Roleplaying Aotearoa Style

In the past I've posted about New Zealand Roleplaying Products (Feb 2011) and the rise of New Zealand Roleplaying products, (Aug 2013) highlighting some great products authored by New Zealanders.  Now it's time for the 2015 edition, covering more RPG products by Kiwi authors:

We begin with a new edition of a title featured in the last instalment; Monster of the Week a new and revised edition of this best-selling monster-hunting roleplaying game powered by the Apocalypse.  Michael Sands teamed up with Evil Hat Productions to produce this slick product, packed with new art and containing some new material including an introductory mystery; example monsters like Balkan vampires, ghouls, and spore trolls; and hunter types like the Crooked and the Spell-Slinger.  Mike's also made available all the handouts and created a bundle of extra playbooks.

Next up is The Idea from Space by Simon Carryer.  This is an adventure suitable for low-level characters for use with Lamentations of the Flame Princess Weird Fantasy Role-Playing and other traditional role-playing games.

Also by Simon is Nod, a game about a barbarian from the Shivering Steppe, hunting human quarry within the walls of the city. One night is all that is given to find the quarry and flee the city. But Nod is a place of dark alleyways, strange rituals, degenerate worship and corrupt rule. The barbarian's journey will have many crooked turns, and will never end where you expect.

Steve Hickey has recently released Left Coast: the Short Story edition a role-playing game about a science fiction writer in California (and her weird friends, family, fans and nemeses).  Steve also has Soth, a game about cultists just trying to do what cultists do, coming soon.

Jenni Sands recently published Quiet Day in the Library, which is an existential live action roleplaying game about memories, relationships and coping in a crisis.  Jenni has also authored Four Things, a simple, systemless game about ordinary people that examines the quirks and foibles which form our personalities and how we relate to each other. Inspired by games like Grace, Silver and White and a team building exercise.  She also published the horror sequel Four Spooky Things, which sets the self reflection on the backdrop of a player-chosen horror scenario.

True Love Match is a free game of romance and reality TV by Morgan Davie. You’ll need six people, a couple of rooms, and a few hours. It might mess you up a little....

Stepahnie and Catherine Pegg published Tesla's Wedding,  a giddy roleplaying game based on the steampunk genre, designed in a spirit of celebration and to evoke a feeling of joy; the story of how Tesla von und zu Drakenwyrm and Pierre de l’Eclaire, having Conquered the forces Arrayed against them and Founded a little town of their own in the Black Forest, are about to get married good and proper. 

Catherine Pegg also authored The Face of Oblivion,  a science-fiction chamber larp for 6-8 players, designed around a hard choice.  Disaster is coming: will you save a large group of people that you are responsible for, or a smaller group of everyone you ever loved and everything you ever cared about?

EPOCH scenario publication has continued apace and continues to showcase some great NZ talent with Andrew Millar, Liam Jones, Marcus Bone and Michael Sands and I all contributing scenarios to War Stories, which was nominated for an ENnie Award for best adventure. Morgan Davie and Andrew Millar also each contributed a scenario with proceeds donated to charity - Silent Night was published in Christmas 2013, White Wedding in Christmas 2014.  The EPOCH companion The Experiment Continues also features original scenarios by Donna Giltrap, Liam Jones, Alasdair Sinclair and I.

I also recently released Wicked Lies & Alibis, a whodunit roleplaying game set in the age of Art Deco enabling you to recreate murder mystery stories in the finest tradition of the goden-age of detective fiction. 

New Zealand writers also feature in the RPGgeek Dramasystem contest, in  particular Monster's Brawl by Morgan Davie and Grapes of Wharekaka by Eric Dodd.

Looking back over the last lists all the way back to early 2011, there has been a lot of growth.  Some names have appeared with regularity, their writing credits growing steadily, while there has also been an influx of new talent.  All in all it seems to be a vibrant and diverse community of writers, publishers and gamers. Perhaps we should all get together sometime?

If you know of a product I've missed, comment below.