Playing Every Game in the Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality
PEGBRJE: Software of Pages 58 and 59
The end is nigh.
Page 58
A Light Long Gone
Starting us off is the digital album release of A Light Long Gone by muddasheep. While this sounds like it is just an album, in reality it is an interactive digital experience in which the player can mess around with the soundscape of the songs themselves. You have control over every instrument in the mix, how they are placed and how loud they can be while the beautiful album art looms in the background.
I struggled to decide if this was a game or a software in comparison to how I’ve categorized things in this ‘vein’, but I think it belongs here. Regardless, if you love breaking down music this is a fantastic look into the mind of a musician.
The Warlock — A Dungeon World Playbook
Breaking back to TTRPGs is this supplementary class for the game Dungeon World by L., or Birdhouse Games as they are also known. Dungeon World, for those unaware, is a TTRPG made by Sage LaTorra and Adam Koebel using the ‘Powered By The Apocalypse’ engine to create fantastical stories opposite the GM.
The Warlock seeks to add a class deemed missing from the game, one known for serving a higher patron of dubious intentions. If you enjoy the engine but wanted the Warlock-flavouring that we’ve had in other TTRPGs, L. has you covered.
Oath of the Ambling Rose
Get used to seeing L. for a bit, for they have added quite a few supplements to the bundle and they all seem to be on this page. This is their own spin on a Paladin oath for D&D 5e, focused more on the deeds of a wandering helper rather than a ‘smite first, ask questions later’ style.
Due to 5e’s shortcomings this oath might not work in every campaign, but if you are running something more RP heavy or just want to help out locals in a less violent way, this class brings a lot of interesting flavour to the table.
Oath of the Even Hand
Another oath for 5e Paladins, Oath of the Even Hand brings about the ultimate mediator and judge for your paladin classes. It is an oath made specifically to pass judgement on everything and everyone in an immediate and decisive way. They are not one to split their focus between ‘fighter’ or ‘healer’, instead having them hyperfixate on trials and laws that they uphold.
This can be tricky to balance properly, and I don’t mean in a gameplay sense. This oath, if handled without care, could cause major rifts and fighting in the party due to the rigidity of the law and the style of roleplay it can invoke. However if approached with a clever eye and with some discussion with a GM, I could easily see this being a brilliant oath to spice up any campaign.
DungeonGameAssetPack
This is a small asset pack by SorceressGameLab to assist those looking to make their own Gameboy-esque adventure platformer. The tiles all contain backdrops that can blend in at any time, and in any way so that the game can be rearranged in whatever way you might need.
Items and Monsters are also included, but none of them are animated so do be aware of that beforehand. It’s a great little pack to help you make a little game, or help jumpstart a gamejam.
Short Film
This oddly titled 4-player game was created by Josh T Jordan. It’s a game about making a movie, with each player having a specific role to play from Soundtrack to Casting to Star. To play it, two of the players need to have an artistic and musical background, or have a phone/computer on hand, while the other two have no supply requirements.
It’s a weirdly rigid game in this regard, but it is due to the system in place that allows for these strange films to be created in a roleplay game-like way. It’s strange, but somehow very compelling and goofy. Give it a read if you think you might be interested.
The Sailor and the Siren
Sticking with more rigid games is The Sailor and the Siren by anxiousmimicrpgs. This is a game for two players set on the open sea, where a Sailor finds themselves being seduced by a Siren who needs to decide if they will eat the other, or fall in love. Or both. It’s a card game set in stages, with players drawing cards for each stage of the game.
The numbers indicate what events occur at different times of the story, and the siren always has more cards in their hand than the sailor to showcase how they are the ones ‘running the show’, so to speak. It’s an interesting take on romance and doom, especially with the power dynamics and alterability of the plot. If you want to get romantic with your partner only to betray and eat them, this might be a good game to try out.
The GUTS+ System
Now for the ultimate in gameplay; The GUTS+ System is a TTRPG engine for us normal folks that are attempting to be in a TTRPG as we are. You play the game as you, or at least, the power level of a ‘you’ — this focus helps to keep the game simple and efficient through the art of giving players an easy to recognize starting point.
From here, the game expands the player’s abilities through various powers, giving them growth so that they can take on wild antics that the GM creates. The other key feature of GUTS+ is in its quality system, where abilities and powers are customizable rather than templated abilities for every scenario.
There’s a lot more I’m leaving out, but this is what makes up the core of GUTS+. If you love TTRPG systems that strip things down and make it easy for newcomers to jump in, this might be the perfect one for you.
The River
Adding another TTRPG to the pile is The River by xiombarg, in which players take control of the universe itself. Players are part of a magic group from the ‘Grey Zone’, a place stuck between two factions that can watch all of the disasters of the world. In the Grey Zone you can mix with the other mages in the universe, making up the core flavour of the game; dual magick systems.
While the game’s main mechanic relies on cards, there are four charts that detail the two types of magic that control the universe itself. All players are touched by the Dualism, allowing them to utilize the two systems, and it drives the plot of trying to save the universe from its impending destruction. It is quite complicated, which may turn away some players, but for those that love narrative-centric crunchiness, this game might be for you.
Solipstry
Starting as a merger project between the ‘best’ parts of D&D 4e and 3.5, Solipstry is an engine of its own by Alex Rineheart and Rachel Bennett. It ditches classes in favour of focusing on skills that ‘create’ classes for you, and utilizes multipliers in damage to bring more extremes to the standard averages. In an odd way, it’s an open system that allows for GMs to run wild with ideas while giving players the ability to make whatever they want with whatever they are given.
There is another book called the Chronicle for those that want lore/descriptions for even more possibilities, but it is not included in the bundle and is 100% not necessary to play. Solipstry wanted to put everything in its core book that was necessary to play, so you can bring it anywhere and start up a game.
Poison for Beginners
L. is back once again, but this time with their most intriguing supplement yet; a book all about poisons. Unlike the others, this is a completely system agnostic addition with hints towards the d20 and Powered by the Apocalypse systems. It delves into many real poisons and how they are created, but adds a fantasy-twist to make them interesting in different environments.
One might say that you can just use this to create these poisons in real life, but let’s not get hasty — we know you grabbed this supplement because you wanted to have a bit more fun in your TTRPGs. Just stick to that, and we’ll be good.
24 Game Poems
Created back in 2010, this is an anthology of ‘game poems’ by Majcher Arcana. Described as little games that you can pick up and play in under 15 minutes, they focus on a specific mood or fixation, mainly aimed at being experienced quickly and resonating with those playing.
I hadn’t heard of these games before — nor their alternative name of ‘lyric games’ — so it’s interesting to see how much physical games can still be altered. If you want some short experiences to have with friends, this might be a great addition to your arsenal.
Outdoor Adventurer Tileset
Another tileset on this page, but this one is by reshmush and is specifically for those looking to spice up their outdoor tiles. It has a lot of grass and dirt paths, and a singular knight with a walk cycle to maneuver through it. It was specifically made for this bundle, which is a nice little touch — thanks again reshmush. If you need a tileset for a noncommercial project, this might be a good place to start.
forest zone bitsy tile pack
Altering things up a bit is this tileset by ledoux specifically for the Bitsy engine, which is also by ledoux. It’s an HTML-centric game editor aimed at helping creators to make small games, and this tileset assists with games that may want to be outside.
There are trees, mushrooms, stars, and even cars to litter around your world as you see fit. It’s all available for commercial usage so you too can make your own little games in a forest if you so wish.
Did I Fall Asleep?
Did I Fall Asleep? is a two-room LARP focused on who you are as a person returning to a life you remember nothing about. You are an operative who had their mind wiped over and over again for missions, and are now done with your service. It’s a game about each individual walking in to the room with the GM and discussing their life, who they were and what they want while the others attempt to mingle and uncover their own past.
It’s a very specific experience, however, thanks to the subject nature of exploitation and identity, so I would caution those wanting to play to know what they are getting in to.
Shift
An interesting amalgamation of chess and poker, Shift is a game by Jack Schlesinger about bluffing your way to checkmate. The piece movement is not necessarily tied to their identity but to the cards that you are drawing.
Each time a player reaches ‘check’, they must bet to raise the stakes — the opponent then has the opportunity to raise, match that bet, or fold the round. This creates this strange dynamic in which players can win a game of chess without really being in a suitable position to win simply because they bluffed out their opponent. It was created as an experiment, and if you like experimental games this might be a great one for you.
Cards: The Attackening!™
Rounding out page 58 is a card game by Wanton Walrus featuring universal warriors called ‘Attackeners’ as they attempt to dominate the battlefield. It follows similar strategies to other TCGs with the major difference being the reliance on a six-sided die for determining damage and defense.
There are also ‘Twists of Fate’ that can dramatically alter how the battlefield works depending on the card, which can have negative effects on you but positively effect the opponent. If you are in to different kinds of TCGs this might be one worth checking out.
Page 59
There is only 1 entry on 59, and it is below.
The Colors of Magic
The final entry of the entire Racial Justice and Equality bundle is The Colors of Magic by Jon Lemich, a TTRPG aiming to create relationships and beliefs. These two tenets make up the ‘stats’ that the GM will be utilizing to create the adventure, as the players will be in control of the antagonists, conflicts, themes, and setting. You as players make the NPCs, the GM is more of the background system that ensures that things are structured in a way that doesn’t collapse the entire game.
There are even systems for incorporating non-playing audience members. It’s an interesting approach for a TTRPG, taking many of the systems that have been ‘written off’ as not helpful or useful and turning them in to what makes the game great. It was revised in 2021, so if you grabbed it prior then you should come back to see its brand new layout. For everyone else, if you want a TTRPG that strives for something new, then here you go.
That’s… it, technically. That is the last entry of the bundle. There were some stragglers that will get uploaded tomorrow in the similar fashion as before, as even with my updated abilities I still missed a few of them.
I’m hoping that the overview of the last 19 pages will be out some time next week to wrap up this section, because then work on the true Magnum Opus will begin.
The Post Mortem. The ultimate overview of the entire bundle, and the grand finale of this project.
See you tomorrow.
