#troika!

[feuer-in-soho]

I made a new token pack!

This pack is a collection started out as a handfull of tokens I made for a home campaign of Troika!. It expanded into some more and since then I have used some of these for Lancer too.

In the pack are included:

30 illustrated tokens of robot knights and other beings (but all robotic in nature), all tokens infront of a hex, square and circle backdrop.

Its pwyw on itch so pick it up if you feel like it!

[prokopetz]

Something I've wanted to try my hand at is a game that basically rips off the central gimmick from Troika!, whereby the game actually has an extremely specific (and very weird) setting, but absolutely no setting infodumps: the milieu is communicated entirely through its character creation mechanics, skill lists, and equipment tables.

You basically start with big chapter full of character archetypes and roll some dice to choose one, and immediately fall down a rabbit hole of "apparently I'm a 'poorly made dwarf'; what does this setting think a dwarf is, and how can one be poorly made?" and "it seems that I begin play with a ruby lorgnette – what the fuck is a ruby lorgnette?"

As a design approach it near-perfectly combines my two loves of excessively long random tables and being deliberately obscure.

[amechyofsorts]

Did the dunmeshi main 4 as Troika! backgrounds, very very lazily, for funzies. I don't think almost anyone else here plays Troika!, but whatever.

Marcille's spell list feels kinda incomplete, but it wouldn't be too hard to add and/or substitute a few more spells that fit specific stuff she casted in the series at some point.

[haveyouplayedthisttrpg]

Have you played Troika! ?

By Daniel Sell and the Melsonian Arts Council

Good question! In theory, troika! Is about fantastical sci-fantasy people exploring the multiverse, but There's been troika! Games about ANYTHING. The way troika content works is that if you make something and go "this is troika content" it is basically now troika content. Anyone can make anything and it's all canon. The setting is very openly "whatever the fuck you want". you can play as a spaceship. You can play as a sentient inkjet printer. You can play as a door to door monkey salesman. You can play as a dog with a gun. There's cowboy settings. There's capitalist bear settings. There's ants heisting a picnic settings. There is so much troika content that I cannot tell you all of it.

This is a game where the teenage mutant ninja turtles can go to a fashion show in the Permian period and that can be your game. Even if you're like "okay. This is too much. I'm just using the Official Official stuff" the numinous edition characters involve robots, locksmiths, children avenging their dead pearents and lammasus, and they're all treated as equal characters. Troika game settings often come written on leaflets and played over a few hours with some pretzels. Troika is a very bizarre game. It's anything, as long as you have a couple d6 to roll.

[micromekas]

Me before: Man, I wonder why people have so much TTRPGs they want to play but haven't. I mean, how many TTRPGs can even interest you? two, maybe 3?

Me now: ok so if I finish my Troika campaign quickly enough I may have the time to start one of the the three campaign ideas I had bouncing around in my head before I even started the current one. I just have to pick between the Lancer one, the Troika one and the FIST one... oh what's that? A new RPG by the author of Lancer? that reminds me, I also want to play apocalypse frame at some point. Maybe I should try mastering a PbtA game too, the Monster of the Week One-Shot was fun. Oh wait a youtuber I like just published a video on a new indie TTRPG that looks quite cool.... oh no

[avernine]

HEY FOLKS WHO ENJOY ACTUAL PLAY PODCASTS?!

Ya like WHIMSY?

Ya like it WEIRD?

Ya like it when you get to see into a world where a garden gnome, a guy clothed entirely in swords, and an anglerfish-faced fella in a coat go on quests for money to buy Wasp Drinks, navigating their way around sapient mandrills and riddling sphynxes?

Do you want to meet Big Jim Concrete?

You do want to meet Big Jim Concrete.

Listen to Ludonauts! on Spotify :D

[ritunn]

5 TTRPGs to Try in 2023

With the OGL being a thing WotC is certainly hitting rock bottom, this is a great time to try out new TTRPGs! I'm not going to recommend you Pathfinder 2e because that is an obvious pick, but if you're looking to expand your experiences, here's 5 TTRPGs to check out this 2023. I've also done a post for 2024, so feel free to check that out here if you like this!

1. Fabula Ultima

Fabula Ultima is a tabletop Japanese roleplaying game, or to put it simply, Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Ni No Kuni, and so many more classic JRPGs as a tabletop game. A game of Fabula Ultima allows the players to create and design the world in conjunction with the GM and add on to it later with the Fabula/Ultima point system, allowing everyone to contribute to the world building! The actual mechanics are simple however, with minimal math involved and fights taking place like they would in say in the classic Final Fantasy games: enemies on one side of the screen and heroes on the other. No grids needed. Tactics are still full of depth however as you can mix and match 2 - 3 classes together at beginning levels to make any of your favorite JRPG archetypes and work with your team to exploit vulnerabilities of the foes you face. The bond system however allows players to grow more connected with each other abd the world, even getting bonuses for doing it and RPing, which is always a plus. Overall, an amazing fantasy tabletop for anyone who loves JRPGs.

2. Wanderhome

A pastoral fantasy TTRPG, Wanderhome is Redwall after the war when peace has finally come to the land. In Wanderhome, you take on the role of one of the many beastfolk of Haeth, wandering to somewhere across the land. Together with the GM or with no GM at all, everyone will make the towns and fantastical locations you come across together, populating them with NPCs and stories, all made with a simple trait system. Speaking of trait system, that's exactly what you use to build your character! You pick a playbook and from there pick traits and various things you can do, these aren't hard and set the only things you can do mind you, just things you're capable of. The gameplay itself is mostly about telling stories and solving problems via giving and taking, do something difficult and you'll be able to get a token that'll let you create story elements later on to help with problems. Via this you can build up a story together with everyone as you wander through the seasons, growing, and eventually leaving, as your journey one day comes to an end.

3. Troika!

Troika! is a game that exists. A very strange game. One with befoulers of ponds, journeymen from the guild of sharp corners, fellows from the sublime society of beef steaks, and vengeful children. A science fantasy TTRPG, Troika! certainly borrows from OSR but I wouldn't exactly put it in that either. Troika! is in league all its own, one where your adventures across the infinite weird and wonderful lands will certainly make your TTRPG group either concerned for you as the GM or give them a laugh. Plus, it has a vibrant third party community on Itch.io! So, you'll never really run out of new content for the strange game that is Troika! But to understand Troika! you'll need to read it yourself. Really. I can't explain this fever dream of a game.

4. Vaesen: Nordic Horror

In Call of Cthulhu you fight against eldritch horrors and dangerous cults, in Vaesen you fight against forces of an ancient and terrifying world being pushed aside as the world becomes more and more industrialized. Set in the very real country of Sweden, along with the rest of Northern Europe (and now Britain and Ireland too!) Vaesen is a horror TTRPG where you fight against faefolk, dangerous spirits, trolls, and other monsters of European folklore. Each player is a fairly normal person besides the fact that they have the gift to be able to actually see these monsters, so it's up to you to hunt them down and figure out what's wrong when they cause trouble. Whether that be via a simple conversation or a race against the clock to complete a ritual that will end their terror once and for all. As a Free League game, it uses their dice pool system. Add up together d6s based on your skills and circumstances then if you roll a 6, success! Other than that however, when you're not hunting creatures, you build up your home base, an ancient castle, customizing it according to the your party's needs to create the perfect place to relax after a job well done.

(As of writing this all Vaesen books are available with Forbidden Lands on Humble Bundle. I highly suggest buying it if interested.

5. Agon

From Evilhat, well known for Fate, Monster of the Week, and Thirsty Sword Lesbians (all great games as well), Agon is yet another amazing game with a focus on storytelling. Agon sets you as a hero of an epic in mythic Greece (but can be easily adapted to other mythos) sailing home and creating your heroic legacy. Gameplay consists of coming upon an island and challenging its threats, win or lose, you continue onwards afterwards dealing with the consequences of whatever happened and your legend grows as fate comes closer to claiming you. The dice system used is easy to pick up, simply requiring you to roll higher than your foe to succeed in contests. But with every success, the more your name die grows and with it, how many will tell your story at journey's end. If you fail however and are drawn closer to your inevitable fate, you also grow stronger for the rest of the game, gaining new boons to aid you in future adventures. If you want a relaxed fantasy journey, pick Wanderhome. If you want an epic adventure worthy of heroes of legend, play Agon. Both are great for one-shots and short 3 - 4 month campaigns however.

[arsene-inc]

I finally defeated my Troïka! curse !

It was my cursed game. Every time I tried to play it, something happened and the game didn't happen.

And now finally I played it. I was the GM at the club for the "Blancmange & Thistle" adventure. In 2 week, another session with a personal adventure this time.

[teratocrat]

[traskomancer]

RPG a Day 21-25

Day 21: Favorite licensed RPG

Free League's Alien RPG, hands down. I can't think of any other licensed games I even play off the top of my head, and the Alien game is very well done. The stress mechanic and 3 act structure go a long way to achieving the feel of the source material.

Day 22: Best secondhand RPG purchase

Not even a purchase but a trade; I swapped a 5e book to @marquisnaberius in exchange for the 2e Unknown Armies core book and the 1e One Shots book. As far as strictly things I've bought, I did get a lot out of my set of core books for D&D 3.5 as a kid despite barely actually playing that particular edition. I was used to 4e and the juxtaposition was interesting. Also, I like the sketchy art style in the PHB.

Day 23: Coolest looking RPG product/book

I'm very partial to games that have a diegetic-ish style, like Monsters and Other Childish Things, the Unknown Armies 3e character sheet, and so on.

I also really like the art and feel of the Mothership scenario Gradient Descent. As far as the coolest art, Over the Edge 2e has some great stuff, though there are many others I could mention. Tales from the Loop is obviously designed around its art to some extent. This is definitely a prompt with a lot of answers.

Day 24: Complex/simple RPG I play

I think D&D 5e is the most complex RPG I feel I fully understand, and I do mean I FULLY understand it. I have half the monster manual and spell lists memorized and can improv anything else I need. It is kind of nice having a system of moderate-to-high complexity at my beck and call. I know there are much more complex systems around, including other editions of D&D, but I don't really want to make the mental investment of learning them. That's not what I enjoy in RPGs these days anyway. If I want crunch I'll play a video game.

As far as the simplest game, Fiasco is basically improv with a little bit of dice prompting for structure. So if you consider improv simple, which I feel is a plausible perspective, then that would count. One page games like Lasers and Feelings and Everyone is John of course also count for this.

Day 25: Unplayed RPG I own

Oh god, so many. I've already mentioned Monsters and Other Childish Things a few times in these prompts. Troika!, Ryuutama, Liminal Horror, Vaesen, The Dee Sanction, Mothership, and Fellowship all also fit this category. And that's to say nothing of all the games I've played once or twice and would love to come back to...

[dicestew]

Here are the first two #dungeon23 entries! I'm creating a mega pointcrawl sphere for Troika! system. Should be fun! PS. if anyone could figure out the theme of my entries then you get a bonus point!

[feuer-in-soho]

the unholy child of the hut of baba yaga and a sphinx

[inspirationaljunkyard]

Some samples of my character design work for the Troika! TTRPG adventure THE SUPERMARKET AT THE END OF REALITY, written by The Gonzo DM with additional art by Inkysuns. https://thegonzogm.itch.io/the-supermarket-at-the-end-of-reality

[amechyofsorts]

Acid Death Fantasy is basically Caves of Qud tabletop. Hell fucking yeah.

[facelessoldgargoyle]

We finished our one-shot of Troika! last night, the Blancmange and Thistle hotel, and it was so much fun. Deeply interesting character background to build off of, whimsical and dangerous situations, a deeply delightful magic system. highly recommended find it here

[unabletowatchmits]

@orbital-windmills

in the wake of the wotc OGL nightmare, I’ll post a list of games you can play as an alternative when I’m off work