This is at least the second version of The Stygian Library (2024); there was definitely a hardcover prior to this (I know because I owned it) and it is within the realm of possibility that a softcover, zine or PDF version was released prior to that (possibly all three). My rooting around has proven inconclusive. This edition was put together by Soul Muppet to match the clothbound revision of The Gardens of Ynn (see tomorrow’s post!) and it’s a notable improvement over the previous hardcover. In addition to being a lovely, properly bookish object, some layout issues have been resolved and the book feels much more usable (though this might be a trick of my memory).
It very much lives up to its subtitle: “a dungeon for bibliophiles.” It’s another place, accessed through a mundane library, archive or bookshop of requisite size, where someone has died. If the proper door can be found, players can enter into what is essentially an endless indoor space lined with books where, periodically, locations of interest can be found.
The Library is created on the fly, using tables to determine the next point of interest, as well as random events and encounters. The deeper the players go, the stranger the library becomes. Color coded librarians carry out their duties. Strange creatures lurk. Wondrous books wait to be found. I hesitate to say more. The material drifts effortless between darkness and whimsy and there is just so much to discover that I’m frankly a bit in awe of Emmy Allen’s creativity.
The only thing I can think of that seems to capture a similar tone is Electric Bastionland. Which is interesting, because Alec Sorensen illustrated both. I find I like his work here a smidge more, if only because I understand libraries more than I understand bastionlands, so the illustrations seem more grounded to me. I love his mind flayers, er, neurovores!
