Rowan, Rook and Decard have announced Children of Time: The Roleplaying Game, an ambitious adaptation of Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning science fiction series. The project sees the Sheffield-based publisher moving from the grim-dark fantasy of Heart to a sprawling cosmic stage where players guide the evolution of entire civilisations across thousands of years.
The game promises a dual-narrative structure, tasking players with managing the desperate remnants of humanity aboard “ark ships” while simultaneously nurturing a new, non-human society on a terraformed world. This “twinned society” mechanic is designed to build toward a final, existential question: what happens when these two radically different cultures finally meet in orbit?
Evolution, not just PbtA
While the game draws DNA from Minærva McJanda’s Legacy: Life Among the Ruins, the studio is keen to position this as a distinct evolution of their internal systems. The “Beats” and “Fallout” mechanics, seen in Heart: The City Beneath, return to ensure that failure remains a narrative engine rather than a dead stop. Grant Howitt, Minærva McJanda, and Elaine Lithgow are spearheading the design, aiming to balance the intimate drama of individual “Viewpoints” with the macro-scale decisions of “the Crowd” or “the Ship” itself.
The decision for Tchaikovsky to partner with an independent powerhouse like Rowan, Rook and Decard likely stems from their proven track record with complex literary adaptations. Their work on DIE, the roleplaying game based on Kieron Gillen’s comic series, demonstrated a unique ability to preserve an author’s specific thematic “voice” while providing a robust mechanical framework. We know that Adrian has been looking for a Children of Time RPG publisher since 2023.
Bridging the Micro and the Macro
The central challenge for any Children of Time adaptation is the sheer scale. The novels span generations, making traditional character-centric adventuring difficult. The developers address this by allowing players to switch focus between “flashpoints of intimate character drama” and “large-scale societal shifts.”
Players aren’t just playing a pilot or a scientist; they are the authors of an exodus. The game allows for the construction of original ark ships and custom-uplifted species, or a direct retelling of the saga of the Gilgamesh and the evolution of the Portid spiders on Kern’s World.
The aesthetic of this decaying future is provided by Sam Lamont, whose work on Hollows and Dr Who has established him as a master of “used-future” sci-fi. His task is to depict the staggeringly wide expanse between the creaking ancient vessels and the vibrant, spider-mastered worlds they seek.
As independent geek news, we have published 7 articles on Adrian Tchaikovsky.
Latest entry: March 2026
