RPG: ‘Blackpowder & Brimstone’ – Dark Fantasy Swashbuckling and Demons Unleashed
Free League’s new Blackpowder & Brimstone RPG promises grimdark fantasy with a dash of swashbuckling demon hunting mixed in.
Rules light, grimdark, art heavy—that’s the promise Blackpowder & Brimstone makes! After a phenomenally successful crowdfunding campaign, Benjamin Tobitt’s game of demons, swashbucklings, and religious schism comes to Free League’s webstore and DriveThruRPG.
Powered by and compatible with the MÖRK BORG ruleset, the game is a whirlwind set between two conflicting churches whose schism has been in a decades-long war now. In the midst of all of this? Gunpowder, witches, demons, and the slaying thereof. It’s all the fun of witch hunters, but mix in greatswords and plate armor with pistols and pirates.
It’s also one of the first big projects that published under Free League Workshop, the official sublabel for works by independent creators.
Blackpowder & Brimstone – Demons and Demon Hunters
Black Powder and Brimstone conjures up the vibes immediately. The title, the artwork, the lore—all of it condenses into a “gothic folk horror” potage that is hearty enough to keep your games going, but won’t weigh you down. Like just looking at the aesthetic of the game you can guess what it’s about. But then the setting lore comes in and confirms your suspicions:
“The Orthodox and Puritans of the Church of the Sacred Blood are stuck in a stalemate of a war that has raged for decades. You are a desperate adventurer stuck in the middle of the conflict, desperately trying to survive, and maybe even profit, amongst the chaos and destruction.“
To that end, you have a number of weapons at your disposal. And using the game’s ruleset, each tool in your arsenal plays with mechanical advantages:
“Wield unique and characterful weapons, each with their own rules and advantages on top of the damage die. The arsenal includes the dreaded Black Powder weapons — infernal devices that ignore all armor on a hit and can cause as much mayhem and destruction to the wielder as the intended target.“
There are all sorts of factions to play with and avoid. The Inquisition nominally hunts demons, for instance, but they are always on the lookout for anyone guilty of heresy. Unrelated, your characters can also use magic. Using it too much might have consequences.
All this, powered by the MÖRK BORG ruleset for a fascinating lend of old school style with modern combat. It’s deadly. It’s dark. And you can really work out your regional accents if you’re looking to do character voices while playing this.
Killed by demons in pursuit of glory is how at least 37% of characters will end up in this game!
