Shadowdark Setting Looks Set To Be 2025's First Million Dollar TTRPG Crowdfunder

​

Just launched today, the new Western Reaches setting for the Arcane Library's popular Shadowdark roleplaying game (which itself raised $1.3M in 2023) has flown past half a million dollars in the first few hours, and looks certain to join the Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarter Club imminently!

[[Edit/Update--and it's done it! $1M less than 12 hours into the Kickstarter campaign!]]

2025 has been quiet so far this year on the million-dollar crowdfunding front. This new setting is a sandbox environment with new classes and ancestries, and various areas such as the Gloaming Forest, Djurum Desert, and Myre Swamp. It comes in two 200-page digest-sized hardcovers. Also included are new issues of the game's Cursed Scroll zine. The full core set will cost you $129, or $149 for a premium version, with fulfillment expected in December 2025.

At $670K at the time of writing, just 3 hours into the campaign, The Western Reaches is already the 7th most first-day funded TTRPG ever, having just passed 2024's Terry Pratchett's Discworld RPG: Adventures in Ankh-Morpork. It looks set to pass 6th place very soon, which is 2023's Ryoko's Guide to the Yokai Realms - A 5e Tome. Only five TTRPG crowdfunders (so far!) have ever hit the million-dollar mark on the first day. You can see the full ranking at the Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarter Club.

The Western Reaches are an unexplored land of fragile civilizations, majestic landscapes, and forgotten horrors that lurk in the dark.

In the Reaches, you could play as:

• A painted witch from the steppes hunting for the secrets to deeper magic
• An armored knight from the City of Masks guarding frontier villages from attack
• A silent monk from the mountains searching for the assassin who killed his teacher
• A scarred pit fighter from the desert looking to make her fortune outside the arena
• A quick-witted explorer from the jungle who can find any artifact for the right price
• A seafaring warrior from the northern isles who fights for the glory of the Old Gods

This sandbox setting is fast, elegant, and flexible in the signature Shadowdark style. You don't have to memorize lore; you'll discover it as you go. The world moves and grows with you as you explore it.

 

[thullgrim]

The FOMO is high for me - especially since I don't have any of the Shadowdark books. I'm still on the fence because I have so many OSR systems. My groups don't especially like them, so it's unlikely I'd ever use it.

The nice thing is that it is easily hackable. If you wanted to include some additional character bits you could easily do that. We're 9 sessions in (running Arden Vul) and I've added a few things but not too much.

 

[The Soloist]

FOMO is very low for me. No one in my group will play this or any other version/variant of D&D. This, D&D 5e, ToV, PF, and others are off the table. The only D&D I want to solo is BX and that is linked to a teen nostalgia vibe.

 

[zottel]

Well, I need a budget now.

 

[Belen]

If the individual books are each a zine, how are they so thick as hardcover? Those look like 200+ page books if they are A4 hardcover?

They are the size of a trade paperback,

 

[sevenbastard]

I backed it. I don't love the presentation of zines and then a mash up of the zines into a book but not all the content.

But the author seems cool and the art is nice, and so whatever I'm in.

 

[nightnoongames]

Kelsey is a class act, and a force for good in the industry, and I can only wish her all the success in the world! One small niggle... I wish there wasn't forced duplicated content. Despite the large acknowledged content overlap between Zines 1-6 and the new bound books, there isn't a pledge level to get the new setting books but without also paying for physical versions of Zines 4-6. I'm pondering why...

If you haven't seen this chart you might find it helpful!

As for a tier for just the two setting books... I think there is a decent chance of that being added from the sounds of it.

 

[Fenris-77]

They are the size of a trade paperback,

All the hardbacks are indeed digest size, same as the current core book.

 

[Fenris-77]

The KS is going to hit 900K in the next little bit, so doing a million on day one seems possible.

 

[Nightfly]

Kelsey gonna be using diamonds as luck tokens

 

[schneeland]

Great thing about Shadowdark when introduced to a D&D 5E group is that’s it’s basically 5E trimmed of all the bloat and super powers.

Yeah, that's actually the main appeal for me. I initially bounced off Shadowdark, because it felt too much like 5e mixed with ideas I had already seen elsewhere. But since I no longer play 5e (and also do not plan to play it again), that's an advantage now, because it's kind of classic fantasy meets 5e with no frills. And the rules are pleasantly easy to memorize.