{ "version": "https://jsonfeed.org/version/1.1", "title": "Latest Tabletop Gaming News", "home_page_url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy", "feed_url": "https://feeds.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy.json", "description": "Stay updated with the latest news in tabletop gaming", "language": "en-GB", "icon": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/logo.png", "favicon": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/favicon.ico", "items": [ { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/death-on-the-styx", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/death-on-the-styx", "title": "Death on the Styx", "summary": "Let the Styx take you along an epic river cruise through the worlds of the Labyrinth.", "content_html": "

Let the Styx take you along an epic river cruise through the worlds of the Labyrinth. 

", "date_published": "2026-09-04T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-29T13:48:17.990Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs", "Dungeons & Dragons", "Tales of the Valiant", "Kobold Press" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/2f4308a0-726d-430a-b620-012c703344fb/images/death-on-the-styx.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/stradhs-is-coming-to-netflix-in-new-ravenloft-tv-series", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/stradhs-is-coming-to-netflix-in-new-ravenloft-tv-series", "title": "Strahd Could Be Coming to Netflix in New Ravenloft TV Series", "summary": "HBO's Baldurs Gate TV drama in the works, but Netflix Forgotten Realms series cancelled.", "content_html": "

One of Dungeons & Dragons most famous villains could finally be heading to television, with Netflix developing a live-action Ravenloft series centred on vampire Darklord Strahd von Zarovich.

The project is being written and executive produced bu John August, whose credits include Big Fish, Corpse Bride, Frankenweenie and Dark Shadows. Also attached to the project, as executive producer alongside Hasbro Entertainment, is Oscar winning filmmaker Alfonso Cuaron (Children of Men, Gravity, Roma).

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Rather than simply adapting a group of adventurers exploring Castle Ravenloft, the proposed series appears to be taking an origin story approach. It has been described as a prestige fantasy drama combining adventure, gothic horror and tragic romance, following Strahd’s descent from tragic antihero through obsession, and ultimately into the undead Darklord who rules Barovia.

Ravenloft Origins

Ravenloft began life back in 1983 with Tracy and Laura Hickman’s classic adventure I6: Ravenloft, for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. It was so well received that I10: Ravenloft II: The House on Gryphon Hill followed in 1986, and then with Ravenloft being expanded further into an entire gothic-horror campaign setting encompassing numerous Domains of Dread and their respective Darklords. Every edition of Dungeons & Dragons has seen Ravenloft products published.

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A Lot Happening In Barovia

The announcement comes at a busy time for Ravenloft. with Wizards of the Coast releasing the Ravenloft: The Horrors Within earlier this summer, Renegade Game Studios and Ravensburger both announcing new Ravenloft boardgames, next years Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons computer game being set in Ravenloft, as well as a range of other developments and products announced.

Forgotten Realms TV Series No Longer In Development

There is, however, an important note of caution before we all get too excited. Netflix’s Ravenloft is currently only in development and has not yet been ordered to series, with no casting, product date or release window. Given that Deadline also revealed that the previously announced NetflixForgotten Realms TV series is now reported to be no longer in development.

Baldur’s Gate TV Drama With HBO

Of course this isn’t the only Dungeons & Dragons TV series currently in the works, as HBO are currently working on a Baldur’s Gate series from The Last of Us co-creator Craig Mazin.

Given the number of proposed D&D television adaptations that have failed to escape ‘development hell’ over the last few years, Strahd hasn’t quite escaped the Mists yet.

", "date_published": "2026-09-04T12:33:19.998Z", "date_modified": "2026-09-04T14:34:31.323Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Fantasy", "RPGs", "Dungeons & Dragons", "Netflix", "Ravenloft", "HBO", "Wizards of the Coast", "Hasbro" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/socialpost/4547e767-2c82-4789-a813-963465fa4d23/images/raven3.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/tabletop-inspiration-celluloid-memories/the-gaming-voyages-sinbad-and-the-eye-of-the-tiger-1977-02092026", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/tabletop-inspiration-celluloid-memories/the-gaming-voyages-sinbad-and-the-eye-of-the-tiger-1977-02092026", "title": "The Gaming Voyages: Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977)", "summary": "Forget standard knights and princesses; my first lesson in epic tabletop quests came from Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger. It remains a great, non-Eurocentric template for high adventure.", "content_html": "

If you’ve been reading the column, you might have noticed I haven't written about the massive blockbusters many identify as hugely influential, such as Star Wars, Conan, or The Lord of the Rings. I’ll get to those eventually, knowing many of us count them as defining inspirations. However, I want to start with the more personal movies I share with some of you, even if they aren't quite as universally known.

Case in point: today’s movie. If memory serves, I watched this film before Star Wars, and it remains a fantastic example of a quest. It serves as a perfect template for GMs wanting to create epic adventures: Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger.

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This movie has it all: giant animals, the undead, monsters, curses, witches, swordfights, and a golden minotaur automaton. I saw so many concepts I would later read about in the pages of D&D, for the very first time here.

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Here’s a quick summary (with mild spoilers): Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977) is a classic fantasy adventure following the legendary sailor Sinbad as he travels to the city of Charnak to seek Princess Farah's hand in marriage. Upon arrival, he discovers that Farah’s brother, Prince Kassim, has been cursed by their wicked stepmother, Zenobia, who wants her own son to take the throne. To break the curse, Sinbad, Farah, and the cursed prince embark on a perilous voyage to the ancient, frozen land of Hyperborea. Along the way, they befriend a massive troglodyte (not the D&D kind!) and battle a series of amazing stop-motion monsters, including a giant bronze minotaur and a sabretooth tiger, ultimately defeating the sorceress just in time for Kassim's coronation.

Here’s the trailer for the movie:

I started playing in 1986, but I didn't learn the game through dungeon crawls. I discovered Dragonlance soon after picking up D&D. As a fan of Tolkien and Elfquest, the idea that these games were tools to tell an epic story seemed natural. I easily fell back on the fantasy movies I watched as a kid.

Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger was the first Sinbad movie I saw, but not the last. I caught two others on VHS, and they heavily influenced my games, too. The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1956) is another quest -type adventure, featuring shape-changing magic, a genie in a lamp, a dragon, a cyclops, and a roc (just not the D&D one!).

This is the trailer for it:

While I like The 7th Voyage, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973) is just as strong as Eye of the Tiger. This is the trailer:

It has wizards, oracles, griffins, centaurs, a homunculus (the first time I ever encountered the concept), a dancing sword, and my favorite scene: an animated statue. Ray Harryhausen's brilliant work amazed me as a teen when the six-armed idol of Kali animates and fights Sinbad and his crew.

The special effects are dated and might seem ancient compared to modern CGI, but I adore their charm. They felt like magic to me. This was exactly how I envisioned fights in D&D.

All these adventures take place in a non-Eurocentric setting. It was Al-Qadim before the campaign setting ever existed, featuring tales of high adventure with a Muslim sailor. That is the strength of a tale like this: it showed me that fantasy was much broader than kings, knights, dragons, and fairies. It serves as a template for fantasy adventure independent of the game creators' cultural roots, which is why TTRPGs are such a powerful cross-cultural medium.

TSR eventually released an Arabian adventure-inspired Al-Qadim supplement, Golden Voyages, directly tied to the Sinbad stories. It is a sandbox adventure that allows you to explore this classic setting. Granted, the setting and the supplements are products of their age. Like the movies I mentioned, there are certainly elements of orientalism and stereotypical portrayals of the cultures they reference. But if you are aware of the problems and know how to avoid reinforcing those ideas at the table, the movies and the game supplements still provide great material.

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When my group was about to start a pirate-themed fantasy campaign a few years ago, I invited everyone over for a session zero and to align our expectations on tone. We had dinner and watched the Sinbad films. Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger and its predecessors continue to inspire me, offering new ideas to bring to the table every time I watch them. If you haven’t seen them, check them out.

", "date_published": "2026-09-04T06:00:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-09-04T13:16:38.494Z", "authors": [ { "name": "Sunglar", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/sunglar", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/3751687c-4fb4-427b-bbc6-df004a435fb5/images/20260627_100848-1.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Tabletop Inspiration", "Celluloid Memories", "Roberto Micheri", "RPG", "Dungeons & Dragons", "Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger " ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/e5f7d3b3-8e99-4d61-bad8-ea8d71ae0373/images/celluloid-memories-column.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/castle-ravenloft-returns-as-renegade-revives-classic-dd-board-game", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/castle-ravenloft-returns-as-renegade-revives-classic-dd-board-game", "title": "Castle Ravenloft Returns as Renegade Revives Classic D&D Board Game", "summary": "One of the games that help popularise Dungeons & Dragons as a cooperative dungeon-crawling board game is returning to tabletops.", "content_html": "

Renegade Game Studios have announced a new edition of Dungeons & Dragons: Castle Ravenloft Board Game, bringing the increasingly difficult to find 2010 game back into print in February 2027. The new release is being produced in partnership with Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro.

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Refreshed Look… Same Gameplay

Despite being described as a new edition, Renegade isn’t substantially redesigning the game from Wizards of the Coast’s original version. Instead, Renegade are retaining the original D&D Adventure System gameplay, while updating the illustrations, logos, and graphic design to bring the game cisually into line with the current incarnation of Dungeons & Dragons.

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This means that Castle Ravenloft will remain the relatively quick and accessible cooperative dungeron crawler it was when it was originally released. Between one and five players take control of adventurers exploring beneath Castle Ravenloft, revealing dungeon tiles as they go while fighting monsters, encountering traps, collecting treasure, and eventually confronting Count SDtrahd von Zarovich.

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Individual adventures take around an hour, with 13 different scenarios included. The box contains 41 Dungeon Tiles, 42 miniatures (5 Heroes, 30 Monsters, and 7 Villains), 209 Cards, 192 Tokens, a Rulebook, Adventure Book, and the all important d20 dice.

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Standard & Premium Editions

Renegade will be producing two versions of the game. A Standard Edition which includes the complete game with unpainted miniatures, and a Premium Edition which is exactly the same apart from having the 42 miniatures pre-painted. The Standard Edition will retail for £90 ($100), whereas the Premium Edition will retail for £180 ($200).

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The D&D Adventure System Series

Castle Ravenloft was the first in a range of cooperative D&D boardgames that Wizards of the Coast released using the D&D Adventure System, with WizKids taking over for new titles in 2015. Along with Castle Ravenloft (2010), the range consisted of Wrath of Ashardalon (2011), The Legend of Drizzt (2011), Temple of Elemental Evil (2015), Tomb of Annihilation (2017), Waterdeep - Dungeon of the Mad Mage (2019), and Ghosts of Saltmarsh (2021).

Castle Ravenloft helped define cooperative fantasy board gaming for an entire generation of players” said Scott Gaeta, President of Renegade Game Studios. “We’re excited to bring this classic back to tables everywhere, while introducing a beautiful Premimum Edition with pre-painted miniatures that makes the experience even more immersive right out of the box.\"

It’ll certainly be interesting to see if other refreshed editions in the D&D Adventure System range of titles follow Castle Rravenloft’s lead.

", "date_published": "2026-09-03T15:49:11.434Z", "date_modified": "2026-09-03T16:52:20.765Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Fantasy", "Board Games", "Ravenloft", "Castle Ravenloft", "Dungeons & Dragons", "D&D Adventure System", "Renegade Game Studios", "Wizards of the Coast", "Hasbro", "Wizkids", "Cooperative Game" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/socialpost/332edf44-68d5-4058-8235-17b0791317c3/images/ravenloft-bg.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/chaosiums-time-without-tide-smashes-backerkit-goal-as-new-rpg-sets-sail", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/chaosiums-time-without-tide-smashes-backerkit-goal-as-new-rpg-sets-sail", "title": "Chaosium's Time Without Tide Smashes Backerkit Goal as New RPG Sets Sail", "summary": "Fight horrors, discover marvels, and protect the odd survivors of the fallen moon.", "content_html": "

Chaosium’s new faux-Victorian post-apocalyptic RPG Time Without Tide: Mirth & Misery in a World of Fog has launched on Backerkit, and has made a considerably larger splash than it’s modest funding target might have suggested.

The campaign funded in just 13 minutes and has subsequently sailed well beyond its initial $10,000 goal. At the time of writing it has raised more than $140,000 from over 1,000 backerrs, and the campaign still has a lot of open sea remaining, not closing until 24th September 2026.

As we previously reported, Time Without Tide takes place in a strange World of Fog following the fall of the moon and the end of an era known as the Age of Decadence. Players become Delvers, mercenary adventurers who venture into the fog to monsters, recover treasures, explore the remains of the old world, and rescue its frequently peculiar survivors.

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Characters have three Traits - Body, Mind and Will - alongside six Skills: Culture, Industry, Navigation, Skulduggery, Survival and Violence. Tests combine an appropriate Trait and Skill to create a dice pool, with rolls of five or six counting as successes, or “marks”.

Delvers accumulate equipment and learn Features which modidy the rules in their favour, while more exotic Adaptations grant otehrworldly abilities at the cost of the character’s humanity.

Despite the fallen moon, creeping fog, and assorted horrors, Time Without Tide is not a straightforward grimdark horror. The campaign promises adventures involving everything from corpse-devouring flower monsters to defending a “Hotel for Boats of all Ages” against an army of angry crabs and attempting to save the “saddest clown in the world”.

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The central release is a 250+ page core rulebook, containing the complete rules, setting material, monsters, and advice for running the game. A second 100+ page hardcover, Into the Fog, provides introductory adventures for new Delvers.

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Backers can also pick up a Keeper screen and battle-map pack, more than 400 reference cards, custom dice, physical or STL miniatures produced with Titan Forge, and Roll20 versions of both books. Collector’s editions feature textured covers and glow-in-the-dark symbols, which is an unusally appropriate gimmick for a game about carrying lanterns into supernatural fog.

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The campaign starts at $20 for the Core Rulebook PDF, with the standard hardcover and PDF available for $50. Larger pledge levels bundle the adventures and accessories, topping out at the $355 Fancy Guildmaster pledge.

Time Without Tide is created and developed by David Naylor and James Coquillat, with Ty Carey serving as Art Director. Chaosium expect physical rewards to be completely fulfilled by the end of September 2027.

For a game whose heroes make their living disappearing into an impenetrable supernatural fog, Time Without Tide appears to have had remarkably little difficulty being noticed.

", "date_published": "2026-09-03T15:26:24.754Z", "date_modified": "2026-09-03T15:27:05.970Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Fantasy", "RPGs", "Time Without Tide", "Chaosium", "Backerkit" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/socialpost/c90d9960-bd29-459c-a369-21bd70fd3b7a/images/time-without-tide.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/dragonbane-arkand-city-of-waves-and-flames", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/dragonbane-arkand-city-of-waves-and-flames", "title": "Dragonbane Arkand – City of Waves and Flames", "summary": "The city of Arkand pulses with excitement, conflict, rumors, and the promise of adventure, wealth, power, and glory!", "content_html": "

RPG PDF Spotlights is our daily look at a recent release for a new tabletop roleplaying game, supplement or scenario, or solo journaling game, that has caught my eye.

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Arkand – City of Waves and Flames

Dragonbane Supplement by Free League Publishing

”Newcomers? Welcome to Arkand – City of Waves and Flames! We’ve got everything you could possibly want.

Bloody gladiator games with monstrous beasts and late nights of enchanting song? Check. Shady taverns, dark gambling dens, and even darker dungeons? You bet. The world’s finest tailors, greatest blacksmiths, and most talented sorcerers? Absolutely. Buried artifacts from the draconic empire, lost pirate treasures, and newly made fortunes ripe for the taking? Guaranteed!

But tread carefully…  Arkand has sharp teeth – and you won’t be alone in your quest!”

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From the Citadel of Broken Wings and the Temple of True Fire high atop Dragonrock, to the Witless Unicorn tavern and the Cracked Pearl gambling den deep in the slums of the Dung, the city of Arkand pulses with excitement, conflict, rumors, and the promise of adventure, wealth, power, and glory!

This book features over a dozen adventure sites spread across five districts, along with a number of campaign seeds, and even more adventure sites available to be unlocked as stretch goals in this Kickstarter.

The player characters will experience a fierce power struggle in the city’s underworld, take on the role of demon hunters, and uncover secrets about Arkand’s storied past that could change the city forever.

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Arkand – City of Waves and Flames is written by Johan Sjöberg, illustrated by Johan Egerkrans and David Brasgalla, and includes a large 432 x 558mm full-color map

Arkand – City of Waves and Flamesis available through DriveThruRPG in PDF.

", "date_published": "2026-09-03T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-09-03T17:58:41.786Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs", "Free League Publishing", "Dragonbane" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/ff2b195c-d1a4-4fc7-902c-6ee63687892d/images/dragonbane-arkand.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/a-faeseekers-guide-to-avallen", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/a-faeseekers-guide-to-avallen", "title": "A Faeseeker's Guide to Avallen", "summary": "Celtic history and myth collide in this world guide from the ENNIE-award nominated Avallen series.", "content_html": "

Celtic history and myth collide in this world guide from the ENNIE-award nominated Avallen series.

", "date_published": "2026-09-02T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-29T13:40:54.665Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs", "Dungeons & Dragons", "Modiphius", "Adder Stone Games", "Legends of Avallen", "Celtic" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/a7712b4d-6458-44f5-b46f-310291c80f56/images/faeseeker-avallen.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/swords-against-the-shadows", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/swords-against-the-shadows", "title": "Swords Against the Shadows", "summary": "Swords Against the Shadows is a Swords and Sorcery Role-Playing Game.", "content_html": "

Swords Against the Shadows is a Swords and Sorcery Role-Playing Game.

", "date_published": "2026-09-01T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-29T13:35:57.366Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs", "D101 Games" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/053a42f6-8d94-4239-9224-e75ed4b4f3cb/images/swords-against-shadow.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/castle-ravenloft-becomes-a-450-dungeons-dragons-dm-screen", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/castle-ravenloft-becomes-a-450-dungeons-dragons-dm-screen", "title": "Castle Ravenloft Becomes a $450 Dungeons & Dragons DM Screen", "summary": "There are Dungeon Master Screens, and then there is the Dungeons & Dragons Replicas of the Realms: Castle Ravenloft DM Screen...", "content_html": "

There are Dungeon Master Screens, and then there is the Dungeons & Dragons Replicas of the Realms: Castle Ravenloft DM Screen, an extraordinary elaborate three-dimensional screen based upon Count Strahd von Zarovich’s infamous home in Barovia. A prototype of this prestige screen from WizKids was unveiled at the Universal Distribution Summit that took place between the 27th-29th August in the States.

Rather than simply decorating a conventional folding screen with Ravenloft artwork, WizKids have effectively turned the castle itself into the screen. The fully painted model is made from resin and other premium materials, with a hinged three-panel design resembling the walls and towers of Castle Ravenloft.

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Not content on just looking impressive, the castle incorporates two functional dice towers - one facing the players and the other facing the DM - along with six initiative-order flags. Behind the walls are storage drawers for dice and miniatures, and additional compartments inside the castle towers and shelves where the DM can stage miniatures or keep other gaming paraphernalia (or snacks).

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There are also clips for attaching scripts, notes, character sheets or monster stats, making the whole thing considerably more practical than its rather extravagant appearance may initially suggest.

The look and style of the screen is not the only extravagant and imposing thing about it. All this Gothic architecture comes at a cost. The Castle Ravenloft DM Screen clocks in at $449.99, putting it firmly into luxury gaming accessory territory. With an estimated Q3 2027 release it’s currently available to pre-order on the WizKids website.

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Images courtesy of WizKids, photos courtesy of Michael E Webb.

", "date_published": "2026-09-01T10:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-09-01T14:55:06.652Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Fantasy", "RPGs", "Ravenloft", "Dungeons & Dragons", "Wizkids", "DM Screen" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/socialpost/975a93cf-85d8-4da9-ab65-649cafde2ba6/images/wizkids-castle-screen1.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/when-dice-were-made-of-flint/when-dice-were-made-of-flint-9", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/when-dice-were-made-of-flint/when-dice-were-made-of-flint-9", "title": "When Dice Were Made of Flint #9", "summary": "Turn to paragraph 400.", "content_html": "

Fighting Fantasy wasn’t the first gamebook series. By the time The Warlock of Firetop Mountain was published in August of 1982, games like Tunnels & Trolls and the Fantasy Trip had been using a very similar format for solo adventures for more than five years. The reason that Fighting Fantasy started a worldwide craze that threatened to swallow the 80s wasn’t the format: it was market penetration.

The earlier titles had been published by games publishers and distributed through hobby game shops, which were few and far between at that time. Fighting Fantasy was published by children’s book giant Puffin Books (a division of Penguin) and reached into bookshops and newsagents the length and breadth of the land. If a shop sold books at all, it was a good bet that at least a few Fighting Fantasy titles would be on their shelves.

By early 1985, a new Fighting Fantasy book was appearing every couple of months, and every other children’s publisher was jumping on the bandwagon. Titles included Lone Wolf, GrailQuest, Demonspawn, Way of the Tiger, and Choose Your Own Adventure. The last was a systemless series that took pride in the number of available outcomes in each title. There were several other series, including one featuring Enid Blyton’s plucky kid detectives, The Famous Five.

As I mentioned in an earlier column, the magazine trade was booming. Puffin took advantage of that fact, publishing the first five issues of Warlock through Penguin Magazines before handing the title off to Games Workshop, with Fighting Fantasy creators (and Games Workshop co-founders) Ian Livingstone and Steve Jackson remaining as editors-in-chief. They were household names by this time. Each issue contained an adventure – half the size of a Fighting Fantasy book at 200 paragraphs – and a variety of articles, including many for Fighting Fantasy: The Introductory Roleplaying Game, which was clearly an on-ramp to funnel gamebook readers toward full tabletop roleplaying games.

Puffin also published two large-format books supporting the series. Out of the Pit took its title from the magazine’s new-monsters section, while Titan: The Fighting Fantasy World was a setting sourcebook whose depth rivaled anything then published for Dungeons & Dragons or other “full” roleplaying games. Both were edited by Marc Gascoigne, who also edited Warlock magazine for Games Workshop.

Warlock was not the only gamebook-themed magazine. Proteus had lower production values but published 20 issues to Warlock’s 13. Dice Man, from the publishers of the popular and influential comic 2000AD, featured gamebook-style adventures in comic-book format, starring Judge Dredd, Sláine, Rogue Trooper, and others alongside a memorable political satire where the player was U.S. President Ronald Reagan.

Fighting Fantasy and Lone Wolf are still going in various formats under various publishers, but the gamebook hobby today is far smaller than it was in its 1980s heyday. Still, gamebooks were an important bridge between the free-form roleplaying hobby of the early days and the branching-narrative computer games that were also in their infancy back then.

", "date_published": "2026-09-01T09:00:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-09-03T16:08:04.479Z", "authors": [ { "name": "Graeme Davis", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/graeme-davis" } ], "tags": [ "Gaming History", "Graeme Davis", "When Dice Were Made of Flint", "Games Workshop", "gamebooks", "Fighting Fantasy", "Advanced Fighting Fantasy", "Lone Wolf", "Sir Ian Livingstone", "Steve Jackson" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/a141ed8f-1b77-406b-8279-4334ae560e35/images/graeme-davis-when-dice-column-image.webp" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/warhammer-fantasy-roleplay-fifth-edition-pre-orders-go-live", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/warhammer-fantasy-roleplay-fifth-edition-pre-orders-go-live", "title": "Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay Fifth Edition Pre-Orders Go Live", "summary": "Cubicle 7 Entertainment have opened up pre-orders for the new Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay Fifth Edition with immediate fulfilment of digital copies with every physical pre-order.", "content_html": "

Cubicle 7 Entertainment opened the pre-orders for Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay Fifth Edition today, Tuesday 1st September 2026, with digital copies of the books being available immediately with every physical pre-order so you can start exploring the new edition straight away.

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay Fifth Edition

The fifth edition arrives as Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay celebrates its 40th anniversary. The new edition is being touted as an evolution of its successful fourth edition rather than a wholesale replacement, with the familiar percentile (d100) system remaining at the heart of the game.

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Work has gone into streamlining areas of the rules that could have previously slowed down gameplay. Combat has been reworked to make it quicker and easier to track, while some of the games more fiddly ‘special-case’ rules have been either removed entirely or revised. Talents have also been simplified, and the separate Resilience and Resolve resources have been folded into Fate and Fortune. The core rulebook has also been reorganised to make rules easier to find during play.

As the fifth edition is an ‘evolution’, as opposed to a whole new game, it has been designed with backwards compatibility in mind, with Cubicle 7 saying that existing fourth edition books will remain useful, allowing groups to continue using the substantial library of adventures, campaigns, and sourcebooks already published rather than having to start their collections from scratch. Future supplements are also intended to be usable for those groups who decide not to change from fourth to fifth edition.

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The new edition will be available in Standard and Collector’s edition, both containing the same core game and content. The Collector’s Edition offers a premium presentation of the book, with an enhanced finish and details that make it a fitting addition to any fan.

And if you want to go beyond the core game, the Free Company Bundle brings together the Standard Edition Core Rulebook with the full range of Fifth Edition accessories, including the Character Sheet Pad, Wounds & Conditions Cards, Monsters & Adversaries Deck, Dice and Maps. There’s also The Reikland Bundle for those who want the premium version of the Core Rulebook alongside the complete accessory collection, and The Karl Franz Bundle, which includes both versions of the book for completionists and a special discount on the upcoming Foundry VTT version of the book.

You can find out more about the new edition, as well as place your pre-order, on the Cubicle 7 website.

Images courtesy of Cubicle 7 Entertainment.

", "date_published": "2026-09-01T08:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-31T20:59:54.001Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Fantasy", "RPGs", "Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay", "Cubicle 7" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/socialpost/4215063c-ea57-42b5-8382-baefeaa40582/images/warhammer-rpg-5.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/stitchery-faire", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/stitchery-faire", "title": "Stitchery Faire", "summary": "A cozy solo journalling and sketching game.", "content_html": "

A cozy solo journalling and sketching game.

", "date_published": "2026-08-31T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-29T13:32:37.296Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs", "Solo RPG", "Cozy RPGs", "StorySeamstress" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/5bf25929-e14f-4071-a1d6-6e598a1ba47a/images/stitchery-faire.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-bleeding-heroes-rpg", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-bleeding-heroes-rpg", "title": "(RPG PDF Spotlight) Bleeding Heroes RPG", "summary": "The Bleeding Heroes RPG is about heroes who have suffered a tragic past that haunts their present. They have chosen to fight against evil in the Shroudmarch and overcome the darkness that lingers within them.", "content_html": "

The Bleeding Heroes RPG is about heroes who have suffered a tragic past that haunts their present. They have chosen to fight against evil in the Shroudmarch and overcome the darkness that lingers within them.

", "date_published": "2026-08-31T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-23T13:27:10.875Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/6792e0f9-fa2b-4012-b20d-fb967d1436d6/images/bleeding-heroes.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-cypher-character-rulebook", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-cypher-character-rulebook", "title": "(RPG PDF Spotlight) Cypher Character Rulebook", "summary": "Everything you need to play Cypher—whether you’re delving into a dungeon, exploring the dark corridors of a derelict spaceship, facing a supervillain-spawned apocalypse, or chasing a cozy mystery in a modern-day small town!", "content_html": "

Everything you need to play Cypher—whether you’re delving into a dungeon, exploring the dark corridors of a derelict spaceship, facing a supervillain-spawned apocalypse, or chasing a cozy mystery in a modern-day small town!

", "date_published": "2026-08-30T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-23T13:23:20.409Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs", "Monte Cook Games", "Cypher System" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/27973884-b4d9-418a-9c06-eae19c4b3b06/images/cypher-character-rulebook.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/crowdfund-quest/crowdfund-quest-weekly-29-08-26", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/crowdfund-quest/crowdfund-quest-weekly-29-08-26", "title": "Crowdfund Quest Weekly 29/08/26", "summary": "Welcome to our latest Crowdfund Quest Weekly round-up for the tabletop campaigns launched in the last seven days!", "content_html": "

Welcome to our latest Crowdfund Quest Weekly round-up for the tabletop campaigns launched in the last seven days!

", "date_published": "2026-08-29T09:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-28T16:48:17.925Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Crowdfund Quest", "Crowdfunding", "Backerkit", "kickstarter", "Gamefound", "1" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/48f34ac8-5c59-4ab3-a623-e96e35644fc5/images/cfq280826banner.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-of-folk-and-fey", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-of-folk-and-fey", "title": "(RPG PDF Spotlight) Of Folk and Fey", "summary": "Of Folk and Fey is built on the common themes and archetypes of folklore, for a game with a true folklore feel - it's your own fairytale, but not like the Disney-fied versions.", "content_html": "

Of Folk and Fey is built on the common themes and archetypes of folklore, for a game with a true folklore feel - it's your own fairytale, but not like the Disney-fied versions.

", "date_published": "2026-08-28T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-23T13:14:08.980Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs", "Folklore", "Fairy Tale", "Dice Goblin Press" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/323ba714-173d-4570-9c2b-65efbafc6a4e/images/of-folk-and-fey.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/critical-hits-a-designer-s-perspective/retrowave-the-alternate-history-we-forgot", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/critical-hits-a-designer-s-perspective/retrowave-the-alternate-history-we-forgot", "title": "The ’80s Were an Alternate History", "summary": "Why Retrowave Might Be the Next Great Genre for Tabletop RPGs", "content_html": "

Two weeks from now, I’ll be in Atlanta as a guest at DragonCon where they’ve assigned me several panels to appear on, the first of which is Alternative Histories and Speculative fiction in Tabletop Roleplaying Games. I didn’t pick the panel, but this is fortuitous because this is something I’ve been having some thoughts on recently. Alternative history TTRPGs typically consist of a historical element we’re familiar with combined with an element that didn’t naturally belong there. For example, the wild west with either zombies of aliens (the Weird West), or World War II era technology plus art-deco style plus giant robots (Dieselpunk). But there’s one genre that I think gets overlooked, even though it should be fairly obvious, and would be quite a bit of fun, both to design and play in.

I started my roleplaying journey in 1984, which happened to be close to forty years after the end of World War II. At the time, many vets from the war were still alive and for many of us were our grandfathers. And if you lived in that time and your family was anything like mine, you would hear the stories. Stories like the time my grandfather, who was in the Military Police, was assigned to a train that took off on him and he spent three days in the European countryside trying to catch up to it (now that I think about it, that story might have been slightly exaggerated). Not too surprisingly, when I started playing TTRPGs, forty years after the fact, RPGs dealing with World War II were popular, such as FASA’s Behind Enemy Lines, GURPS WWII, and Godlike (which was essentially superheroes in World War II).

Believe it or not, I didn’t come here to advocate for a return to World War II/Noir in roleplaying games though that is always a compelling genre to explore. Rather, I’m more interested in noting that a forty-year difference is enough time for most people to start romanticizing an era and wanting to explore that as a fictional setting. And what was 40 years ago from now? The 1980s.

We can already see the nostalgia engine firing up with TV shows like Stranger Things. It seems to have taken a little longer than usual, because by the 1980s there was definitely nostalgia for the 1960s, but many things ‘80s are starting to come back (for example, my brand new Commodore 64 Ultimate sitting on my desk), not the least of which is the music. And why not, since you can’t find any new rock groups on the radio anymore—at least not here in the United States? And there’s already an established alternate history version of the 1980s that has existed since… well, the 1980s.

Imagine the time (at least in the United States). It’s been about ten years since the end of the Vietnam War and many of the veterans returned to the United States changed by war. Having difficulty fitting back into regular society, many of them take up the most logical profession imaginable: investigating crime. And there’s this vast landscape of interconnected hot spots: In Hawaii, a guy with a prominent mustache runs a PI outfit, drives a hot red Ferrari, and has taken up permanent residence in the guest house of a famous author. Together with two wartime buddies, one with links to the criminal underworld, and the other who flies a rent-a-chopper, they investigate murderers, drug lords, corrupt businesspeople, and more. Meanwhile in the Califronia Marina Town of King Harbor, two Vietnam War vets, a technology geek and his robot, and an ugly helicopter team up for private investigation to bring in the bad guys. In Boston, a former police officer in a vintage 1966 Mustang Fastback who is well read, highly moral, and sharp witted taps a network of key contacts to solve crimes and brings villains to justice. In Miami, two cops in the VICE department have the hottest cars, the coolest threads, not to mention theme music piped in directly from MTV every week as they take down drug lords who are using their city as the pipeline to import drugs from South America into the United States.

And it gets weirder. One man drives an indestructible 1982 black Trans-Am with an artificial intelligence that can drive itself and launch into the air from a level surface; he roams the United States from coast to coast, working for a public service organization that fights crime and is funded by a billionaire. In Los Angeles, a cop and his holographic artificially intelligent friend who could summon a car on command, and their friends take on crime. In New York City, a man who could transform into a panther, an eagle, a snake, or a number of other animals investigates crime and has adventures. And along the Utah-Arizona border, a man and his team keep a stolen, nearly indestructible military test helicopter, which they use to take on groups of organized bad guys.

And there’s more I haven’t even mentioned, but you should see a pattern here. Pick a city or region, add a group of friends who very well might have seen some stuff in Vietnam, add in something unusual (usually some kind of futuristic tech, an indestructible vehicle, an artificial intelligence, flashy clothes, government contacts, or extravagant wealth that doesn’t actually belong to you), and you have the premise for your very own action RPG in the 1980s.

But why the ‘80s and not something more recent? Well, the 1980s had computers but no internet. It had the very first mobile phones, but most people didn’t own them and there were no cell phone towers. It was a time when we saw technology emerging in new and exciting ways, but we didn’t yet have the full picture of what that technology would actually look like or do to society once it got here. The ‘80s is an optimistic time, with a sense of rebirth, renewal, and optimism. The future’s so bright, you’ve got to wear shades!

Welcome to Retrowave, an idealized, hyper-stylized, idealized version of the decade that focuses on palm trees at dusk, glowing neon lights, smooth synthwave music, and a romanticism of pop culture. If you lived through it, it’s a shameless exploration of all the things that made you who you are today. And if you aren’t old enough to have lived through it, there’s a lot of great television out there where you can catch up. It’s the perfect sandbox for RPGs because it uses small groups of friends with heroic tendencies, has larger than life villains, and involves fist fights without consequences, and a little bit of gun play was overlooked by the cops so long as it was used to take out the bad guys. In the ‘80s we dreamed of partying like it was 1999, but now we want to go back to 1984.

This genre is currently grossly under-served by existing tabletop roleplaying games, but you know, I think it’s an alternate history genre whose time has come.

*Art by Florian Renner (cover art for the album Crystal City by Robert Parker)

", "date_published": "2026-08-28T13:00:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-26T22:45:43.099Z", "authors": [ { "name": "Darrin Drader", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/darrin-drader", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/60d3a932-5d59-4484-a5f5-09593d2fe768/images/headshot.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Critical Hits: A Designer's Perspective", "Darrin Drader", "Retrowave", "1980s", "Alternate History" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/c2c37234-f155-485d-a419-2120f3088c56/images/darrin-drader-column-banner.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/tabletop-inspiration-celluloid-memories/a-plot-by-any-other-name-the-name-of-the-rose-1986", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/tabletop-inspiration-celluloid-memories/a-plot-by-any-other-name-the-name-of-the-rose-1986", "title": "A plot by any other name: The Name of the Rose (1986)", "summary": "Sometimes the best tabletop inspiration comes from unexpected places, like how a 1986 movie about a medieval monk-detective became my ultimate comfort film and the spark for a truly memorable AD&D adventure.", "content_html": "

Sometimes the best tabletop inspiration comes from unexpected places, like how a 1986 movie about a medieval monk-detective became my ultimate comfort film and the spark for a truly memorable AD&D adventure.

", "date_published": "2026-08-28T13:00:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-24T15:22:23.135Z", "authors": [ { "name": "Sunglar", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/sunglar", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/3751687c-4fb4-427b-bbc6-df004a435fb5/images/20260627_100848-1.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Tabletop Inspiration", "Celluloid Memories", "Roberto Micheri", "Dungeons & Dragons", "RPG", "The Name of the Rose " ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/4b78f128-c62f-4027-8959-25472e2dbc6f/images/celluloid-memories-column.png" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/first-look-at-ravenloft-computer-game-warlock-dungeons-dragons", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/first-look-at-ravenloft-computer-game-warlock-dungeons-dragons", "title": "First Look at Ravenloft Computer Game \"Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons\"", "summary": "Fans got their first chance to learn more, and see a gameplay demo, of Invoke Studios forthcoming Dungeons & Dragons computer game.", "content_html": "

Fans got their first chance to learn more, and see a gameplay demo, of Invoke Studios forthcoming Dungeons & Dragons computer game.

", "date_published": "2026-08-26T17:07:39.579Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-26T17:08:42.484Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Fantasy", "Dungeons & Dragons", "Wizards of the Coast", "Invoke Studios", "PlayStation", "XBox", "Computer Game", "Ravenloft", "Gamescon" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/socialpost/a5e522b2-d5a1-4187-962e-8f96f462b81d/images/warlock.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-cats-of-ulthar-for-5e", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-cats-of-ulthar-for-5e", "title": "(RPG PDF Spotlight) Cats of Ulthar for 5E", "summary": "Cats of Ulthar presents the Dreamlands of H. P. Lovecraft and the Cthulhu Mythos as a sandbox-style campaign for D&D 5E.", "content_html": "

Cats of Ulthar presents the Dreamlands of H. P. Lovecraft and the Cthulhu Mythos as a sandbox-style campaign for D&D 5E.

", "date_published": "2026-08-26T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-23T13:04:27.163Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs", "Dungeons & Dragons", "5th Edition", "Dreamlands", "Cthulhu Mythos", "H.P. Lovecraft" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/4b179f53-4285-4e03-a320-2542613e3f2b/images/cats-of-ulthar.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/daggerhearts-hope-fear-released", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/daggerhearts-hope-fear-released", "title": "Daggerheart's Hope & Fear Released!", "summary": "Darrington Press have released the first major expansion for their Daggerheart fantasy roleplaying game. Hope & Fear introduces new worlds, new classes, and a lot more for players and GM’s alike.", "content_html": "

Darrington Press have released the first major expansion for their Daggerheart fantasy roleplaying game. Hope & Fear introduces new worlds, new classes, and a lot more for players and GM’s alike.

", "date_published": "2026-08-26T09:14:50.568Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-26T09:15:24.358Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Fantasy", "RPGs", "DaggerHeart", "Darrington Press", "Critical Role" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/socialpost/dc8bfacb-3863-4c4d-94fd-436d643768d4/images/daggerheart-hope-and-fear.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/by-the-power-of-grayskull-he-man-comes-to-magic-the-gathering", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/news/fantasy/by-the-power-of-grayskull-he-man-comes-to-magic-the-gathering", "title": "By the Power of Grayskull! He-Man Comes to Magic: The Gathering", "summary": "September's new Magic The Gathering Secret Lair takes us to Eternia...", "content_html": "

September's new Magic The Gathering Secret Lair takes us to Eternia...

", "date_published": "2026-08-25T11:11:09.355Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-25T15:05:01.710Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Fantasy", "TCGs", "CCG", "Wizards of the Coast", "Magic: the Gathering", "Masters of the Universe", "Secret Lair", "He-Man", "She-Ra" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/socialpost/247d0c9b-4992-49da-bd6e-bd505d71efa7/images/mu-all.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/when-dice-were-made-of-flint/when-dice-were-made-of-flint-8", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/when-dice-were-made-of-flint/when-dice-were-made-of-flint-8", "title": "When Dice Were Made of Flint #8", "summary": "Turning Japanese.", "content_html": "

In the 1980s, everything Japanese was very fashionable. The craze started in 1980 with the TV miniseries of James Clavell’s novel Shogun and Akira Kurosawa’s epic Kagemusha, which was followed by the even more epic Ran in 1985. The first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic – then semi-underground and quite edgy – was published in 1984, and of course 1982’s mega-hit Blade Runner had included many Asian touches in its visual style.

Not to mention 1980’s one-hit wonders The Vapors with “Turning Japanese,” the band Japan, and the Japanese script on T-shirts that every fashionable type was sporting at the time. Japan was everywhere, and every game suddenly needed a feudal Japanese setting.

Fantasy Games Unlimited released Land of the Rising Sun in 1980 and their edition of Bushido in 1981. TSR published AD&D Oriental Adventures in 1985 (the term “Oriental” was still acceptable in those distant times) and incorporated Kara-Tur into the Forgotten Realms in 1987. GURPS Japan was also published in 1987, and that same year Games Workshop reprinted the 1986 RuneQuest Land of Ninja boxed set as a hardback. Games Workshop also planned a Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay supplement named Tetsubo, after an iron-studded club that was the closest Japanese equivalent to a warhammer, but the manuscript languished on the to-be-developed pile and was never published – although a version can be found online now.

Roleplaying games were not alone. Avalon Hill published their Samurai grand strategy game in 1980, and Milton Bradley published their big-box game Shogun in 1986. Standard Games published Samurai Blades in 1984, adapted from their 1981 medieval skirmish game Cry Havoc. There was a ninja-themed gamebook series called Way of the Tiger, and Fighting Fantasy gamebook #20 was Sword of the Samurai.

Dixon Miniatures had been selling 28mm Japanese ranges since 1977, and 1984 saw Citadel Miniatures release two sets of boxed miniatures by Aly Morrison: Oriental Heroes and Hobgoblin Warriors, plus Undead samurai the following year. I even proposed a Japanese-themed Warhammer battle pack based on these ranges, shortly before Games Workshop hired me: the excellent Awesome Lies blog has more details (https://awesomeliesblog.wordpress.com/2022/07/17/lost-warhammer-bakemonos-revenge/).

And those are just the titles I remember. Honestly, if you weren’t there at the time, it’s difficult to comprehend just how thoroughly Japan took over Western popular culture in the 80s.

I had two editions of Bushido, one by Tyr from 1979 and the expanded FGU boxed set from 1981. I never got to run it, though, as AD&D and Call of Cthulhu took up much of my time. One of my college gaming group did run a few Bushido sessions, though, and got one adventure published in Adventurer, the short-lived house magazine of Games of Liverpool, FGU’s UK importer. Imagine magazine #25 was billed as a “Far Eastern Special,” with a dual-statted AD&D and Bushido adventure by future White Dwarf editor and Realm of Chaos co-author Mike Brunton alongside AD&D material from yours truly and several other contributors.

Somewhere in the late 80s or early 90s, the fascination with feudal Japan faded. The reasons are debated, but Japan lost its economic powerhouse status in the early 90s. Cyberpunk took over as the main genre where Japanese culture flavoured gaming, thanks largely to Blade Runner and William Gibson. As the 90s progressed, manga and anime became popular, but anime-influenced rpgs like Big Eyes Small Mouth didn’t achieve the widespread appeal or commercial success of the feudal-Japan games of the previous decade.

Katanas never stopped being cool, though.

", "date_published": "2026-08-25T09:00:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-25T15:10:19.391Z", "authors": [ { "name": "Graeme Davis", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/graeme-davis" } ], "tags": [ "Gaming History", "Graeme Davis", "When Dice Were Made of Flint", "Dungeons & Dragons", "Japan", "TMNT", "Shogun", "Kurosawa", "1980s", "Bushido", "20", "25" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/ef0ba8d1-43c7-4a5e-90f1-359b6eedb07c/images/graeme-davis-when-dice-column-image.webp" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/crowdfund-quest/crowdfund-quest-eat-crow-a-mork-borg-zine-and-solo-game", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/crowdfund-quest/crowdfund-quest-eat-crow-a-mork-borg-zine-and-solo-game", "title": "(Crowdfund Quest) Eat Crow | A Mörk Borg zine and solo game", "summary": "A zine with a Mörk Borg Inn, class, and a solo game where you run a food stall in the dying lands!", "content_html": "

A zine with a Mörk Borg Inn, class, and a solo game where you run a food stall in the dying lands!

", "date_published": "2026-08-24T15:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-23T20:34:32.413Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "Crowdfund Quest", "Crowdfunding", "MorkBorg", "kickstarter" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/3a783114-9f85-4410-a58a-82be1185e905/images/eat-crow.jpg" }, { "id": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-doomspiral-23082026", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/columns/rpg-pdf-spotlight/rpg-pdf-spotlight-doomspiral-23082026", "title": "(RPG PDF Spotlight) Doomspiral", "summary": "Doomspiral is a new roleplaying game system set in a dying fantasy world, featuring desperate battles, mysterious secrets and fearsome monsters, inspired by games such as Dark Souls and Elden Ring.", "content_html": "

Doomspiral is a new roleplaying game system set in a dying fantasy world, featuring desperate battles, mysterious secrets and fearsome monsters, inspired by games such as Dark Souls and Elden Ring. 

", "date_published": "2026-08-24T13:30:00.000Z", "date_modified": "2026-08-24T13:44:40.526Z", "authors": [ { "name": "AngusA", "url": "https://www.tabletopsentinel.com/u/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e", "avatar": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/userprofile/b1b8b6ef-d846-473d-8620-b7ddb4232c9e/images/angus-gen-con.jpg" } ], "tags": [ "RPG PDF Spotlight", "RPGs", "SoulMuppet Publishing", "Doomspiral" ], "image": "https://cdn.tabletopsentinel.com/article/2c2a74d7-1810-4d98-87f8-d1a33007f09a/images/doomspiral.jpg" } ] }