ManaFall RPG: A new merger of roleplaying and board game with a companion app

There are roleplaying board games, and ManaFall, on Kickstarter now, are pushing in the direction of the theatre of the mind style of narrative RPG with board game-like combat mechanics for speed. Whether this is a new and different direction remains in the hands of the team.

There’s also a companion app, which can be checked out in alpha mode and a quickstart early access adventure. Lastly, while you sandbox as usual with ManaFall, there’s a whole suite of official adventures. I know I’ve banged on about this too much in previous years, but I’d suggest ManaFall is one of those projects pushing into the subscription treasure chest that might be in the TTRPG community. It’s on Kickstarter now, and you can see progress on the pitch page.

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ManaFall is a fantasy RPG with classes of adventurers on heroic quests. The crowdfunder raises money for the app, a campaign book called What Lies Within and the core rules.

Nicely, the team have published a design philosophy for ManaFall, and this is something I wish more did. In summary;

• Every action is meaningful.
• Easy and fast to learn rules.
• A transparent complexity level – with classes labelled on how complex they are.
• A best-of-both merger of board and tabletop roleplaying games.

A land recovering from the Collapse of the Stars that ended The Great Mana Wars over 1200 years ago, many of its ancient civilizations perished at the height of the conflict. Helped by Divine Providence, survivors across the realm rebuilt their life with new foundations and beliefs. In this new world, tensions rise between the High Vigil, followers of the Divine Saviours, and the Unbelievers. Meanwhile the revered ManaHunters explore the ruins of the old world in search of lost artifacts and buried mysteries.

Backers who pledge CA$25, which is about £15, unlock rewards and get all the PDFs which means the core rules, the campaign book and the digital stretch goals.

At CA$65, backers also get the hardcover versions of the books, a GM screen, 3 dice, 5 character journals and access codes for the free app.

The Founders Edition Deluxe Core Set Bundle unlocks at CA$140 with the deluxe core rules, a dice bag, and skill and spell cards added.

The ManaFall team estimate a December 2024 delivery for the project.