Sil
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a song in the dark
ASCII illustration
A song in the halls of Angband.
2012: Sil 1.0.
By Toby Ord and Owen Cotton-Barratt.
Sil takes the Angband family back towards Tolkien’s First Age, then changes the expedition almost beyond recognition. The 2012 game asks you to steal a Silmaril from Morgoth’s crown and escape.
Its interest lies in what a character can actually do in a dangerous space. Stealth, perception, song and a carefully balanced combat system share the work. Heavy armour protects against damage but makes a character easier to hit. A lighter weapon may be more accurate; a heavier one may be needed against an armoured enemy.
The setting shapes the rules. There are no familiar fireball-slinging wizards or stacks of magical scrolls. Song has power, and avoiding a fight can be a serious path through the game rather than a temporary embarrassment.
Sil’s code descends through the Angband family, but its shorter scale and extensive redesign make it a distinct work. It is a good entry to read beside Angband: the same ancestry can support very different ideas about what deserves the player’s time.
The later Sil-Q continuation has its own changes and should be identified by name when discussing them.
Sources
Sil: the designers’ introduction