other parts of Europe. In the years after these revelations, the heads of states and institutions had to position themselves when it came to the questions: How are the non-humans to be integrated into human society, and how do we deal with magic in our territories? How will this change the world?

For us, imagining how the events in 1492 would have changed reality and then to come up with a plausible alternate timeline and new concepts, were the greatest challenge and fun at the same time. We are thrilled with the result.

So, in Serenissima Obscura, nothing is exactly as it was before. Non-human species walk openly among humans, magic is widely accepted and faery tales are proven to be true. We call this period the “Magical Renaissance”, not only because it is set in the Renaissance, but because this era is a new dawn for all that transcends the mundane.

You might ask yourself: Is it necessary to have read or played The Straight Way Lost before enjoying Serenissima Obscura? No. Ok, we recommend it because we believe that everyone would love it, but all necessary background information will be given in Serenissima Obscura. The characters for which the overarching plot is designed will start at a level that distinguishes them as insiders and confidants of the powerful. So, regardless of whether they have actually experienced the before- mentioned events – they will know everything they need to master a new and threatening situation.

The Straight Way Lost was D&D 5e compatible, though much of the book’s content was system-agnostic. It seems that is the intent for Serenissima Obscura as well, with mention that guidelines for using other game styles will be available. Has balancing mechanics and play styles been a challenge? Generally, how have you engaged with game mechanics in relation to the setting?

So, firstly: Together with our 5e experts Marc and Alexandru we are putting significant effort into 5e mechanics. Like before, we have adapted the classic 5e species and classes to the setting and are offering a new subclass, the City Druids. We will also present two new classes – the Gonneslinger and the Merchant – and a new species, the Children of the Lagoon. These come with useful powers for life in the Magical Renaissance.

We will also add The Magical Renaissance Player’s Guide to our crowdfunding campaign. It contains all 5e character creation options from The Straight Way Lost and Serenissima Obscura. We think this will be of great help for GMs and player’s alike.

But, to come back to your original question: Large parts of the setting guide as well as the adventure modules are indeed system-agnostic. They can and should be used with anyone’s favourite system. To make this even easier, we include short “stat blocks” for use with Narrative, Freeform and Rules Light Systems directly into the book. With the help of these, you can play Serenissima Obscura with a very different approach. And then there is Ars Magica…

You have a history with one of my favorite tabletop RPGs, Ars Magica, and there is potential for some Ars Magica related content being produced for Serenissima Obscura. Would you touch on your history with the game and what connections it has to Serenissima Obscura (or The Straight Way Lost).

Ars Magica was the first RPG I ever played, and I love it dearly. I have translated the 4th edition into German, as my co-author Andreas Wichter had done before with the 2nd edition. Andreas even played Ars Magica with Jonathan Tweet many years ago. Together, we led a long-running Ars Magica campaign set in 1449 Tuscany and published it in a German RPG magazine. (Actually, this campaign originally inspired me to write The Straight Way Lost.)

In any case: We think that Serenissima Obscura is ideal for Ars Magica and have therefore decided to create a separate Ars Magica Guide for the crowdfunding campaign. It will contain npc- and creature stats, as well as mechanics to make everything compatible to Ars Magica. Additionally, we offer ideas about how the order of Hermes and Mythic Europe of the Middle Ages may have developed into the Magical Renaissance and fit into our background. I am super grateful to the Vortex owners that they enable us to pursue this path, given that they are staunch DnD players.

Did the recent crowdfunding of the Ars Magica 5h Edition Definitive affect your decision to add compatible material?

Definitely! Before this, creating compatibility with Ars Magica was just a crazy dream. But via the crowdfunding, third-party products for ArM are officially made possible by the Open License. We already spoke to John Nephew about Serenissima Obscura. Atlas Games supports our endeavours actively and have recommended Serenissima Obscura to their backers. They will even open a Discord sub-channel in which we will discuss our ideas for Serenissima Obscura with the ArM community. This helps a lot.

A striking element of The Straight Way Lost is its fantastic art. Would you talk about the art and artists for Serenissima Obscura?

With pleasure!

The visual part plays a big role for us, and we love the process of creation together with talented artists. As in TSWL, each artist for Serenissima Obscura was assigned a specific part of the book and each chapter will have its own specific look and color scheme underlining the primary mood we want to evoke.

Our illustrators are Anton Vitus, Simone Tammetta , Margaux Carpio and – once more – Mark Smylie, who also designed all the street maps, battle maps and floor plans. The fabulous cover illustration is by Runa Ivana Rosenberger and the layout will be once more be done by Thorsten Janes. All of the art will be ready when the crowdfunding goes live. And there will be more upon reaching higher stretch goals. By the way: This time, we have decided to cooperate with Rafael Moreno Dominguez (STL Miniatures) who will offer Serenissima-Obscura-themed miniatures in a separate crowdfunding campaign. We are looking forward to marvellous monsters, npcs and villains!

To give you a better impression of what awaits you, these are the 5 chapters of Serenissima Obscura:

Book 1. Setting Guide for the Magical Renaissance (Illustrations by Mark Smylie)

Book 2: Character Creation (Illustrations by Margaux Carpio)

Book 3: GM’s Guide (Illustrations by Mark Smylie) Book 4: Adventure modules in brightside Venice (Illustrations by Anton Vitus)

Book 5: Adventure modules in shadowside Venice (Illustrations by Simone Tammetta)

Most of the content is already written and we plan on giving it to our editor in early summer. But the remaining weeks before the campaign are going to be very busy. By the way: we have decided to crowdfund via Backerkit this time. Their service is just outstanding, and we are eagerly anticipating a successful campaign.

Link to our landing page:
https://www.backerkit.com/call_to_action/6f9a7903-6491-4d10-9c2c-
78af1583d6c2/landing

I want to thank Melina Sedó for reaching out to me originally to take a look at The Straight Way Lost, which I very much enjoyed.  And a hearty thanks for answering my questions.  You can check out my review of The Straight Way Lost here.

I’m an independent author, so… If you like what I do, you can buy me a coffee. Check out my YouTube, and/or take a look at my Patreon page, where I’m working on a novel and developing a tabletop RPG setting. I’m also proud to be an affiliate of DriveThru RPG.