Critical Role Announces Two New RPGs

Critical Role’s publishing arm, Darrington Press, has released a ‘State of the Press’ video announcing two new tabletop RPGs.

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Two new RPG systems we’ll be releasing: Illuminated Worlds, optimized for short story arcs and adaptable to myriad settings, and Daggerheart, a fresh take on fantasy RPGs with emphasis on longer campaigns and rich character options.

At Gen Con this year, you’ll be able to play AND purchase Queen by Midnight, and you’ll even be able to take our two upcoming RPGs for a spin. We hope to see you there!

 

[overgeeked]

I hope the games are rules light. I definitely don’t need another RPG that requires homework to play. Actually, considering the players they have, it’s quite likely these will be lighter. If the intent is to have the cast play them. Which seems like such an obvious thing it goes without saying. Even if only one shots or shorter campaigns.

I’m honestly more interested in the d6 dice pool game. It seems to be a perennial place for designers to go, or…borrow…from. I dig EZD6 and they just dropped a quest book. I hope the CR game is as easy and smooth as that.

 

[darjr]

Anybody know what Stras Acimovic and Layla Adelman have worked on before? I'm very interested in the d6 system too.

 

[Amrûnril]

Most CR fans are fans of the show and the cast first and fans of D&D a distant second. The CR subreddit is abuzz with people excited by the announcement.

I agree! I think they are fans of CR first, and D&D ... and RPGs in general ... second.

I'm not sure how generalizable this is. The most visible fans on the internet will tend to be the ones most dedicated to the piece of media they're discussing, but any fan base as large as Critical Role's is going to be fairly multifaceted.

Personally, I really enjoy Critical Role, but I see the primary strengths of the crew as being in character and world building rather than mechanical design. So, absent additional information, I don't see the particular appeal of a CR affiliated rules system.

 

[darjr]

The head of Darrington Press.



Does that mean they've been working on it for about a year +?

 

[BRayne]

Anybody know what Stras Acimovic and Layla Adelman have worked on before? I'm very interested in the d6 system too.

Per a quick search Stras Acimovic seems to have been involved with Scum and Villainy and Band of Blades. Layla Adelman I can't find as much on besides having been an Ennie's Judge for a few years

 

[DarkCrisis]

Seems like a smart idea to me. They'll sell a lot of books, and I don't think switching systems will have a large amount of impact on their overall viewership. (I think just the overall passage of time will be the greater factor there; no king rules forever).

You don't have to challenge D&D to make a few million selling RPG books in the current market, you just have to have a novel and interesting hook. "Official game of Critical Role" works.

I’ll probably buy it also probably never play it.

 

[Matchstick]

Anybody know what Stras Acimovic and Layla Adelman have worked on before? I'm very interested in the d6 system too.

Stras did Scum and Villainy IIRC.
Edit: ninja'd!

 

[Nathaniel Lee]

As you can see from various threads here, Newbies are AFRAID to change systems. I was the same way when I started D&D/RPGs 20+ years ago.

I bet a lot of fans buy the new book but most will stick to what they know.

I wouldn't consider these forums to be representative of the Critical Role fanbase. They are diehard. I would say that their fandom to the show and the creators far outweighs their fandom to a system: most are probably just playing some version or iteration of the show, whether that's in the same world or basing what they do on stuff they see in the show. I suspect that if the series starts utilizing the new system, and the system looks fun and like it facilitates a CR-like experience, a lot (not necessarily a majority) will switch over to that new system whenever they start a new campaign.

 

[Nathaniel Lee]

Except they don't follow them to the other games that Darrington has done

None of which are TTRPGs. Darrington hasn't done much at all. That Ukotoa game reviewed pretty badly. This new card game supposedly is pretty good, but honestly the commercial they filmed for it completely turned me off to even trying it.

 

[Nathaniel Lee]

I’ll probably buy it also probably never play it.

Same here. My TTRPG and board game collection is starting to look like my video game and Blu-ray collection: tons of unwrapped items that will probably never be unboxed.