#tabletop gamedev

[freakflaggames]

https://freakflaggames.itch.io/girl-time

hey so i just spontaneously generated a tabletop game. check out this blurb:

"Girl Time is a roleplaying game set in an unknown era of Ooo from the show “Adventure Time” in which girls are a noble class of adventurers who quest through the land in search of dames to rescue and treasure to find. Girl Time is more focused on narrative and fun than rules and combat. Situations can change from one moment to the next, and women can do anything."

rules-light, shenanigans-heavy, 20 righteous pages, get your girls (lesbians) together and answer the call of adventure!

on the itch page is a link to the original doc. feel free to comment any feedback and copy for homebrewing!

[mightofmerchants]

Some people have asked me if I can publish my mapmaking tools. So I developed a software. 🙂

Here is the result:

[omivel]

The external struggle of table top gamedev is balancing how much fun state heavy stuff can be, and how much of a pain in the ass it is to keep track of.

[devsgames]

Can we please challenge people to stop saying "D&D" when they're actually referring to concepts which apply to "TTRPGs" or "roleplay" on the whole, because it undermines a whole genre by attributing its importance to one franchise made by a corporate monopoly.

We don't say "Call of Duty" instead of First Person Shooter, or "Candy Crush" instead of Mobile Game so we really shouldn't do that for D&D.

[efangamez]

Only 10 days left to snag this AWESOME TTRPG bundle!! 💛💛

Hey y'all! All of the help you've given me thus far has been truly amazing, and I really wanted to thank you for that 💛 I have used the money this far as a safety net for emergencies and to just enjoy life, whether that means going to the movies once a month or buying an Arizona each day with my walk as I build my strength back up.

We are, however, falling a bit short of our goal. I really want to be able to afford therapy more than anything right now, and visits cost about 100 per visit out of pocket with my insurance. So, if I'm looking to get expensive therapy and psychiatric appointments and official diagnosis, it will cost upward of 2,000+ dollars.

Also, I would really like to have some money to pay off my taxes I owe from 2022. I owe, still, about 3,500+ taxes, which I pay off each month. I pay the absolute minimum so I don't have to dig too deep in monthly costs. If I could pay off a chunk of it in one fell swoop, I could save nearly $500 a year and could nip interest accrued from my taxes in the bud.

Finally, and not as important, I need a new desktop computer. My current one is slowly dying, and the fans are giving out. My power supply is also a bit wonky, and my graphics card is and CPU is outdated, meaning I can't stream games well, nor can I play some games that give me solace. It's not imperative right now, but to have this as an option would be wonderful.

So please, if you would, could you purchase a game bundle? It's countless hours of entertainment with your friends for only $25, almost a FOURTH the cost of a AAA video game with HUNDREDS of hours of content. Not only are you snagging games, but you're also helping out a person in need. It's a win win!!!

Snag the games below, and if you can't purchase anything right now, please kindly reblog!

[kathanglangit]

The First Blade: Balaraw - Winged Dagger

I realize I haven't been explicit about it on here yet (mostly because I'm not the best at keeping all my social media profiles up to date), but I am involved in the development of a Tabletop Roleplaying Game It's called Gubat Banwa- a TTRPG based around tactical grid combat, contemplative war drama, and high-flying martial arts, all of which taking place in an unapologetically Southeast Asian-inspired fantasy setting, developed by @makapatag with art direction by @villain-returns. Initially I developed the script that is used in the gamebook and diegetically in the setting- called Kasuratan- but I'll talk about that elsewhere.

With the Kickstarter launch imminent, I thought I'd do a bunch of Twitter X threads on a bunch of weapons I've drawn for the game counting down the final week before the launch. Then I thought: "Why aren't I posting these on tumblr also, at least I wouldn't lose my mind over character counts over here"- so here we are. These were supposed to be posted as Swordtember drawings, but then the KS launch got moved to October. Most of these blades are of Philippine make, since that is where my knowledge-base is and what I'm comfortable enough to share knowledge about. I thought it'd be nice to share a bit of blade knowledge from some of the cultures that inspired the setting. Without further ado, let us begin with the BALARAW.

Also known as a "winged dagger", it is characterized by its unique shape, consisting of a short leaf-shaped blade driven with the tang out into a hilt with two distinct protrusions, creating three prongs on the back with the tang included.

(Photos from an exhibit at The Met)

They may be held at the hilt like a regular knife, or they may be held in a manner not too dissimilar from how our neighbors in Southeast Asia hold keris. One may imagine it like a "push dagger" for lack of other reference points. It might be likened to the katar as well, in some sense.

(Sketches by the Gubat Banwa Art Director himself) Nowadays, the blade is frequently attributed to the People of the Upstream- the Mandaya group of peoples- though they would have seen much wider use in their day, likely also spanning across what is now the Visayas region of the Philippines.

(Modern rendition by Panday Keiven Tolentino of Itak Mindoro, Photo by Ramon H. Bathan) Something I've noticed from looking at Philippine blades all the time is that symmetrical, double-edged blades like these are rare, here. Blades that lend themselves more to stabbing than anything else aren't very prevalent either, and blades that do not- at first glance- appear to be made with tool use/foliage clearing/farmwork in mind don't make up the majority of specimens. The balaraw is unique in several different respects, and any self-respecting warrior Kadungganan of Gubat Banwa's Sword Isles would do well to mind its bite. The weapon makes an appearance in Gubat Banwa in the hands of the Beast Hunter- one of the many Disciplines ("character classes") whose techniques your character can learn in-game.

The Gubat Banwa Kickstarter launches in 7 days! Check it out here:

We'd appreciate any and all help in getting the word out. Support an independent TTRPG made by a team from the global south, looking to make waves through a fantasy setting where the Southeast Asian inspirations takes center stage!

[iron-cutler]

itch.io is currently running its Summer Sale! For the next two weeks, you can pick up my game WHITE WHALE and my short story collection Hard Hat Required for a minimum price of $2.50 each. If you've been on the fence about picking up a copy until now, there's no better time!

[anim-ttrpgs]

Holy crap we went from 90 to 106 followers over the weekend!

Thank you all so much for sharing our posts around! We definitely want to reach as many people as possible and at least get them playing the upcoming demo version even if they don’t spring for the full version. (which you can get for $5 right now on our Patreon; you don’t even have to commit to a subscription, you can just pay the $5 and then cancel after you download it. The subscription just ensures you get all the subsequent updates too as the game continues to be playtested, tweaked, and developed.)

Also, I can’t give you an exact figure set in stone, but based on our calculations it will only take 100 Kickstarter backers to get Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy to its base goal on Kickstarter when we launch it early next year. So, if all of our followers backed it, we would hit the base goal instantly, and move on to the stretch goals which would mean more art by the lovely ladies @chaospyromancy and @qsycomplainsalot. Check out their tumblr pages for an idea of the quality you can expect if we meet our stretch goals.

Once again, thank you all for your support. Now I’m going back to work on those updated monster character creation rules and the the Grievous Wound rules, plus a couple of tweaks based on feedback from the very, very successful playtest where the characters of @kawaiite-mage, @thepleasuregoblin, @kalichnikov, and @horseabortion69 solved a low-stakes “murder mystery” in a haunted house attraction. Only one of them had ever played the game before, but even the new players were able to take to it right away both because they're good players and because Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy is easy to pick up but hard to put down.

The October update is gonna be a big one, as it should be for a horror-mystery game. TRYING to get it out before Friday but I can't make any promises.

[makapatag]

“Violence for violence’s sake is not the rule of beasts but the nature of divinity.” Gubat Banwa is a game of rapid kinetic martial arts, violent sorcery, heartrending convictions and bouts of will. Warriors that channel gods face sorcerers that master black arts, martial artists who have unlocked a new form of cultivation clash swords with those that perfect the night alchemies. When the crocodile’s teeth are cast, convictions are unsheathed, and steel sparks: the Umalagad must declare that: “The river of life ever flows! Rejoice in the glory of combat!” and they enter violence

SWORD AND ENLIGHTENMENT. LOVE AND GLORY. VIOLENCE AND LIBERATION. 

Gubat Banwa is a  Southeast Asian fantasy martial arts Role-Playing Game, inspired by the refulgent cultures of Southeast Asia. Raise your spears, KADUNGGANAN, you elite warrior-braves and asura-knights who travel The Sword Isles to prove their conviction and dictate the fate of the world. Revel in larger-than-life war drama like in Asian Dramas, ballistic tactical martial arts grid gameplay in the vein of Lancer or Final Fantasy Tactics, and find glory beyond heaven. Wield the Thunderbolt of Liberation! Rejoice! In the Glory of Combat!

Itch.io: https://makapatag.itch.io/gubat-banwa

DrivethruRPG: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/.../Gubat-Banwa-1e-Playtest

Gank: https://ganknow.com/services/18713-makapatag-gubat-banwa-1e

Included are!

A unique Southeast Asian-inspired Fantasy setting, with an emphasis on martial arts as a background for war drama and violence, from a Philippine-centric view. Garudas fight against unglu. Martial artist warriors master the Principle of Cutting by meditating upon the teachings of the Violent Bodhisattva. Rituals and superstitions must be performed or else risk the wrath of the ancestors. Vast kingdoms arise with God-Kings at their helm, claiming to be Shiva-Buddha incarnate. You and your warband stand at the center of this violent mandala!

A corresponding narrative system made to help play out war drama in this setting, along the veins of Final Fantasy Tactics, Hero, House of Flying Daggers, Malazan, Tigana, Game of Thrones, and Tactics Ogre!

Want to try out the Thundering Tactics Battle System that fuses modern narrative sensibilities with D&D4e style tactical combat and wargaming dice pools. The Turn Order is known as the Rhythm, and you don't activate a unit; you fulminate a fighter. The game heavily relies on terrain abilities and emphasizes movement, especially with it's 3-Beat System, which lets you do 3 Actions per turn (some actions might cost more than 1 Beat!)

A Discipline System inspired by Final Fantasy Tactics Jobs, Digital Devil Saga's Mantras, and Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne's Magatama. Mix and match your Techniques! Change Disciplines with a single Downtime Action! Be a Death Dancer that heals with alchemies, or a Tigpana (Spiritual Archer) that rides upon a crocodile! 

A narrative system wherein describing or doing dangerous and cool things is encouraged, as that is how you get Thunderbolt Tokens, which let you dictate your fate. This same narrative system prioritizes 5 Approaches instead of Abilities, in the vein of L5R, with each approach based off of the 5 Elements of Gubat Banwa's natural philosophies and esoteric tradition.

Said narrative system comes with a baked in Honor system that interplays with Debt, which is how you get others to do things for you. And NPCs can accrue this same debt, forcing you to follow them. If your Honor ever falls below 0, you must play a new Kadungganan!

An enemy system that allows for Solo and GM-less play! Roll an Enemy's Gambit Dice to find out what actions they do when they Fulminate. Adapt and act accordingly, make for dynamic fights!

Event tables and generators for every possible thing you might encounter while journeying in the Sword Isles, to fully immerse and play in its cultures! As well as Lore to fulfill any questions you might have.

Finally, baked in is the starter adventure: The Sword Devil. So you can jumpstart your games!

[raul-volp2]

Monster Care Squad new Expansion Behind the Waterfall released!!

Explore the Sunken City, meet new monsters, more mechanics, a lot of cool stuff, including more art from incredible artists and me. =)

Get it here:

[technicalgrimoire]

Newsletter subscribers and discord enjoyers get a sneak peek at our next book: Overpowered!

"Overpowered is a new way to speedrun your favorite rpg modules. Manage your dice, use good strategy, and post your high score to leaderboards!"

Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/JUWu4gDutf

[mightofmerchants]

You need a gate? You are unhappy with the position? No problem. :-)

Feel free to check out my mapmaking tool 'Canvas of Kings'! :-)

[adornesibley]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Adorne Sibley (@adornesibley)

Go support @efangamez ! DO IT! please. We got fresh hot good TTRPGs here at prices too good to pass up.

[ultrapoobert]

[devsgames]

Hasbro laid off 1100 people, include large numbers from Magic the Gathering and Dungeons and Dragons teams.

Most of the DnD folks who Larian collaborated with on Baldur's Gate 3 were fired by Hasbro and are no longer working at the company. You know, Baldur's Gate 3? The game that won GOTY at The Game Awards and was so unbelievably profitable that it caught everyone, even those making it, off-guard?

If you can make an unexpected smash hit that blows expectations out of the water and you're still not safe, then who is?

Anyway, start organizing your workplace.