#magpie games

[c-schroed]

If I had a nickel for every time an eldritch universe I love got an RPG announced on an August 1st,

I'd have two nickels.

[s-che]

a game where we hurt each other

Last month, I played perhaps the most intense TTRPG session of my life as part of the Dream Library’s discussion of Bluebeard’s Bride, a game of “feminist horror” (more on this later) published by Magpie in a gorgeous print edition. Over the course of the month of October my guest lecturer/collaborator @marvelousmsmolly I collectively hosted three sessions of what was by far the most challenging game the Dream Library has ever discussed. 

We came to Bluebeard as the second part of our fall semester covering games of intimacy and monstrosity — a unit which began in September with Avery Alder’s Monsterhearts 2 and is continuing this month with Vampire: The Masquerade (If you want to get in on the VTM discussion and future semesters, please, come join). Both Molly and I suspected that Bluebeard was going to be both a quieter month and a riskier text — but opted to play through it anyway, albeit with some tools in place to make sure everyone knew what they were getting into with a book that doesn’t pull many punches. And with all that, the first two sessions went... fine? We had some lumpy pacing, some conflicting styles of play, some questions about how a game that really seems to encourage player bleed can possibly be played online, but for the most part things were fine. Not great, not bad — not worth the anxiety we’d had about them.

And “fine,” of course, doesn’t make for interesting conversations, so Molly and I took a step back. We talked about what was going wrong: a sense that neither of us quite felt comfortable hitting hard enough, even though we asked players ahead of time and at the start of sessions to tell us what was off the table. A frustration that player choice had trended towards the Bride as a detective/hero and not someone embodied in a world of horror. A confusion — once again — over what it means to “shiver with terror” in a discord call with some friends online. Out of that conversation came a new idea: rather than two more one-shots, Molly took some time to charge up a spirit bomb and put together some more formal prep, then recruited a group she felt could get together for a more curated experience. She wrote up her own excellent thoughts on what went down — along with a lot of session details — but you’ll have to join the Dream Library for that. 

The result of all that curation and preparation was that on October 23rd a group of four trans women — Molly, @jdragsky, our friend Mars, and I — sat down to play Bluebeard’s Bride knowing exactly what we were in for. We would be playing a transfem Bride, Bluebeard would be cis, and we would be hitting transfem-specific horror as hard as we possibly could. 

I’m going to quote from Molly’s reflection, where she wrote:

“Another really great aspect of running this game for this table is there was such a clear feeling that we all understood, wordlessly, what was going on... There are some moments in Allison Rumfitt’s gothic horror novel ‘Tell Me I’m Worthless’ where it felt like the author, a trans woman, was dropping phrases knowing exactly how her transfem audience would react... This had a twofold effect of both giving the players a chilling moment but also, a very brief but appropriate separation between fiction and player where could all grimace and be together in that discomfort before pushing on. People knew what I was doing. The problem with the original game is it doesn’t really want to discuss the politics of what “feminine horror” means. Because of this you’re really lacking some focus. I think a table of cis women could actually play bluebeard’s bride in the way we did last night and have it hit hard for them if they approached it correctly, I don’t think our experience was uniquely elevated by our trans reading, however that was one of several tools we used for that elevation.”

Setting aside the strengths and weaknesses of the original text, that sense of shared experience was key to our game and key to allowing us to hit — and get hit — really hard and trust that our coplayers were there with us. Compared to our earlier efforts (prioritizing safety by taking things off the table via lines/veils) tightening the topical scope from an ambiguous “feminist horror” to a specific transfeminist horror in the context of a chaser bf, in the context of an economic disparity, in the context of the medical pressures of transition in the contemporary U.K. allowed Molly, our lovely host, to hurt us knowing that we were all in it together and choosing to play this game. It transformed the horror from an obstacle in an adventure game into a thing we were seeking out: a pleasure/pain we asked to feel. 

In a games discourse that is — understandably — interested in protections which might be implemented anywhere, including at cons and home tables with much less of an art-and-politics interest, safety tools are often thought about as a negative thing, a preemptive cutting away of all the things which might end up hurting us. I think that’s part of why people can have a hard time filling out a lines/veils list in advance of a session. What are all the things in the world I’m sensitive to? What are all the contexts in which I’m sensitive to them? Good sensitive or bad sensitive? Sensitive enough to cause a scene? Sensitive enough to make it off the table? 

In place of that — and in a table with a really remarkable amount of trust — this final Bluebeard session leaned in, hard, to the things that hurt us. That was the game. Molly wrote a lot about kink in her reflection, and I think she was right to do that. The point of the game was to hurt each other and to feel, and it was a better game for keeping that in mind. It was an actual horror game, and not just a game with horror aesthetics. I agree with Molly that there was nothing essential about having an all-transfem table — I think what we did could be done by anyone, even with the base Bluebeard’s Bride. What was essential was having a table where we all trusted each other enough to play a hurting game and to know that we were there on purpose. It elevated Bluebeard’s Bride into a really fascinating, messy experience — one I can’t wait to play again.

[haveyouplayedthisttrpg]

Have you played ROOT : the RPG ?

By Magpie Games

War has returned to the Woodland! The Marquise de Cat led her armies to victory over many of the clearings, but the Eyrie Dynasties rise again to oppose her. Meanwhile, the mice, rabbits, and foxes of the Woodland do not sit idly by - the Woodland Alliance, a homegrown rebellion, has emerged, promising to free the Woodland from any oppressors. In the midst of this war, you and your friends - vagabonds all - travel between the clearings, taking on jobs no one else can or will do. You choose whom you serve, if anyone… but everyone knows you may tip the balance of the War.

[klkbass]

It’s Mei Ru!!

Okay…It’s not really Mei Ru but, if I had commissioned an artist as such, this would be how I imagined she would look (minus the facial scar and with a constant smile instead of a frown).

Allow me to add my description of the woman from my fanfic.

—Cushions served as seats at a low table with the brothers taking one side while the woman sat across from them. Her dark hair hung to her shoulders barely draping her red-trimmed business suit. She gazed at them with a smile that never seemed to vanish.

“Feel free to order whatever you like,” she said behind her perpetual grin.

Bolin was practically drooling as he scanned the menu. Mako, on the other hand, wasn’t interested in food. He wasn’t sure if it was his own cynicism or spirit half, but there was something unsettling about this woman. “Thanks for inviting us to dinner but, who are you?” he finally asked, his arms folded firmly across his chest.

“You’re quite right. In all the rush, I never did introduce myself,” she grinned, almost too pleasantly. “My name is Mei Ru. I’m a local entrepreneur. My associate is Gon. He’s a jack-of-all-trades sort.” She nodded to the man guarding the door. “And how may I address you?” she asked as she rested her chin on her knit fingers.

He hesitated, unsure if he wanted to reveal his real name. An option that was quickly taken away from him by Bolin who paused from his browsing to answer.

“I’m Bolin and this is my brother, Mako,” Bolin casually answered, unaware of the annoyed sneer he was getting from Mako. “Can we get some Fire Biscuits?”

The woman nodded in response, her grey eyes fixated on Mako.—

For those curious, this image came from “Uncle Iroh’s Adventure Guide” the latest from the Avatar Legends RPG. I don’t play the game, but I do get my claws on just about anything that has extended lore.

[dice-wizard]

Hey look, the adventure I wrote for Root unlocked at 120K!! Go check it out.

[disjointedaria]

Finally finished up art of the PCs in an Avatar Legends tabletop game I'm running for some local friends. :3

[antiquecipher]

HEY TUMBLR THE BOOK(S) I DID COVERS FOR ARE AVAILABLE THIS MONTH. THIS IS THE SECOND ONE.

Do you like queer teen heroes that focuses on the hot mess express lead? Flashback to the 90s? Nine Inch Nails references? Supporting small publishers? Check out Girl Vengeance: The Downward Spiral (book two of two)! ... And after finishing this if you want to know what becomes of Vivienne, good news! Most of her story is when she's in her 40s, this is the flashback books explaining how she became the person she is today.

Digital copies available SOON, but dead tree versions also coming eventually!

(adventures were inspired by a Masks ttrpg game we played so I'm tagging with that :D)

[ghostofcinders]

Something remarkable about the Root RPG

The art:

The actual conflicts and confrontations at the heart of the setting:

I find it very amusing and special. I love this game, and this contrast sure gives it personality.

[cannibalhalflinggaming]

"Zombie World is both flexible and fast, and from my experience playing I can say it handily takes the zombie horror crown away from incumbents like All Flesh Must Be Eaten. Even if the physical copy is required, Zombie World provides both smart game design and an intense game experience that will make many horror fans very happy." - @levelonewonk

[auntieashleydark]

Just received: Urban Shadows 2e, from the Magpie Games Kickstarter.

[bluewitching]

A secret superhero and a newfound henchperson forge an unlikely alliance… what could possibly go wrong?!

[neonshift]

The Guardians West

Director of Order Name: Molly Adebisi Alias: Lightbringer Powers: Light Manipulation

Director of Freedom Name: Carmine Crane Alias: None Powers: Combat Origami

Director of Strength Name: Alex Kammo Alias: Tough Powers: Supreme Strength and Durability

Director in Absentia Name: Sangha Hei Zheng Alias: The Tiger Powers: Shadow Manipulation, The Tiger’s Pavillion

Director of Industry Name: Sun Chang Alias: Sun Wukong Powers: Divine Form, Wealth and Industry

Some NPC's for The Worst Generation! Twitter | Instagram | Ko-fi | itch.io

[literalcatpod]

44 - Making the Master of the Water Shuriken in Avatar Legends

In this episode, we take a look at the RPG/Lore Bible based on the beloved Nickelodeon animated series, Avatar: The Last Airbender and Avatar: Legend of Korra. You will be happy to hear that our cat is completely lore-compliant, considering a Literal Cat did exist in the show at one point. I mean, if you ignore the fact that it can water-bend. Otherwise, perfectly lore-compliant!

Silent Mayhem Under Springfield is currently Playtesting!!! https://badgertrove.itch.io/silent-mayhem-under-springfield-playtest-edition

Follow the show online: https://literalcatpod.start.page/ 

Follow Joel Holland: https://jholland.start.page/

Follow Avalon: https://twitter.com/AvalonAlchemist

We’ve got a Patreon now! https://www.patreon.com/BadgerTrove 

Download the character sheets: https://bit.ly/literalcatpod 

We’re on Bluesky now! https://bsky.app/profile/literalcatpod.bsky.social 

Cover art, midroll theme, and Intro/Outro music made by Joel Holland

Thanks for listening! We’ll Cat-ch you later!

[mrkapao]

Things are getting dicey for the gang on Fresh Out the Box's limited actual play series of Avatar Legends TTRPG ('Avatar: The Last Airbender' TTRPG) by Magpie Games!

Every other Fridays starting at 6PM PST on TWITCH (http://www.twitch.tv/jahananon) !

[fromthegreytavern]

Hello! Welcome to From the Grey Tavern.

I’m going to be using this blog to create campaign diaries for the games I run, as I have time to do so (woo dissertation writing!). This will include narrative summaries of each session with the addition of commentary about the process and planning of each game.

Also as a note, this is a bilingual blog! Both English and Spanish will be used, but you’ll mostly see Spanish when I’m running games that lend themselves to it like Cartel by Magpie Games or Nahual by Smoking Mirror Productions.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy these humble tales From the Grey Tavern!

[calokoko]

Legacy