Most of us have had a first week back at work in 2025 by now. How was it?
Let’s take a look at the TTRPG news summary of summaries.
- 2024 broke the 1.5C global temperature rise, LA burns, and high-profile organisations in the TTRPG family suffer. Critical Role cancel streaming.
- Critical Role’s Darrington Press also cut an international sales deal with Macmillian.
- Angry at the choices people make? Play the Leopards Eat Your Face TTRPG.
- Chaosium turns 50 this year.
- Researchers are using their D&D skills to train AI Agents.
Likely due to missteps and poor judgement by Meta, Geek Native’s BlueSky and Mastodon are seeing more chat. But what about our Tiktok? We don’t use it so often and we’re not in the States so we can still plan to keep it this year.
Perhaps the big two are Apple News and Google News. We’re ninja in both! There but invisible. Follow us if you can/want.
On with this week’s news!
Spotlight: Sad Fishe Games.
RPG news from Geek Native
- The best-sellers season continued with;
- In international sales and logistics, Critical Role’s Darrington Press cut a Macmillian deal.
- Bläckfisk Förlag released the Leopards Eat Your Face TTRPG.
- Vortex Verlag showed us the cover of Serenissima Obscura.
- Koi Footwear has a D&D fashion range that looks dangerous.
- Paizo showed us the Akashic dragon on the cover of Starfinder 2e.
- We looked at the free jumpstart Ultimate Reverie for Savage Worlds.
- Geek Native also looked at the free to download basic rules for Chromatic Shadows.
- In the Bundle of Holding, you can find Chthonstone Essential Enemies
- In Humble, there’s a deal on Night’s Black Agents and Dracula Dossier.
Support: Patreon
RPG news from around the web
- Our concerns are with people and animals caught up in the fires. IGN reports Dungeons & Dragons Show Critical Role Cancels Broadcast Due to Los Angeles Wildfires.
- Chaosium reminds us that 2025 is Chaosium’s 50th Anniversary.
- Starting the year strong, Chaosium has also announced an Alchemy Virtual Tabletop partnership for Call of Cthulhu.
- On Rowan, Rook, and Decard, Minærva McJanda explains the forthcoming Voidheart Symphony: What is it?
- J.R. Zambrano notes D&D: Big Changes in the New Monster Manual – Meaner, Beefier Monsters.
- Paul Baldowski explains why he’ll release a new edition of The Dee Sanction.
- TGN carries Paizo Announces Pathfinder Lost Omens Shining Kingdoms and Treasure Vault Remastered.
- Rascal’s press release service carried DOTS RPG Project celebrates successful launch of their Signature Braille RPG Dice.
- Chinese researchers improved AI agent performance on unfamiliar tasks using ‘Dungeons and Dragons’.
RPG reviews and interviews from around the web
- Reviews from R’lyeh have sung Wyvern Songs, reviewed the Pendragon 6e The Barnyard Tournament and Outgunned Quickstart . Pookie also reviewed the world’s second oldest RPG Tunnels and Trolls.
- The Alexandrian publishes part two of the Mothership Adventure Sphere review.
- B/X Blackrazor penned ASC Review: The Lair of the Lamia.
- Bell of Lost Souls reviews Symbaroum core rules.
- Rob Wieland at EN World notes Ultraviolet Grasslands Second Edition Is A Trip Within A Trip.
- Grognardia shares a retrospective on the Birthright Campaign Setting.
- Vice’s Dwayne Jenkins states Seriously, Though, ‘Demeo’ Is the Tabletop RPG VR Dream That Will Hold Me Over Until the ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ VR Game.
RPG new releases
- Bardic_Mischief has published a post-apocalyptic Shadowdark setting and ruleset called Gammadark.
- Hunters Entertainment has released a Roll20 VTT module Alice Is Missing: Silent Falls Expansion.
- Hunters have also published a Roll20 module for An Exquisite Crime.
- Darrin Drader Designs has published the second edition of Reign of Discordia.
- Elbonhollow Press has published Arcane Implants: A Treatise on Magical Body Enhancements and their Perilous Boons (5e).
- Wary Weseal Games has a new classless TTRPG with The Outer Dark.
- Overstone Studios has published;
- Space Cat Publishing challenges you to survive the Year of the Undead.
- Art of the Genre has a new FAST Micro Setting called Space Vixens from Beyond Tomorrow.
RPG bundle deals
- Save $10/95 (73%)with Total Quest’s Starter Pack bundle.
- Save $7.60 (10%) with Lewd Dungeon Adventure’s Paperback Collection.
RPG ideas, tips and discoveries
- Nerdarchy shares Pulling Runes from the Tower: Using Jenga in Your D&D Sessions.
- The Patchwork Paladin writes up the idea of The Faction Turn.
- The Monsters Know What They’re Doing opines Cerberus Tactics.
- Gnome Stew writes adventure design advice with Supporting and Opposing NPCs.
- Explorers Design recommends Stop Hiding the Apes in Your RPG.
RPG Crowdfunding
You can see those Kickstarters and other crowdfunding campaigns that caught Geek Native’s attention over at Kickstarter watch. Here are some industry projects worth mentioning;
- Populated Hexes Monthly Issue 42 from Todd nominates “Demons, demons, demons!”
- Monster Miniatures: Folio of Fiends Vol IV from Rocket Pig Games introduces “The fourth installment of creature collections for tabletop gaming & dungeon crawl adventures! Always .stl format for your 3D printer.”
- Cerulean Seas Campaign Setting, 2nd Edition from Emily Kubisz nominates “New Rules, Boundless Adventure as we bring our ENnie Nominated and critically acclaimed Cerulean Seas Campaign Setting up to date.”
- 100 Unique Factions for D&D 5e! from Igor Antunes submits “A DnD 5E supplement packed with: Guilds, Clans, Cults, Orders, Houses, Leaders, 100 pages for your Campaign or Adventure! (Make 100)”
- Osmoria Adventures – D&D 5e | Two New Adventures! from Matthew Rosta suggests “We have two exciting new D&D 5e adventures – Rise of the Ember Queen & The Twilight Lantern.”
- Gone Snowballin’ – Cozy D&D 5e One-Shot | Pay What You Want from Betta Games introduces “A wonderfully cozy winter one-shot where adventurers engage in a joyfully competitive battle for snowball supremacy!”
- Urðvalis: Shattered Pantheon – A 5e Codex from François (Frank) Gilbert proposes “Forge the Artecruxx. Challenge the gods. Rewrite the cosmos.”
- Aphrodite/Hera Class-ified – 2 D&D Original Classes! from DiceQuest proposes “Two DnD 5e Classes Inspired by the Gods of Greek Mythology: Aphrodite and Hera.”
- Ogre Caves of The Toad God: An Adventure for AD&D/D&D from Ian Hickey nominates “A fantasy adventure for AD&D, 5E, and OSR games. Designed for 4-6 players. Taking characters from level 1 to level 5.”
- The Misterious Cave from Hugo kickstarts “A new D&D 5e oneshot adventure A 25+ page adventure filled with mystery and suspense for 5e detailed maps, immersive lore”
- Gamemaster’s Guide to Fairies & Fairy Tales for 5e from Ty Hulse raises funds for “This book uses mythology and lore to provide players and GM’s new options for playing fairies, shamans, witches, & fairytale realms”
- Moonward’s Magical Menagerie & Book of Natural Magic Zine 03 from Dan Sprietzer nominates “Bringing the Magic of all sorts to your Fantasy Roleplay Game”
- Foelio Vol.2 for use with OSR from Jeremy Hart Illos is working on “A second volume of FOELIO for your OSR game featuring 17 new monsters in an art-punkish zine. Full-color. Full-bleed. POD stretch goal.”
- TRUE-d6 +2 🎲 new Tinker class for TRUE-d6 from Nerdura Games suggests “New class and specializations for the best TTRPG ever.”
- Craft & Conquer from Jerry Joe Seltzer raises funds for “The Complete Guide to Crafting in Dungeons & Dragons”
- Grab & Go Encounters II from Declan Gray is working on “5 ready to play encounters for TTRPGs, D&D, 5E, Pathfinder, OSR and Savage Worlds compatible. Digital maps and digital monster tokens.”
- Mechanical 7-in-1 Dice from Anapa is working on “An Adventure Across Time and Space”
- Monster Vault 2: Deadly Creatures for 5E D&D and TOV from Kobold Press nominates “More than 300 all-new monsters, including dangerous demons and horrifying new undead. The monster book your players fear!”
- The Scrappers Handbook: Loot Tables for Sci-Fi Encounters from Samuel Steele pitches “Over 1000 pieces of loot that can be inserted in any sci-fi tabletop role-playing game. And for every backer, we’re adding more!”
- AccessoryCraft: Create your accessories for DnD 5E from Legendary Scribes is working on “Master the art of crafting accessories in D&D: unique rings, enchanted amulets, and powerful relics to enhance your TTRPG adventures!”
- Lands of Myths: Nature & Magic V.2 (Make 100 Edition) from Redal Velis pitches “Lands of Myths return to grow! Don’t miss out this pack of 100 maps. 1 Backer = +2 maps! Every 1000€ = +100 maps. TTRPG VTT Battlemaps”
- Odyssey of the Wavejumper from Dark Eagle Games introduces “A level 1 adventure – where heroes shipwreck on an evil island – and escape by level 3 or 4.”
- Crazy Companions – 32+ complex creatures – DnD 5e compatible from Secrets of Alexandria offers “70+ PDF pages with complex and unique pets, familiars, mounts and companions for your next Dungeons and Dragons 5e or other RPG session”
- Eric -Man of War- 3d printable DnD 5e compatible 80s warrior from Necropolis of Sakkara pitches “Miniature STL files in 32mm + 75mm scale for gaming, painters, collectors and dioramas. Including D&D 5e compatible character sheet”
- Heaven’s Open Door: Diamond Class – A Sci-Fi TTRPG from Monkeyfun Studios, LLC offers “Monkeyfun Studios takes you into space and beyond with the first installment of their new RPG experience.”
- Epic 5e Supplements from Dragon Scale Games raises funds for “Epic supplements for 2025’s make 100, buildings with lore & maps, mercenaries, one shots, and more!”
- Let the Games Begin – Xcrawl Olympics from Ed Stanek pitches “Xcrawl has gone worldwide as live dungeon crawling comes to the Olympic Games.”
- Carnival of Shadows, DnD 5e Adventure from Ana the halfling suggests “A thrilling D&D 5e adventure set in a mysterious, story-rich carnival filled with secrets and danger!”
- Vault of the Forgotten Gods from Gerry nominates “A modular ready-to-run dungeon crawl for 5e, brimming with divine mysteries, perilous encounters, and legendary treasures. From £1”
- 2025 Dice Collection from Margareta Ciobanu suggests “New Dice, New Year, New Adventures!!!”
- Tome of Endless Romance 2: RPG Adventures of Love & Intimacy from Mobinet Games submits “Sure, bashing kobolds is great, but have you tried love? Forge bonds and face perils together with this RPG supplement – now part 2!”
- The Sleeping Spire Dice Tower – Pay What You Want Vol.14 from Fantasy3DTabletop nominates “3D Printable Fantasy Dice Tower STLs for Board Games & Tabletop RPGs. Expertly Optimized for Support-Free 3D Printing on FDM Printers.”
- Mesothassia: a 90s anime Greek mythology TTRPG from Renko Rodenburg suggests “Play as mythological heroes in an anime-inspired Mediterranean fantasy world”
- The Administration – Book 2: Time to Act from Brian C submits “The second book in the continuing ‘The Administration’ series.”
- GOTA: Guardians Of The Abyss – A Fantasy Rpg TableTop Game from Studio Lyra proposes “Become a hero in a fantasy world in Guardians Of The Abyss. Defeat evil and save the world with a party of four.”
Do you know of an RPG news source that we don’t? Let us know, or leave a comment below.
