One From The Shelf: Changeling the Lost

White Wolf Publishing has been producing ground breaking table top role playing games for the last two decades. With the release of the Vampire the Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition it is hard not to reminisce about the numerous game lines which White Wolf has produced over the years. While journeying through the World of Darkness we have experienced the dark lives of vampires, werewolves, mages, ghosts and much more... even fairies. Yes, fairies have become an important part of the mythos of the World of Darkness. While Changeling the Dreaming (1995) may have had a tenuous connection with the other game lines from the Classic World of Darkness its descendent, Changeling the Lost (2007) was a strong addition to swirling madness of the New World of Darkness.

Changeling the Lost was developed by Ethan Skemp and was written by a plethora of talented writers including Justin Achilli, Joseph Carriker, Jess Hartley, Wood Ingham, Matthew McFarland, Peter Schaefer, John Snead, Travis Stout, Chuck Wendig and Peter Woodworth. This book was the genesis of the second limited series of books which was preceded by Promethean the Created and the three core game lines of the New World of Darkness (Vampire the Requiem, Werewolf the Forsaken and Mage the Awakening).

Changeling the Lost is about ordinary people in the World of Darkness who are kidnapped by strange, otherworldly beings known as the Fae and enslaved in a place called Arcadia. Arcadia is not part of our world, it is separated from our reality by the mystical Hedge, and the normal laws of physics may or may not apply depending on how the Fae bend and shape their reality to their will. Those who were kidnapped are changed by their time in Arcadia and they become Changelings, creatures part human and part faerie.

Some captives manage to free themselves and fight their way back through the Hedge but they find things are not the same as when they left. Not only have they changed but their lives may have changed as well. In some cases they find they have been replaced by constructs known as Fetches, creatures which have wholly replaced them in their lives. Their loved ones may have never known they were missing. Others find that time has moved differently and now they are either far too young or far too old to return to their old lives. In many ways they have become completely "lost" and they cannot return to what they were before. The lost must find a way to make a new place in this world if they want to survive. And the Fae are always hunting for the wayward Changelings, looking to bring them back to Arcadia once again.

In a lot of ways this book was a major milestone for the company and the development of the New World of Darkness. When the company chose to bring the Classic World of Darkness to an end and launch the New World of Darkness there was some hesitancy to change a lot of what made the older games so great. That is not to say that the early game lines in the New World of Darkness were of low quality. White Wolf rarely releases a poor product and despite vast similarities the new game lines did come as a breath of fresh air for many gamers. However, Promethean the Created was the first big step away from the "tried and true" game lines for which the company was known for. In a lot of ways it was very experimental but overall it proved one very important thing, White Wolf could move away from the norm and the fans would still follow.

This freedom to move into new territory and really turn old "norms" on their heads really showed in Changeling the Lost and in a lot of ways the company came into its own once again under the umbrella of the New World of Darkness. This game line reminded us what made White Wolf's games so strong in the first place. These are not games about what we know so well and are comfortable with. These are games about what we don't know and how we are willing to challenge ourselves to tell a new kind of story. This game proved White Wolf still had what it took to be the revolutionary game company they were back in 1991 when Vampire the Masquerade first hit the gaming scene.

So if you are looking for a great game that can provide you with hours and hours of excellent storytelling then I recommend Changeling the Lost. This game holds an honored place on my game shelf and I am sure it will on yours as well.