There's A Diablo TTRPG (and boardgame) Coming!

At BlizzCon 2023, Blizzard Entertainment announced a tabletop roleplaying game and a boardgame based on the Diablo series of video games. The TTRPG is slated for a 2024 crowdfunding campaign, and are being worked on in conjunction with the baordgame company Glass Cannon Unplugged and Genuine Entertainment, while the boardgame is set for fall 2025.

The TTRPG will share components and accessories with the boardgame. The system is an original system, and will use mechanics inspired by Diablo IV. It will explore the Sanctuary, with adventures in the overworld and underworld.

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This isn't the first Diablo TTRPG--back in 2000, WotC released the Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game: Diablo II Edition for D&D 3E, written by Jeff Grubb and Bill Slavicsek. There were additional supplements, such as 2001's Diablo II: To Hell and Back (a dungeon crawl), and Diablerie (a world book).

 

[Voadam]

Let's use World of War Warcraft as an example. If it is a "WoW TTRPG" you would expect it to try and translate WoW's mechanics into something manageable at the table. But, if it is a broader "Warcraft" RPG it might be different. After all, WoW is a MMORPG adaptation of an RTS, and there is a card game and a MOBA in the world as well. From this perspective, a Warcraft World TTRPG could have a very different design, and as long as the spirit of the universe is honored it would be just as valid.

I have the monster book for the d20 Warcraft RPG and liked it a lot. I enjoyed playing a game in the setting as a Jungle Troll barbarian. I had only played an afternoon on a friend's copy of the original Warcraft computer game but the RPG experience matched up to what I expected from my second hand knowledge of the setting lore and the monster characterizations from the Manual of Monsters. I did not have the core book and played a straight D&D barbarian for class so I could not say whether the PC specific mechanics would match the feel of the game mechanics at all but the game was fun for me and I was glad to have the materials and experience.

 

[Lord_Blacksteel]

Hasbro should hurry to get the licence of Warcraft to be published by WotC. They will regret if other does it before them.

There was a WoW RPG years ago - it lasted a few years and then failed. Why would WOTC, with D&D even more popular now than then and WoW even less popular now than then, "regret" not making this?

 

[OsirisDawnEU]

The system is an original system, and will use mechanics inspired by Diablo IV.

Those mechanics are a trainwreck. Very curious how they think they can make them work in a TTRPG environment.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I hated the part in bold. IMHO, it created (1) a tonal shift from the gothic horror towards the superheroic, and (2) an unintentional power curve problem as the nephalem (and the player characters) were more threatening and powerful than either angels or demons.

I think it wasn't bad in theory -- the first born of Lilith and Inarius would reasonably be something other than normal humans. The problem was it was like Poochie -- the other characters couldn't shut up about them. The nephilim should be just one more problem in the world and yeah, centering them as the star of the story, while it explained how tough PCs could get, changed the focus of the game.

I do hope they continue to use them as villains in D4, especially if/when we're able to even temporarily lock out Heaven and Hell from Sanctuary. It would make perfect sense for various nephilim to decide they're the natural rulers of Sanctuary at that point.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

The system is an original system, and will use mechanics inspired by Diablo IV.

Those mechanics are a trainwreck. Very curious how they think they can make them work in a TTRPG environment.

The mechanics are basically the same since Diablo 1. The handful of details that D4 arguably screwed up will be too fiddly to show up at the ttrpg or boardgame level.

I'd assume the mechanics they're talking about here are "fight lots of enemies," "deep customization of a few character archetypes," "lots of randomization in magic items."

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

There was a WoW RPG years ago - it lasted a few years and then failed. Why would WOTC, with D&D even more popular now than then and WoW even less popular now than then, "regret" not making this?

I'm not sure why WotC would even be involved. With the 5E SRD now out in Creative Commons, Blizzard, or a subcontractor, could just make it on their own without WotC having any involvement. There are a lot of tabletop players at Blizzard, so I'd assume there are probably multiple versions of WoW 5E houserules floating around in Irvine already.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

I wouldn't say they, White Wolf/Sword&Sorcery studios, failed. Several titles for five years is not so bad.

Warcraft RPG

The Warcraft RPG may refer to both the game-book series Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game and its successor series World of Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game. Even though World of Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game replaced the previous series, both games are still referred to as the Warcraft RPG by many...

wowpedia.fandom.com

And you now Hasbro is very interested into licences. Why Blizzard should say yes? Because they need to promote their brand. We know their best days of glory ended, and they are lucky if they can sell still videogames. World of Warcraft may be the number one, but for years gamers are predicting they aren't to continue forever.

Hasbro has got some contacts with Microsoft, the new Blizzard's owner. And I wouldn't be too surprised if we see licenced virtual miniatures of Warcraft, Diablo or even mash-up Overwatch in the VTT of D&D-Beyond as an exclusive card to compete against the rest.

 

[schneeland]

I'd assume the mechanics they're talking about here are "fight lots of enemies," "deep customization of a few character archetypes," "lots of randomization in magic items."

I would hope so. When I thought about the list of things I would want to see in a Diablo TTRPG, mechanically speaking, I came up with:

• Fighting hordes of enemies, with some of them standing out (champions/elites, bosses)
• Skill trees or equivalents for deep customization of the archetypes
• Extensive item system that contributes further to character customization, and contributes a larger part of character power
• Some form of crafting, at least on the level of runes/gems and Horadrim cube

And personally, I really want to roll dice by the bucketful when I cleave through my enemies. Thinking Shadowrun 4+ levels of dice pools.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I would hope so. When I thought about the list of things I would want to see in a Diablo TTRPG, mechanically speaking, I came up with:

• Fighting hordes of enemies, with some of them standing out (champions/elites, bosses)
• Skill trees or equivalents for deep customization of the archetypes
• Extensive item systems that contributes further to character customization, and contributes a larger part of character power
• Some form of crafting, at least on the level of runes/gems and Horadrim cube

And personally, I really want to roll dice by the bucketful when I cleave through my enemies. Thinking Shadowrun 4+ levels of dice pools.

Yeah, that would be really satisfying for Diablo.

Speaking of dice, they gave out Diablo-themed polyhedrals as a freebie at Blizzcon a few years ago, but didn't announce anything at that time. I suspect a Diablo RPG has been in some stage of development for years now.

 

[schneeland]

Speaking of dice, they gave out Diablo-themed polyhedrals as a freebie at Blizzcon a few years ago, but didn't announce anything at that time. I suspect a Diablo RPG has been in some stage of development for years now.

Do you happen to know if that was the standard family of 7 we know from D&D or something more specific?