Award-winning RPG designer Sam Armstrong is returning to his roots of “stupid little zines” with an upcoming Kickstarter for Small Folk in Big Coats, a simple and chaotic roleplaying game.
The premise is a direct and playful take on the popular TTRPG meme of “three kobolds in a trench coat”. In the game, players will collaboratively control a group of small folk, such as goblins or even sheep, who are disguised under one large coat. The recipe for chaos is baked in, as each of the small folk has their own secret, and likely conflicting, objective. The challenge for the players is to achieve anything at all before their bickering compromises their disguise.
This concept will be familiar to many D&D players, and Geek Native has previously featured a statblock for the classic three kobolds in a trenchcoat monster. Armstrong’s design turns the joke into the core of the game itself, promising a narrative-focused experience of collaborative disaster.
The upcoming Kickstarter marks a shift in tone from Armstrong’s most recent release, Tales from the Spectral Sea. This gorgeously illustrated game, which was available at Tabletop Scotland this weekend, asks players to take on the roles of a ghostly pirate crew. Trapped in an afterlife limbo, the ex-pirates must help other spectral souls resolve their trauma to finally pass on.
Sam Armstrong has a reputation for running quick, efficient Kickstarter campaigns and offering his games at very fair prices. The campaign for Small Folk in Big Coats is expected to launch at the end of the month. You can follow the project’s pre-launch page on Kickstarter to be notified when it goes live. Physical copies of Armstrong’s previous work are available through his Ko-fi store.
Quick Start
A special thanks to All Rolled Up for sponsoring Geek Native’s coverage of Tabletop Scotland. You can find them in the trade hall and explore their fantastic range of indie RPGs and high-quality gaming accessories on the All Rolled Up website. You also also win £50 to spend with them.
