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

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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.

 

[darjr]

You love to see it. Late pledging has this up to 2.4 million now.

I really think Shadowdark hits on a balance that just works for a lot of people in a bunch of different ways.

yea. def a key part of it's success.

 

[DarkCrisis]

One thing I think that helps SD over D&D is if you want a safer time you can easily do that for SD. Add more HP etc. D&D5 is just so much you have to consider when trying to make things more lethal.

 

[Bae'zel]

One thing I think that helps SD over D&D is if you want a safer time you can easily do that for SD. Add more HP etc. D&D5 is just so much you have to consider when trying to make things more lethal.

Shadowdark was startlingly easy for me to "hack" into an easier mode.

I think that's part of the appeal: it has just enough familiarity with D&D mechanics, while being much simpler... but not so simple that it gets too abstract?

I just like having a universal "mechanic" for calling ability checks. Very easy for a DM to run.

 

[Reynard]

Shadowdark was startlingly easy for me to "hack" into an easier mode.

In my experience, it gets significantly less lethal after level 3 or so. It never feels as safe as 5E because it isn't meant to, but it doesn't feel punishing either.

 

[DarkCrisis]

In my experience, it gets significantly less lethal after level 3 or so. It never feels as safe as 5E because it isn't meant to, but it doesn't feel punishing either.

Which is alot like AD&D, BX, etc. After you get to level 3 things are far less deadly.

Reminds me of that old saying "The character that survives to level 3 is your actual character."

 

[Reynard]

Which is alot like AD&D, BX, etc. After you get to level 3 things are far less deadly.

Reminds me of that old saying "The character that survives to level 3 is your actual character."

Characters don't get a name until 2nd level, or a backstory until 3rd level.

 

[Arilyn]

In my experience, it gets significantly less lethal after level 3 or so. It never feels as safe as 5E because it isn't meant to, but it doesn't feel punishing either.

I fully agree. It's also so easy to dial the lethality up or down. I've run Shadowdark in a variety of modes, and it's worked really well. I think people are now realizing that SD is flexible, and doesn't have to be just a dangerous crawl through deep dungeons.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I fully agree. It's also so easy to dial the lethality up or down. I've run Shadowdark in a variety of modes, and it's worked really well. I think people are now realizing that SD is flexible, and doesn't have to be just a dangerous crawl through deep dungeons.

It does excel at that, but I was really impressed by how creative 3pp have gotten with the game perusing Drivethru's offerings, and the Discord. Had to stop myself from dumping too much money on 3pp the other day (so just almost too much).

 

[sevenbastard]

I'm glad I backed it this time so I can finally get Shadowdark, but having to wait till December..... My least favorite thing about kickstarter project is the excitement built during the project slowly dies and then at some point I'm like oh yeah I backed that?

 

[Reynard]

Shadowdark is a bit of a Rorschach test, too. Ask people what they like about it, or watch them propose classes or create monsters, and you get a good sense of what they think "D&D" is in short order.