Black Armada Games, the British indie studio behind Lovecraftesque and Last Fleet, has launched a Kickstarter campaign for Advent Adventures, a pair of physical advent calendars that double as daily solo roleplaying games. Regular Geek Native readers would have known this was coming, as we’ve been talking to Black Armada about it since UK Games Expo.
Designed by Josh Fox and Becky Annison, the project offers two distinct flavours of festive storytelling: the cosy, family-friendly Advent of Adventure and the folk-horror-inspired Advent of Abomination. Having already surpassed its £1,600 initial funding goal within hours, the campaign aims to print and ship physical units in time for December.
Each A4 cardboard calendar contains 25 perforated doors hiding daily prompts to drive a solo journaling narrative. The physical rules are printed directly on the reverse of the calendar, keeping the barrier to entry minimal for players who wish to write, sketch, or record their daily logs throughout December. Early backers who pledge before midnight on Thursday 23rd July receive Sleigh w/me, a rules-light party game about piloting Santa’s lost sleigh.
Dual themes: High fantasy vs folk horror
The lightweight mechanical framework relies entirely on prompt-driven creative writing or drawing. In Advent of Adventure, illustrated by digital artist Bri (Bright Bard Games), the player takes on the role of the sole elf who escaped capture when a dragon invaded the North Pole. Over 25 days, players navigate prompts to thwart the dragon and salvage Christmas, leaning into cosy Home Alone tropes set in Santa’s workshop.
Conversely, Advent of Abomination, illustrated by UK artist Harrie Leith, presents a darker alternative. Set in an isolated forest cabin, the game puts players through a daily folk-horror chronicle during a cold winter retreat. The design draws directly on an early, self-published iteration of the game, which required the team to hand-cut every advent door with craft knives, a manual process now replaced by commercial die-cutting.
We believe that art is essentially a human-made thing. We and our artists have not knowingly used generative AI in the creation of the game or the art.”
Production and fulfillment plans
The writing, playtesting, and artwork for both calendars are complete before the campaign concludes, allowing Black Armada to send files directly to commercial printers as soon as funding clears. To mitigate shipping costs and the impact of evolving international tariff structures, UK taxes are included directly in the pledge prices, while US fulfilment is managed through a domestic distribution partner to avoid small-package customs thresholds.
For players seeking the core experience, the physical calendars are available individually for £15 (including the bookmarked PDF version) or as part of the Team Indecision tier for £25. The Team Indecision Fun Pack (£45) includes matching A4 art prints, sticker sheets, and colouring pages, offering a 37% discount compared to the individual add-on prices. Digital-only PDF editions are available at £5 per title or £9 for both.
- Pledge £5: Team Digital Adventure. Includes a bookmarked PDF file containing all story prompts and cover art for Advent of Adventure.
- Pledge £5: Team Digital Abomination. Includes a bookmarked PDF file containing all story prompts and cover art for Advent of Abomination.
- Pledge £9: Team Digital Indecision. Includes bookmarked PDF files for both Advent of Adventure and Advent of Abomination.
- Pledge £15: Team Adventure. Includes the printed A4 Advent of Adventure calendar alongside its digital PDF edition.
- Pledge £15: Team Abomination. Includes the printed A4 Advent of Abomination calendar alongside its digital PDF edition.
- Pledge £25: Team Indecision. Includes physical copies of both printed calendars (Advent of Adventure and Advent of Abomination) plus their respective digital PDF files.
- Pledge £28: Team Adventure Fun Pack. Includes the Advent of Adventure printed calendar, digital PDF, matching A4 art print, sticker sheet, and colouring sheet.
- Pledge £28: Team Abomination Fun Pack. Includes the Advent of Abomination printed calendar, digital PDF, matching A4 art print, sticker sheet, and colouring sheet.
- Pledge £45: Team Indecision Fun Pack. Includes physical copies of both calendars, both digital PDFs, both A4 art prints, both sticker sheets, and both colouring sheets.
- Pledge £65: Christmas Card Creativity. Includes all items from the Team Indecision Fun Pack plus a handwritten, dated bonus creative prompt from creators Josh Fox and Becky Annison.
Reporting on the growth of the solo RPG space previously highlighted how self-contained prompts offer an accessible entry point for new designers. By integrating simple rules directly onto functional holiday packaging, this project turns a seasonal counting tradition into an accessible gateway for solo play.
The crowdfunding campaign runs until mid-August with an estimated delivery window of November 2026.
