RPG Crowdfunding News – Retia, Ave Nox, Assault on Witchgate 13, and more

This week’s TTRPG crowdfunding sampling covers projects that end right around New Years. It’s ambitious to run a campaign during this timeframe, and I solute every creator that makes the effort. As always, this sampling is based on the end date of TTRPG crowdfunding projects, which means some projects, such as the massive project from MCDM Productions, will be covered in another installment.

Setting Guide to Retia - A D&D 5th Edition Handbook from Nat19

• END DATE: Mon, January 1 2024 12:27 PM EST.
• SYSTEM(S): Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition
• PROJECT TYPE: Sourcebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: CA$30 for the PDF of the book and VTT assets
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? 800 years after the gods were killed and the world, Somnus Domina, survived an apocalypse, new heroes-turned-gods have arisen, yet the lands still haven’t recovered. Within this recovering setting, you’ll get a 500-page 5e sourcebook filled with lore, monsters, and more designed for Retia, an industrial continent on the world of Somnus Domina. In terms of crunch, Nat19 offers 3 classes, an incredibly night number of subclasses (90), 31 ancestries, over 100 spells, over 150 monsters and NPCs, a system for mechs, and more. This is enough content and options that the creators consider their variation of the 5e ruleset to be the 5.19th edition. Born from Nat19’s actual-play campaign, this world promises new rules and more. If you’re interested, there’s a free sample on the campaign page, but keep in mind the campaign ends on New Years Day, so don’t wait until the end.

Ave Nox from Charles Ferguson-Avery

• END DATE: Sun, December 31 2023 9:36 AM EST.
• SYSTEM(S): System neutral
• PROJECT TYPE: Adventure
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $35 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the book plus VTT assets
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Need a 250 room megadungeon? A recently unearthed megastructure is filled with treasure, mystery, and the agents of the Sun-King. This massive underground construct is detailed by artists and gamers Charles Ferguson-Avery (who I interviewed in 2019 about Never Going Home) and Alex Coggon. I’m a fan of the art style and expect this to look fantastic. Charles Ferguson-Avery’s prior projects used OSR stats, including the Silver Ennie Award winning Into The Cess and Citadel. Ave Nox uses “system-neutral stats and writing for use with most TTRPGs.” Based on the sample, there are OSR stats for encounters, but they’re short and to the point (Hit Dice instead of full stats, HP, and a few more items). This does a good job of being heavily system neutral, but is still usable for most d20 systems. If you’re interested in a sample, try this link to itch.io. If this campaign speaks to you, back before this ends on New Years Eve.

Bukana Bestiary: A 5E WakeSong Supplement from Pine Box Entertainment LLC

• END DATE: Fri, December 29 2023 12:01 PM EST.
• SYSTEM(S): Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition
• PROJECT TYPE: Sourcebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $25 for the PDF and VTT assets
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? This is a 5e campaign setting for the world of WakeSong. Bukana Bestiary focuses on monsters “inspired by the rich cultures of pre-colonial Philippines and Indonesia” and digs into Filipino mythology. Bukana is a “prosperous, magical archipelago,” a place that connects with the other lands of this world. Co-author Karl Gaverza is a “Filipino linguist, author, GM, and mythologist. Through his work preserving indigenous languages in the islands, Karl also interviews the many ethnolinguistic groups he encounters in order to catalog the creatures, spirits, and deities they believe in.” Using that background, this book offers unique and rarely seen monsters for your 5e campaign, each illustrated by a Filipino artist. If you need monsters inspired by Southeast Asian cultures for your 5e game, this may speak to you.

Let Us Build a Tower: A Mythic Bronze Age Adventure in Babel from Sojourn RPG Publishing

• END DATE: Thu, December 28 2023 12:30 PM EST.
• SYSTEM(S): OSR
• PROJECT TYPE: Adventure
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $45 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the book plus access to the LUBAT Generator web app
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? The idea for this book is ambitious: an ever-changing dungeon crawl as a tower, based on the Tower of Babel, where you can seek godhood, all for 5e. Set in the Bronze Age, this 120-page book is inspired by the Biblical and Mesopotamian tales of the city of Babel. This is a megadungeon that offers random floors, moving artifacts, table derived traps, 80 monsters, a free-form magic system, and more. Like I said, this is ambitious, and at 120 pages, you’re getting a lot in a short project. If you’re interested, check out the campaign page to see the look of the tower randomizer and other options.

Assault on Witchgate 13 from Planet X Games

• END DATE: Thu, December 28 2023 8:00 PM EST.
• SYSTEM(S): Dungeon Crawl Classics (DCC)
• PROJECT TYPE: Adventure
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $35 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the adventure
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? In the farthest north exists a prison, a gulag for those that have wronged the gods through action or presence. Wardened by ice hags, this ice Bastille is the final stop before an icy death. Far from civilization, you’re tasked with making the trek to free an innocent soul. In this adventure, you’ll get monsters, traps, and a new mechanic for DCC games. This 84-page DCC adventure will throw you in prison and pit you against the guards and inmates; can you rescue the prisoner?

Endeavor Universal Role Playing Game from Nick Callaghan

• END DATE: Sun, December 31 2023 6:11 PM EST.
• SYSTEM(S): An original system
• PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $15 for the PDF version of the book
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? This project launches a new general TTRPG engine. Designed for any genre or setting, this project uses a dice pool system plus modifiers. Using an effort system, players decide if they min/max each of their actions. If you’re looking for an original system for any setting, this may speak to you. This campaign ends on New Years Eve, so if it speaks to you check it out before the end.

The Night Watch from St Caedmon Studios

• END DATE: Sat, December 30 2023 12:32 PM EST.
• SYSTEM(S): An original system
• PROJECT TYPE: TTRPG pamphlet and soundtrack
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $8 for the PDF and MP3
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? This is a unique project that speaks to me because it’s a pamphlet TTRPG and a dungeon synth soundtrack. You’re a defender of your hamlet, a humble fighter patrolling through the night to keep friends and family safe. Each hour, another attack and another potential crisis; if you survive the night, it’s a miracle. This is a single-session or short campaign game, but one that uses a short, original system and offers a soundtrack and a tense, dark setting. If you’re looking for a game and tunes for play, this is worth exploring.

2D6 Realm - A Classic Overland Crawler Solo Player Game from DR Games

• END DATE: Tue, January 2 2024 5:00 PM EST.
• SYSTEM(S): 2D6 Dungeon
• PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
• MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: £12 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the book
• WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? This isn’t a group TTRPG, but a solo roll and write experience in which you randomly generate terrain, encounters, treasure, and more. This is an overland expansion to the 2D6 Dungeon system, so you aren’t just limited to dungeons. This promises a fun solo grind as you create and explore a world. If this concept interests you, check out the campaign page for a link to a free demo version PDF of the 2D6 Dungeon rules on the campaign page.

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[Egg Embry]

I have just backed a bunch of stuff, and my wallet needs a break, but I am really wrestling with this one.

My wallet and I are not on speaking terms! ;-)