It’s August and Geek Native’s “quiet month” as the team covers the Edinburgh Festivals for other blogs. Good news, we’re still keeping an eye on TTRPG news elsewhere, though!
Speaking of which, on with the summary of summaries!
- Brennan Lee Mulligan is (for now) taking over DMing for Matt Mercer.
- A Diablo TTRPG is on the way.
- Draw Steel is a new TTRPG gaining attention.
The top tip for getting Geek Native news quickly is still RSS but on the socials we’re also on:
Gosh. It’s late!
And now, the Routinely Itemised TTRPG news.
Spotlight: Infinite Reimagine.
RPG news from Geek Native
- We asked Beyond Exandria: Why Brennan Lee Mulligan is a strategic masterstroke for Critical Role’s future.
- Supporting the Kickstarter for Candlelight Investigation, we talked to Will Fish.
- Green Ronin released the £12 playtest edition of Mutants & Masterminds Origin Edition.
Competition: Adventuring Family
RPG news from around the web
- Polygon’s Francesco Cacciatore boldly suggests D&D and Critical Role have entered the TTRPG Cold War era and I’m thrilled.
- NPR’s Scott Greenstone writes It started with friends at home. Now Dungeons & Dragons is in its stadium era.
- Rascal has an exclusive as DIE returns to the table with Loaded comic run and RPG quickstart.
- ICv2 picks up the news that the ‘Diablo: The Roleplaying Game’ Incoming.
- Polygon’s Samantha Nelson looks into Draw Steel aims to woo D&D players with more action and less missing.
- ICv2 runs with Two ‘D&D: Forgotten Realms’ Unveiled.
- At EN World, Christian Hoffer pens Dungeons & Dragons Teams Up With New Holland For New Beer
- Tribality hosts Free League – Coriolis: The Great Dark Roleplaying Game.
- Pre-orders are open for the new Dungeons & Dragons Heroes of Hellfire Stranger Things.
RPG reviews and interviews from around the web
- Reviews from R’lyeh looks into OSE’s The Magonium Mine Murders, the 1985 Call of Cthulhu supplement Fragments of Fear and the quickstart for Tunnels & Trolls: A New Age.
- The Kind GM reviews Nameia’s Laboratory.
- Throat Punch Games has a ring side report on RPG review of The Electric State.
- IGN’s Scott White writes This New Dungeons & Dragons Starter Set Helps Beginners Explore the Realms of D&D.
- Grognardia has a retrospective on Alone Against the Wendigo.
- Ill Met by Morrslieb reviews Skarok and a Hard Place (WFRP 4e).
- Geek Dad looks at Face Your Reptilian Overlords With the Beadle & Grimm’s ‘Dragon Delves’ DM Vault.
- Halfway Station reviews Modern AGE Basic Rulebook.
- Rascal has an interview with The Man Who Bought And Sold D&D.
- Egg Embry talks Morkham Asylum with Philip Reed and Ed Bourelle.
- Alex Evans at Wargamer talks to Dominic McDowall of Cubicle 7 and says CEO tells us what’s next for Warhammer The Old World tabletop RPG.
- Fandomentals’s Dan Arndt interviews With New Collaborations And Surprising Partnerships, Laura Hohman Hopes To Create A More Collaborative D&D Beyond.
- James Maliszewski has an interview with Chaosium’s Mike Mason.
- The Gaming Gan has a series of Gen Con 2025 video interviews;
RPG new releases
- Wildfire has released CthulhuTech books;
- The Shadow War Player’s Handbook.
- The Shadow War Game Master’s Guide.
- And updated the Quickstart.
- Relentless Fiction has published A World of Haint: The roleplaying game of Jim Crow era horror.
- Underground Oracle Publishing has released a free quickstart for Harrow: The Blighted Plane.
- 0one Games has released the Boundless City
- Limithron has released the Roll20 module Hangman’s Jungle.
- Dueling Dragon Adventures has released Titans of Fallen Earth.
- Rookie Jet Studios publishes the fantasy opera Espers.
- FantasyBound has published the core rules for Moss, Stone & Steel.
- Sounds and Dragons has released a quickstart guide for Magusborne.
- Sevenson Tavern has published Korean Folklore Bestiary: Monster Manual for 5e.
- Ossian has released their TTRPG Roleplaying in the Age of Song.
RPG bundle deals
- Save $41.43 (66%) with Relentless Fiction’s Hexenverse bundle.
- Save $34.00 (20%) in Necrotic Gnome’s Old-School Essentials Ultimate bundle.
- Save $12.96 (18%) in Zweihander Games’ ZWEIHANDER Reforged Edition: Complete PDF Set bundle.
- Save $3 (8%) with Darrin Drader Designs’ Daring & Dread Campaign Setting bundle.
RPG ideas, tips and discoveries
- D&D Beyond offers advice they hope you follow with How to Hook Your Friends and Family on D&D in One Night.
- Wargamer has DnD artist shares dazzling new gem dragon art for upcoming book.
- Stan Hogeweg opines For Better or Worse, Dungeons and Dragons Could Go the Way of Magic: The Gathering.
- The Angry GM shares The Campaign Manager’s Guide to Conflict Resolution: Part I.
- The Grinning Rat asks Why Are Most Modules Terrible?.
- Mollie Russell, at Wargamer, shares DnD’s going all in on fanservice, and I’m nervous for the Forgotten Realms books.
- Sly Flourish pens Lazy World Building.
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:
- Echoes of Heaven Returns in The Festering Earth! from Robert J Defendi crowdfunds “Sequel to Echoes of Heaven. Contains the second adventure in the Moving Shadow Campaign and a sourcebook on Felric’s Redoubt.”
- Dark Star Arcana: A TTRPG Adventure Subscription from Dark Star Arcana LLC crowdfunds “Embark on legendary adventures every month with exclusive RPG content, dice, maps, and more!”
- The Book of Classes – for D&D 5e from Xavier Rivard kickstarts “+100 pages book of 24 new classes inspired by the originals, each with subclasses, for Dungeons & Dragons 5e”
- Adamite Gemstone Dice Set from Cosmia suggests “Pure Adamite Gems | Stunning Fluorescence | Rare Green Birefringence | Hand Crafted and Packaged | Custom Engravings with Every Set”
- NPC Chronicles: give your NPCs voices by pro voice actors! from Maksim Razboynikov nominates “NPC Chronicles software (PC, Mac) brings your TTRPG sessions to life with hundreds of dialogues performed by real voice actors!”
- Destiny’s Role: Venom Of Vortan – The Deluxe Edition from Mark Lain suggests “A special 5th Anniversary super deluxe coffee table hardback edition of DESTINY’S ROLE #2 with additional material”
- Deck of Old-School Encounters Set Four, OSR RPG Cards from Philip Reed pitches “A fourth deck of 72 systemless encounter cards. Can be used with any edition of the classic ampersand RPG. Written by Philip Reed.”
- Voodoo Queen, a low country D&D 5e horror adventure from Laurie kickstarts “Do you have the courage to answer the call and face the Curse of the Voodoo Queen?”
- Skarr Awakened from David Barrentine introduces “A TTRPG of choices and consequences.”
- The Life & Death Deck – D20 Dice Cards for D&D and TTRPGs from Draw20 pitches “The original evolving D20 you shuffle. Compatible with D&D, Daggerheart and any TTRPG dice system. Illustrated by community artists!”
- Storms, Souls & Sorrow from Nightmare Food LTD pitches “A Tarot deck and TTRPG Accessory. Generate weather, stats, backgrounds and more for any D20 based RPG.”
- Brassreach: A Floating City of Gears, Secrets, and Steam from Steven Chabotte pitches “A Unique Clockwork Campaign Setting With New Character Options for 5e”
- Dinosaur Timeslip 1988 from Greg Setliff / Bug Professor introduces “A 0-level dinosaur-apocalypse adventure for Dungeon Crawl Classics tabletop RPG set in New Jersey in the 1980s”
- Instruments of Darkness – A Mothership RPG Adventure from Charles Macdonald offers “Drop supplies. Pick up ore. Transport a Compliance Officer to the Banquo Mining Facility. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.”
- Warleague = Wargame + Dungeon Crawler + TTRPG from Mesut Ozdogan pitches “Race against time in a deadly maze: dodge traps, clash with monsters & rivals—solo, co-op, or competitive play!”
- Guardians of Secret and Shadow from Matthew Yarro proposes “Uncover legendary subclasses, amazing class options, spells, magic items, and more in this immersive 200+ page expansion.”
- The Grand Coven Library — Solo RPG Zine from Scott Russell Morris submits “A cozy solo rpg about cataloging magical books.”
- Ebb&Ori’s Codex of the Undersea – A 5e Tome from Planar Express pitches “200+ pages filled with everything you need to explore and learn about playing D&D in the shallows and the depths!”
- Mecha Vs Kaiju 202X | An Anime Storytelling RPG from Johnathan Wright is working on “Battle Colossal Kaiju with Custom Mecha in this narrative TTRPG backwards compatible with 5E!”
- Cryptid Monster Cards for 5e, OSE, and SURVIVE THIS!! TTRPGs from Eric Bloat pitches “Tarot-sized monster cards with art and full stats. Featuring Bigfoot, Mothman, Jersey Devil, and more!”
- RPG Maps – 550 RPG Maps from Arid Worlds from Benjámin Weisz kickstarts “Evocative desert maps for stories of survival, ancient magic, and the lost empires buried beneath the dunes.”
- Zeta Complex: Robots and Roller Coasters for Savage Worlds from New Comet Games offers “Robots and Roller Coasters – It’s to Die For! A Zeta Complex adventure for Savage Worlds.”
- Shadows Over Sol: Second Edition | Sci-Fi Horror Roleplaying from Tab Creations LLC offers “Dark science fiction tabletop RPG, unveiling a future of conspiracy and horror”
- Twisted Tales from Talking Frog crowdfunds “A dark 5E supplement of fairy tale horrors, cursed magic, and strange encounters.”
- Biomes in Maksur: Volcanoes from Cave Gaming crowdfunds “TTRPG Resources for running Volcanic Adventures!”
- Aerathain – Civil War – DnD 5 E supplement from Gearwheel Grimoires is working on “The second chapter of the nocturne trilogy.”
- Absurd Abominations – 100+ monsters – DnD 5e compatible from Secrets of Alexandria kickstarts “150+ pages with complex and unique monsters for your next Dungeons and Dragons 5e or other RPG session, VTT tokens included”
- Kilgarde – Chapter One from Ross crowdfunds “Build the town, uncover its secrets—3D-printable terrain + lore, NPCs, and handouts for your next fantasy tabletop adventure.”
- D100: Things That Fell From The Sky (5e) from Michael TaylorLyfe pitches “A 5e supplement packed with 100 wild sky-born encounters, treasures, monsters, and divine chaos—one roll at a time.”
- The Structure: RPG Lite – Survival Horror Tabletop Game from Matt Burks nominates “A Psychological Survival Horror RPG in an Endless Maze (MORK BORG compatible)”
- TARRASQUE DICE TOWER – STL FILES from HOMERO APAESTEGUI PANTA introduces “DICE TOWER STL FILES”
- Dungeon Trader: Live D&D Trading & Character App from Felix S pitches “The companion for real-time trading, merchant interactions & character management”
- Dragonbane: The Bloodwood from Dunderdagar introduces “What mysteries lie hidden within the legendary and cursed forest of Bloodwood? An adventure for Dragonbane from Dunderdagar.”
- Moonshine: A 1920s Noir TTRPG from Benjamin Goldman raises funds for “Step into the Roaring Twenties with Moonshine, a thrilling TTRPG that combines the glamour of the 20s with a touch of the supernatural.”
- Excursion Tiles from Xykit submits “Hexagons, Squares and Triangles, Oh my! A modular, 28/32mm, 3D printable dungeon set with base grids, risers, and tiles for your TTRPGs”
- Arcane Bookshelf: 100+ In-World Books for D&D Campaigns from Bradley Horton proposes “100+ unique DnD in-game books to loot, buy, or discover, filled with secrets, NPCs, and adventures for your campaigns!”
- The Lost Codex of Da Vinci, DnD 5e Adventure from Ana the halfling submits “A thrilling D&D 5e adventure through Renaissance intrigue, dark secrets, and Da Vinci’s mysterious masterpieces!”
- SideQuests: Tavern Tales (5e & 5.5e) from Dominic M. suggests “A collection of 12 easy oneshot adventures, designed to get your players out of a tavern and into your world!”
- Diceal’s Dragonforged Gemstone Dice from Diceal crowdfunds “One Legendary Design, Five Elemental Essences (Amethyst, Clear Quartz, Obsidian, Yellow Tiger’s Eye & African Bloodstone)”
- Orcs are A-HOLES! TTRPG Inspired Enamel Pin Set (2nd Chance) from Nydaria Entertainment raises funds for “This hard enamel pin set celebrates Orc trash across three different Orc clans. Remember kids, all Orcs are a-holes!”
- TymeQuest from Trisha suggests “TymeQuest is an RPG that fuses classic dice-rolling mechanics with futuristic combat and deep lore. Set in a post-apocalyptic world.”
- Witch-Lords of Skull Mountain #2: Malkova Wilds #Zinequest from Paul Wolfe raises funds for “Issue #2 of the sword & sorcery hexcrawl #zinequest for Shadowdark, DCC RPG, and OSR games”
- 💥 MUSHROOM WITNESSES: Post-Apocalyptic TTRPG Kit from FREAK FACTORY crowdfunds “A gonzo post-apocalyptic TTRPG in 1950s comic style. Build freaks, fight weirdos, scavenge junk, cause chaos… and maybe explode.”
- SagaBorn Dice: a Green 20 Sided d100 from Michael Bielaczyc crowdfunds “Making a d100 roll as well as a d20, now in green!”
Do you know of any RPG news sources we might not know? If so, please let us know or leave a comment below.
