Eldritch Gambit

Eldritch Gambit is a fantasy role-playing game (RPG) toolkit. Here, players step into the role of adventurers struggling against powerful forces and making difficult decisions. To those running the game, it is a set of building blocks rather than a themed playset: Use a favorite fictional setting or just work together to create the adventures you want.

This book includes the basic rules on how to play (p.5), create characters (p.10), run scenes (p.21), handle items and other resources (p.37), work magic (p.41), and design your adventure setting (p.59). Optional supplements with ready-made game worlds and adventure modules are forthcoming.

Eldritch Gambit derives from classic fantasy RPG rules that are easy to pick up for new gamers and familiar to experienced ones. As such, most things in-game will boil down to the tried-and-true method of rolling as high as you can on the dice. The special features of Eldritch Gambit mainly involve “push-your-luck” mini-games that face players with both freedom and peril.

- FEATURES -

• Collaborative worldbuilding: brainstorm with your game group to build the setting you really want (p.59) or stick with a more traditional setting.
• Drama support: enjoy scenes focusing on social actions, chases, stealth, non-combat magic, and the benefits of fellowship with your allies (p.21).
• Engaging Combat: Move? Attack? Cast a spell? Climb a huge monster? Provoke, subdue, or disarm a foe? Rally back into action? Grapple? Guard an ally? Your call (p.21)!
• Freeform Characters: No restrictive classes or finicky features. You decide their motive, where their talents lie, and what abilities make them outstanding (p.10).
• Freeform Experience: decide for yourself what earns your character their power and challenge yourself with a personal Quest (p.20)!
• Gambits: push your luck after success or failure to change fate with Gambits. You choose when to place yourself at the mercy of your dice! (p.6).
• Item-based Magic: those who wield enchanted items are capable of magic. Spells are for everyone and run the gamut from flashy combat techniques to overt necromancy (p.41).
• Room to Grow: the hacking tolerance of this ruleset means there is space for your additions!
• Volleyball Initiative: combatants pass their next turns to each other or their target, so your chance to shine can come at any time (p.22).

Feedback and comments are welcome. It currently contains a boatload of public domain art and is lol-self-edited. Future versions may contain more content, original art, professional editing, and the fancy layout everyone loves.

Slightly stripped-down System Reference Document (SRD) now available at:

https://planariangames.github.io/eldritchgambit/