Andrew Peregrine (AP): Before we get into the game, can we talk a little about Studio Hermitage? While it might be new, there seems to be a lot of experience on the team. Can you tell me something about who is behind Studio Hermitage and what talent you have working on the project?
Paxton Galvanek (PG): Studio Hermitage was founded by Paxton Galvanek (CEO), Justin Achilli (CCO), and Andy Foltz (Studio Art Director) and is fully funded by Amplifier Game Invest. Before forming Studio Hermitage, I was the General Manager/ Board Member at Funcom for 5+ years where I had the pleasure of working with Justin on an unreleased Sci-Fi Shooter project and the new upcoming survival game Dune: Awakening. Before Funcom, I worked as a Business Consultant for many years with several AAA/ AA/ Mobile studios including Activision, Take-Two Interactive, Tripwire, Gameloft, and many others. Justin and Andy worked together for years at Red Storm Entertainment on various projects including Werewolves Within and Star Trek Bridge Crew. Justin has a long history in game development, starting his entertainment career with White Wolf Publishing, about 30 years ago, where he helped to develop the World of Darkness IP. Justin was also with CCP, Ubisoft/ Red Storm, and Paradox Interactive to name a few. Andy worked with Red Storm Entertainment/ Ubisoft for 18 years as an artist and ultimately became an Art Director. He’s also worked with IBM, IRock, and several other companies. Between the three of us, we have upwards of 70+ years of combined experience in the games/ entertainment industry. We founded Studio Hermitage as a transmedia company, and we’re calling on our talent and experience, plus the skills and experience of the brand team, to develop Our Brilliant Ruin as our first intellectual property. Our next step is introducing Our Brilliant Ruin to audiences through various media platforms including print, audio, comics, video games, and more.

AP: That’s certainly a lot of experience! Moving on to Our Brilliant Ruin, can you sum up what the game is about?
Justin Achilli (JA): We describe it as “roleplaying in a gilded age in which upstairs-downstairs personal and sociological drama meets existential horror.” Class conflict, an invasive, world-threatening crisis that contorts people into monsters, and industrial-automation-sized machines gone rogue that draws heavily on Art Nouveau and Edwardian aesthetics. Dramark society has split into a number of factions based on whether you’re aristocratic, a worker, or someone who’s set themselves apart from the prevailing social order, so there are numerous families, guilds, and other archetypes to choose from. These are all generally in some amount of tension, but then the outside forces of the Ruin and the syllokinetics throw a wrench into everything. The Ruin is a corrosive starlight from a distant, dead star, eating away at the edges of the world and making monsters of humankind. And the syllokinetics are those machines that once held the promise of a less laborious life for people, but fell into disrepair as the Ruin set in, upending society.

AP: I certainly love a Victorian twist, and it sounds like there is a lot for the player characters to do. What about the rules system? Are you using an existing one or have you developed something new? If so, how does it work?
JA: It’s an original dice pool system, so if you know how to play World of Darkness games or Shadowrun, you’ll pick it right up. It’s also very straightforward for new players. A Personality attribute + a Skill gives you a dice pool, and you roll that many dice to accomplish things. You want more brills (6s) than glooms (1s), and you also have “push your luck” options that give you more dice and expand your success range. You’re most successful when you engage your Passion, but eventually calling on your Passion puts you at higher risk of catastrophe. There are separate features for long-term Schemes, managing the estate or other property your group shares, and systems that allies and antagonists use.

AP: How does the system reflect the way you envisage Our Brilliant Ruin being played? What sort of scenes and encounters is the system best at dealing with?
JA: The system is significantly driven by the characters’ (and often players’) motivations and emotional impetus. For example, there aren’t any attributes that measure your raw physical power or quantify your intellect. Instead, the Personality attributes model whether you’re acting selfishly, or out of duty, with cleverness, etc. So, obviously, it lends itself to human drama and the question of what people will do with their remaining time as the world’s ending around them. For many people, particularly aristocrats, they revel and intrigue to pretend the end isn’t nigh. The truefolk, on the other hand, keep the world running and maintain a (probably misplaced) hope in the traditional social order. The unbonded see everything falling apart and want to change society, but there’s little consistency in changing it into what. So you have all of that class- and faction-based goal-setting and intrigue, but the external threats of the world force humanity into cooperation. Of course, you can choose whether your group favours backstabbing and intra-party subterfuge, or you can all go it together, leaning on the various factions’ capacities. You probably all want to stop that marauding chimera or undermine that rival family, for example, and then throw yourselves a party to commemorate it.
Rachel J Wilkinson (RJW): Our Brilliant Ruin is about the choices people make at the end of the world. So, the system is more concerned about why your character is acting in a certain way (and the passion that motivates them) than about what they’re doing. A character’s core attributes reflect their personality, not their physiological prowess. And since we’re telling stories about the lives of regular people, I wasn’t interested in who had the biggest muscles or the biggest brain. You can find a thousand other games to play the most amazing or least impressive character. In our system, you get to be human with all the quirks, challenges, and fears that entails while grappling with a worldwide existential crisis. The stories you play often have to do with the problems of other people. How do you pursue your character’s ambition in the face of a rival? What relationship drama and sweeping romances do you experience when you may never see a loved one again? What do you do when you discover your mother is afflicted with Ruin? And yes, don’t worry, there is still monster hunting. But because the system focuses on motivation, you don’t have to plug in fighter stats to do that, and therefore, the number of stories your character can participate in is unlimited.

AP: So, very much a character driven rules system. Moving back to the setting, what aspects of it stand out in Our Brilliant Ruin?
JA: Personally, I enjoy games and worlds with factions, because I like to see the movements of this group and that group in conflict with another group, and so on. Worlds where you can match a character concept to a faction that’s having an effect on the world, and in so doing, you inherit a social element or community that’s part of the faction. It helps you find allies within the group, the politics become part of the gameplay, and it also gives you a way to play against type if you choose.
RJW: I’m obsessed with the question, “What would you do with the time you have left?” And, in my opinion, one of the most unique aspects of the setting is that you can’t save the world. The Dramark will end. Now, where you position your story on that timeline can shift, and the flexibility that provides is also unique to Our Brilliant Ruin. Maybe it’s still early days, and your characters discover a strange blight. Or your characters use the last estate in existence as a bunker while a horde of gothic monstrosities lumber toward you. You get to decide where in the timeline your story fits best and is most fun for you.

AP: Can you tell me what your favourite aspect of the game is? What makes you enjoy playing it the most?
JA: Personally, I love the factions and the societal drama. That’s probably no surprise, given my history developing World of Darkness. I love groups that players can identify with, with built-in conflicts and alliances among the other groups. Everyone should be able to find a faction that speaks to them, from the Valgreave family as stewards of the land and beasts to the construction-and-creation-oriented Rivet and Bellows Union to the rebels, homesteaders, and fallen Royals of the unbonded. And the Ruin touching off the powderkeg of those societal tensions makes for never-ending story opportunities.
Danny Ryba (DR): I am also a huge fan of factions, but the existential horror of the setting is a big draw for me. The visual design of the Ruin never ceases to amaze me. The art team got very creative with the world’s grotesque flourishes. However, the existential elements of the horror are some of the most fascinating aspects. Seeing a loved one or family member afflicted by Ruin adds to the emotional stakes and drama of a narrative that players can engage with.
RJW: For me, it’s the aesthetic. If I could chuck my cellphone in favour of sitting in a petticoat at my rotary dial phone, I would. Modernity exhausts me. Also, because this isn’t an alt-earth or alternate-history world, but instead, an entirely different planet on an entirely different timeline, I don’t have to think about things like, “Okay, how is my character going to find a husband so she can eat.” We’ve tried to do the best we can to create a world where anyone can enjoy the fashion, art, and vibes of historical fiction without also feeling weighed down by the societal expectations and oppression of Earth’s timeline.

AP: With the Kickstarter running at the moment (and already hit its target) what are your plans for stretch goals and backer exclusives?
DR: As of this interview, we have achieved all our early stretch goals, which include a gazetteer section of the book, a digital art book (exclusively for backers), a virtual tabletop version of the game developed by Alchemy (free for all backers), improved dice packaging for dice add-ons, and an extra digital publication that will expand on the world of Our Brilliant Ruin. We’ve revealed the next round of stretch goals, which backers are quickly unlocking as well. Our approach with stretch goals is to develop great supplemental material and products we can provide to backers without impacting our delivery timeline. Some stretch goals may be backer-exclusive, while others will be available after the campaign ends. Some goals, like the Alchemy virtual tabletop, will be a paid product for non-backers, but backers will get it bundled with their pledge level at no extra cost.

AP: What is next for Our Brilliant Ruin once the Corebook is out? Do you have plans for supplements and will they focus on more setting, adventures or rules expansions?
JA: We’d like to support Our Brilliant Ruin by expanding the world and its offerings to players. One of the things I know I’d like to do more with is the Community Property system, broadening the estates, institutes, homesteads, etc, that the players construct for their group and offering more customizable options there. I can see room to offer more character customization options, as well. And of course, we want to keep the tension high by exploring more of the Ruin — more antagonists, more advantages, more conflicts, more ways the players can run afoul of the crisis in the world.

AP: You’ve stated Our Brilliant Ruin is a transmedia story-world, can you elaborate on that more? What future media avenues will involve Our Brilliant Ruin?
PG: As a transmedia company, the plan and strategy at Studio Hermitage is to create a rich new world with unlimited stories to tell and experience. Those stories can be told in linear and also non-linear mediums. The first few products that Studio Hermitage intends to release for Our Brilliant Ruin include a tabletop roleplaying game, a comic book series with Dark Horse Comics, a 10-episode audio drama series, and a video game, which is being developed internally. Studio Hermitage is planning several other future projects for Our Brilliant Ruin, but our intention is for players, customers, creators, and enthusiasts to tell their own stories and discover new details about the world. We’ve spent the last year detailing (at times) scary environments, beautiful estates, rich guilds and factions, multiple threats, and hundreds of characters. Now it’s time to bring the audience in to help us tell the Dramark’s stories.

You can find out more about Studio Hermitage and Our Brilliant Ruin at https://www.studio-hermitage.com Our Brilliant Ruin is live on Kickstarter now and running until the 28th of March.

Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders!

March is Women’s History Month here in the United States, and all of us here at Paizo want to take time to uplift and appreciate some of the women who bring our games to your tables!

It’d be silly not to mention that our CEO and Founder, Lisa Stevens, is a prominent woman in the TTRPG community and has been a cornerstone of Paizo since the beginning. You can enjoy some of her stories about her time working in games by checking out Auntie Lisa’s Story Hour!

Now, to showcase and give space to some more of the phenomenal women who make Paizo’s worlds better and brighter! As the theme of this year’s Women’s History Month is “Advocating for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion”, we’re also celebrating the work these people do in those regards!

Caryn DiMarco, she/they

You may have seen my name on PFS scenarios or in Lost Omens Highhelm—or on some soon-to-be-released products! I am so proud of this achievement, but when I’m not writing for Pathfinder, I obviously do play a lot of Pathfinder. This includes Pathfinder Society (forever GMs unite) and one question that’s always on my mind is how to make sure every player feels welcome at our games. 

I’ve been at a lot of tables where I’m the only member of a certain group, and that’s never a fun situation to be in. But often it’s the only way to get more people to show up. I want to thank everyone who’s signed up for a table or showed up to GM despite being a minority in their community; it’s always a risk, but it’s work that makes this community more welcoming for the rest of us. If this doesn’t apply to you, I hope you walk up to each table with the goal of getting to know all the players and doing your part to create a safe and welcoming environment for them. 

Pathfinder is a game for everyone, but it takes everyone’s effort to make that true. 

Solatra Lilac Harvinkai, credited as Sasha Laranoa Harving (nov/nov and dune/dune)

To advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion in the world of women is a difficult topic to broach. I am, personally, as a tall butch nonbinary lesbian who underwent estrogenizing hormone treatments for several years, and who has felt like a boy and a girl and a woman and am none now… am not often advocated for in the inclusion of.

I feel like when people aim to include women, they want to say that anyone who considers themself a woman is welcome. Often, I’ve seen them explicitly turn away trans women who are not able to safely come out for having some facial hair, or implicitly for not speaking the same language as the majority at the function by not having interpreters, or for being disabled by being in a venue with three steps up.

This is me saying to include them. Include everyone affected by misogyny. Fight the venue to get a ramp put in. Yell when they don’t want to spend money for an interpreter. If you have any form of privilege, weaponize it for those without.

We do not win alone. And there will come a day when our voices demand more attention than their silence.

Sara Jeffers (she/they)

Sara Jeffers (she/they) is an Indigenous Two Spirit game designer and graphic designer who utilizes traditional Salish art and storytelling structures to help de-colonize game design and add to the growing representation of First Nations and Indigenous North Americans in the industry. They also professionally GM a number of systems and games, focusing on combining horror with wholesome. When not writing or playing TTRPGs, Sara can be found hanging out with the coolest kids on the planet (theirs) and watching Bluey. 

Their previous published work includes Starfinder Bounty #10 and several solo TTRPGs available on itch.io. She is currently writing a full level 1-20 campaign for Pathfinder Second Edition and starting production on a murder mystery Actual Play set in the world of Thedas. Her most recent graphic and motion design work can be seen on an upcoming Thirsty Sword Lesbians Actual Play on Enchanting Sorcery Productions on Twitch and YouTube.

In the future, Sara wants to be part of the movement in the TTRPG industry that leads towards something more exciting and less problematic than 4X play.

Lynne M. Meyer (she/they)

Hello! I’m Lynne, one of Paizo’s editors. I’m a queer femme and an advocate for inclusive games. For over a decade, I worked in higher education as an interfaith and DEI educator—a role that included developing and implementing training programs for students and staff, and directly supporting students of all genders and sexual orientations.

This background now informs what I do in the gaming industry.

I’d been a player for many years, but it was a 2018 call for contributors to what would become Uncaged Anthology that inspired me to start writing for TTRPGs. An anthology of one-shots, each centered on a feminist reimagining of a traditionally female mythological archetype and its origins? I had to do it! I battled my fear and pitched an adventure. Almost everyone on the team was of a marginalized gender, and the support we gave (and still give) each other was life changing. For most of us, it was the first time we’d experienced anything like that.

I then helped edit all the subsequent Uncaged books. That work led to more projects, and more opportunities to grow my skills. Eventually, that led me to Paizo!

Find me on Bluesky (@lynnemeyer.bsky.social) and Twitter (@Lynne_M_Meyer).

Elizabeth V Nold (she/her)

Hello! My name is Betsy (she/her) and I am a player, GM, and freelance writer of TTRPGs. I most recently got to work on [redacted], but, in the meantime, you can check out my work on the Pathfinder Society Scenario #3-05: Inheritor’s Rite or Pathfinder Bounty 7: Cleanup Duty. I have also written for the Shadowrun system and contributed to the Attitude sourcebook.

 I began my TTRPG adventure when my friend bought an AD&D book for $1.00 at a yard sale. I did not realize until years later how rare my all-girl group was at the time. In my 30+ years playing, GMing, and writing for games, I have seen women go from being a minority to being a common sight. Gaming has given me many opportunities. I have learned that I can write. Through GMing, volunteering as a Venture Officer, and helping to organize Paizo Organized Play Games Conventions (come say hi at Origins), I have learned to be confident in my abilities and how to convey that confidence.

Thanks to all the strong women and allies who have come before that made this possible for me. I hope that I can help keep the progress moving forward.

Jessica Redekop (she/they/he)

Hello! My name is Jessica Redekop (she/they/he), and I was one of two women with a cover credit on Pathfinder Rage of Elements. Women play games and belong in the gaming industry.

This month and every month, we appreciate the contributions women make to our games here at Paizo—and across the games industry!

In Solidarity,
Rue Dickey (they/he/xe)
Marketing & Media Specialist

By now, you’ve probably finished Baldur’s Gate 3. And while you could start yet another run, here are five other games you could play instead.

So you’ve finished with Baldur’s Gate 3, and you’re staring down the end credits, and the epilogue scenes. Maybe you finally got those golden dice from Honour Mode. Maybe you even played through and you the good ending. Or the evil one (though you’d have to be real heartless to go full evil).

It’s a rare game that lives up to the hype and invites more out of you. One of the best things about the game is its replayability. You could make a dozen different choices and still barely scratch the surface of the things you can get up to. And sure, play through the story enough, and you’ll see the beats repeat, but there’s so much to explore. So much nuance to play with.

Especially if you take some time away from it. Instead, try one of these other cRPGs. Fill of promise and choices and stories to explore. It may not be the same exact thing, but these games might help cleanse the BG3 palette.

Divinity: Original Sin 1 & 2

Of course, if you want more of the same, there are always Larian’s first entries into the cRPG scene, the Divinity series. This is where Larian played with many of the concepts you see crystallized in Baldur’s Gate 3 but in their own playground. From compelling storylines for many different character types, to combat that’s as much a puzzle as it is strategic decisions. These games paved the way, so it’s a cool way to check out the road to get to BG3.

Disco Elysium

For something altogether different, though, you should play Disco Elysium. Even if you’ve never played Baldur’s Gate, you should play Disco Elysium.

There is precious little like it out there. It’s such a weird and wonderful story. If you felt big feelings playing Baldur’s Gate, let me tell you, you aren’t prepared for Disco Elysium. It sets up a breathing, living world and then turns you loose in it. A trainwreck of a detective who might be the only thing that can save a dying world. Or at least, solve the case. This game is so delicious and so evocative, cannot recommend it enough.

The Outer Wilds

If you really, really want to get away from it all, The Outer Wilds is hands down one of the best games you could possibly play. I will say nothing more about it, as it is forbidden. Don’t look up anything about this game, just play it.

Shadowrun: Dragonfall

This one’s a little unusual in that it’s not strictly a swords and sorcery fantasy RPG, but it is full of elves and dragons and you’ll crawl your way through a dungeon or two. You’ll just also have cybernetic weapons, powerful automatic weapons, and cyberware while you do so. If you want an RPG with a story you can sink your teeth into, Harebrained Scheme’s Shadowrun series is well worth it. Dragonfall is quite good, as is Hong Kong.

Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous

Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous is another “hair of the dog” as it were. Only this time it’s with Pathfinder’s ruleset. So expect even more crunchy combat. If you weren’t satisfied building a character with only 12 levels, then buddy, are you in for a treat with this one.

Wrath of the Righteous takes you through epic level play, as you lead a Crusade against an army of rampaging demons. It’s everything you’d hope for in a sweeping, epic game. Manage your armies, ascend to some kind of immortality maybe, and really just bust out the high-level play. If you can make it there, that is.

Now just for yourself a few (hundred) spare hours.

Bell of Lost Souls Staff Writer and DM, J.R. covers RPGs of all stripes and on occasion eats sandwiches. You can ask him about either at [email protected]

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Accidental Cyclops Games is thrilled to announce the upcoming release of “Surviving Strangehollow,” a captivating supplement for Dungeons & Dragons fifth edition. This thrilling new chapter will debut on Kickstarter in March 2024, inviting players to embark on an unforgettable journey into the wondrous and perilous land of Strangehollow.

Key Features:

• A Legendary Creative Team: “Surviving Strangehollow” brings together an all-star cast of authors including Friend of the Blog James Haeck (Critical Role and Waterdeep: Dragon Heist), Ed Greenwood (Forgotten Realms), Shawn Merwin (WotC and Ghostfire Gaming), Elisa Teague (Crooked Moon), and many more.
• Gorgeous Hand-Painted Artwork: “Surviving Strangehollow” was imagined and created by the artist Emily Hare, and all of the creatures, landscapes, and characters are original watercolors made by the artist.
• New Character Options: Unleash the potential of your characters with exciting new subclasses, a new playable species, clever feats, unique spells, and numerous backgrounds for use in Strangehollow or any other campaign setting.
• Marvelous Creatures: Encounter a host of fun and formidable creatures that will test the skills of players and characters of any level. The creatures leap off the page with detailed ecologies and fun new abilities. Each creature is an adventure unto itself!
• Innovative Gameplay Mechanics: “Surviving Strangehollow” introduces a few new game mechanics that add interesting twists to encounters, improve non-combat dangers, and invite players to use skills in new and interesting ways.

Kickstarter Campaign Details:

The Kickstarter campaign for “Surviving Strangehollow” is set to launch in March 2024. Supporters can expect a 350+ page supplement in hardback, digital, or limited edition cover. Backers will also have the opportunity to get custom dice, art prints from Emily Hare’s work, and many other goodies to augment their Strangehollow adventures. There is a pre-campaign page for VIP pre-registration available at https://get.accidentalcyclops.com/

About Accidental Cyclops Games:

Accidental Cyclops Games is a game production and publishing studio in Indianapolis, IN. They are best known for writing and publishing The Real Thing RPG in conjunction with the band Faith No More in 2022, along with its forthcoming sequels.

For inquiries, interviews, or additional information, please contact:

Jason Ward

ward@accidentalcyclops.com

About “Surviving Strangehollow”:

Surviving Strangehollow is a 5E+ supplement and campaign setting designed equally for players and DMs. The content of the book is a blend of exciting new fiction from acclaimed authors and loads of new options for players and DMs to add to any campaign. The design team consists of A-list talent including some of the creators of Forgotten Realms (Wizards of the Coast) and Exandria (Critical Role), the producer of Crooked Moon, and writers from Shadowrun, Transformers, Pathfinder, and many other products.

The land of Strangehollow was imagined and created by Emily Hare, a UK-based watercolorist. Her 60+ creatures are the core of the DM-facing content, and each is hand-painted in rich detail. Most of the creatures are designed to be adventures unto themselves, complete with detailed encounter options, ecological descriptions, and fiction to bring them to life. DMs will also find new mechanics for non-combat dangers, expiration options, and augmented ways to use some skills in their campaigns.

Players will find dozens of new character options, including an entirely new character class, a new playable race, 10+ subclasses, several feats, and some interesting backgrounds. Spells and magical/rare items will be sprinkled throughout the content as well, giving gamers many fun new ways to amplify their gaming experiences.

Runefire is the result of a cooperation between BattleTech maker Catalyst Game Labs and tabletop RPG publisher Paizo. The latter has donated its expansive fantasy world and system for the former to stretch across the existing deckbuilder engine used in Crossfire (Shadowrun) and Dragonfire (Dungeons & Dragons).

Quick to play and emphasising storytelling, gameplay begins with players selecting an ancestry, class and starting gear that will be very familiar to Pathfinder players – most of the “quintessential” options will be available in Runefire. Beginning in the Inner Sea region, the group of adventurers will explore several regions and continents on Golarion, levelling up their character through battle and challenges, earning new feats and equipment and generally climbing that power ladder.

“We are excited to see the rich world we’ve created in Golarion reach new fans through the incredible engine the team at Catalyst have built,” said Mike Webb, Paizo’s vice president of sales and marketing, in a press release. “Whether you are a fan of Pathfinder looking for a new way to experience the world, or a fan of other games in Catalyst’s system looking for a new setting, we think this is an outstanding combination.”

Narrative choices will ripple throughout future adventures and quests, opening some avenues and closing off others. Ancestries and classes will each have specific solutions to problems that the entire party faces, and how they choose to proceed might come back to haunt them later. Catalyst and Paizo claim Runefire will be steeped in Pathfinder lore and will throw plenty of beloved – or feared – locations, monsters and notable figures in their path. All of this will also comply with the remastered Pathfinder 2E Core books, which excise all the D&D hsitory from its rules and worldbuilding.

“BattleTech will always remain my one true love. Yet the time I spent developing Dragonfire was an absolute high-watermark of my career,” said Randall N. Bills, creative director of Catalyst Game Labs. “I could spend weeks of fifteen-hour days in hard playtesting, and yet still sit down immediately and play the game for fun.”

“I’ve literally been giggling as I’ve slid back into the joy of development within this game system,” he continued. “And along the way, I’ve absolutely fallen in love with the lore of Golarion. Working with Loren, Jay, Talon, Mike, Kristian, and Bryn—alongside Paizo—to weave in an authentic Pathfinder experience to create the best yet iteration of this game is just glorious. I can’t wait for everyone to throw this great game on their tables.”

Runefire will launch a crowdfunding campaign later this year, though the publishers did not specify a platform or date beyond sometime in 2024.

Catalyst Game Labs will launch Runefire, a narrative deckbuilding game based on Paizo’s Pathfinder RPG and built on the engine Catalyst developed for Dungeons & Dragons: Dragonfire and Shadowrun: Crossfire, the companies announced.

Players will choose ancestries, classes, and equipment, then begin in the Inner Sea region, leveling up their characters, finding additional equipment, learning new feats, and more, while experiencing a unique story in which players’ actions and decisions through each Adventure impact the next.

“BattleTech will always remain my one true love.  Yet the time I spent developing Dragonfire was an absolute high-watermark of my career,” Catalyst Creative Director Randall N. Bills said of the game engine on which Runefire will be based.  “I could spend weeks of fifteen-hour days in hard playtesting, and yet still sit down immediately and play the game for fun” (see “New Adventures, Heroes Headed for ‘Dragonfire’“).

Paizo Vice President of Sales and Marketing Mike Webb noted the strength of the combination.  “Whether you are a fan of Pathfinder looking for a new way to experience the world, or a fan of other games in Catalyst’s system looking for a new setting, we think this is an outstanding combination,” he said in a statement accompanying the announcement.

Catalyst will introduce Runefire through a Kickstarter later this year.

Paizo launched a new version of its card game, Pathfinder Adventure Card Game, in 2019 (see “Retailer Launch Kits“); it’s no longer available.

Paizo and Catalyst Game Labs have come together for a brand-new cooperative deckbuilding game called Runefire, based on Pathfinder.

Paizo announced they have partnered with Catalyst Game Labs to release a new cooperative deckbuilding game called Runefire. The game will be based on their TTRPG Pathfinder, as they bring their popular roleplaying game to this new system to make a fresh experience featuring settings and characters you’re familiar with. The team will be launching a crowdfunding campaign sometime later this year, with behind-the-scenes details to come out throughout 2024. We have more info on the game for you here as we now wait to see what more they have in store for this one as the year goes on.

Runefire

Runefire combines the vast lore of the Pathfinder universe with the fast play of this narrative deckbuilding game. Players choose from several ancestries, from dwarf to elf, halfing to human, and assume one of the quintessential classes of cleric, rogue, fighter, or wizard. Equipped with weapons, spells, and magic items, players begin their adventure in the Inner Sea region, journeying through lands such as Cheliax, Numeria, Taldor, and more! Along the way, they can level up their characters, find additional equipment, learn new feats, and much more. All while experiencing a unique story where players’ actions and decisions through each Adventure impact the next!

Runefire is built on the award-winning, critically acclaimed and bestselling game engine previously published as Crossfire for Shadowrun and as Dragonfire for Dungeons & Dragons. Building upon that legacy, Catalyst Game Labs is carefully crafting this new experience for those who love Golarion and Pathfinder. The game delves deep in the lore as well as the new Remastered Player Core, GM Core, and Monster Core to ensure the best experience. When players open a copy of Runefire at the table, regardless of what they enjoy playing—RPGs, deckbuilder games, or both—they’ll find a complete box of fun.

Stay up-to-date and support the site by following Bleeding Cool on Google News today!

Paizo has partnered with Catalyst Game Labs to bring you Runefire, a new Pathfinder-based narrative deckbuilding game coming soon.

Catalyst Game Labs, whom you might recognize as the publisher behind BattleTech and Shadowrun, is partnering with Paizo to release a new cooperative deckbuilding game coming to crowdfunding later this year. Titled, Runefire, the new game will blend the Pathfinder universe and all its sprawling history, with a fast-pacd, deckbuilding game that will see you adventure through Golarion.

The announcement revealed that the game would be seeking crowdfunding later this year. Because that’s how anything gets done anymore. Why make the big publishing companies take a risk when they could instead just pass that on to you? Not to knock crowdfunding, just to take a moment and look at how the corrupting tendrils of capitalism have made everyone who can afford it risk-averse. But tell me again how this is breeding innovation.

Future prospects of humanity aside, here’s what we know about the game so far.

Pathfinder: Runefire – Deckbuilding Dungeon Delves

It’s a pretty good combination. Deckbuilding is an extremely satisfying itch, and having a narrative to build your deck around is a fantastic extra level to play around with. After all, sometimes it’s nice to know who you’re pasting with your unstoppable combo, and why.

And in this case, there’s a whole lot of answers to those questions. Since the game will be drawing on all of Pathfinder’s considerable lore, as both Paizo and Catalyst reveal in their announcement:

Runefire combines the vast lore of the Pathfinder universe with the fast play of this narrative deckbuilding game. Players choose from several ancestries, from dwarf to elf, halfing to human, and assume one of the quintessential classes of cleric, rogue, fighter, or wizard. Equipped with weapons, spells, and magic items, players begin their adventure in the Inner Sea region, journeying through lands such as Cheliax, Numeria, Taldor, and more! Along the way, they can level up their characters, find additional equipment, learn new feats, and much more. All while experiencing a unique story where players’ actions and decisions through each Adventure impact the next!

And that all sounds good. But how does the game actually play? Well, as it happens, there are two good examples already. Because Runefire will be built on the same game system that powers Shadowrun: Crossfire and Dungeons & Dragons: Dragonfire, both deckbuilders in their own rights. But CGL wants to take things a little bit further with this one:

Building upon that [system], Catalyst Game Labs is carefully crafting this new experience for those who love Golarion and Pathfinder. The game delves deep in the lore as well as the new Remastered Player Core, GM Core, and Monster Core to ensure the best experience. When players open a copy of Runefire at the table, regardless of what they enjoy playing—RPGs, deckbuilder games, or both—they’ll find a complete box of fun.

The game will have plenty more behind-the-scenes peeks in the upcoming crowdfunding campaign. So you’ll be sure to get a good look at how the game works. In the meantime, keep an eye out for more as we get closer to the campaign launch day.

Pathfinder: Runefire will head to crowdfunding later in 2024!

Bell of Lost Souls Staff Writer and DM, J.R. covers RPGs of all stripes and on occasion eats sandwiches. You can ask him about either at [email protected]

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Catalyst Game Labs revealed Shadowrun: Falling Point, a new Runner Resource book for Shadow, for release into retail on March 6, 2024.

The new book profiles 10 people and organizations on the edge sending the sixth world into a slow-motion collapse. Some of these entities could be pushed over the edge by specific events or could be the be the ones doing the pushing. In any case, runners need to know about them before they accidently trigger a world collapse by playing an unknowing role in their plans. This book is filled with background information on these canon entities as well as what their significant role in shaping the sixth world might be.

Shadowrun: Falling Point will retail for $49.99.

Catalyst Game Labs also released Shadowrun: Wild Life, a new creature sourcebook (see “Creature Book Heads to Retail“).

Catalyst Game Labs will release Shadowrun: Wild Life, a new creature sourcebook, into retail on January 24, 2024.

Wild Life features several creatures that be used as challenges during shadowruns. The book has dozens of creatures to chose from, which are listed by habitat, brought to life via full color illustrations. It also contains plot hooks, training information, and other resources related to using creature in Shadowrun 6E.

Shadowrun: Wild Life will retail for $49.99.

Catalyst Game Labs also recently revealed Scotophobia, a new Shadowrun RPG plot book (see ” ‘Shadowrun’ Plot Book“).