Our weekly round-up of TTRPG news stories is a day late as I was too ill on Friday. Regardless of health, I will be on a charity hike tomorrow, so let’s dig in!
Here’s the latest RPG news summaries of the summaries are;
- Monte Cook Games will adapt Rebecca Roanhorse’s Black Sun into a TTRPG.
- Handiwork Games’ Cold City, Hot War will get an OGL.
- Stop, Drop & Roll will publish Death to the Technomancer.
- Venger’s Decks will publish a standalone cyberpunk-themed version of The Chaos RPG.
- D&D says that Universes Beyond (eg, Star Trek) is designed to bring new players.
- Mistborn launches on Fantasy Grounds.
For the first time, we have a software project as the top Kickstarter in the crowdfunding section. That ‘honour’ goes to Chamomile Has A Project‘s Magic Chronicle: Cities, which is a solo TTRPG app and GM screen.
We also have Wildmagic Frontier by Sky Castle, which is basically a computer game and therefore would not normally qualify, but it’s a game made with Hero Forge. There are minis to collect, and so I let it in.
It’s a good time to recap how the crowdfunding section in Routinely Itemised works. Throughout the week, we have time to focus on a few launches, and these projects get their own write-up. The Kickstarters that don’t get their own write-up make it into this newsletter. I try to cover a complete set of TTRPGs as I can, plus a representative sample of complementary products such as STLs, dice, VTTs, and merch. We have not expanded to include Gamefound or BackerKit in this work. However, we do record all these Kickstarters and now have years of data for the Kickstarter Heat database.
On with the TTRPG news!
Spotlight: Red Ruin Games.
RPG news from Geek Native
- News from Monte Cook Games: Rebecca Roanhorse’s Black Sun series gets tabletop adaptation.
- There’s an incoming OGL for Handiwork Games’ Cold City, Hot War.
- Geek Native has a first look at Stop, Drop & Roll’s Death to the Technomancer.
- Lynnvader Studios and Steve Jackson Games will publish Munchkin TTRPG for 5.5e.
- The IWBG Game Workers union recruited members at Tabletop Scotland.
- Venger’s Desk will release a cyberpunk-themed alternative to The Chaos with a working title of The Grid.
- In another exclusive, we report on Blue Fox Comics’ new solo journaling RPG as part of their Bats in the Attic series.
- Three Sails Studios tells us about the Scotland/England divide for Gallows Corner even as City of Espers funds.
- Impressing Kenneth Hite, Scottish publisher Weird Specialty Productions brings Pokemon-style battles to the weird Warped TTRPG with Sprogs!.
- Italian publisher Hollow Press brought the dark Gorga TTRPG to the UK.
- Lost Haven will produce an expansion setting book for the JRPG-inspired Skies Above TTRPG.
- Moon Beast Games’ sci-fi clean up TTRPG Cleaning Crew is heading to the printers.
- Mythical Realms is expanding with door and trap tiles.
- Cross Paths Press will release Covens of Midnight 2: Secrets of Wonderland on Backerkit.
- Gamehole Publishing will bring Wardens of the Eastern Marches to UKGE.
- There’s a lot of Tabletop Scotland news here and the convention broke records with over 5,000 uniques.
- In crowdfunding stories, we looked Beyond the Golden Horizon.
- We spoke with the team at Pelegrane Press, interviewing Robin D. Laws and Kenneth Hite.
Support: Patreon.
RPG news from around the web
- Bleeding Cool’s Gavin Sheehan has the news Discworld: Adventures in Lancre and Überwald Core Book Announced.
- Necrotic Gnome gets into What’s Next for OSE and Dolmenwood? Find Out Here!.
- GameSpot features Darryn Bonthuys, who unpacks D&D Says Universes Beyond Is Designed To Bring In New Players, Not Push Out Existing Fans.
- The folks at ICv2 weighs in on Arkham Horror RPG’ Sings ‘Songs of New Orleans.
- eGamers.io’s George Tsagkarakis covers D&D Beyond with Wizards of the Coast Hands Out the Duskling, a Free New D&D Species.
- Rascal takes a look at Raccoon Sky Pirates Returns To Harrow The Suburbs and at Scryptid Games To Publish Bloomfall: A Storybook Roleplaying Game.
- Over at ICv2, the team writes about ICv2: New Wave of ‘D&D Nolzur’s Marvelous Miniatures’ Unveiled.
- Tabletop Sentinel writes up When Being a Dungeon Master Becomes a Job Qualification.
- It’s an advertorial on Den of Geek, but I noticed the release and wondered whether to cover it, so this will do! Hachette Unveils the Ultimate Dungeons & Dragons Novel Collection.
- Eric Michael Johnson for CBC News explores Why thousands are paying to watch people play Dungeons & Dragons live.
- Once again, Military.com talks tabletop as Tyan Thomas LaBee pens A Missouri Vet Center Has a New Way to Bring Veterans Together: Dungeons & Dragons.
Support: Fight the Algorithm
RPG reviews and interviews from around the web
- Checking in with Nerdist, Rotem Rusak investigates Dine at a Barbarian’s Table With Heroes’ Feast: Legends of the Table (exclusive Look).
- Reviews from R’lyeh reviews Avatar’s Adventure Booklet 3: Ash & Steel, Adventure Booklet 4: Air & Wind, Dragonbane’s Underworld, Pathfinder’s Things Go To Hell, Pulp Cthulhu’s Tooth & Claw, Marvel’s Secret Wars Expansion Preview, Pirate Borg’s Terror in Tortuga, and the Achtung! Cthulhu Operation Ultimatum.
- Jason Volk details Daggerheart: Hope & Fear for TTRPG Fanatics.
- Lion Codega at Rascal pens a piece on Blurring The Lines Between Larp And Tabletop, Nine Space Games Is Jason Morningstar’s Best Work Yet.
- Playful Void reviews Wages of Sin.
- Throat Punch Games shares a review: PIRATE BORG Starter Set.
- The Kind DM shares a review of Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game.
- Brandes Stoddard does a breakdown review of Arcana Unleashed.
- The RPG Gazette shares a review of CBR+PNK Augmented.
- Brackish Draught as a book review of Game Wizards: The Epic Battle for Dungeons & Dragons.
- In an interview at MMORPG, we learn that Interview: Warlock Isn’t Trying To Replicate Dungeons & Dragons TTRPG.
- Mollie Russell shares an interview on Matthew Lillard’s deadly D&D project Faster Purple Worm keeps evolving, with a new anthology on the way over at Wargamer.
RPG new releases
- Brotherwise Games released Cosmere RPG | Mistborn – Welcome to Scadrial™.
- New Way Games has hit publish on Trailblazer Second Edition: Core Rulebook.
- BritePalette brings us Medusalaire SRD.
- Barrel Rider Games published The Wanderer’s Tale Storybook Roleplaying.
- Available now is Slime Mind Studio’s Damp, Dark Doom.
- Sean vas Terra has hit publish on Demonic Adversaries for Daggerheart.
- We now have OSRCards’ Tales of the Strange Frontier.
- Mangha Comics published OMNISIX: The Universal d6 Roleplaying Game ADVANCED Rules.
- Logan Laidlaw has published a Name Your Own Price Depths of Charity – 5E Quickstart Preview.
- Top Notch International LTD brings us Gates of Krystalia TTJRPG – Introductory Adventure – English Version.
- On Itch, Pixxele has released Vault Of The Sun: Cycles of Rebellion.
- Now in Fantasy Grounds is Brotherwise Games’ Misborn.
- In physical pre-orders and releases;
- Monte Cook Games’ The Magnus Archives’ Roleplaying Game.
- Edge’s Arkham Horror: The Roleplaying Game: Welcome To Promise: Starter Set.
- WizKids’ Dungeons & Dragons: Icons Of The Realms: Miniatures: Player’s Handbook: Spells & Steel (Starter Set).
- I just had to include Munchkin: Vox Machina: A Critical Role Game.
RPG bundle deals
- Save $84.91 (55%) with Kids in the Attic’s Sleepy Hollow Complete Collection.
- Save $1.99 (25%) with StarRune Press’ Artist + Cultivator bundle.
RPG ideas, tips and discoveries
- Complete with a cute infographic, Widdershins Wanderings gets into Play Style Preferences: Lightning Round and Conclusions.
- Digging into data, Valeria Loves asks How Deadly is the OSR, Actually?.
- Sly Flourish offers a deep dive into Procedures.
- It’s neat! Shannon Appelcline has an interactive Call of Cthulhu games timeline.
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:
- Magic Chronicle: Cities from Chamomile Has A Project is launching “A solo TTRPG app and electronic GM screen, now with urbancrawling, shops, jukebox, and more.”
- Capes: Super Powered Heroes…In Capes is a project by Keyboards Optional Games LLC that features “A new modern era tabletop role-playing game experience. Become a powerful hero fighting villains and protecting the innocent.”
- Complete Town 10, The Final Piece of the DnD Realm: Ivedra by James Kay is currently raising funds for “Explore Ivedra: 14 cities, 13 provinces, and one epic D&D adventure in the final volume of Complete Town.”
- 20 Rival Adventuring Parties — 100 Evolving NPCs for D&D 5E by imageboardgame is a new roleplaying games project for “100 evolving NPCs who level up, compete, ally, betray, and grow alongside your players.”
- Sage Council is a project by Kelly Whyte that invites players to explore “A card-based roleplaying game of local politics and city councils.”
- The Curse of Barovia: 100 Gothic NPCs. STL presupports is a project by Edair Digital that promises “100 3D printable STL miniatures of iconic dark fantasy NPCs, gothic villains, and townsfolk for 32mm tabletop RPGs and wargames.”
- FIDIM VTT is a project by Vasyl Denysov that is “The Subscription-Free Virtual Tabletop from GM and players for GMs and players!”
- High Winds – A Sky Pirate TTRPG is a project by Scale Bound Games that is described as “Fly through the skies, embracing a life of piracy, adventure, and exploration.”
- Talamander fantasy gamebook 8 – Symphony of the Blade by Tim Brown is touted as “continuing story solo roleplay – Lone Wolf meets Proteus”
- MAXG-ONE: Foldable Gaming Desk with an Internal Lift Vault from maxgok is pitching “Height-Adjustable Gaming Desk/ Folding Office & Gaming Desk/ Wargame Players/ Small-Space Living/Board Game Enthusiasts”
- Liquidation. An Alien Capture Mission for Mothership. is a project by Marco Serrano that is “An extraction mission through a recently abandoned and half-flooded stimpak laboratory complex.”
- 🚪 The Gate of the Blind Wardens – £1 TTRPG Maps 🗺️ from Benjámin Weisz has introduced “🗺️ Get 4 handcrafted TTRPG maps for £1. 🧩 A hidden lore puzzle awaits those who look closely… 👀”
- Something in the Water: A Nautical Horror Campaign for D&D! from Adventure Ripples seeks funding for “A four-session DnD 5e campaign for levels 3–7, featuring nautical horror, survival, exploration, and piracy.”
- The Lighthouse at the End of Every World: 5E Dark Fantasy is a project by Matthew David that promises “Five worlds collide around one black lighthouse. Defend it for seven turns—and decide who receives dawn. A campaign for levels 9–12.”
- Stories from the Dungeon Heart from SeaBreeze Games is nominating “The Ultimate Collection of Plug-and-Play 5e Dungeons!”
- Shadows Over Port Royal from Two Starving Gnolls is nominating “Port Royal, 1692—a system-agnostic Lovecraftian horror adventure of pirates, forbidden lore, and cosmic terror.”
- One Night One Monster is a project by Phoenix Grey that features “Rules-light occult horror in a single session. One d12, characters in ten minutes, and a monster with no promise you’ll survive.”
- Legendary Book Nooks and Dice Boxes Printables Collection from Swords and Flowers seeks funding for “3D printable LED-ready Book Nooks with hidden dice boxes! Immersive STL dioramas tailored to your favorite character classes.”
- Faster, Purple Worm! Everybody Dies, Vol. 2 from Beadle & Grimm’s Pandemonium Warehouse presents “All-new book of deadly one-shots based on the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Adventures show.”
- Rollacrit’s Con Bag of Holding by Rollacrit is a new roleplaying games project for “A new, improved convention bag from the minds that brought you the original Con Bag of Holding. Stronger, Expandable, and Customizable!”
- The Menagerie Circuit – 15 Growing Pets for DnD 5E from Sumida seeks funding for “15 evolving pets and companions for DnD 5E, with bonding, training, combat rules and more.”
- TrapCraft: Create your own traps & hazards for DnD 5E is a project by Legendary Scribes that invites players to explore “The complete trap and hazard toolkit for Game Masters. Build balanced traps in seconds, scale them to any party, and keep players guess”
- From The Town Records of Shadow River Park – Solo Story Game from Shawn seeks funding for “You are a councilmember of a small town full of weirdness, personalities, and maybe Bigfoot.”
- LoomWeaver – Prep, Run, and Remember Your Campaign from Jason Tromborg introduces “Build your world, prepare sessions with The Loom, and run every encounter from one connected campaign studio.”
- The Grand Academy Collection: Arcane Universities For D&D 5E is a project by Pars that invites players to explore “The Complete D&D 5E and TTRPGs Toolkit Featuring 20 Complete Magic Schools, 200+ Pages of Content, Encounters & Campaign Content”
- SoloQ: Your to-do list just got a D20. by Jess Williams is currently raising funds for “Turn your real-life goals into a cyberpunk RPG campaign. No DM needed.”
- The Blood Secret is a project by Mario Barbati that promises “A Shadowdark adventure powered by Battlemaps Scenery!”
- Sematary on Graveyard Hill & Mission to Devils Mountain is a project by Mark Taormino that is “TWO SOFTCOVER + PDFS for 1E & 5E! You also get 60 PDFS with ANY $25+ Reward & Pledge Over Time Available!”
- Origins of Craft & Trade — Backgrounds & Feats for 5e / 5.5 is a project by Narrative Ninjas that promises “Every adventurer has a past, and every story has a beginning. Make your character’s profession matter. Fully compatible with D&D!”
- Underworld: Sunless Depths for 5E D&D and TOV by Kobold Press is now live, described as “Expand your world with new drow, duergar, aboleth—plus 6 new subclasses, 42 new monsters, drop-in caverns, a full campaign, and more.”
- Reuel Havelock’s Cantrip Compendium: Master Edition by LKD Products is now live, described as “Expand everyday magic for D&D 5th and 5.5 Editions: Cantrips, Arcane Catalysts, Spell fusions and more!”
- Wildmagic Frontier is a project by Sky Castle that looks at “A miniature-collecting, deck-building RPG video game made with Hero Forge.”
- MONSTERS OF LOST CIVILISATIONS is a project by Break Glass Games that invites players to explore “50 cryptids. 50 expeditions. 50 fragments of lost civilisations for your players to explore. Zero-Prep for D&D 5E”
- 100 Open Doors: Ready-to-use Haven & Refuge locations for 5e by Cryptic Quill Chronicles is now live, described as “Every door leads to opportunity, a safe place, a stranger’s kindness, or adventure. A ready-to-use GM supplement for any TTRPG.”
[What’s this chart? We use Kickstarter Heat to measure how busy the crowdfunding season is.]
Do you know of any RPG news sources we might not know? If so, please let us know or leave a comment below.
