Onyx Path just lately launched the ashcan version of the brand new city fantasy TTRPG Curseborne to coincide with their digital gaming conference, and the comparisons to their just lately mothballed Chronicles of Darkness sport are inevitable.

Onyx Path supported Chronicles of Darkness, or CofD for brief, for 20 years by means of 11 completely different sport traces. Every line had its personal distinct id and a deep setting crammed with drama, such because the Gothic Vampire: The Requiem and the mind-bending Mage: The Awakening, however in current months it has turn into clear that diehard followers might want to look some place else for brand spanking new city fantasy experiences.

Enter Curseborne, which can want to be thought-about by itself phrases, however has a tricky act to comply with. General, I really feel Curseborne has stable mechanics and plenty of potential, however it lacks the wealthy setting and nuanced character choices I wish to see in an city fantasy sport. I hope that when this hits crowdfunding websites in October later this 12 months, we see better selection inside every supernatural lineage and a extra evocative setting.

The monster inside

Aesthetically, Curseborne attracts closely on decaying city environments, uncanny monsters, and trendy gothic tropes. The characters are all Accursed: supernatural beings who all combat their very own darkest natures and juggle the practicalities of survival with the necessity to camouflage themselves amongst the simply frightened herd of humanity. Curseborne sees supernaturals as a part of an interlinked society, however up to now the aschan offers us little indication of how they plan to mine such a wealthy vein of drama.

The ‘lineages’ of Curseborne characters are themed broadly: the Lifeless, the Hungry, the Outcasts, the Primal, and the Sorcerers. Sadly, the Lineages really feel one-dimensional, emphasised by mechanics that appear to pigeonhole them additional. The official web site for Curseborne advertises that the sport can have “Thirty-plus completely different playable character choices” however from the ashcan, I don’t get any sense of that type of selection. With the opportunity of single-lineage teams talked about on the location, I’m left to surprise what a bunch of Hungry or Lifeless characters must distinguish themselves from each other.

The ashcan mentions that extra choices for the darker facet of the Lineages (referred to as Torments) will probably be obtainable within the full launch, and Sorcerers are solely teased right here, however whether or not there’s even scope inside the Lineages for extra intriguing character selection stays to be seen. Gamers eager to recapture the depth of Chronicles of Darkness‘s strategy to supernaturals will undoubtedly find yourself pissed off by the considerably lackluster choices revealed right here. Equally, the wealthy supernatural societies and mythology of Chronicles of Darkness are nowhere to be seen. Below-explained parts just like the households (sub-types of supernaturals) that each one characters belong to may have carried out plenty of work in evoking the types of conflicts a personality would possibly run into.

Storypath Extremely

The system is an adaptation of the Storypath system utilized by Trinity Continuum, They Got here From and Scion, and lots of the parts will probably be acquainted to Onyx Path followers: it makes use of a pool of d10s made up of a talent score and an attribute score, with cube that come up 8, 9 or 10 counting as a hit and 10’s as two successes. Extra successes may be spent to purchase off issues or add further advantages to a roll, giving rolls narrative depth. Standing results and issues give flexibility to Storyguides in learn how to give rolls mechanical penalties whereas nonetheless retaining issues transferring and act as an evolution of the situations and tilts system from Chronicles of Darkness, which was one in every of its most sturdy improvements.

Curseborne clearly flags that its designers worth investigation and social drama as a lot as fight, which is a excessive precedence for city fantasy video games that thrive on thriller and angst, with devoted sections on learn how to run every sort of sport scene. In the meantime, curse cube, which add to a personality’s pool as they turn into extra linked with their Accursed nature, are an intriguing illustration of the dance between humanity and monstrousness that the second editions of the Chronicles of Darkness traces did so effectively.

Untapped potential

As a teaser, the ashcan of Curseborne does so much, and but I nonetheless really feel that I don’t perceive what makes the setting and characters tick. In a pastime with competing techniques that already current nuanced supernatural characters and societies, Curseborne would possibly have to step it as much as seize the favored creativeness. I’ll definitely be following Curseborne‘s growth with curiosity, however I received’t be retiring my Chronicles of Darkness assortment simply but.