Not DnD

123 Runecaster | Draw powerful runes. Discover new spells. Blow yourself up!

Runecaster is a narrative TTRPG about learning magic through spectacular failure. Play as rookie mages who cast unique spells by combining runes. Magic will just as often blow up in your face as it will light your way.
 
Join as we speak to Wes Zebrowski on this weeks episode of Not DnD.
 
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pangurbancollective/runecaster-a-narrative-ttrpg-of-magical-experimentation

122 Cold Sun | Survive and explore a world at the dawn of civilization

What does it take to survive the wilderness? Who does it take? A soldier, a talker, a hunter, a witch? Who lives and who starves? In the wilderness, food is the only thing that matters -- and while your stomachs go empty and wounds begin to ache,one thing remains truly certain... the World will Feast.
COLD SUN is a visceral roleplaying game by Robert Cambias about scarcity, survival, and adventure, for 1-8 players. It takes inspiration from John Harper’s Blades in the Dark, Patrick Stuart’s Veins of the Earth, and the OSR (Old School Renaissance) movement.
robert-cambias.itch.io/cold-sun

121 The Cunning Folk | A TTRPG of Mischief and Mayhem

Become one of The Cunning Folk with this rules-lite dark comedy ttrpg. Use your Magick and Luck to create a whole heap of Mischief. And seek devilish revenge on mortals on the receiving end of your ire.
 
The Cunning folks has its own system with a simple D6 dice pool, and interestingly features a levelling DOWN as well as levelling up mechanic. The rules encourage a ‘failing forward’ style of storytelling, and the low prep required of the GM makes it ideal for one shots.
 
The game is launching on Kickstarter today (31st March 2025)! Find out more as we speak to Emily Greymoore on this weeks episode of Not DnD.
 
Kickstarter https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/emilygreymoore/the-cunning-folk-ttrpg
Emily’s LinkTree https://linktr.ee/emilygreymoore
Art by https://www.patreon.com/c/Rossydoesdrawings/home

120 Mappa Mundi | An Exploration & Ecology RPG

Join host Jessica on this week's episode of Not D&D, presented by E.N. World, as she delves into the innovative tabletop RPG 'Mapa Mundi' with creator George Francis Bickers from Three Sail Studios.
Mappa Mundi is a TTRPG driven by exploration and ecology.  Players take on the role of Chroniclers, brave souls setting out from hearth and home to travel the wilds and tell the story of this world in flux.
Emphasising non-violent gameplay, Chroniclers must work with the peoples, monsters, and creatures of Ecumene to return the world its voice. Explore the Wilds, encounter extraordinary Monsters, and write the chronicle that reconnects the world. Swear an oath to do no harm and illuminate a land shrouded by Fate.
 
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/threesailsstudios/mappa-mundi-an-exploration-ecology-rpg
 
www.mappamundirpg.com

119 Not DnD | Fear Itself | Walk into a disturbing contemporary world of madness and violence

Join us in this week's episode of Not D&D, where Jessica hosts Gareth Ryder-Hanrahan.
Fear Itself plunges ordinary people into a disturbing contemporary world of madness and violence —and inexorably draws them into confrontation with creatures of the Outer Dark, a realm of alien menace. Gareth shares insights on the unique Gumshoe system that fuels investigations, ensuring that players seamlessly uncover the game's dark secrets.
 
Fear Itself - Shattered Veil Edition is live on gamefound this month.
https://gamefound.com/en/projects/pelgrane-press/fear-itself-shattered-veil-edition
www.pelgranepress.com
 

118 Not DnD | Why We Fight with Laurie Blake | play eco-punks fighting fascism to build a brighter, greener future

Welcome to this week's episode of Not D&D, where host Jessica is joined by game designer Laurie Blake to discuss their innovative tabletop role-playing game, Why We Fight.
Why We Fight is a solo+ narrative TTRPG where you play a crew of eco-punks fighting fascism to build a brighter, greener future.
Using a designed-for-purpose, lightweight system (PbtA meets FATE) developed with new school revolution (NSR) attitude and perspective. Your Crew will journey through the remains of a post-civil war country to save lives, reclaim nature, create a community of compassion, and beat back the oppressive forces that threaten the chance for a new start.
 
https://www.instagram.com/sdrgames.studio 
https://bsky.app/profile/sdrgames.bsky.social 
https://www.sdrgames.studio/pages/why-we-fight

Fight fascism, the Outer Dark, or swear an oath to do no harm, with these TTRPGs that are Not DnD

It's been three years of Not DnD, the weekly podcast discussing tabletop roleplaying games.
This month we are looking at Why We Fight, a solo+ narrative TTRPG where you play a crew of eco-punks fighting fascism to build a brighter, greener future.
Fear Itself plunges ordinary people into a disturbing contemporary world of madness and violence —and inexorably draws them into confrontation with creatures of the Outer Dark, a realm of alien menace.
Mappa Mundi is a TTRPG driven by exploration and ecology.  Players take on the role of Chroniclers, brave souls setting out from hearth and home to travel the wilds and tell the story of this world in flux.

117 Despair Dilemma with Game Designer Nora Jean Haynes

Been watching the second season of Squid Game recently? Despair Dilema is a Death Game that take inspiration from this and other narratives such as DanganRonpa and Zero Escape.
Game designer Nora Jean Haynes shares the unique mechanics of "Despair Dilemma," a game that challenges traditional RPG narratives by having players assume the roles of narrative forces instead of characters. And how it navigates player safety and narrative control through structured phases of play.
Backerkit: https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/double-summon-games/despair-dilemma-a-death-game-mastermind-ttrpg/launch_party
Free Quickstart Demo: https://noorasphere.itch.io/despair-dilemma-playtest 
 

116 Exploring the Zombie Sandbox 'Reanimated' TTRPG

My guilty pleasure is low budget zombie movies. I love running survival horror, and enjoy a rules light system for this sort of storytelling.
Reanimated is based on the Key Powered System using 2d8, with an infection mechanic that makes every interaction with the undead a risk. The game offered a huge amount of customisation options to run the stye of survival horror you are looking to create, and is very much a sandbox to craft your own stories within.
Jed Doerksen discusses his journey from a Dungeons & Dragons enthusiast to an indie game creator. Discover the unique aspects of 'Reanimated', including its sandbox setting inspired by iconic zombie media like Romero's films and video games such as Left for Dead. Jed also shares insights into game mechanics, character creation, and his goal to offer a concise, accessible system for storytelling.
https://composedreamgames.com/marketplace/publisher/trappedchest/reanimated
https://www.trappedchest.com
https://bsky.app/profile/trappedchest.bsky.social

115 Zephyr

Today we're speaking to Federico Sohns about their game Zephyr on Not DnD. The world feels dark, moody and almost lonely, but the game also provide elements of colours and connection. This is a really unique game, and I think it will be a really interesting discussion to listen to.You play one of the Windfall who are are born of, and live upon, the back of a colossal sentient content. You travel across it to fulfil sacred obligations. Obligation and Debt are a key theme of the game, and has an Obligation Mechanic as tool used to craft adventures.The game also explores Feeling and Identity. Coloured tokens represent the different emotions of the sentient content you travel upon, and used to build your character as they discover their sense of self.
 
Buy the game: https://www.araukana.com/store