Cryptid Creeks is a tabletop roleplaying game using the popular Powered by the Apocalypse engine and is 'Carved from Brindlewood', a term for content based on Jason Cordova’s award-winning Brindlewood Bay. In this supernatural mystery, you'll play river scouts, a crew of young adults setting out to stop a rapidly spreading curse with the help of ancient cryptids of your own invention.
Creeks has many inspirations including Gravity Falls, Hilda, The Goonies, Lumberjanes and Night in the Woods, representing a genre we feel is surprisingly lacking in RPGs. Through this game, we hope to see themes such as friendship, discovery and community explored by gaming groups and summer campers of all ages and backgrounds.
Cryptid Creeks will feature 150+ pages filled with the beautiful full-colour art you have come to expect from Hatchlings Games. Content will include robust safety tools, character creation, intuitive dice mechanics, a guide to running the game as Navigator, a collection of sample curses, and an appendix of rolling tables and handouts.
The standard edition hardcover can be carried easily and will feature smyth-sewn bindings, a matte laminated cover for durability and recycled paper throughout. The special edition will feature an alternate cover with foil-stamping to make it shimmer, a ribbon bookmark in a spooky shade and an additional chapter with designer notes and concept art.
The game begins with the town you call home becoming cursed. This malediction has occurred many times throughout history, most recently in the Autumn of 1962. The nature of the curse is completely down to you, however it always springs from an object sold by the Peddler, an enigmatic demon with hidden motivations. The curse is of particular concern to the Watcher, a benevolent cryptid who has existed in harmony with the townsfolk for centuries. Your crew of scouts must stop the curse before it overwhelms the community and spreads to the neighbouring city.
Your scouts must investigate for Clues to the accursed object while trying to prevent the darkness from spreading! These dual tasks will form the basis of your roleplaying sessions (episodes). The game is best played over several episodes (series), but we have provided rules for one-shot play (pilots).
Once the Watcher visits your clubhouse to inform you of the curse, you'll begin to discover Eeries around your hometown. These minor cryptids act as the eyes and ears of the Watcher and will observe your crew as they travel Clawfoot Creek attempting to find the object. The Eeries are a neutral - sometimes chaotic - presence in the game, but will intervene under special circumstances.
As episodes play out, the curse will spread and grow in strength, its potency measured on a Curse Clock ticking slowly through four phases towards calamity. Your actions during episodes will earn you Clues, and when you believe you've collected enough, you can attempt to destroy the cursed object forever!
Before episodes conclude, you'll be shown a list of milestones that, if met, will reward the crew with Cryptid Keys. These mythical items can be spent to upgrade your clubhouse and boat, factors essential to your progress in the game.
In Creeks, you'll create scouts using playbooks. These templates are provided to ensure character diversity and are ideal for those new to RPGs. Playbooks are named after boating roles, with Skipper, Shipwright, Lookout, Stowaway, Journaller, Negotiator, Medic and Conduit to choose from. The final game will include rules for you to create your own playbooks and select from a pool of special moves we've called Badges.
In most Powered by the Apocalypse RPGs, moves are used to determine your actions. In Creeks we have basic moves, which can be used at will, such as The Crew Move (used to clear misfortunes) and The Eerie Move (used to gain support from cryptids). Each playbook also has Badges, which can influence a wide range of mechanics.
The game uses two six-sided dice (2d6) where every roll progresses your story regardless of the outcome. Only players roll dice during sessions, so it never feels like a competition with the Navigator. Instead, they'll be your biggest fan, willing you to succeed as they represent the characters you'll meet and the challenges you'll face.
If your rolls fail (6 or below), the Navigator has an opportunity to react. They might drop misfortunes on your scouts to slow your actions, split the party so you can't rely on one another, or even progress the Curse Clock!
To stop the curse, you'll travel Clawfoot Creek visiting landmarks and inspiring locals to fight alongside you. To achieve this, you'll need a boat. Name your trusty vessel, then upgrade it to reach new locations on the map or welcome Eeries aboard, like the treasure-hunting Goldtooth. We're encouraging Navigators to incorporate creeks, coves and beaches into their adventures to ensure players use their boat often.
Having worked for a Deaf charity for twelve years and raising a disabled child, making Cryptid Creeks accessible to everyone is really important to us. To honour this commitment, we have hired Chris Hopper, one of the most experienced consultants in the industry with credits including Tal'Dorei Reborn from Critical Role and most recently Tales of the Valiant from Kobold Press.
The digital PDFs will accommodate screen-readers and feature alt text and chapter hyperlinks as well as plain text versions. Both hardcovers will have colour-coded page edges for intuitive navigation. Our website will also host form-fillable handouts for both players and Navigators.
Kickstarter campaign ends: Thu, October 5 2023 2:59 PM BST
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