Deathbringer TTRPG by Professor DM

Backed.

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/roll-for-combat/deathbringer-ttrpg-by-professor-dm

Why?

Because the hobby needs it.

Old-School Essentials Demonic Grimoire

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/exalted-funeral/old-school-essentials-demonic-grimoire

This is a book I have been wanting the OSE team to do ever since they were B/X Essentials, in the way, way early days, when they were just developing this game. I still have my BXE books, and they mark the beginning of what would become something truly amazing and special.

Demons and devils were never in BX; they were always an AD&D thing, and it was understandable why they were left out of the original game and even OSE. Games like Labyrinth Lord had them, and that captured the era when we had them in the Monster Manual, and we just ported them back into our BX games back in the day. Demons and devils were always the ultimate bad guys in any campaign, the "final boss" behind any group of evil doers, and wickedness that always deserved to be stamped out and vanquished without question.

Unlike today, where every humanoid race eventually becomes a character option and is removed from the Monster Manual, there is no redeeming a demon or a devil. There is no amount of cultural whitewash to make a demon or devil acceptable and "fun for the whole family." They keep trying to normalize them with Tieflings and those silly cosplay horns and pastel skin they throw carelessly all over D&D art these days, but that is Satan's blood that made those horns and hooves, and they will forever have the taint of evil upon them.

Sorry, art department, the definition of pure evil isn't negotiable.

Redemption? Sure, but you lose the horns and hooves. You can't wear them to be cute. They are linked forever to the Fallen Angel of Lucifer. I am an absolutist about this since I respect the source material.

That source material. You can't accept that demons and devils exist without admitting that God exists, even in a polytheistic world with multiple gods. In pre-Christian days, the Devil was there, too, and the lore always surpasses the silly RPG gamebook. You can't just steal faith as myth, even though it is intertwined; D&D wants to live in a godless, faithless world where demons are valid character options, and alignment does not exist.

Faith is the root of all myth.

Myth is the heart of D&D.

The removal of alignment from newer versions of D&D, ToV, and Pathfinder was also a reason I dropped all of 5E and newer games. You take alignment out of the game, and the basic mechanical function of the battle of good and evil is gone. All of a sudden, a paladin can slaughter a village, pillage, and do all sorts of vile deeds - and still retain their holiness and powers.

The removal of alignment from D&D killed the game. This was a fatal blow. There was no coming back from this. There is no D&D without alignment, and even the simplified three-axis Law-Neutral-Chaos of BX does a fine job. The moral relativists killed D&D because they did not want players to be inconvenienced by the game making value judgments about them.

This is why the Satanic Panic happened. D&D became about "fighting Hell," and organized religion saw it as an intrusion into their domain of faith and salvation. You can play D&D and be a person of faith; they do not conflict.

To remove alignment is to cut D&D's heart out.

In short, the game stopped enforcing a moral code, and players adopted the "get me mine and hustle" attitude seen on TikTok, social media, and OnlyFans. To solve a situation, the game allowed you to choose the evil route, and you were never punished for it, nor should the referee ever punish a character in-game. Sin and wickedness are just another route to profit and success.

And the games added a "say no" option by throwing up an "X" and forcing the referee not to punish their characters for their actions, since consequences are triggering.

This is a great addition to the game, and I backed this. This will keep me from using OSRIC 3.0 as my demo and devil resource, and gives me an OSE-focused book to use as my guide to the darker powers that players will fight against. The other half of OSE is finally here.

Strong recommendation.

BackerKit: Castle Whiterock (DCC)

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/goodman-games/castle-whiterock

The Castle Whiterock mega-dungeon for DCC & 5E is over on BackerKit, and the price was very reasonable for what you get. I expected this to be three times the price, and it came in on what I wanted to spend. There are plenty of shiny add-ons, but the basic clamshell boxed set, plus hardcover (in the first 48 hours only, softcover after), was a great deal.

Some companies still keep gaming affordable and fun, and Goodman Games has a winner here. Backed and supporting.

Traveller 5E Update

I am happy to see the Traveller 5E campaign doing well and nearing the half-million mark. The books are still expensive; four at $80 each is not cheap, but that is the current going rate for 5E hardcovers. Many are being priced out of the market. Also, the October 2027 target is 18 months away, which is a long time to wait.

Also, shipping prices are going through the roof. I just paid $50 for shipping for one campaign, and I am seriously scaling back my pledges this year. Castle Whiterock for DCC will be my next one (4 days), and any other campaigns this year will have to be knockouts.

Granted, the PDFs will likely be out sooner, and I have not heard much on VTT or character designer support, which is a must-have for many to even consider supporting a campaign. Some versions of 5E I can't play because the tools aren't there, and even then, it is always an extra "digital purchase" in a VTT store to "own the rules there," and I feel I am being fleeced by the 5E industry again.

I can play Traveller with the 2d6 system today, or even cheaper (and free options) with the Cepheus system. There is a massive price gap between the free Cepheus Engine PDF and the $1,000 all-in pledge here. It sort of highlights where the entire 5E market is going, premium crowdfunding "experiences" with $1,000 buy-ins for the "ultimate fan package."

And for $1,000, I can get a much more complete and rewarding experience with GURPS or even Battletech. I could get a box of mechs that would fill a table for that much, and have months of painting to do.

I like the Traveler 5E concept; it sounds exciting. This would have been an instant buy for me last year.

This year, it isn't. Times are tough. I have Battletech and GURPS, and those are amazing games. I have a complete 2d6 Traveller collection. I have more 5E than I can play, and DCC will happily take all the attention for fantasy for me.

I don't have the time or money for this, and it is sad to see this going at such a high price point. This is the world we live in, but I do wish them well and all the success they can earn.

We are in the age of the premium 5E "fan experience," and it sort of sucks.

Backerkit: Traveller 5E

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/world-s-largest-rpgs/traveller-5e

If you like science fiction and 5E, this is the game to get.

But the prices are a bit of a sticker shock. $350 for the core book bundle and $1,000 for all-in. Wow, I have not seen a basic book bundle of a crowdfunding campaign this high before. I wish them all the best in selling the books at this high a price point. Licensing fees also play into this.

I would get this, but not at this price point.

Just as video gaming is becoming a hobby for the rich, tabletop gaming is moving in that direction, too. 5E is also an expensive system to support, and you can easily sink thousands (if not tens) into the hobby every year.

I like both systems, but I have Cepheus and GURPS to cover all my Traveller science fiction gaming needs. I like GURPS far better than 5E, especially for science fiction. While the MMO-ness of 5E is appealing, I would rather just play GURPS and have it all without the complicated character sheets of 5E.

That is another problem, the absolute need for character creation tools for 5E. I see Roll20 support, but how complete is that? Creating 5E characters by hand is a complete non-starter for any version of 5E. I am refusing to do that anymore after seeing character sheets print out to 16+ pages. My GURPS character sheets are only four pages for a 1,000-point character, and two pages for most other characters that I play.

And for $1,000, I could buy nearly every GURPS book ever printed and have a complete, three-shelf library of a game that can do anything. I checked this on Amazon too, and it is just under $1,000 for most of the 3rd- and 4th-edition books in PoD. Don't ask me how I know, but I have six shelves like this.

Also worth noting is EN World's 5E science fiction game based on the Level Up system. The Void Runners Codex is a complete boxed set that includes the physical books for about $200. I enjoy Level Up and have this, and it is a solid, more affordable alternative if you don't care for the Traveler universe and just want a generic, 5E science fiction system.

It is a strange world to live in, seeing GURPS as the easier game to support and play than 5E, but here we are in 2026. It comes down to preference and willingness to learn the rules, ultimately, and is a personal choice. While the core systems of 5E are easier than GURPS, in the end, character sheet complexity in 5E is an order of magnitude more complicated than GURPS, with expensive software requirements (and subscription models).

Traveller 5E is a really nice game, expensive and it shows, but it is not for me. As I get older, I have less time for these games, and I tend to stick to the ones I know and love that cover many genres. For me, that is GURPS.

BackerKit: Castles & Crusades Adventurers Spellbook Reforged

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/troll-lord-games/castles-crusades-adventurers-spellbook-reforged

Troll Lord Games launched the reforged, OGL-free Adventurers Spellbook today. This is another winner, and I look forward to it. Check it out if C&C is your thing!

Pinball Crawl Classics: Last 9 Days!

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/goodman-games/old-school-adventures-1

We are closing in on the final days of the Pinball Crawl Classics campaign for Backerkit, so now is the time to jump in and make a pledge. This is one of the more original projects in the old-school space, and it has me excited.

When we get something new and different, licensing IP outside of gaming to bring in those ideas into our world, and this is a perfect combination of arcade culture mixed with gaming.

We don't see much "new blood" in gaming, and we typically end up with self-insert vanity projects that are some "author statement" for the writer trying to bandwagon people onto, "I am right, my critics are wrong." Nobody wants to make players play through your self-insert NPC's "quest of personal fulfillment" with the players on the sidelines doing all the heavy lifting.

Nobody cares about your utopian setting, Tasha, or any of these other self-inserts or idealistic snowglobe societies.

Let the players be the heroes!

This is their story.

Not the DM's. Not the adventure writer's.

We are back in the 1990s with TSR's "bestselling novel adventures" that railroad you through a story, only this time, we are being railroaded through some writer's personal beliefs and the times they were wronged on Twitter. This is the difference between the Tomb of Horrors and the newer D&D adventures. One is a classic, and the others are soon-to-be-dated fan fiction.

But this project excites me, and is a shot in the arm for gaming.

We are getting new ideas and new inspirations. The writers create a fun little world or reality, and it is up to you to navigate through it, with your story being what drives you forward. The pinball machine, and the story behind it, is just the backdrop to your greatness.

This stuff is cool.

It kicks butt.

Worthy.

Pinball Crawl Classics

https://www.backerkit.com/call_to_action/891f2362-d05c-43a2-857f-417bb038207d/landing

Okay, this restores my faith in DCC and Goodman Games. A series of licensed pinball-machine-inspired adventures for DCC and MCC. What a cool idea, and this fits the game and brand better than a series of converted 5E adventures.

For a moment, I felt DCC had no direction and was a little lost compared to BX, BXA, and 1E. Now we are back in nostalgia-land again, but on some very amazing and fresh ground that has never been done before.

Thank you.

This is the sort of creativity, inspiration, and fun the hobby needs.

Backerkit: Castles & Crusades Adventurer's Backpack (Reforged)

 

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/troll-lord-games/abp

A busy day today! The Castles & Crusades Adventurer's Backpack (Reforged) launched today, and if you are into C&C, this is a worthy purchase.

C&C is always this game that waits in the wings for me, and it is the best modern version of fantasy gaming, the lost "2.5E" we never saw. Every time I get this out on my shelves, it kills 5E in my playtime.

Backerkit: OSRIC 3 Last Day!

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/mythmere-games/osric-3

Also, this is the last day to back the OSRIC 3 project from Mythmere Games. If you want this, do it now!

BackerKit: OSRIC 3

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/mythmere-games/osric-3

A new, non-OGL, easier-to-learn, cleaner, laid-out version of OSRIC? Closer to AD&D than 2.0? Ascending AC options? No AI art?

Made and printed in the USA?

Done by the Swords & Wizardry team?

Sign me up!

MCDM RPG: 4.6 Million Final

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/mcdm-productions/mcdm-rpg

Congratulations to the MCDM RPG team for raising 4.6 million in their Backerkit. What a fantastic total, and a huge amount of trust put in this team. They don't even have a game yet! This is the power of getting people excited and believing in you. I can't imagine the pressure they are under, but they have the resources and talent to make something amazing happen.

In some ways, the amount of attention makes a project like this harder, but in others, it makes things easier since there is a desire for people you wouldn't expect to jump on the hype train.

I really hope they make the dream of making a 4E-style game a reality and finally fix that model and make it work. I am on board and watching, so I am excited about this one.

Backerkit: MCDM RPG

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/mcdm-productions/mcdm-rpg

This one blew up out of nowhere. Two million dollars on the first day? Eleven thousand backers?

It blew past Shadowdark and Tales of the Valiant in one day. It will likely blow past both combined in the first two days.

MCDM RPG is quickly shaping up to be a significant 5E alternative.

And this is not even d20-based or compatible with 5E at all.

Wizards?

Wake up.

Your competitors are knocking on the door, and your players are headed for the same.

Backerkit: The Purple Planet, Tome of Adventure #4

https://goodman-games.com/blog/2023/10/02/prepare-for-adventures-on-the-purple-planet-and-beyond/

This is fantastic news, and I hope Earth lasts long enough for me to pledge!

I missed out on the original Purple Planet DCC physical module, and this collects them all - plus, it gives us a new adventure set in this world in a new hardcover.

We are also getting the next tome of adventure collecting modules #73-77, which are excellent collections.

And we are getting variant covers of the rules, including an Errol Otus cover, which looks impressive. I want that book!

DCC is becoming my favorite OSR game, eclipsing the original B/X editions.

I am all in with this one when it drops. Plus more.

Backerkit: Cypher System, Final 6 Days!

https://www.backerkit.com/c/monte-cook-games/adventures-in-the-cypher-system

It is the last 6 days for the Backerkit for the Adventures in the Cypher System campaign. This is a great chance to get a bunch of cool add-ons and a deluxe rulebook, so it is worth jumping in if you are interested.