Now in its third edition, for the first time Hârndex is available as a stand-alone work. It still fulfills the same purpose, being an alphabetical general reference sourcebook for anyone using the Hârn setting for their game.

Entries fall into several broad categories: geographical, economic, guild, religion, culture and politics. Many are taken from the first (1983) and second (1990) editions of the book (which was relased as one component of the core setting material along with HârnWorld), but it also contains material from the 'Hârnic Dictionary' that was part of the 1994 work HârnPlayer, and more. This is explained in the introduction, along with a note on pronuciation, which it claims is phonetic apart from the letter Y which is treated as a vowel. Being a Welsh-speaker, I expect Y to be a vowel so I guess I have been getting the names correct anyway!

Then it's straight off into the As, with Aaldem Keep coming first. For places, the information includes what kingdom or other region it's in, how many people live there, who is in charge and to whom they owe allegiance, as well as some notes giving flavour to the place. Other entries have similar details as appropriate to their subject, all aimed at presenting Hârn as a living world with which your characters and your plots can interact.

The text is scattered with diagrams, maps, badges and other illustractive material as well, and there is plenty of cross-referencing. Where appropriate, map references (quite general, but it's not too hard to locate places) are also given. For those who like mediaeval manuscripts, there's an added delight in the illuminated letter that heads each section A, B, C... and so on.

Like any such directory, this is a book to dip into, to refer to, rather than one to sit down and read end-to-end. Nevertheless it makes for fascinating reading, and is a good way to have an overview of the entirity of Hârn all in one place for ready reference. Whilst it is billed as a gamemaster resource, a well-educated Hârn native would probably know most or not all of what is here, so you may choose to give your players access.

It's an excellent resource, well worth keeping to hand as you explore and adventure in Hârn!

Return to Hârndex page.

Reviewed: 23 February 2016