This week’s RPG crowdfunding projects through Kickstarter and IndieGoGo end by August 27th. There are a number of RPG options on this list including some products that are based on RPGs. I selected a number that let you try out a quickstart before you back the campaign, so take these for a test drive.
Svilland: 5E Norse Setting & Freyja's Tears A Grim Adventure from Dream Realm Storytellers
The Complete Illustrated Book of Illusion from Phil Stone Illustrations
Axon Punk: Expanded - Hip Hop Infused Cyberpunk ttRPG from Wrong Brothers Gaming and Sugar Gamers
Lands of Theia 5e, Pathfinder 1e, Pathfinder 2e from Samurai Sheepdog
Burials of Teganshire from Griffon Lore Games
Magic School Mystery from Tanner Wilson
Vampire: The Masquerade Rivals Expandable Card Game from Renegade Game Studios
RPG Quick Hits
SHOTGLASS ADVENTURES: GRAVIS TOWN BLUES for 5e & OSR RPGs from Laidback Dungeon Master
Svilland: 5E Norse Setting & Freyja's Tears A Grim Adventure from Dream Realm Storytellers
- END DATE: Thu, August 27 2020 2:00 PM EDT.
- SYSTEM(S): Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition
- PROJECT TYPE: Sourcebook
- MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: £66 + S/H for all four books in PDF and print
- TRY BEFORE YOU BUY: Svilland Campaign Setting Demo Booklet is free at DriveThruRPG
“Svilland: The True Norse Setting for DnD 5E is coming with its anticipated reprint and a grim adventure, Freyja's Tears. Svilland is a setting written for D&D 5E, that is based on the brutal Norse Mythology. It is designed to bring the valor, brutality, and drama that is ever-present in Norse tales, from legend into your roleplaying games. Svilland, its expansion South Sea, and its first adventure Into the Wolf’s Maw are already complete and ready for release. With this Kickstarter campaign, we will write the first epic adventure of Svilland, Freyja’s Tears. It is an equally brutal adventure for 1st to 10th level characters. The adventure will reach up to the 20th level with the stretch goals unlocked!”
The Complete Illustrated Book of Illusion from Phil Stone Illustrations
- END DATE: Sat, August 22 2020 6:52 AM EDT.
- SYSTEM(S): Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition
- PROJECT TYPE: Sourcebook
- MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $25 + $5 US S/H for the hardcover only
“The Complete Illustrated Book of Illusion. A spellbook compatible with Dungeons and Dragons 5e containing all Illusion spells. Contains all 33 Illusion spells compatible with Dungeons and Dragons 5e. 100 pages in length, beautifully illustrated, contains extra pages as a grimoire for homebrew spells. Available in hardcover, softcover, and PDF versions.”
Axon Punk: Expanded - Hip Hop Infused Cyberpunk ttRPG from Wrong Brothers Gaming and Sugar Gamers
- END DATE: Sat, August 22 2020 12:59 PM EDT.
- SYSTEM(S): An original system
- PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
- MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $25 for all of the PDFs (gamebook, Gonzo Docs Vol 2, character sheets, and cheat sheets)
- TRY BEFORE YOU BUY: Axon Punk: Overdrive - Quickstart Packet is free at DriveThruRPG
“Expanded Tabletop RPG combining hip hop and cyberpunk. Players improvise, collaborate, and build a community in the megacities of 2085. Axon Punk: Overdrive is an improvisational and collaborative tabletop Roleplaying Game (RPG) that is heavily inspired by hip hop and classic cyberpunk. In the game, you and your friends play as a team of hackers, engineers, cyborgs, AI, and others who are trying to be forces of change as the great war of global inequality rages on the streets around you. Because the game is set in the hyper-dense megacities of the future, the players together create a Community of locations and fellow city dwellers to interact with during play. Based on the choices the players make, the Community produces missions, gives rewards, and evolves over time – or it could be consumed by the chaos and anarchy caused by futuristic corporate oppression.”
Lands of Theia 5e, Pathfinder 1e, Pathfinder 2e from Samurai Sheepdog
- END DATE: Thu, August 27 2020 1:00 PM EDT.
- SYSTEM(S): Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition and Pathfinder 1e and 2e
- PROJECT TYPE: Sourcebook
- MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $20 for the PDF in the system of your choice
- NOTE: I have an interview with Steven Rasheed James of Samurai Sheepdog coming soon
- TRY BEFORE YOU BUY: LoT - Kickstarter Preview Kit is free at DriveThruRPG
“In Lands of Theia by Steven Rasheed James adventure never waits. This campaign setting from Samurai Sheepdog introduces the eponymous world, its people, and the places they call home. The book itself is finished. We are running this campaign to recoup the cost of art, and to give an opportunity to show your support for Pathfinder 2nd edition and/or the 5th Edition of the world's greatest roleplaying game. Find out what it means to be any of the core races in Theia, or learn about the new races and subraces we're introducing with the gilahn lizardfolk, gnolls, half-dwarves, kerata lizardfolk, and the massive Theian orcs. Jump into combat as one of 11 new classes (and subclasses in 5e/PF2), each of which is balanced against the core options available. Find that edge you need with new feats and other character options. Take to the skies in a world-famous competition on a mount you've borrowed or raised yourself.”
Burials of Teganshire from Griffon Lore Games
- END DATE: Tue, August 25 2020
- SYSTEM(S): Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition and Pathfinder 1e
- PROJECT TYPE: Adventure module
- MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $8 for the PDF
- NOTE: I have an interview with Christophe Herrbach of Griffon Lore Games about this IndieGoGo campaign on d20 Radio (coming soon)
“Gruesome deaths, arcane wards, ancient rituals, and an old bridge: a 5E andPathfinder 1E adventure. The road through Tegan's Bridge is not safe anymore. The small village of Teganhsire is in disarray as the workers sent to repair the bridge never came back to town, and rumors spread that a monster has killed them all. Hired PCs investigate the situation, but find themselves thrown into a maelstrom of druidic intrigue and repercussions of an old feud between the village and forest spirits. Burials of Teganshire is a module for level 1-3 characters that can be used in any campaign setting (commercial or homebrew). It is the first module of the Circle of the Blood Moon adventure path that will take characters to level 10, through a long campaign filled with complex encounters and ancient mysteries.”
Magic School Mystery from Tanner Wilson
- END DATE: Wed, August 19 2020 1:40 PM EDT.
- SYSTEM(S): An original system
- PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
- MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $25 + $3 US S/H for the PDF and print textbook
- TRY BEFORE YOU BUY: Check out the free beta pdf here
“The Wizard School RPG! You’ve been accepted to wizard school! Can you solve the mystery before it’s too late? Play this tabletop role-playing game for fiction focused rules that double down on the boarding school experience. Its effortless game play brings the magic school genre to life from the moment you open the book. Spell casting does not use a predetermined list of spells and is always quick and creative. You should expect a communal storytelling game that feels like the books you grew up reading. Pick up Magic School Mystery to get started! Play as young students attending Magic School Castle. The tone is always wholesome and a little bit juvenile. Expect best friends, magical mischief, and light peril instead of dark prophecies and wizard warfare. The game takes place over an entire school year. If the mystery isn’t solved by summer break, Magic School Castle won't ever be the same again!”
Vampire: The Masquerade Rivals Expandable Card Game from Renegade Game Studios
- END DATE: Thu, August 20 2020 10:00 PM EDT.
- PROJECT TYPE: Card game
- MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $100 + S/H for the core set, additional deck, 275 card sleeves, playmat, and tokens
“An expandable card game set in the World of Darkness for 2-4 players. Vampire: The Masquerade Rivals Expandable Card Game puts in in control of a coterie of vampires who vie for control of the city of San Francisco. Through dominating mortals, using their political influence, and clashing with their rivals in the streets in the dark of the night, you’ll gather your allies and face off against one or more other players as you seek to push your agenda.”
RPG Quick Hits
SHOTGLASS ADVENTURES: GRAVIS TOWN BLUES for 5e & OSR RPGs from Laidback Dungeon Master
- END DATE: Wed, August 26 2020 5:30 PM EDT.
- “6 One-Shots, New Monsters, New Magic Items & Lore for 5e / DnD & OSR RPGs! Bonus: CONNECTABLE DUNGEONS 2: VAULTS!”
- END DATE: Wed, August 26 2020 9:00 PM EDT.
- “A level 1-2 Adventure Module compatible with the Mutant Crawl Classics RPG, including custom maps and minis!”
- END DATE: Thu, August 27 2020 11:00 PM EDT.
- TRY BEFORE YOU BUY: SOUL - Reap the Galaxy TD is free at DriveThruRPG
- “SOUL is a TTRPG for the Savage Worlds rule set. High tech and magic collide in a universe where your very soul can be used as currency.”
- END DATE: Mon, August 24 2020 11:23 AM EDT.
- “A fast-play, rules-lite role playing system that encourages collective storytelling. Great for pick-up games, and for creative players!”
- END DATE: Mon, August 24 2020 3:00 PM EDT.
- “Vehicles & Mounts Guide: A comprehensive guide to Vehicles, Mounts, Trading and Characters for the GMD CORE RPG.”
- END DATE: Fri, August 21 2020 12:08 PM EDT.
- “Play a personified sport in American high school. Can you win your way to Olympic glory?”
- END DATE: Thu, August 27 2020 6:55 PM EDT.
- “A truly unique nerve-jangling candlelit storytelling RPG, boardgame, gamebook & audio horror theatre hybrid. 1-5 Players aged 14+”
- END DATE: Tue, August 18 2020 12:33 PM EDT.
- “Stories about dinosaurs by award-winning authors and new sci-fi writers!”
- END DATE: Sun, August 23 2020 6:00 AM EDT.
- “Affordable items great for any RPG player, tabletop gamer, or collector!”
- END DATE: Thu, August 27 2020 7:52 AM EDT.
- “ShadowMyths book and cards for DnD, Oracle Reading, Writing, and much more. Learn how to use the Turmoil deck to inspire you.”
- END DATE: Thu, August 27 2020 11:00 AM EDT.
- “Strategy card game mixed with an action queue where 1 to 4 players fight as a team of Heroes or as the ferocious Boss!”