12 May, 2022
Roleplaying Games
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Mike Larrimore and Brian Pivik’s1 2022 Destined is a superhero roleplaying game. But not your usual game; Destined is set in a world of comparatively low-powered superheroes.
6 Jan, 2022
Roleplaying Games
Design Mechanism’s 2020 Lyonesse roleplaying game is a fantasy roleplaying game based on the Lyonesse novels—Lyonesse (AKA Suldrun’s Garden), The Green Pearl, and Madouc—of Jack Vance. It was written by Dominic Mooney, Dave Morris, Pete Nash, Mark Shirley, and Lawrence Whitaker1.
Despite the best efforts of Andrew Wheeler, I am not myself a Jack Vance fan. Why, then, acquire a copy of a licensed roleplaying game set in a Vancian world I’ve not read?
21 Dec, 2021
Roleplaying Games
Greg Stafford, Jeff Richard, and Jason Durall’s 2021 The Runequest Starter Set is a starter set for Runequest: Roleplaying in Glorantha. It’s the latest edition of the venerable table-top fantasy roleplaying game Runequest. It thus simultaneously embraces both the very new and the very old, so I thought it was particularly suitable for this, the two thousandth review on James Nicoll Reviews.
1 Sep, 2021
Roleplaying Games
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Trudvang Chronicles Gamemaster’s Guide, published in 2021, was written by Theodore Bergqvist, Magnus Malmberg, Anders Jacobsson, Max Herngren, and others. It is one of two core Trudvang Chronicles books: the other book is 2021’s Trudvang Chronicles Players Handbook, written by Theodore Bergqvist, Magnus Malmberg and Anders Jacobsson and others. The English translator for both books was Andovar.
Back in the dawn of time, Chaosium’s Basic Roleplaying begat Äventyrsspel’s 1982 Drakar och Demoner (in its first edition, a combination of Basic Roleplaying and Worlds of Wonder’s Magic World). After a convoluted process too lengthy to be detailed here, this led to Riotmind’s 2016 Nordic-and-Celtic-themed fantasy roleplaying game Drakar och Demoner Trudvang1, the Anglophone edition of which is Trudvang Chronicles.
15 Feb, 2021
Roleplaying Games
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Just in time Only slightly late for 💖 Valentine’s Day! 💖
Monsterhearts 2 is the second edition of Avery Alder’s1 Monsterheartsroleplaying game. As you might guess from the title, this RPG lives in the intersection of teen romance and horror. Not limited to the usual issues presented by puberty, this game has extra issues galore! The player characters in this storytelling game are (almost all) literal monsters, transformed by circumstance and magic into strange new forms.
Despite which, they are still expected to attend high school.
12 Jan, 2021
Roleplaying Games
Greg Stafford, Steven Perrin, Jeff Richard, Jason Durall, and friends1’ 2018 RuneQuest – Roleplaying in Glorantha (RQG) is the latest2edition of the venerable roleplaying game, RuneQuest (RQ). My review of the 2nd edition can be found here.
And how does this version of the pioneering game stand up, forty years after the first edition saw print?
25 Nov, 2020
Roleplaying Games
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Rikizou’s Kamigakari: God Hunters is a Japanese urban-fantasy table-top roleplaying game. The 2020 English-language edition was published by Serpent Sea Games.
Ever since the Japanese Synchronous Inferno1, malevolent beings known as Aramitama are invading our world in ever increasing numbers, corrupting mortals in a bid to bring about the apocalypse. Providentially, a handful of mortals, player characters included, are imbued with the attributes needed to hold back these supernatural menaces! These mortals can change the very laws of nature to fight evil!
(Sometimes they end up incinerated after altering reality once too often. Aw shucks.)
8 Sep, 2020
Roleplaying Games
Crystal Frasier & Steve Kenson’s1 2018 Mutants & Masterminds Basic Hero’s Handbook is a streamlined version of the Mutants and Masterminds roleplaying game.
22 Aug, 2020
Roleplaying Games
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Green Ronin’s 2013 Mutants & Masterminds Deluxe Hero’s Handbook provides the rules for the third edition of their SHRPG (superhero roleplaying game).
26 May, 2020
Roleplaying Games
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Green Ronin’s 2019 Superteam Handbook is intended for use with their Mutants and Masterminds superhero roleplaying game. It’s a source book for game masters, with advice on how to run superhero teams in an SHRPG.
As is appropriate for a product of this nature, Superteam Handbook is a team effort: