DIE, A Comic About TTRPGs, Gets a Sequel With Quickstart Guide to DIE TTRPG

Image Comics has announced a sequel to DIE, the comic about a group of TTRPG players who get trapped in the world of the game they're playing. DIE: Loaded will pick up a year after the finale of the original comic, with the surviving cast trying to acclimate to real life after their second trip into the DIE game world. While the comic is a continuation of the original, creator Kieron Gillen mentioned in an interview with Rascal that the new comic is meant to be enjoyed on its own. In addition to Gillen, artist Stephanie Hans is also returning for the sequel, as is letterer Clayton Cowles.

DIE: Loaded will also include a new Quickstart for the DIE TTRPG, which is a game that allows players to play as real world players trapped in the world of the game they're playing in. The Quickstart will include pregenerated characters, a shortened version of the rules set, and a new multi-session scenario to playthrough. The DIE RPG, published by Rowan, Rook, and Decard, won the Best Role-playing Game Core Product Origins Award back in 2023.

DIE: Loaded #1 will be released on November 12th.

 

[sevenbastard]

DIE: Loaded will also include a new Quickstart for the DIE TTRPG, which is a game that allows players to play as real world players trapped in the world of the game they're playing in

 

[hawkeyefan]

I saw this news and was excited. The comic is pretty much essential reading for people into RPGs, so I’m really glad to see them revisit the world and its concepts.

One thing to clarify… there is already a Quickstart available. The new one being referenced will be done in comic format, and will therefore be less expensive to grab a physical copy.

The current quickstart can be acquired in PDF for PWYW here!

 

[EthanSental]

I read the first 2, maybe 3 issues of the comic but stopped, maybe it was around Covid starting but I need to finish up reading the series as I enjoyed the ones I did read.

 

[Umbran]

I saw this news and was excited. The comic is pretty much essential reading for people into RPGs,

No it is not.

DIE is a well-crafted comic, no question. But it is essential reading for RPG people in about the same way as being in the room during the reconstructive surgery after a Indy 500 crash and burn is essential for learning how to drive.

 

[hawkeyefan]

No it is not.

DIE is a well-crafted comic, no question. But it is essential reading for RPG people in about the same way as being in the room during the reconstructive surgery after a Indy 500 crash and burn is essential for learning how to drive.

Oh Literal Larry! You’re such a scamp!

 

[Umbran]

Oh Literal Larry! You’re such a scamp!

The note that DIE is less about RPGs than it is about trauma is pretty darned relevant.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

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I like DIE but this is kind of my one hang-up with the system lol.

 

[hawkeyefan]

The note that DIE is less about RPGs than it is about trauma is pretty darned relevant.

Sure! And when I post on trauma boards, I mention that!

I like DIE but this is kind of my one hang-up with the system lol.

It’s not quite that layered. Like… the character you’re playing is a one from the real world. That character isn’t really pretending to be anyone else so much as they’ve adopted/inherited/been granted the abilities and role of one of the classes.

Think along the lines of the old D&D cartoon… Hank was still Hank.

Now… having said that, DIE is different in that it probably works best when the persona you create for play has issues related to themes suited to the given class. It also really works best when you establish interesting relationships and/or situations with the other PCs.

 

[jian]

DIE is very much meant to be an isekai or portal fantasy setting and that can be a poor fit for some tables or players. But hey, if you don’t like it, don’t play it.

Having read all of DIE I think it’s Gillen at his absolutely self-indulgent worst and I have no interest in playing or running a game like it, so I definitely fit into that category (which isn’t to say that I necessarily mind isekai generally).

(As for whether DIE is about RPGs - sure, it’s about some people’s experience of playing RPGs, mainly as teenagers. But it’s absolutely not required reading in any way.)