TFT Decks of Destiny - More Versatile than just for TFT

A few weeks ago my Decks of Destiny mega boxed set arrived, a second monstrous package to add to my Fantasy Trip Legacy Edition boxed set from last year's Kickstarter. Decks of Destiny contains a lot of stuff.....if you're not familiar with it, here's the web site (here). Yes, a lot of stuff.

Well, the odds I'll run The Fantasy Trip anytime soon while Pathfinder 2nd Edition has a death grip on all of my gaming groups is slim to none, but I've already been using the Outdoor Encounter Cards for months with Pathfinder to spruce up overland travel, so why not some of the Decks of Destiny?

Decks of Destiny has content pretty specific to TFT: orc and octopus encounter cards (it's a TFT thing, trust me), character sheet cards for all sorts of stuff, an excellent monster deck, and lots of hex encounters. There are also some square sized card decks for treasures and rumors. Of this content, you can get the most use out of the following:

Hex Cards and more Mega Hex Tiles- the hex cards let you build labyrinths easily, and moving to a hex based map for Pathfinder is trivial (and even solves some incongruity with grid movement), and the mega hexes work great with Pathfinder figure flats or minis.

Treasure Cards - the two treasure card decks provide plenty of easily converted content to Pathfinder 2nd edition, and add a lot of new stuff to help flesh out the slightly sparse treasures in the Pathfinder 2E Core book. I've been using them on the fly with no issues.

Rumor Cards - aside from occasional references to the default TFT setting, these rumor cards may prove very handy in generating random and exotic rumors you can use as is, or assume are filthy lies.

Okay, all that aside, most of the Decks of Destiny work best with The Fantasy Trip, and it honestly really, really makes me want to run TFT just as soon as I can convince my regulars to let even one of our ongoing game nights switch to a different system. Until then, I can at least get some use out of the set with ongoing games!

Side note....Hey Paizo, you should do some products like this for Pathfinder! The recent card decks you have produced (and the upcoming Bestiary Cards) are awesome....but treasure decks, encounter decks and other cool GM resources would be amazing.

Year in Review: Tabletop RPGs of 2019

I've written a bit less than I have in prior years in 2019, so if you follow the blog you can probably guess where my energy and interest remains focused, more or less. So don't be too surprised by the  RPG products which I have found to be sufficiently compelling in 2019 that they have soaked up a nontrivial level of time and/or interest, a massive feat these days....rather than rehash how much I love Pathfinder 2nd edition, Cypher System and "other," I'll just point out some trends in the hobby I noticed this year:

The Year of Old Favorites Getting Facelifts

This was the big mark for 2019 as far as I was concerned. Savage Worlds got a facelift to a new, reorganized edition which didn't change much but helped consolidate the game into a cleaner edition. So far we only have a few books out for it, but Savage Worlds Adventure Edition looks like it will work a a good "one book standalone" for most people's needs.

Meanwhile, the Cypher System Revised which started as part of the "Your Best Game Ever" Kickstarter from Monte Cook popped out on time with --you guessed it-- a heavily revamped book with few to no rule changes but a ton of organizational changes and additional content.

Finally (well, for my focus in the hobby) we had the formal release of Pathfinder 2nd Edition, a clever revamp that feels more like a new system spun out of the D20 family more than a regular old 2nd edition of its predecessor. Pathfinder 2E quickly seems to have become my groups' favorite system, and as a result it has been almost entirely the only system we've been playing on Saturdays and Wednesdays since August.

There are old favorites out there which have yet to see their time in the sun (GURPS and Hero System both deserve a "modern day" treatment, if only to see what that looks like) but it's good to see that many systems can get a revamp without critical changes to their core mechanics (okay, well 2/3rds of such systems, anyway!)

The OSR Shifted a Bit from the OD&D Core

This year saw the release of The Fantasy Trip in print for the first time since it's death in the early eighties, as well as a slew of new content. It witnessed a return of Mercenaries, Spies and Private Eyes in a slick new reprint with additional material to bring the game into the 21st century without changing any of the original game. It has brought a range of interesting Swedish fantasy games in the OSR vein with a keen ability to handle hardcore old school dungeonering and hexcrawling without being distinctly D&D in the form of the Fantasy! RPG and the impressive Forbidden Lands boxed set (which I finally got a copy of).

It's not that classic-D&D focused content is gone, but more that there seems to be a branching of interest in what the OSR can offer, and that's a good thing.

The Bloggosphere Contraction

It's fairly evident when you look around: many blogs of old are now gone, or on life support. The old era of dedicated gaming blogs has dimmed a bit, probably due to the pervasive rise of vlogging through Youtube. 2019 was the year I first really noticed it, to be honest, but even I find more and more RPG vlogs creeping into my Youtube feed, which is where I'm finding most Pathfinder and Starfinder content these days, for example. Still, there remains a hardcore crowd that I believe is mostly made up of other bloggers keeping it all alive. Tragically, we old guard probably without much exception would find it hard to transition to a vlog environment....I have zero interest in putting my face or voice out there; the blog for me has always been a deliberate exercise in writing, not visual presentation.

Thinking about things to do with The Fantasy Trip

It's been no secret (or a poorly kept one, anyway) that I've been feeling some general burn out, but I have good news....with some time off, and opportunity to recharge my batteries a bit, I am starting to feel that creative itch again. Hopefully that will translate back to the gaming table, but either way, some of this is due to the fact that I am finding the prospects for The Fantasy Trip very inspiring. It's an old school system, but easily one of the best at what it does and stands the test of time admirably. A game from a lost era, preserved in amber, with firm roots in the future....also, TFT is in many ways a "GURPS Lite" in the truest sense, a version of the same rules, after a fashion, in which they function for identical purpose but are also easier to master in every way you could want. Good stuff.

So I was thinking that it might be a lot of fun to actually visit one of my classic settings, either Keepers of Lingusia or Realms of Chirak using the TFT rules. I am leaning to the KOL setting since it is as venerable as TFT in many ways, and back when I did get to run some TFT in the early eighties it was the only setting I used for everything (even Runequest 2). Whatever game I ran back then, no matter how exotically different from AD&D, found an excuse and a way to fit within the original Lingusia world.

That said, there is a lot to be said for designing a world around the core conceits of the rules to allow for the game as presented to nurture itself in its own unique direction....yes, you could ask, "Why not just use Cidri?" but the answer is easy....I gain a lot more satisfaction out of devising an interesting world and a lot less out of simply retreading someone else's creation, which is why I rarely run modules. Of course, if I did try that approach, maybe I'd experience a bit less burn out, so there are merits to the idea.

The Fantasy Trip is Here!

It was well worth the wait, too....the box that arrived unpacked to reveal so much stuff I am still processing through it. I bought the "I want it all" level on the Kickstarter, so I definitely got exactly that... The new Fantasy Trip* includes, among other things:

--1 box bigger than my game tote that hauls all of my D&D or Cypher books for a game session

--one copy of The Fantasy Trip main rules "In The Labyrinth" in soft cover

--another copy of TFT "In The Labyrinth" in hard cover

--one deluxe, four panel sturdy (heavy stock) GM screen

--a box of punch-out megahex pieces

--two maps, of the world of Cidri and a local town

--a folio for your records

--a booklet of character and reference sheets (and a double sided dungeon map)

--a card-style pack of pregenerated characters (and some blanks)

--a pack of what look to me like post-it sized character sheets

--another pack of what appear to be deluxe sized "post-it" style character sheets

--two special dice

--a new modern box version of Melee, which includes counters, map, rules and three dice

--a modern box version of Wizard with counters, map, rules and three dice

--a modern box version of Death Test, with Death Test 1 and 2 plus counters

--A full size book plus map of Tollenkar's Lair

--A large storage box on the side with a copy of the retro-classic version of Melee & WIzard combined boxed set (this set uses the new sturdy plastic box format, and has rules plus counters and maps for both games in one)

--a large, durable full color Melee map on rollable material that reminds me of mouse pads

--a similar, even larger map for Wizard of the same material

--Two sturdy folders for characters or whatever you want

Missing from my box set is the TFT Companion, which I am told from recent updates was left out of the first few shipments but should be coming separately soon. I'll try to take photos tonight. The stock picture above does not do this justice.

I owned TFT's In The Labyrinth back in the day, and distinctly remember the magazine-like quality of the original cover and printing. The new version of the core rules is a major improvement, sturdy and designed for use. The entire game, in fact, demands to be played, just oozes with potential that commands your attention. I kind of wish I had ordered two, so I could put one on a shelf as a collectable, because the copy I got is going to get some serious game time.

My son was also very excited to see the game, and I may need to order a copy for him as well. He's young, but he's got a real interest in learning and reading to play already, and the focus on bits and pieces in TFT is right up his alley. Plus, the game on review so far appears to be quite kid and millennial friendly. I think if SJGames can get some people playing this on Youtube then they will see that it has a lot of traction.

This is a lot of stuff. But I see that the fortune teller down by the orange grove near the old scarecrow was totally right, The Fantasy Trip is indeed about to dominate my game group's near future!

*Which is just the old Fantasy Trip, but now with a major facelift 

Deathbat's Tabletop Gaming Predictions for 2019

Ah, this is going to be a tough one because the game industry (for RPGs, at least) is fairly stable and predictable these days. But I'll give it a shot with some suggestions for what may come to be:

1. D&D will see an official sourcebook for at least two of these: Spelljammer, Dark Suns, or Eberron

It's clear that Wizards of the Coast has been setting up all three for a return at some point, the question is just: when? And will we see more Ravnica/Planewalker stuff for Magic soon?

2. Far West will not appear this year, and therefore not appear this decade

I have no bone in this failed Kickstarter that is somehow still in limbo after something like seven years. Follow Erik Tenkar for occasional "updates" on the Kickstarter, but the only certainty anymore is that clocks are right twice a day, and this Kickstarter kicked the bucket a long time ago, but the author manages to keep stringing it out to hopefully run out the statute of limitations on lawsuits, I am guessing. 

3. Modiphius will hit some sort of Criticality this year

Modiphius is a prolific publisher and distributor, and just acquired the controls to the entire World of Darkness line in the wake of some shake ups at Paradox/White Wolf over poor editorial controls. As a result Modiphius now has a ridiculous number of titles and IPs under its belt, possibly more than they can handle, although I admit I have no information on total staff size or arrangements.

In general Modiphius has been brilliant at handling high quality print and PDF distribution, Kickstarters and distribution deals. I don't know how long they can sustain, and given that they were the only retailer online I ordered from in the last two months that was not quite able to fulfill their orders within the same month that the orders were placed, I suspect that they may be a bit overwhelmed. My prediction is that this year Modiphius could do very well, but it is possible --likely, even-- that they have bitten off more than they can chew at last, and I wonder if some of their product lines are maybe not moving as fast as they should? Even Cubicle 7 seems to have streamlined their product schedule, for example.

It could be that Modiphius is effectively sliding in to a new category of publisher/distributor and maybe is closer to Fantasy Flight Games in terms of scope now than, say, Cubicle 7. But I predict either way that we'll see some sort of impact on their high volume of product output this year.

4. D&D will see more than four major releases from WotC this year

D&D seems to be doing well enough that we're seeing more product creep, which is either a good thing or not depending on who you are. I predict we will see five major releases this year instead of four like last year, with some clever tie-ins to work it all together.

5. Pathfinder 2.0 Release will please the hardcore and capture the curious but fail to expand market share

I don't think this is a brave prediction, unfotunately. I think that the open playtest led to an unfortunate feedback loop in which players turned off by the playtest simply bailed out, and the ones willing to embrace it stayed in, and as a result the playtest will be a solid refinement of what that core likes, while missing the information necessary to expand the game to include the larger overall audience. Will it be playable? Absolutely. Will it be worth playing? Only if it offers an experience that is competitive with D&D in a way that is going to capture new players. Unfortunately I think it's going in the opposite direction.

6. Palladium may go belly up

Possibly not until 2020, but I have a feeling that Palladium will hit rock bottom and finally go kaput this year. Too much negativity from burned fans over Robotech may be the cause, but it's chiefly due to the fact that while many could argue Palladium's games have been stuck in the nineties, now even their business practices are stuck in the nineties, and this along with what seem to be perpetual financial woes may be it for them. I could possibly be wrong here.....but only in that this may not happen until 2020 or maybe 2021, but since I need something contentious for my list this is a good bet.

7. The Fantasy Trip gets a serious revival

This is a no-brainer: TFT is being released, in print, by Marchish. Steve Jackson Games is providing an encouraging online storefront for new product. We'll see the release of classic TFT lead either to serious expansions or a 2nd edition announced before the end of the year.

8. BRP revised finally appears

Fingers crossed, we will see the new 32 page BRP book and maybe an updated Mythic Iceland in PDF at least before December 2019. Of course, Chaosium still needs to get print versions of the Glorantha Bestiary and GM Screen out, which I sincerely hope does happen....even if you're not a Glorantha fan, the game is amazing and deserves attention. It will MAKE you a Glorantha fan!

....okay, that's enough of that! I'll do one for Computer Gaming next.

The Fantasy Trip Kickstarter!

Just a shout out to anyone not already backing this who might want to:



I'm in at the "I Want It All" level. This is one of those rare, momentous returns you just don't get to see ordinarily, comparable to a few years back when WotC started reprinting classic D&D and AD&D, but with the added bonus being that I bet, if it sells well, that Stave Jackson Games may continue to support The Fantasy Trip with new content.