Now, the last two days posts may have left you thinking “Well, this is all fine and good, Stu, but what’s this cult fantasy movie have to do with RPGs?”
Behold: Outworlder (2018), an indie RPG based on Krull by @Richardson.Games (AKA @Suitorsclub, who also brought us the dystopian gangwar RPG Deathblow). This is the good stuff, folks.
As with all things Krull, I love that this exists. It is just such a specific thing for specific people (like me, I guess) and it does what it does extremely well. Namely, channel the core awesomeness of the movie into a pretty light RPG that builds on and expands the core premise. Which is impressive, considering it is 24 pages.
Key mechanical thing of interest is the GM, called the Seer. In the movie, several attempts are made by seers to detect the machination of the titular outworlder, the world-devouring Beast, and the results direct the action of the heroes, so it makes sense to cast them as the GM. But unlike most games, the Seer acts both as a traditional GM and as a character in the story, using their powers to help direct the players. Their attempts to discern puts them in conflict with the Beast, a villain that they, as GM, do not have complete control over (!). Depending on the power of the Seer, which changes due to in-game events, and the overall attention the players have attracted from the Beast, the Beast can attempt to blind the seer or actively harm (or, perversely, bestow gifts to) the players. It is an extremely exciting mechanic.
I don’t know what the odds are that I am going to ever find enough Krull enthusiasts to run this for, but the other great thing about this book is the art, which is all by Earl Geier and is 100% awesome and justified my ownership even if I never get to play it. Henry just reprinted this, so if you dig Krull, go snatch it up!
