Andrews McMeel’s new RPG project, Blackbirds from Ryan Verniere, the creator and lead developer, powered by Daniel D. Fox’s Zweihander, is live on Kickstarter. Limited tiers are selling out, and the project has already smashed targets.
The setting is inspired, in part, by the Hundred Years’ War in Europe and with cosmic horror woven in. You can find out more about it, pledge and join in from the project page.
Supporting the launch, which has happened just ahead of GenCon, are several freebies.
There’s a 41-page sample of BLACKBIRDS RPG: Sneak Peek.
As you can often tell a lot about an RPG from its character sheet, you can also see and download it for free sample character sheets.
The Kickstarter pitch is loaded with the game’s amazing art, actual play examples and setting information.
BLACKBIRDS is a skin stitched from cosmic horror gently fitted over a period similar to the Late Middle Ages. Toothless highwaymen stalk the roads, royal families hold each other’s children hostage to gain political leverage, and a pack of wolves may drag you from your trusted mare straight into an early grave. Armor gives way, swords break, wounds fester. Creatures whispered of in folklore and spun into campfire song walk among humanity. It is a time of prophecy set in an age where the candle of hope burns ever lower.
The Norns are dead in Blackbirds. These supernatural dealers of destiny were slain by the Oligarchs.
In the game, Blackbirds are people who are tethered to destiny’s frayed threads and have a greater role in the world. Without the Norns, this fate is malleable but still there.
A pledge of $25 will get you the standard edition of Blackbirds RPG in PDF.
A DriveThruRPG powered print edition is added to that at $55, with shipping still to pay.
Stepping up to $125, add the Campaign Coins Amulet, Death Saves X Norse Foundry dice and Talents & Technique Tarot cards in digital and print.
It’s not the highest tier, but at $275, you get the limited and numbered Blackbirds SOTG edition added, the Fateweaver (GM) screen in digital and print, the custom Grimoire Box, a Canvas Map of Erebos and a Death Savest-shirt along with a numbered certificate of authenticity.
The expected fulfilment date for the project is September 2022, but the digital-only tier should be completed before that and in July.
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