Routinely Itemised: RPGs #268 (2024)

August 3, 2024 by Andrew Girdwood Leave a Comment💶 Ads: Links may earn commission

It’s the midnight oil edition of Routinely Itemised with the Edinburgh Festivals and Gen Con overlapping. So, without any more faff let’s see what the news is and those early D&D 2024 reviews.

RPG news from Geek Native

Free League Publishing has announced a second edition of the Alien RPG.
The Horrible Guild as a free download of their half-vampire nobledark RPG Vileborn.
Geek Native introduced the free to download Mooks and Minions RPG playtest.
In a guest post the artist and cartographer Snowy (of Snowy’s Maps) tackles Taking the ‘V’ Out Of ‘Virtual Tabletop’ and Onto Your Tables.
WizKids and D&D teamed up for token merch with Gamelings.
Chaosium has announced a Basic Roleplaying Gamemaster Pack.
On Humble, Paizo and Hero Labs have a fleet of Starfinder 1e goodies and the 2nd Playtest Primer on offer.

Spotlight: Schwalb Entertainment

RPG news from around the web

The United Paizo Workers won the Diana Jones Award.
Benjamin Abbott kindly put All the D&D announcements from Gen Con 2024 in one place.
Publisher and Kobold-in-Chief Wolfgang Baur shares State of Play: Everyone’s New Edition, and a Major Award.
Bleeding Cool has Dungeons & Dragons Provide More Info About Project Sigil.
ComicBook has an exclusive with Stormlight Archive RPG to Launch With Digital Support From Demiplane, Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, and DriveThruRPG.
Polygon’s Samantha Nelson notes that The first adventure for The Stormlight RPG fixes a plot hole in Sanderson’s series.
Wargamer has an exclusive with the news that New Pathfinder book explores six strange magic schools.
IGN covers Roll20 Introduces Discord Integration, Will Support Dungeons & Dragons, Dune, Cyberpunk RED, and More.
Monte Cook Games announce Old Gods of Appalachia: Deeper Still.
The OSR zine Fight On by Igantius Umlaut returns in digital and print.
Posthuman Studios and Moose With Cup Creative are working together to make an Eclipse Phase board game.
ICv2 carries the news that .
Holy Cross Magazine has a piece on Dungeons, Dragons & Diversity.
Bell of Lost Souls covers Roll20 Unleashes Xenomorphs in Your Discord With New’ ALIEN RPG’ Activity
In RPG-adjacent and big-money news, the BBC writes up a story about Tactic North East with Wargaming space gets funding to support community.
On a related note, Kobold Press is right to be pleased that their books are being used for mental health benefit.
In music news, Stereogum covers that Members Of The Promise Ring, Braid, & More Announce Dungeons & Dragons-Themed Band Fight Dice.

RPG reviews and interviews from around the web

Mollie Russell at Wargamer says DnD 2024 Player’s Handbook review – the future looks bright.
Christian Hoffer at ComicBook goes with Dungeons & Dragons 2024 Player’s Handbook Review: Improved But Safe 5th Edition.
Halfway Station reviews the SWADE SF Companion.
Reviews from R’lyeh looks into the Achtung! Cthulhu mission Operation Black Cap, R. Talsorian Games’ historic Castle Falkenstein and The One Ring adventure The Withywindle and the House of Tom Bombadil.
Grognardia pens a retrospective on The Official Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Coloring Album.
Throat Punch Games reviews Pathfinder – Howl of the Wild.
At Sly Flourish, Mike shares thoughts after Delving into Shadowdark.
ComicsBeat has a write-up of TTRPG industry figures reflecting on 50 years of D&D.
CBR’s Jenny Melzer has an interview with Josh Herman the head of D&D’s Art Department – We Tried to Put Storytelling In All the Images.
On a roll, Jenny also interviewed Chris Perkins at Gen Con:The More DMs In The World, The More Games.

RPG new releases

Modiphius has released Star Trek Adventures – Second Edition – Core Rulebook PDF as well as the Game Toolkit.
Free League Publishing has expanded The One Ring RPG with Moria: Through the Doors of Durin.
Free League’s The Lords of the Rings RPG, which is a 5e game, has Moria Shadow of Khazad-dûm.
Gold Mountain Games’ D6 system is used in Claudia Christian’s Dark Legacies: Corporation Wars.
Divine Madness Press releases low price point Shadow Ops Quickstart.
One Shot RPG has published a Pay What You Want Covert Red: 2nd Edition.
LordK has a Pay What You Want Quickstart for Prismatic Hero Adventure.
NRM Books has released the 2d6-system Lights Out – The Roleplaying Game.

RPG bundle deals

Save $14.24 (15%) with Fable Spinners’ The Fey Lore Collection bundle.
Save $5 (33%) with Slowquest in the Slowquest Adventure #2 bundle.

RPG ideas, tips and discoveries

On EN World, Egg Embry put together Graphic Design Layout Artists: The Reason TTRPGs Look Great.
Grognardia has a brief but interesting pictorial history of Beholders.
The Alexandrian offers tips on Running Mysteries: Background Revelations.
Mollie Russell pens The new DnD tools and 2024 crafting rules, explained.
Emily McElroy at TheGamer has All Settings In Quests From The Infinite Staircase, Ranked.
Geek Dad’s Rory Bristol pens How to Play Trans and Nonbinary Characters in Dungeons and Dragons.
Rory also has thoughts on How to Choose the Perfect ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Mini.
Michael Tresca at EN World tackles WotC refusing to call D&D 2024 D&D 5.5 or D&D 6e with Change is Coming.
Lifehacker’s Stephen Johnson has been raiding social media to share Nine’ Dungeons and Dragons’ Influencers You Should Follow.

RPG Crowdfunding

You can see those Kickstarters and other crowdfunding campaigns that caught Geek Native’s attention over at Kickstarter watch. Here are some industry projects worth mentioning;

Limitless Non-Combat Encounters from Limitless Adventures raises funds for “100 non-combat encounters for any fantasy TTRPG system (5e, PF, etc.)”
DnD 5e Adventure | The Lament of the Lambs from Lynx Projects introduces “A DnD 5e Investigation One-Shot where the culprit hides among the innocent, the nights are long and the blood flows generously”
Debt to Corruption: 5e Time Sensitive Manor Heist from Ardann Creative kickstarts “Infiltrate & Plant Evidence in a 3 Floor Manor with 45 Rooms Before it is Raided!”
The Phoenix’s Call – 5e D&D from Anthony David pitches “High Fantasy 5e D&D campaign”
1400 Diverse Sci-Fi Battle Maps for TTRPG from Agnieszka Polanowska kickstarts “Discover Infinite Worlds: 1400 High-Quality Digital Sci-Fi Rpg Maps for TTRPGs ,1 Backer = 1 Additional Map!””
Murders at Lorelahc Manor: 5e Mysteries at the Masquerade from Andie Margolskee offers “A TTRPG book with two DnD5e murder mystery adventures, NPCs, monsters, maps, and more. Available as a PDF, Roll20 module, or in print.”
Valor and Vigor: 5E Critical Hit and Save Decks from Blue Cottage Media kickstarts “Enhance your 5E game with added bonuses for Natural 20 rolls on attacks and saving throws!”
Maps for TTRPGs – Underwater Expeditions from RealmCrafters suggests “300+ Underwater Themed Maps for Every Tabletop and VTT System (e.g., DnD, Pathfinder) Plus Commercial Use Included! (Grid & Gridless)”
100 Villages, Towns & Cities for D&D 5e! from Paws for Effect crowdfunds “A DnD supplement featuring diverse and ready-to-use settlements in many different environments!”
Eldritch Ascendants TTRPG from Aron Stauffer crowdfunds “A new Tabletop Fantasy RPG. Unleash Your Inner Eldritch Power.”
The Game Master’s Market Maker – A DnD 5e Tome from Assassin NPC kickstarts “Level up your markets with exciting settings, a plethora of items, & intriguing NPC’s, all while keeping your in-game economy balanced!”
Tabula Rasa: A 5E Compatible Social Deduction Mystery from Blair McKenzie pitches “The mystery starts with who you are…”
Trials of Acheron Role-Playing Game from Paul Kaiser suggests “An exciting and open-ended medieval fantasy role-playing system and world.”
Cover Stories Series 2: Quick Adventures for DCC, MCC and WF from Louis Hoefer proposes “A selection of three, 6-panel adventures to “cover” gaps between your campaign runs.”
Ailments and Remedies – A DnD 5e medical supplement from White Panther Games kickstarts “A handbook of diseases, injuries, and medicines for your D&D campaigns! Ideal for gritty worlds with lasting consequences.”
Atma: A Roleplaying Card Game – Season III from Meromorph Games is working on “A full-fledged RPG in 2 hours, for roleplaying novices and experts alike. Standalone but compatible with other seasons.”
80’s Adventures: 5e Supplement & Adventure Modules for DnD from Dice Dungeons proposes “A retro-inspired supplement for 5th edition. Vibrant new subclasses, magic items, and spells and modules inspired by the 1980s.”
The Smoking Bones Travel Guide #1 from Andrew Bosley | Wits End Studios submits “Walk the lava springs. Swim with crystal jellyfish. Lick tasty rocks. Wonders await! Your Captain is ready. Are you?”
Eeyore – A 5e RPG – Are You A Hero or Hellraiser? from Elm Thunderfly proposes “Step into Eeyore City, where the whimsical world of Winnie the Pooh crashes into a gritty battleground where honey is key to survival”
Populated Hexes Monthly Issue 37 from Todd suggests “Starting off Year Four with a BANG!”
Hobby Case – 3D PRINTABLE STL from GAME START introduces “Hobby Case is a modular and expandable system to display your collections and store your games and hobbies.”
The All New Gobber’s Guide to Hearth and Home from Unlimited Realms Ltd crowdfunds “A TTRPG supplement for D&D 5e with new rules for creating a home for your adventurers, with new classes, races and magic items.”
Micro Dungeons: Raid to the Frost King Citadel (5e D&D) from Micro Dungeons nominates “Dungeon Crawling adventures against an Frozen Undead King and its minions for 5e DnD (5th edition Dungeons and Dragons TTRPG)”
Born to Run: Olympic Adventures for DnD 5e from Fables in Tables submits “After dark, the hungry and the hunted gather in the Jungleland city of New Orc for the most dangerous games of all.”
Lugon: Evolution & Magic from The Wanderer proposes “Explore a world where Evolution, Ecology, and Magic are closely intertwined. Available in D&D 5E and Pathfinder 1E + 2E”
Handcrafted Dragon Egg Gemstone Dice 2 from Diving Hippo Studio crowdfunds “Polyhedral dice with silver engraved fantasy theme font for collections, dungeons and dragons, board games, rpg and tabletop games.”
Race to Glory from Dragon Scale Games proposes “A 5e compatible full-length adventure from Dragon Scale Games”
Medieval Superheroes: WANTED Posters for TTRPGs from Unusual Adventures nominates “30 Unique, Ready-to-Print Posters for Your Epic Adventures!”
Sparkle Stars – Indie Japanese TRPG Translation Project from Silver Vine Publishing introduces “A rules-lite TRPG about producing your very own magical girl or transforming hero show!”
Ferocious Dragon Hollow Dice from Scatter Games raises funds for “Unleash the Power of the Dragon in Every Roll!”
5 Adventure Locations for Tabletop Role-Playing Games from Jean Francois Senay offers “Adventure locations filled with illustrations, maps, descriptions, NPCs, objects and monsters! Easily adaptable to any TTRPG like 5e.”
Red Die System from Mark Parish proposes “A minimalist TTRPG playable in any genre”
Island of Ignorance – The Third Cthulhu Companion / for 7E from Golden Goblin Press nominates “An expanded and updated re-release of our first book, Island of Ignorance – The Third Cthulhu Companion.”
2024 Dice Advent Calendar: 24 Mystery Sets from Robin’s Nerd Supplies introduces “Dice advent calendar with 1 dice per day up to one set a day. All the sets are new for 2024”
1-page 1-shots – RPG D&D maps from strange arcade submits “5 Fantasy Dungeon battle Maps for your tabletop RPG with mini random adventure. Usable on virtual tabletop platforms and print at home”
Atlus Runners: Core Rules from Roger proposes “Back the Core Rules today to open the door to the wide world of Atlus!”
f*ck Me’ | Sharp Edge Dice Sets from Only Crits crowdfunds “Turn your Natural 1 into a Natural ‘f*ck Me’ and your Natural 20 into a Natural ‘f*ck You'”
Sentients: the Role-Playing Game of Artificial Consciousness from Ted Hayes pitches “A rules-medium tabletop RPG of liberation, underground resistance, newfound emotion, and what it means to be something other than human”
The Great BIG Nomventure! from Nomnivore Games Inc. crowdfunds “A neurodivergent-accessible kids’ RPG full of storytelling and adorable Nomnisaurs from the team that brought you Dungeons & Dinos.”
7th Sea: The Price of Arrogance from Agate raises funds for “7th Sea is back with its official campaign. Get ready for an epic story where Indiana Jones meets Pirates of the Caribbean!”
HobbyPaintCrate: Paint Minis Anywhere! Portable Hobby System from Jorrit – STL Loot Factory raises funds for “A leightweight 3D printable on-the-go work station for painting in any situation, anywhere at home or outside, even without a table!”
Brothel’s Tales, A D&D Adventure of Troublesome Pleasure from Black Cube Games kickstarts “Uncover Truths in a DnD 5e Compatible Adventure: Who’s messing with these brothels?”
Dungeon Domains: Leadrot Mine (5e / OSR compatible) from Bart Wynants suggests “An endlessly expandable dungeon for 5e, Pathfinder, Shadowdark, Forbidden Lands, Mörk Borg & other fantasy tabletop role-playing games!”
Epic Heroes Encyclopedia for 5e – Monk from Table Knight Studios proposes “Reach beyond limits, unlock hidden potentials, be an epic monk, and advance up to 30th level with this 50 pages of epic content for 5e.”
Destiny’s Role 5: Wolfenfold from Mark Lain submits “The 5th adventure gamebook in the ongoing and highly-acclaimed DESTINY’S ROLE GAMEBOOKS series”
Meteor Tales: The Roleplaying Game from Spiral Lane Productions raises funds for “A Medieval Fantasy TTRPG with easy and rich mechanics. Dynamic combat, Modular Magic, Classless progression in a unified system.”
Oryx: Starship Miniatures & Maps from 0-hr proposes “Starship miniatures and 24×36″ deckplan poster maps. Two cargo ships for Starfinder and other sci-fi RPGs.”
Modern-day NPCs for all RPG systems from The Arcane Muse suggests “Forty-eight story rich NPCs, fully system neutral.”
Inventions: Machines and Equipment for 5E from Roleplay Elixir pitches “A 5E supplement that contains lots of inventions and their inventors, all with detailed lore, rules, charts, and story hooks.”
The Lord Navigator’s Almanac to Chorus (D&D 5E Sourcebook) from Myles G. introduces “Explore the frontiers of Chorus with this 300+ page 5E sourcebook featuring new character options, adventures, spells, items, and more!”
Malikar’s Guide To Magical Masks – For Fifth Edition DnD from Dominic M. raises funds for “Arcane masks with unique magical abilities, lore, and questlines. For DnD 5E, easily adaptable to PF2 or any other fantasy TTRPG.”
Monster Hunting Adventures for Dragonbane RPG from Zeb Walker crowdfunds “Enjoy grim and dark adventures for the Dragonbane RPG where you hunt MONSTERS!! Great for one-shot adventures.”

Do you know of an RPG news source that we don’t? Let us know, or leave a comment below.