9th Level Games' Mazes Fantasy RPG is available to download

9th Level Games are on a roll with various titles up for ENnies and Return to Dark Tower on the way.

Mazes, an RPG that offered to let you play a game which felt like 1979 but with 2021 slickness, smashed through $100,000 on Kickstarter.

Mazes Fantasy Roleplaying is now available from DriveThruRPG.

The 231-page download uses 9th Level Polymorph, and that’s a unique system.

Mazes is a return to the classic sword and sorcery dungeon crawler with award-winning, yet delightfully simple modern rules. The first TTRPG to use the polymorph system, Mazes is easy to learn and teach, and ready to play without a lot of prep.

On offer is the “gold edition” of the game, meaning 25% new content, 25% refreshed content and 50% from nine previously released supporting zines. There’s also A Curious Grimoire & Book of Hazards which introduces new spells and monsters.

The updated rules make it easier/possible to run campaigns and include help for GMs with tips on how to use Darkness and Treasure to encourage better roleplaying.

In a video, 9th Level explains the math-free rule-light system.

Mazes is powered by polymorph – which is a compact yet comprehensive rules framework for roleplaying. It’s designed to provide the full experience of a crunchy RPG, but with minimal setup and prep – all without giving up the fun, mechanical depth of an exciting roleplaying system. Sorry, there isn’t any math – we did all that work for you! In a polymorph game, each player only ever uses a specific polyhedral die – a d4, a d6, a d8, or a d10. Each die represents a different “way to play” or a different “role” that they have in the group. Whenever a player asks “can I do something”, they roll their die and with a quick glance at their character sheet to know if they succeed.

The game won the IGDN Indie Groundbreaker Award for Best Rules in 2020 based on the original zine from Zinequest, back before 9th Level put everything together in this edition.