RPG Crowdfunding News - 13th Age, The Sassoon Files, At The Gates, and more

This week’s TTRPG crowdfunding sampler covers some of the campaigns that end between June 6 to 9. With projects from Pelgrane Press, Nord Games, Onyx Path Publishing, Sons of the Singularity LLC, Game and a Curry, Storybrewers Roleplaying, and Bloat Games these roleplaying games and supplements uses systems that range from 13th Age Second Edition, Call of Cthulhu, Old-School Essentials, Storypath Ultra, original systems, and more.

13th Age Second Edition | Storytelling Action Fantasy Game from Pelgrane Press

• END DATE: Thu, June 6 2024 2:00 PM EDT.
• SYSTEM(S): 13th Age Second Edition
• PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: £40 for the PDFs of both books
• AI STATEMENT: “13th Age Second Edition is written, designed and illustrated entirely by human beings, celebrating the pure artistry and spontaneity of human imagination. This deliberate choice to forgo AI involvement honors the deeply personal and interactive essence of roleplaying, where every dice roll and narrative twist springs from the minds and hearts of the players themselves.”
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Pelgrane Press is crowdfunding the second edition of 13th Age, a d20-based system with story-focused rules and updated classes, powers, and monsters. Best of all, if you bought any prior edition adventures, those contents are still valid since 13th Age Second Edition is backwards compatible with first edition. The original edition was created by lead Dungeons & Dragons designers Rob Heinsoo (4th Edition) and Jonathan Tweet (3rd Edition), and it won a 2014 Silver Ennie Award for Best Rules. This campaign provides a new core rulebook (13th Age Second Edition Player’s Handbook at 240 pages), a GM screen, a GM Guide/bestiary (13th Age Second Edition Gamemaster’s Guide at 160+ pages), and more to bring this new revision to your gaming table. What will be different in the new edition? The classes that weren’t as highly regarded as others have been revamped to amp up their playability. Monsters have been improved since the original edition and even the latest 2e playtest. New writing and amazing artwork were commissioned for this book. I quoted the AI statement above because I love this cover image by Lee Moyer (line art) and Aaron McConnell (colors). There’s a lot of discussion about the cover for the new Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook cover by Tyler Jacobson, a piece that is just beginning its life as an iconic part of D&D’s visual history. Lee Moyer and Aaron McConnell have the same task as Tyler but for 13th Age. Their writ was to create something that will define that TTRPG for the whole of its second iteration, and I feel that Moyer and McConnell delivered in a big way. Their work feels old school yet specific to the setting of 13th Age. The previews of the rules and their cover makes me want to pick up a copy of the rulebook. If you’re interested in this project, check out the campaign page for a link to the playable draft version of the rules.

The Oracle Monster Generator for Fantasy RPGs from Nord Games

• END DATE: Jun 6, 2024 at 4:00pm EDT.
• CROWDFUNDING ON: Backerkit
• SYSTEM(S): System neutral
• PROJECT TYPE: RPG accessory
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $62 + S/H for the PDF and print version of the boxed set
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Want to make monsters quickly? This project offers 7 decks with a total of 420 Tarot-sized cards provide you “over 1 billion combinations” to generate up monsters from. No stats, but enough text and flavor to make an interesting monster when you don’t have an encounter mapped out. Each deck is themed around environment with a monster made from a type, behavior, archetype, ability, and intrigue. Draw and combine cards to produce unexpected creature. If these decks interest you, check out the Backerkit page.

At The Gates from Onyx Path Publishing

• END DATE: Jun 6, 2024 at 2:00pm EDT.
• CROWDFUNDING ON: Backerkit
• SYSTEM(S): Storypath Ultra
• PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $25 for the PDF version of the book and a POD discount coupon
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Onyx Path Publishing, famous for publishing Chronicles of Darkness, World of Darkness 20th Anniversary Editions, Exalted, Scarred Lands, and Pugmire, have a new fantasy TTRPG, At The Gates. Inspired by Japanese RPG video games, the setting is a high-magic fantasy world in which one of the seven nations summoned daemons from the void, bringing a new unimaginably powerful weapon of war. It’s a magical arms race in a world where magic is in everything from food to fighting. Can you help this world before the ultimate, uncontrollable chaos of the void is fully unleashed? Using the Storypath Ultra system, you’ll deal with powers and the powerful in a TTRPG that mixes politics, exploration, and braving the unknown. If the idea of a fantasy Asian TTRPG about unbridled power, something thematically in line with James Clavell’s Shōgun interests you, check out their Backerkit campaign.

The Sassoon Files, Second Edition from Sons of the Singularity LLC

• END DATE: Sun, June 9 2024 8:00 PM EDT.
• SYSTEM(S): Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition
• PROJECT TYPE: Campaign sourcebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $118 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the book and the Keeper’s Kit
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? This project is a Call of Cthulhu campaign and resource set in 1920s Shanghai. 325 pages with 7 scenarios that range from the investigation of a sorcerer that leads to a lost city and drugs that allow time-travel to traveling up the Yangtze River in a gunboat to discovering a demonic water spirit to infiltrating a Japanese military police Deep One slaughterhouse and other mysteries. As the second edition, this project offers improvements including new scenarios, more detailed settings, new gaming options, and additional artwork. If you backed the first edition of The Sassoon Files and want the new scenarios but don’t want to buy the full second edition, Sons of the Singularity aren’t leaving you out. They have a POD discount coupon backer level that gives you just the new scenarios, not requiring you to double dip and buy the full set. This is a great example of customer support and I’d love to see more options like this from other projects. If you’re a CoC fan interested in 7 one-shot adventures set in China from one hundred years ago, this project is worth checking out.

WWII: Operation B/X TTRPG for Old-School Essentials from Bloat Games

• END DATE: Thu, June 6 2024 10:01 AM EDT.
• SYSTEM(S): Old-School Essentials
• PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $84 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of both books
• DISCLAIMER: I have written for Bloat Games. I am not a part of this project.
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Moving up the timeline from the The Sassoon Files’ 1920s to the ‘30s and ‘40s, let’s look at this World War II B/X OSE TTRPG. This project is a conversion of the OSR WWII: Operation WhiteBox from Pete Spahn of Small Niche Games. This project creates two new books: WWII: Operation B/X: Core Rules, which deals with a realistic portrayal of WWII, or at least a Dirty Dozen level of realism, and WWII: Operation B/X: Into The Dark, which imagines a supernatural WWII. Converting the original game from the Swords & Wizardry WhiteBox rules by Matt Finch and Marv Breig, this project makes that content plus the supernatural parts ready for Old-School Essentials. Expect rules for modern classes, combat, and enemy combatants. If you’re interested in warfare using the B/X versions of Dungeons & Dragons, this campaign is worth exploring.

Castles in the Air RPG from Storybrewers Roleplaying

• END DATE: Sat, June 8 2024 10:00 PM EDT.
• SYSTEM(S): Good Society RPG
• PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: AU$129 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the core book and decks of cards
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Inspired by Little Women and Anne of Green Gables, this project is a coming of age TTRPG that takes your character from childhood to adulthood. You play a tight group of children in the 1800s who enjoy what that world has to offer. As time goes on, you grow up and are forced to leave childish things behind, but long to return to those happier days. This game is perfect for someone interested in an RP heavy experience, one that feels more like a literary novel from another era than a dungeon crawl. If the idea of playing Gilded Age characters experiencing a lifetime of connection appeals to you, check out this campaign page to download a free preview.

The Darkness at the Brink of Ohio from Game And A Curry, LLC

• END DATE: Thu, June 6 2024 10:00 AM EDT.
• SYSTEM(S): An original system
• PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $30 + S/H for the PDF and print copies of the book
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? You’re listening to a late night radio station in Ohio when the DJ begins transforming. That grabs your attention and you can’t turn the channel. This game provides the framework to write a horror journaling experience. Your character is at the gas station listening to something horrible transpiring while the rest of the world sleeps. It’s a simple premise, but there’s a lot to explore as you hear the horror blasting through the speakers between songs and commercial breaks. If the idea of a solo horror experience speaks to you, check out this page to get the vibe of what’s being offered.

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[Grendel_Khan]

Darkness at the Brink of Ohio looks really cool, but solo journaling games are just not my thing. The fact that so much of the design energy in indie games is going into journaling games really bugs me. Like, good for some people, but less so for me. And journaling games don't have the kinds of innovations that can make it into other, non-solo games.

 

[Zaukrie]

Backed 13th age and the Oracle monster thing. The first because I love reading the rules and stealing stuff, though I doub't I'll ever y play 13th. The second because I love that company's products and I want to support them.

 

[TheBanjoNerd]

I might end up backing WWII B/X, if for no other reason than a WWII B/X hack seems so oddly peculiar to me.

 

[Lalato]

As a longtime fan of Rob Heinsoo's work, 13th Age is an easy pickup.

 

[Lalato]

Here are the 5e Campaign Setting and Adventure Path crowdfunding campaigns I'm keeping an eye on right now.

Closed and Funded:

• Skies of Ralabourne
• Exalted Vales: Favorable Skies
• Queen of Atlantis

Closed:

Open and Funded:

• The Infernal Tome (ending next week)
• Devabhumi (ending in 3 weeks)

Open:

• Sword of Souls (13%)

 

[Drumheller]

Backed At The Gates. I really enjoy the Storypath system.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

... Vidal Sassoon?

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Darkness at the Brink of Ohio looks really cool, but solo journaling games are just not my thing. The fact that so much of the design energy in indie games is going into journaling games really bugs me. Like, good for some people, but less so for me. And journaling games don't have the kinds of innovations that can make it into other, non-solo games.

I don't know; I think a lot of the content generation tools in games like Thousand Year Old Vampire and Notorious do show up as part of big wave of modern random table accessories, which are much more focused on "how is this useful at my table now," as opposed to "10,000 door knobs to feature in your dungeon" that used to characterized many random generation tables.

I'm not sure most of these people are doing solo design instead of multi-player games. The folks that design these games, for the most part, seem to just be interested in solo games. So you're not necessarily losing anything. It's just that there's a whole extra style of RPGs that you don't care about.

(Also, even people who don't care about solo games should flip through Colostle, which is one of the coolest and most evocative settings ever, and which can be ported easily over to many other game systems for multi-person play.)

 

[Grendel_Khan]

I don't know; I think a lot of the content generation tools in games like Thousand Year Old Vampire and Notorious do show up as part of big wave of modern random table accessories, which are much more focused on "how is this useful at my table now," as opposed to "10,000 door knobs to feature in your dungeon" that used to characterized many random generation tables.

Any specific examples? There are tons of random table products out there now, and I haven't seen a lot of people repurposing ones from solo products, except maybe from Ironsworn/Starforged. But also, I'm talking specifically about journaling games, where the prompts in tables are, if they're good, tuned specifically to get you writing. They're not necessarily great for a standard, GMed situation.

I'm not sure most of these people are doing solo design instead of multi-player games. The folks that design these games, for the most part, seem to just be interested in solo games. So you're not necessarily losing anything. It's just that there's a whole extra style of RPGs that you don't care about.

The game that I'm griping about up there was designed by Banana Chan, who definitely designs other stuff. But Alan Bahr has gotten into solo games in a pretty heavy way, and other designers are doing the same. Plus, just look at how the overall ZineQuest output has changed in the past three years. The solo stuff is becoming a bigger portion every year—including from people who, in previous years, did non-solo products.