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No matter whether one may be an experienced TTRPG person, or dipping your toes in to the wonderful world of roleplaying, starting something unfamiliar can be something of a daunting experience. 500-page rulebooks can be great, but a little overwhelming, building your characters from scratch and trying to put together an adventure can for some be a delightful experience, for others, a confusing trial.
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When I returned, after many years of absence, to the world of table top roleplaying I found the starter set experience the perfect way to find my way back in to this incredible community and playing experience.
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The list here in now way is meant to be a definitive list of Core Rule Books, indeed in truth I could list a hundred hundred here and still barely scratch the surface of excellence. Also, as the title implies quite clearly…..me being me, any ’favourites’ list that I have invariable changed for week to week, heck even from day to day. So next week the list could, and probably would, be very different.
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So some people may be unhappy that the list here may omit their particular favourite (As our previous, D&D alternatives, fantasy and horror lists certainly did). But you know, that’s ok as it’s just my subjective list of what I love. Are they the best? Are they the definitive 5 corerule book titles? Certainly not. But they are a list mainly off the top of my head of recent books that I have read, or intend to play after collecting PDF’s and physical copies galore of the subjects.
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Fallout: The Roleplaying Game Starter Set
(From Modiphius)
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Welcome to the Wasteland
The United States of America is no more. It was destroyed when the world’s nuclear warheads were launched. The ensuing apocalypse brought an end
to both the Great War and the civilized world. In its place exists the Wasteland, an irradiated landscape pockmarked by ruined cities, decaying civilizations, and pockets of desperate survivors. It is inhabited by a variety of mutated creatures, horrific beasts, and undy- ing ghouls. The radiation from the detonations spread quickly. Everything that wasn’t killed immediately was irradiated, and most of the country’s diverse plant and animal life was wiped out.
Survivors work to reclaim what little they can and salvage what they cannot rebuild. Civilization is start- ing to take root again and certain areas of the country have reached a level of stability that might even be called comfortable, at least for the rich and powerful.
Disparate factions have begun to split off as these com- munities have grown. Each faction looks to make its own way, and some are far more dangerous than others. By far, the most dangerous are the Raiders. They place no value on any human life but their own. Yet civili- zation has begun to flourish, despite the opposition.
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Immerse yourself in the genre-defining setting with this introduction to the official Fallout tabletop roleplaying game. This starter set gets you playing Fallout using the 2d20 System designed and tailored for an authentic wasteland experience. Roleplay as a unique character in the familiar setting of the Commonwealth around Boston.
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This starter set digital product contains almost everything you need to begin playing Fallout: The Tabletop Roleplaying Game – just add dice and something to use for tokens!
A 56-page rulebook containing all core rules, perks, and equipment needed to explore the wasteland.
A 60-page quest book Once Upon a Time in the Wasteland taking your characters on an exciting quest around the nuclear-ravaged wasteland outside Boston.
6 pre-generated characters to choose from, including ghouls, super mutants, and even a Mister Handy robot.
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City of Mist: All-Seeing Eye Investigations Starter Set
(From Son of Oak Game Studio)
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Learn to roleplay in a city of ordinary people and legendary powers!
In City of Mist, myths and legends are born into modern-day individuals. Hard-boiled detectives and cunning mob lords hold the mythic powers of characters from the Sumerian saga of Gilgamesh, Greek mythology, German fairy-tales, the Bible, Fijian folktale, and more. But the mysterious force of the Mist makes everyone who isn’t a legend forget their magic, leaving legends to terrorize the City from the shadows. Can your crew uncover the truth about who is really behind it all?
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City of Mist is a detective role playing game in a gritty urban fantasy setting. This set is designed to launch your game group into the game with as little prep as possible, learning as you play.
Included inside:
A booklet for players, explaining the rules of the game through short learn-as-you-play reading passages
A booklet for the MC, explaining the role of the MC and containing the details of your first case, Shark Tank
Five beautifully-illustrated pre-generated character folios: Detective Enkidu, Tlaloc, Lily Chow & Iron Hans, Job, and Baku.
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Hit the streets of City of Mist with the Core Books bundle including the Player’s Guide and the MC Toolkit!
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City of Mist is a role-playing game of film-noir investigation and super-powered action. It is set in a modern metropolis rife with crime, conspiracies, and mysteries. The protagonists are Rifts, ordinary people who became the living embodiment of a legend, their Mythos. While your Rifts may seek to strike a balance between the mysterious nature of their Mythos and their mortal aspirations, the powers within them always threaten to tear their lives apart. They have unwittingly become a part of a secret world of clashing stories, and soon other legends will come looking for them with demands.
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City of Mist is based on the story-driven Apocalypse Engine, but it takes a step further into narrative gaming by introducing several new features:
Rich character motivations built around compelling Mysteries and Identities. Follow your characters’ themes to gain their benefits and evolve them or go against them to discover new aspects with a unique non-linear character evolution system.
Know no limits for powers, abilities, traits, gear, or allies. Everything in City of Mist is described by free text tags, so you can create exactly the character you want.
Full-on narrative engine, with an edge. Every action you take in the game is based on the interpretation of your tags, using moves to deliver dramatic outcomes that drive the story forward.
Status spectrums, a new system of ‘narrative damage’. You can use descriptors to create any imaginable setback or advantage so that every action in the fiction, in and out of combat, can have lasting gameplay implications.
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Call of Cthulhu Starter Set
(From Chaosium)
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Horror, Mystery and Investigation In A Box!
The Call of Cthulhu Starter Set contains everything you need to play the world’s best roleplaying game of horror, mystery and investigation! Updated for the 40th Anniversary of Call of Cthulhu
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In a roleplaying game, everyone works together in a team, each playing an investigator character. One player runs the game—the Keeper of Arcane Lore—who referees the game and presents the story and adventure plots to the other players.
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Dice and the rules of the game determine the success or failure for your character’s actions—all while you are propelled into dramatic and nerve-tingling situations! The emphasis is on having fun.
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The Call of Cthulhu Starter Set contains books, dice, premade character sheets, maps, and enough content to keep a group busy for several roleplaying sessions.
This updated Starter Set also includes:
New box art by Lin Hsiang
Updated interior book cover designs
All errata and corrections
40th Anniversary Investigator Sheets
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Three softcover manuals broken into rules and scenarios to guide you in playing Call of Cthulhu. The physical boxed version also includes all the dice you need to play the game: a D4, D6, D8, D20, Percentile D10, and an extra D10 in a different color for use as a bonus/penalty die.
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Learn to play in the best way possible—by playing! The special introduction “Alone Against The Flames”, a solo Call of Cthulhu scenario, teaches you the basic rules of the game and character creation as you find yourself in the rural New England town of Emberhead—but can you escape?
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Player aids are an essential component to Call of Cthulhu gameplay. Each scenario has its own collection of maps, notes and player handouts. Each presented in full color, these play aids will enhance your gameplay, and help your players immerse themselves in each of the investigations.
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Cyberpunk Red Jumpstart Kit
(From R. Talsorian Games)
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The 4th Corporate War’s over and the big dogs have retreated to their corners to lick their wounds. That leaves everyone else to fend for themselves in a shattered world.
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And that’s just fine. ‘cause you’ve got interface plugs in your wrists, metal in your limbs, and chips in your skull. You’re wired in, loaded with chrome, and ready to take it to the Edge.
There’s a world full of opportunities out there. Maybe this time you can do more than save yourself. Maybe.
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The Cyberpunk Red Jumpstart Kit is the perfect introduction to the newest edition of the classic Cyberpunk tabletop roleplaying game and includes:
Two booklets, one containing world lore and adventures and the other the essential rules needed to play.
Six pregenerated characters.
Maps and standees to help bring the world of Cyberpunk to life!
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Whether you love cyberpunk as a genre, adored Cyberpunk 2020, or are eagerly awaiting Cyberpunk 2077, you’re going to love Cyberpunk Red. Even though the Cyberpunk Red core book is out now, the Cyberpunk Red Jumpstart Kit allows for a taste of the system, world, and flavor that have made this franchise world famous.
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This is a great starter campaign for your group, or even just something fun to read, and it offers a chance to experience the nostalgia or dive into the unknown, depending on your level of experience.
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The kit is slim in a minimalist way, but with a sleek, gorgeous layout, allowing for a basic setup for the world of Cyberpunk Red. You get two 50-page booklets (one containing world lore and adventures, the other rules needed to play), six pre-generated characters, plus maps and standees to get your game started. The rules are more or less what I remember from Cyberpunk 2020, but with a few new mechanics that will make for an unforgettable time.
—Meredith Gerber, Maven of Mythology (DriveThruRPG Publisher Service)
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Symbaroum Starter Set – Treasure Hunts in Davokar
(From Free League Publishing)
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The Ashurani dynasty was as short lived as it was cruel, known for its insights into the light – and the darkness. Key to their power was an artefact known as the Rod of Light and Darkness. Its touch could breathe life into dead things, or steal it away from that which lived. And guess what, the rod’s current whereabouts has been revealed! To students of the Eternal Night, this opportunity cannot be ignored! Its final resting place is said to be Lafarda’s Tower, situated in the area known to treasure-hunters as the Blasted Heath, where lightning rain burns flesh and shatters dreams.
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Enter the wondrous world of Symbaroum!
This starter set for the Symbaroum roleplaying game is designed to let you and your friends experience treasure hunts and expeditions in the dark and mysterious forest of Davokar, including two ready-made adventure sites for you to explore. It also contains guidelines for creating your own treasure hunt adventures. Of course, our hope is that your initial excursions into Davokar will leave you curious to know more about the game world – its forests, cultures and its long, dark history.
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FEATURED CONTENT
A 64-page rule book, introducing the game’s easy-to-learn and highly flexible ruleset along with its dark and mysterious game world.
A 64-page adventure compendium, including two original adventure locations for your players to explore and rules for designing adventures of your own.
Six character sheets, describing five readymade player characters and one mystical companion for you to play.
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Just ordered Fallout 🙂