Yo! It’s Superhero Week and a busy one here in Geek Native HQ.
Here’s the week’s TTRPG summary of summaries
- In a shocking move, liquidated Diamond seizes tabletop games from over 100 publishers.
- Congratulations to all the 2025 ENnie nominees.
- Gary Con badges go on sale on Saturday, the 19th.
- As it’s Superhero Week, I poke at the unlikely places you can find new DC TTRPGs.
On with the news!
It’s the start of the month, and we’re halfway through the year, which means Geek Native’s amazingly supportive patrons can vote for the August spotlight. The candidates are;
On with the news!
Spotlight: Empyreal Media Productions.
RPG news from Geek Native
- There’s another unpleasant gotcha with Diamond as the liquidators grab control of over 100 tabletop publishers’ games!
- We got there before the end of the month and an xenobiology spotlight interview with Diane Ramic.
- Geek Native reviewed James D’Mato’s The Ultimate RPG Worldbuilding Deck.
- For Superhero Week, I asked What’s happening with the new DC superhero TTRPGs?
- I also noted that G.I. Joe RPG Quartermaster’s Guide to Gear Sourcebook lands on Fantasy Grounds.
- For the August RPG Spotlight vote, I noted it would be Alfred Hitchcock’s birthday and asked What could DMs learn from SIR Alfred?
- Fashion brand BlackMilk is teaming up with Dungeons & Dragons again.
- There are RPG deals to be found in Big Heckin’ Four-Day Prime Day: Anyone but Amazon!
- At the Bundle of Holding, you can find a deal for Broken Tales.
- On Humble, there’s an extraordinary deal with Roll Big or Go Home.
Support: Patreon
RPG news from around the web
- The 2025 ENnies nominees have been announced.
- Gary Con XVII badge sales open on Saturday, 19th.
- Chaosium notes that the BRP Challenge finalist “In Death” launches on Itch (Right here.)
- TTRPG Insider shared The State of TTRPG Crowdfunding in 2025 (So Far).
- Handiwork Games, the ENnie-nominated studio, announced new Backdrop Books
- ICv2 writes up that Kobold Press is set to release a new bestiary rulebook for the “Tales of the Valiant RPG.”.
- The Kind GM shares an Unearthed Arcana Analysis: Arcane Subclasses, and at Wargame,r Cat Bussell notes that Dungeons and Dragons’ new subclasses let you play a Wizard with a gun.
- The DMsGuild is running a D&D Celebrating Eberron sale.
RPG reviews and interviews from around the web
- Grognardia wrote up a retrospective on The Glacial Rift of the Frost Giant Jarl.
- Mixed Signals shared a review of Imperium Maledictum.
- My Flippin’ Pancake Day wrote up either a retrospective or a chatty review on Ars Magica.
- Throat Punch Games published a retrospective on Grave Robbers of Thracia.
- Roleplayers Chronicle reviewed Starfinder’s Galaxy Guide.
- Playful Void shared thoughts on Wind Wraith.
- Christian Hoffer opined DRAGON DELVES Delivers Swift Adventures for DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Fans.
- John Farrell and Mike Dunn published Daggerheart review — more than a heartbreaker.
- Autostraddle’s Rowan Zeoli penned ‘Daggerheart’ Is a New, Even Queerer D&D From the Team Behind ‘Critical Role’.
- Halfway Station reviewed Swyvers.
- MRJ RPG examined the Call of Cthulhu: Forget Me Not.
- The Alexandrian republished a review of D&D’s The Speaker in Dreams.
- Ill Met by Morrslieb reviewed the Dark Heresy 1e Purge the Unclean.
- Sly Flourish wrote up the Chessex Battle Mat.
- Reviews from R’lyeh had a cracker of a week with reviews for Shock and Mayhem, Nations & Cannons core rules, Whispers of Chaos, the Arzium Quickstart, Where the Zal River Flows and Parable Games’ Shiver Slasher Starter.
- TTRPG Insider’s Christopher Hutton talks James D’Amato: Taking TTRPGs to the Everyday Man.
- Temple of Geek wrote up Snowbright Studio’s Teatime Adventures Spotlights The Importance Of Collaboration & Learning In A Cozy Adventure Setting.
RPG new releases
- Schwalb Entertainment has published the Demon Lord Engine: Rules Compendium.
- Play as a ghost in Dimwood Studio’s In Death.
- Play as a transhuman in Ekorren’s Machineborn.
- Necrotic Gnome released the PDF of Dolmenwood Campaign Book.
- LPJ Design, in time for Superhero Week, published Strike Squad Alpha.
- In physical, Fanroll has released an Orb of Possibility .
RPG bundle deals
- Save $24.99 (42%) in R. Talsorian Games’ Cyberpunk RED: Edgerunners Mission Kit Cross-Platform bundle.
- Save $20 (17%) in Necrotic Gnome’s Dolmenwood Ultimate bundle.
- Save $8 (29%) with Goodman Games’ July 2025 Bundle – Xcrawl Summer Games.
- Save $5 (8%) with Necrotic Gnome’s Dolmenwood Core Books bundle.
RPG ideas, tips and discoveries
- I’m not the only one who thinks the Daggerheart will destroy D&D reaction is too much, as Wargamer’s Alex Evans opines Daggerheart won’t kill DnD – but in the long run, corporate complacency might.
- Kobold Press shared a Design Diary with Wolfgang Baur, designer on Labyrinth Worldbook, part 1. You can also download Kobold’s latest Worldbook.
- Christian Hoffer helped with D&D’s New Solo Player Guideline Explained.
RPG Crowdfunding
There’s more! You can catch up with the Kickstarter campaign we’ve written up in more detail at Kickstarter watch. Here are some noteworthy industry projects to mention:
- The Shattered Path: 5e Level 10 One-Shot Adventure from Jeyleigh crowdfunds “Delve into ancient ruins, outwit deadly puzzles, and test your party in an immersive drop-in dungeon for high-level 5e adventurers”
- Alien Biosphere from NukaZombee is working on “Create and evolve life on alien planets in this easy-to-learn PnP game of terraforming, building ecosystems and surviving cataclysms.”
- Internet Based Subclasses Vol. 2 – 5e from The Beta Gamers suggests “Brainrot Edition”
- SEABORNE: The Ultimate Pirate TTRPG from Yasha Wyatt is working on “Gather your crew and experience a TTRPG Dedicated to Swashbuckling Adventure!”
- The Broken Seal: A 5E Campaign Setting of Shattered Magic from Ryan Prince crowdfunds “A 5E-compatible sourcebook where magic is broken, crystals burn, and heroes must seal the chaos — or embrace it.”
- In Melee Range from The Praetorians introduces “Networking app that allows TTRPG enthusiasts to connect; find campaigns and players in your area and join in the fun!”
- Dungeons & Dragons: An American Institution from Dominic Martyne introduces “A new history book about the D&D hobby.”
- Kansas City RPG & Wargame Club from Kansas City RPG & Wargame Club nominates “Help us launch an inclusive space in Kansas City for roleplaying games, wargames, painting nights, and storytelling.”
- GM’s Toolbox 3 from Kabouter Games submits “EVEN MORE system-neutral tools! Trinkets, Seedy Dives, Magic Items, Riddles, 1-Page Dungeons, Monsters, and more for your RPG!”
- D&D 5e oneshot adventure: The Last Banquet from Hugo introduces “A new adventure in where you must stop a deadly plot to poison the queen and her court during a royal banquet held by a rival kingdom”
- Purple Reaping: Dark Fantasy TTRPG from Marco Calesella suggests “A Dark Fantasy setting with both narrative indie TTRPG or D&D5E-compatible rules, where heroes fight evil both within and without.”
- Traumatic from Lifeless Games is working on “A Horror PBtA RPG About Facing the Darkness”
- Loomlite: A modern campaign management app from Adithya Radhakrishnan raises funds for “Weave your stories with Loomlite. Create and manage your TTRPG campaigns with ease.”
- SideQuest Volume 1: A Collection of 5e Solo Adventure Shorts from Obvious Mimic pitches “250+ pages | 20+ hours of gameplay | 11 solo adventure shorts”
- THE OUTER: Arcane Woven from TJ Faulkner suggests “World of Kralha presents another D&D 5e supplement, chalk full of alien monsters and powerful homebrew spells.”
- Solo Playing vsD from Peter Rudin-Burgess kickstarts “A solo roleplaying supplement for use with Against the Darkmaster”
- ENGRAM – An Adventure for the Mothership RPG from Green Moon Games submits “Clones, lobotomy and AI without limits. Will you let the system manipulate you, or will you lead a revolution to save the day?”
- Harrowshade from Paweł Kicman nominates “A solo adventure supplement for the dying world of MÖRK BORG.”
- Survive! – TTRPG Battlemaps from That Dungeon Guy offers “200 zombie apocalypse maps and 50 survival tokens for D&D/PF/TTRPG (VTT). Every Backer adds 1 map to the pack.”
- Botch Dice: Founders Edition from Bob Spircoff introduces “Luxury 7-Die RPG sets made in the USA featuring our cutting edge InkFX™ technology.”
- The Quest Keeper’s Deck of Character Development from The Smoking Barrel Tavern proposes “78 Fantasy-Inspired Quests to Spark Adventure, Transformation, and Real-Life Growth”
- Last Fleet to Vega from Darrin Drader is working on “A 5E Based Space Crawl/Space Opera Game”
- Steampunk 3D Printable Dice Tower Supportfree STL #3 from Fantasy3Dream submits “3D printable fantasy Dice Tower for Tabletop & Board Games, Optimized for supportless 3D printing on FDM printers. DnD, Pathfinder, RPG”
- Streetwise – 50 cyberpunk locations for TTRPGs from Artistech Solutions introduces “50 locations, 200 pages, 150+ NPCs, story hooks & atmosphere for every cyberpunk TTRPG – available in English & French.”
- Biomes in Maksur: Deserts from Cave Gaming suggests “TTRPG Resources for running Desert Adventures!”
- Kobold Press Bestiary Miniatures IV from John Popson nominates “A Curated Collection of 32mm Plastic Miniatures from Tome of Beasts I, II, III & the Creature Codex”
- 100 One-Shots: Instant Adventures for Fantasy RPGs from The Midnight Quill kickstarts “Ready-to-run adventures for fantasy RPGs. Everything you need to spark unforgettable gaming moments with minimal prep!”
- Swords Against the Shadows from Newt Newport offers “A complete Swords and Sorcery Tabletop Roleplaying Game, based on The Black Hack”
- Steam Highwayman IV: Princes of the West from Martin Noutch pitches “The steampunk open-world gamebook series continues: a solo rpg set in an England that never was.”
- Zareth’s Book of Hidden Ways [5e] from Belazan Games nominates “A horde of subclasses for every 5E class. Bold, brutal, deeply playable. Packed with flavor & forged in the fires of old-school design.”
- Red Die System: Expanded Magics and Beasts from Mark Parish proposes “Two new books for the Red Die System RPG”
- The Body of a Wizard: A DnD 5E Adventure from Dunmore Rolls Rocks crowdfunds “The leading wizard of the age is sick. Your only chance is to get shrunk and go up his bum and cure him.”
- Side Quest Game Lounge from Side Quest Game Lounge suggests “Find your party. Start your quest.”
- Enchanted Loot, Designed for Use with ShadowDark RPG from Philip Reed crowdfunds “48 new treasure cards by Philip Reed for use with the ShadowDark roleplaying game! Available in digital and print-on-demand.”
- The Gourmet Grimoire for DnD 5e from Chaotic Neutral Visionary nominates “A 5e fantasy cookbook with illustrated recipes, immersive lore, and balanced mechanics for downtime and exploration.”
- Magic Tokens and Coins from Hera’stone nominates “A 3D collection about a lot of tokens printable in STL.”
- Absorbed: An Unbelievable Ooze Reward Guide from The Monster Directive is working on “”Absorbed” gives game masters 150+ ready-to-use rewards and secrets for any ooze encounter!”
- Order of Criminals: An Ultimate D&D 5e Criminal Organization from Black Cube Games nominates “Unleash 100 unique criminal organizations in your DnD campaigns, with dark secrets, twisted lore, thrilling heists, and deadly NPCs!”
- Chain Censer #1 from Donn Stroud crowdfunds “The official zine for the Ruination Pilgrimage RPG”
- Pay What You Want Fantasy Music for your RPG / D&D session from Bardic Symphony proposes “Compilation of Bardic Songs and Ambient Music for your D&D and Rpg sessions, to create an even more immersive experience.”
- The Meridian Map: A D&D 5e/2024 Campaign from Brian C introduces “Immense treasure and untold danger await in this Dungeons and Dragons 5E/2024 campaign”
- Sanguine Sigils: Vampire-Themed Dice for Tabletop RPGs from Daniel Bigazzi nominates “Un set di dadi da GDR artigianali, ispirati ai vampiri e forgiati nell’oscurità. Per chi narra storie nell’ombra.”
Do you know of any RPG news sources we might not know? If so, please let us know or leave a comment below.
