Three Sails Studios has confirmed the crowdfunding launch date for their upcoming grimdark tabletop roleplaying game, Gallows Corner. The campaign is scheduled to begin on Kickstarter on 3 February.
The announcement follows a successful weekend for the studio at Dragonmeet in London, where their debut game, Mappa Mundi, was awarded the Gold Award for Best RPG. The studio is looking to carry that momentum into Gallows Corner, a game that shifts focus from the mythological to the socio-political struggles of the Peasants’ Revolt.
Geography as the Enemy
While many fantasy RPGs position monsters or dark gods as the primary antagonists, Gallows Corner identifies a different source of power: land ownership. George, the studio lead and designer, posits that the true strength of the crown, the church, and the nobility lies not in weaponry but in control of space.
To simulate this struggle, the game utilises a ‘Point Crawl’ system. This mechanic breaks England down into smaller locations, assigning specific ‘Verbs’ to them. When players visit these locations, they engage with scenarios dictated by these verbs, attempting to liberate the populace.
Simultaneously, players must contend with the ‘County Verb’, the specific form of tyranny exercised by the antagonist in that region. In a gameplay example provided by the studio, a High Sheriff in Essex might use the verb ‘Break’ to enforce a famine. If players enter an area with the location verb ‘Protect’, the resulting scene might involve defending farms from the Sheriff’s men. Success reduces the county’s ‘Control Value’, mechanically representing the erosion of the antagonist’s power.
Production and Progress
Three Sails has released images of the production samples for the physical book. The standard edition will feature a black cloth binding with embossed silver foil, printed in Istanbul. The studio emphasised that, despite the deluxe appearance, this specification is intended for the game’s standard price point.
Regarding the development timeline, the writing for the core book is reportedly complete. Two of the four planned zines for the Kickstarter campaign, A Spark Takes Hold and The Gold of Greenwood, are also written and awaiting editing. The remaining zines, including The Book of Outlaws and The Enemy of My Enemy (written by Yvris Burke), are nearing completion.
The artistic direction is also advancing, with ‘Trade’ spreads nearing completion before the art team shifts focus to the regional sections and zine illustrations.
Trying the System
For those wishing to test the mechanics before the February launch, a prerelease guide is currently available. It includes the necessary rules to run a game at home, along with a prewritten introductory adventure.
You can download the Gallows Corner Prerelease Guide from DriveThruRPG.
The Kickstarter campaign page is currently in pre-launch status, allowing interested parties to sign up for notifications ahead of the 3 February start date.
