January 2025 Update
- Adam Donovan
- Jan 31
- 7 min read
[January 2025]
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Greetings all, and welcome to the January (2025) update for Roguelike Games!
Our team here at RLG would like to wish you all a fantastic new year and express a big "thank you!" for coming with us on this journey of TTRPG game development.
As we continue to work on our flagship Gothic Horror RPG Moralinth, we wanted to start the year off with a big announcement....we are excited to announce:
Moralinth: Enclave Edition will be taking the place of Moralinth: Gloom Edition as the second system in the dual-system crowdfunding release of the game, launching simultaneously alongside Moralinth: Uncanny Edition. Our website will be updated to reflect this over the coming weeks.
What is Moralinth: Enclave Edition?
Moralinth: Enclave Edition is the newest version of the Moralinth: Gothic Horror RPG that uses the same worldbuilding, lore, content and themes as the previous editions, and like its predecessors is built around a distinct ruleset to give Narrators and their Players a choice as to how they would like to play Moralinth.
Specifically, Moralinth: Enclave Edition utilizes the Year Zero Engine developed by Free League Publishing / Fria Ligan and will be created using their Free Tabletop Licence (FTL).
The Year Zero Engine is a sleek and streamlined game mechanics system that encourages narrative gameplay, sitting somewhere between the Cypher System (that Moralinth: Uncanny Edition uses) and the Pathfinder: Second Edition d20 System (that Moralinth: Gloom Edition uses) in terms of complexity and customization.
In the family of Moralinth editions, the Year Zero Engine (YZE) offers an option for groups who want a system that is a little more rules-heavy than the Cypher System but with more flexibility than the Pathfinder: Second Edition system. While all three game systems have their audience and supporters, Moralinth: Enclave Edition looks to strike a balance within the trilogy.
The version of the YZE we are using for Moralinth is primarily a d6-based system (meaning that it mostly uses the traditional six-sided dice found in many board games and games of chance). The Enclave Edtion utilizes the push mechanic found in many YZE games but is thematically tailored for each setting; In Moralinth: Enclave Edition players can attempt to call upon The Dark (the setting's term for magic) to tweak reality to their needs, but risk metaphysical backlash by doing so. This risk-reward mechanic makes for exciting and dynamic gameplay that can enhance already dramatic encounters.
(For those familiar with YZE games and specifically the YZE SRD, Moralinth will be using the Dice Pool variant of the system, and drawing upon The Dark will represent the games' push mechanic.)
Moralinth already has two editions, why is a third being added?
When developing Moralinth, we always wanted to launch it so that it would be available on two different systems simultaneously. That ethos hasn't changed, but now the second system will use the YZE Engine (Moralinth: Enclave Edition).
Since starting work on the Gloom Edition of Moralinth in 2023, it has become increasingly apparent that the Pathfinder: Second Edition ruleset with its extremely in-depth game mechanics was a much larger task to replicate in its entirety than was first estimated.
While it was always an option that we could release Moralinth as a Pathfinder Compatible product, we felt it deserved to have its own identity rather than Narrators and Players needing to own a copy of the Pathfinder core rulebooks in addition to a Moralinth core ruleset, just to play the game.
The decision to keep the Gloom Edition a self-contained product meant that we had to look at how quickly a team of two writers could realistically replicate all the rules that Paizo had put into three books, combine them into one, and then blend them into the Moralinth setting.
The answer was "not as quickly as we would like".
With the Uncanny Edition so close to being release-ready, the gulf between the Uncanny and Gloom editions was starting to show, and we knew we still wanted to release Moralinth as a dual-system game when it goes to crowdfunding. Yet we also didn't want to forgo all the work we had done on the Gloom Edition either, feeling that it is as important as the other editions - even if it will take longer to complete.
With that in mind, knowing that we can start and complete the Enclave edition of Moralinth in much less time than we can complete the Gloom edition, we have decided to release the Gloom edition after its Uncanny and Enclave counterparts, to give us more time to work on it and ensure it meets our high standards.
So essentially, that is why a third edition is being added to the Moralinth roster: for our dual-system release idea to work we need a system that is quicker to develop than our current Gloom Edition - enter Moralinth: Enclave Edition. We still plan to release Gloom Edition, but it will be available at a slightly later date.
What will happen to Moralinth: Gloom Edition?
Moralinth: Gloom Edition isn't going anywhere!
We will continue the development of this version of the game, but due to the time commitment required it will be released after the initial combined launch of the Uncanny and Enclave editions.
Keep an eye out for info in future updates, as well as specific posts on our discord server.
We would rather get Moralinth: Gloom Edition done right, than get it done quickly.
Will future content be released for all three Editions?
Yes.
The "core" books will be released for all three systems, entitled "Moralinth: Uncanny Edition", "Moralinth: Enclave Edition" and "Moralinth: Gloom Edition".
The Morlainth: Uncanny Quickstart Guide and Moralinth: Enclave Quickstart Guide will be released at the start of the crowdfunding campaign. These will both include the short Quickstart Adventure "Sleepers At Dockside".
The Uncanny and Enclave versions of "The Ties That Bind" Introductory Adventure will be released alongside their core book counterparts at the end of the crowdfunding campaign.
The Moralinth: Gloom Quickstart Guide and the Gloom Edition version of "The Ties That Bind" will be released alongside the Moralinth: Gloom Edition core rulebook. When we have a better idea of when this will be, information will appear on our Discord server and Facebook pages, as well as here on the Roguelike Games webpage.
Beyond that point, any supplemental products (including adventures) will be designed to run on the Uncanny (Cypher), Enclave (YZE) and Gloom (PF2e) editions of the game.
The Imperial Encyclopaedia Estania uses no game rules and is purely a lore-based book. The release schedule is not determined by a specific edition type.
What will be the effect on game development? Will this delay the release of Moralinth?
Our decision to focus development on the Enclave Edition will help speed up development rather than delay it. It is our intention here at Roguelike Games to get the Moralinth Gothic Horror RPG out to you as quickly as possible without sacrificing quality, and releasing the Uncanny and Enclave Editions together allows us to meet that goal. We still very much intend to supply you with the Gloom Edition; we just have to accept it is a longer-term commitment overall. It is our firm belief that having Moralinth available to Narrators and Players across all three gaming systems will mean there is an option for every table.
We're extremely excited to bring Moralinth and the Year Zero Engine together to create the Enclave Edition, and hopefully that will show in the speed at which we enthusiastically build and test this version. By shifting focus from the Gloom to the Enclave edition we plan to get both the Uncanny and Enclave editions ready for release in a much more realistic timeframe.
When can we expect to see Enclave Edition content?
Almost straight away! our next update - February 2025 - will focus heavily on information about the Enclave Edition. The Enclave Edition will be stepping up in priority so going forward it will get as much (if not more in some cases) coverage as the Uncanny Edition.
Throughout January and February, we will be updating this website to include a section for the Enclave Edition, which will follow the same format as the Uncanny and Gloom editions (introducing the game system, why we use it, what we feel Moralinth could bring to it and a list of features you can expect to see in the finished product).
In much the same manner as our July through to October (2024) updates (which focused on Uncanny and Gloom Edition-specific content), we will be giving updates on Enclave-specific content as it is developed. The Enclave Edition will likely take the spotlight for a little while, as the Uncanny Edition is already in the post-production stage. That said we have a few undisclosed details about all the editions which will be announced as soon as they are ready as well.
Roguelike Community
The Moralinth Official Facebook Group is the place to visit for quick and concise updates for those who only want the summarised details of what is happening with Moralinth and is a great place to see the artwork, lore snippets, and updates. We're looking to add more to it so that we can add extra information, but we need your help! What sort of things would you like to see included in the Facebook Group that isn't there already? Feel free to leave comments so we can know what is a priority for everyone - and make sure you tell your friends!
DISCORD:
For a more in-depth and interactive playground for all things Moralinth, you can head over to the Morlainth Official Discord Server. We're looking to foster the community and grow it out, and a few of the messages we've received of late have asked for more ways to interact with the game world as well as an increase in setting information. We're looking to try and grant both requests simultaneously, so keep an eye on Discord for more information! Feel free to invite anyone who you feel might want to follow the project but please remember they need to verify their account when they first join the server (you need to click the little "tick" to be granted the Uncanny role and gain access to all the Categories, Channels and Events).
Future Plans
Beginning in February 2025, we will reveal the process of applying the YZE to our vision for Moralinth: Enclave Edition, providing you with greater insight into what to expect from this version of the game.
Finally, the team here at RLG would like to once again thank you for your support and we look forward to giving you plenty of exciting announcements in 2025!
....and that wraps up our update for this month! Feel free to drop us a message or come visit us on our Facebook page or our Discord Group if you'd like! Until our next update in the new year,
Happy Gaming!
- Adam
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