RPG Crowdfunding News – Planet of the Apes, Castles & Crusades, Smörk Borg, and more

This week’s TTRPG crowdfunding sampler covers campaigns that end between July 11 to 17.

This week’s TTRPG crowdfunding sampler covers campaigns that end between July 11 to 17. This week there is too much awesome to do each project justice. Planet of the Apes meets the D6 System, the revised Castles & Crusades, an OSE zine with discussions of dragon poop, a 5e sourcebook with a sample via the Baldur's Gate 3 video game, Mörk Borg Smurfs, Pathfinder dinosaurs, 5e and Pathfinder 2e arenas, and the last day of Voidrunner's Codex.

The Official Role-Playing Game of the PLANET OF THE APES.png

The Official Role-Playing Game of the PLANET OF THE APES from Magnetic Press Play
  • END DATE: Fri, July 12 2024 8:00 PM EDT.
  • SYSTEM(S): D6MV System
  • PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
  • MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $112 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of both books
  • TRY BEFORE YOU BUY: The Official PLANET OF THE APES RPG Primer is PWYW at DriveThruRPG
  • AI STATEMENT: “MADE BY HUMANS NO AI OR APE-GENERATED CONTENT!”
  • WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? If you’re a fan of the original run of Planet of the Apes movies and television series (1968 through 1974), then this is as tempting a TTRPG as you’re likely to find. Apes, astronauts, The Forbidden Zone, mutants, and d6 dice pools is the combination to get your gamers gaming. Using an updated version of West End Games’ D6 System, you’ll be able to throw some nice handfuls of dice at any problem. The engine is similar to the one they used for the original Star Wars RPG during the heady years after the original trilogy but before the revived expanded universe novels and comics. As the Apes franchise is going through another revivial with movies and new comics, it’s a good time to get a game that lets you adventure through the original movies. This is the game that will have you telling your players: “Take your stinking paws off my dice, you damned dirty ape!”


Castles & Crusades Reforged.png

Castles & Crusades Reforged from Troll Lord Games
  • END DATE: Thu, July 11 2024 12:00 AM EDT.
  • SYSTEM(S): SIEGE Engine for Castles & Crusades
  • PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook and sourcebooks
  • MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $175 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the five books and GM screen
  • WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Ever thought of trying out the award-winning fantasy TTRPG, Castles & Crusades? This Kickstarter might be the best option ever to pick up the core rulebooks, some adventures, and more. During the OGL crisis, Troll Lord Games decided to revise C&C in order to jettison the OGL. This fantasy system was an homage to the work of, and used by, Gary Gygax. This crowdfunding provides those revised, OGL free versions of C&C including Castles & Crusades Players Handbook (272 pages), Castles & Crusades Monsters & Treasure (365 pages featuring 400 monsters), Castles & Crusades Castle Keepers Guide (256 pages), Castles & Crusades Beneath the Canopy Green (200 pages of adventures), Barsoom: A Pocket Atlas to the Dying Planet is 20 to 25 pages of adventures in the world introduced by Edgar Rice Burroughs for John Carter, a GM screen, and The Crusader Journal #28 (36 pages of C&C magazine). That’s the core rules and then some. Already own some C&C books? No problem, these are the same books with some edits and the OGL content removed and replaced so yours still work. If you’re a fan of fantasy d20 RPGs and want a system that is a fully supported, modern AD&D, this project is worth a look.


Songs of the Spellbound Sea- Nautical Adventures for 5E!.png

Songs of the Spellbound Sea: Nautical Adventures for 5E! from somanyrobots
  • END DATE: Thu, July 11 2024 12:30 PM EDT.
  • SYSTEM(S): Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition
  • PROJECT TYPE: Sourcebook
  • MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $25 for the PDF of the book
  • WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Set in the Spellbound Sea, this is a sourcebook for water-themed 5e gameplay. This book offers 4 mini-settings, 3 new classes (one of which takes the official Rogue: Swashbuckler subclass and reimagines it as a full class), over 10 subclasses, 6 new species, hundreds of new spells, and more. If you’re thinking about testing out the book, check out the campaign page for a link to a PDF sampler. If you’re looking for a deeper dive through a unique preview, check out the campaign page for a link to a mod for Baldur's Gate 3 that lets you play as one of their new classes, the Troubadour. For fans of BG3, that’s a cool way to test out this project.


Pathfinder Second Ed.- Dr Dhrolin's Dictionary of Dinosaurs.png

Pathfinder Second Ed.: Dr Dhrolin's Dictionary of Dinosaurs from PalaeoGames
  • END DATE: Sun, July 14 2024 12:00 PM EDT.
  • SYSTEM(S): Pathfinder Second Edition
  • PROJECT TYPE: Sourcebook
  • MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: £35 for the PDF and Foundry VTT versions of the book
  • WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Do you want realistic dinosaurs in your PF2e game? Originally designed for 5e, this campaign updates that book for use with PF2e. But this isn’t just any conversion, PalaeoGames worked with the creators of the Pathfinder Second Edition ruleset to ensure the game is the best possible PF2eDino experience it can be. The resulting book is 304 pages with 57 Mesozoic creatures, 20 Mesozoic plants, 6 new ancestries, and much more. The hook are the dinosaurs, the closer is the realistic, simulations elements of their versions. If PF2e and grounded stories about dinosaurs would excite your gaming table, this campaign awaits your review.


Heroes of the Arena.png

Heroes of the Arena from Jerry Joe Seltzer
  • END DATE: Wed, July 17 2024 12:25 PM EDT.
  • SYSTEM(S): Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition and Pathfinder Second Edition
  • PROJECT TYPE: Sourcebook
  • MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $29 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the book
  • WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Have your players ever wanted to be seen when they’re fighting? Do they want an audience for the bloodsport? This book offers them spectacle and combat, crowds and cheers, and the glory that everyone will know their names. This book provides strategic tournaments and gladiatorial combats for teams of characters levels 3 through 16. The book is over 100 pages showing 20 crafted arena games and 20 teams. If the idea of fighting in an arena excites your gamers, check out the campaign page for a free preview.


Gary's Appendix- Issue 6 - Dragons!.png

Gary's Appendix: Issue 6 – Dragons! from RPG Ramblings Publishing
  • END DATE: Thu, July 11 2024 6:00 PM EDT.
  • SYSTEM(S): Old-School Essentials
  • PROJECT TYPE: RPG zine
  • MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $16 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the zine
  • WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? A zine full of dragons for Old-School Essentials. Inspired by Gary Gygax’s many AD&D books, this zine offers articles with titles like: “Five Ways to Play The Dragon,” “Dragon Children of the Penitent Litch,” and, best title of them all, “Dung and Dragons.” This article is about dragon... er, leavings. That information will inspire some gamer to start an in-campaign business harvesting dragon fecal matter. “How are you so rich?” The fighter’s dad-answer: “I won at craps.” Add in a dragon bestiary, some fresh artwork, and you’re in for a great OSE resource.


Smörk Borg TTRPG.png

Smörk Borg TTRPG from Squid Ink Games
  • END DATE: Thu, July 11 2024 11:27 AM EDT.
  • SYSTEM(S): Mörk Borg
  • PROJECT TYPE: Core rulebook
  • MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: $29 + S/H for the PDF and print versions of the core rulebook
  • AI STATEMENT: “Absolutely no AI-generated imagery was utilized in this game. All of the art on this page and in the book is drawn by hand.”
  • WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Smörk Borg (Smurf Borg) is Mörk Borg but with The Smurfs. Genius. You play as apple-tall, yellow goblins smörking in a village that looks like a field of mushrooms. Life would be shirtless, yellow glory save for two problems: You are smörking tasty, and every creature towers over you even as they savor your flavor. Character creation is simple. Roll your stats. What’s your name/highest stat? You’re (checks character sheet) Agility Smörk. Did two characters end up with high Agility? Then one of them is Jumpin’ Smörk. What will a session or campaign look like? Remember the zombie Smurfs from the The Smurfs season 1 episode, “The Purple Smurfs” (or the original comic album)? That’s ideal ground to build a Smörk Borg campaign around. Would it be dark or delightful? Powered by Mörk Borg, the setting can be a horror (mushroom) house of evil or it can be lighter and more comical like the inspirational material; either way, the players can lean into the lethality of the system and determine their own outcome. This project recalls the other, recent third-party Mörk Borg RPGs: DUKK BÖRG (a riff on Duck Tales) and ANIMORT (Steamborg Willie in the black-and-white era of cartoons), both building an homage to classic cartoons. Don’t sleep on these as you may come to smörking regret that decision.


Voidrunner's Codex Sci-Fi Box Set For D&D 5E & Level Up- A5E.png

Voidrunner's Codex Sci-Fi Box Set For D&D 5E & Level Up: A5E from EN Publishing
  • END DATE: Thu, July 4 2024 6:00 PM EDT.
  • SYSTEM(S): Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition and Advanced Fifth Edition
  • PROJECT TYPE: Sourcebooks
  • MOST POPULAR PLEDGE: £110 + S/H for the PDF, VTT, and print versions of the boxed set
  • WHY SPOTLIGHT THIS CAMPAIGN? Final day for the A5E sci-fi sourcebooks! Don’t sleep on this A5E expansion.

Egg Embry participates in the OneBookShelf Affiliate Program, Noble Knight Games’ Affiliate Program, and is an Amazon Associate. These programs provide advertising fees by linking to DriveThruRPG, Noble Knight Games, and Amazon.
 

log in or register to remove this ad

Egg Embry

Egg Embry

Superchunk77

Adventurer
It's interesting, after a few years without any, oceanic 5E content -- including a lot of piratical stuff -- is hot again. I wonder what's triggering that.

EDIT: I bet it's tied to people's general outlooks.

Feel gloomy about the world: Let's go on an imaginary sailing voyage and buckle some swashes.

Feel good about the world: We aren't thinking about a vacation away from real life as much.
Don't forget the success of the Pirate Borg KS earlier this year as well.
 

log in or register to remove this ad

Gehenna Gaming

Villager
I'm looking forward to some actual details on the Planet of the Apes RPG. That "primer" is mostly a nothing burger. Though I must say I really like the bit about No Path But Your Own. "If the adventure seems to be leading your character to Ape City, you can turn around and head into the Forbidden Zone...who is the (GM) to stop you?...(t)he free-will aspect of RPGs often means that no two gaming sessions of the same adventure will ever be alike. It is this freedom of choice that makes RPGs all the more fun." Hell yeah.
There is also Quickstart rules available (also PWYW) - DriveThruRPG
 


Jahydin

Hero
I kinda like everything about C&C, except the Siege Engine... I always find it cumbersome and unintuitive with the different DCs based on primary/secondary attributes, sometimes you add your level, sometimes you don't, etc.
Same here. Very easy to fix though.

In my games, I use a single DC, import Adv/Dis from 5E, and drop adding level. If you're interested, I could go more in depth.

There is so much good about the system (low-magic version of classes, best Treasure Tables in the OSR, genius multi-class rules) it really is worth houseruling around IMO.
 

Jahydin

Hero
This campaign just removes OGL language and probably isn't a high priority for people who are happy with their books; this is just funding an OGL-free supply of books going forward.
Also worth pointing out, this is the first version I've seen that has really made a DEI effort as far as the art is concerned. Representation was certainly a new priority for the Trolls.

That said, I'm one of those who didn't back it since I have little interest in a "non-D&D" C&C. That's kind of the entire point why I got into it. Also, a lot of the changes being made are not to my liking at all. For instance, moving the Assassin out of the main classes and adding it awkwardly to the multi-classing section (not a multi-class Class).
 
Last edited:

aramis erak

Legend
Having looked at the QS module for Planet of the Apes, I'm in at the PDF level...
It's firmly grounded in the 60's & 70's versions, not the 00's to present reimagining. The QS also notes the differences from the classic WEG d6. For fans of classic D6 system, it's going to be immediately familiar... but it does a few things differently. And it's still 18d atts and 7d skills.
 


Jahydin

Hero
How does a single DC work? Do classes still have primary (+6) and secondary (+2) attributes?
My goal for C&C is when I call for a check a player need only to roll a d20 and see if it's higher the the number written down next to that stat.

Also, I'm huge supporter of the Tertiary Attribute optional rule in the CKG. Basically, Humans choose 3 Primes, 2 Secondaries, 1 Tertiary. Demi-humans get 2 Primes, 2 Secondaries, 2 Tertiary. I think it adds some much needed variety.

Anyway to get the specific, pre-written DC for each stat:
Start with 19.
If Prime, subtract 6. If Secondary subtract 3.
Subtract Attribute bonus/penalty.
Subtract 1 for every two Levels of experience (rounded down).

So let's say we had the following Level 6 character ("p, s, t" for Prime, Secondary, Tertiary):
Str: 16p
Dex: 13s
Con: 10p
Int: 8t
Wis: 11s
Chr: 15p

We would calculate DC as follows:
Str: 19 - 6(Prime) - 2(Bonus) - 3(Level) = 8
Dex: 19 - 3(Secondary) - 1(Bonus) - 3(Level) = 12
Con: 19 - 6(Prime) - 0(Bonus) - 3(Level) = 10
Int: 19 - 0(Tertiary) + 1(Penalty) - 3(Level) = 17
Wis: 19 - 3(Secondary) - 0(Bonus) - 3(Level) = 13
Chr: 19 - 6(Prime) - 1(Bonus) - 3(Level) = 9

An interesting spread of Save DCs (also Skill DCs in C&C) that averages to around 12, close to AD&D's Fighter that averages 13.

This is perfectly playable IMO, but if you want even more granularity, you can also add Difficulty Levels to the Character Sheet as well by modifying each DC by:
Basic: -3
Expert: +0
Master: +3

This comes in handy when you want to give characters an edge in succeeding or wanting to penalize them for trying to do something "unskilled".

So our character above's final writeup would look like:
Str: 16p (5/8/11)
Dex: 13s (9/12/15)
Con: 10p (7/10/13)
Int: 8t (14/17/20)
Wis: 11s (10/13/16)
Chr: 15p (6/9/12)

As GM, you now would just say, "Give me an Expert Str check to see if you pick up the boulder."
The player rolls a 9 and says, "I succeed".

I find this much easier than all the fiddly business the Trolls make you do RAW.

Note: Terminology used loosely here. DC is just, "number you need roll higher than to succeed". C&C has its own terminology (CC, CL, and CB) that I avoid since it's so specific to that system.
 

dead

Explorer
My goal for C&C is when I call for a check a player need only to roll a d20 and see if it's higher the the number written down next to that stat.
Coming from 3E, I'm stuck in the mindset that a DC is static in the world. So, if there's a lock to pick that is DC 19, then that is DC 19 no matter who comes along. It doesn't matter if they have more DEX or Levels or Prime or Secondary stats.

I guess that would be your formula in reverse:
Dex 13s: + 3(Secondary) + 1(Bonus) + 3(Level) = 1d20 + 7 (to hit DC 19)

My way might take longer as you have to do some addition. And yours ultimately achieves the same result.

But that means every challenge in the world would be DC 19. Unless you apply Basic: -3 (DC 16) and Master: +3 (DC 22) to give some slight variation of easier or harder locks to pick. I think 3E had a much wider range, maybe DCs ranging from 10 (very easy) up to 30 (very very difficult).
 

rgard

Adventurer
Same here. Very easy to fix though.

In my games, I use a single DC, import Adv/Dis from 5E, and drop adding level. If you're interested, I could go more in depth.

There is so much good about the system (low-magic version of classes, best Treasure Tables in the OSR, genius multi-class rules) it really is worth houseruling around IMO.
"genius multi-class rules"

Yep.
 

Voidrunner's Codex

Remove ads

Voidrunner's Codex

Remove ads

Top