May 2023 Update
- Adam Donovan
- May 3, 2023
- 7 min read
[May 2023]
Greetings all, and welcome to the May (2023) update for Roguelike Games!
We're only a few days into the month and its already shaping up to be a busy one. The beginning of 2023 saw a shift in priorities to our flagship Gothic Horror TTRPG: Moralinth, and that will be Roguelike Games' focus throughout this year. We've set up new ways for people to get in contact with us, as well as had people come forward wishing to help in its development in a myriad of ways. For such a small company this is hugely encouraging, so our heartfelt thanks go out to you all! For those who are unaware, 'Moralinth: Gothic Horror Roleplaying' is a tabletop roleplaying game being created across two systems which we refer to as the Uncanny Edition and the Gloom Edition. Both of these editions have their own core rulebook containing everything you need to run or play the game, as well as a separate 'Quickstart' rules-light version to introduce people to the game. These Editions are self-contained, meaning you don't need both to play Moralinth, you can choose one or the other (there is nothing stopping you getting both, of course!).
Additionally, a lore-only tome called the 'Moralinth Worldbook' is also in development that is compatible with both editions. The Moralinth Worldbook covers the setting in more descriptive detail, rather than balancing between setting and game mechanics as the two Editions do.
In other words, Moralinth is not a single product and as such it is a pretty big task! To organise updates across this 5-part project, we have established a format to these update blogs that came into effect at the beginning of this year that breaks updates down into:
Moralinth Updates: Updates to the Uncanny and Gloom Editions, the Worldbook, and the Quickstarts
Roguelike Community: Updates on the Roguelike Community as a whole (but currently focusing on Moralinth-related content)
Future Plans: Where we discuss our short-term plans, or further ahead ones if they are established enough to discuss.
Now we know what the updates are about, let's get rolling!
Moralinth Updates:
Moralinth has undergone many changes and updates this month as work is finalised on a lot of the writing for the Uncanny Edition and we've finally been able to start picking up the pace on the Gloom Edition. We were always proud of this RPG as we've been writing it, but its shaping up to become even better than we had hoped when we first set out. We've been working on art to go with the book(s) that matches a style, mood and theme that we want to convey and are eagerly researching and experimenting with various layout types. As soon as some of these are shortlisted, you'll be able to see some of our design choices on our Discord Group and Facebook Page. Its proving harder to keep things under our hats to avoid spoilers than we had anticipated; we want to show all this cool stuff off!
Moralinth: Uncanny Edition
The Uncanny Edition of Moralinth is in the polishing stages at the moment, with only the included introductory adventure left to do. That adventure will begin writing this month, but in the meantime the end of April and the start of May saw work on artwork for the Uncanny Edition and all the sample characters that will be used in the adventures written up on our new character sheets and added into the book. These characters are: Sir Charles Henry Corbeld, an Extroverted Dilettante Who Wards Against The Dark
Ms. Isobel O'Neil, a Weird Adept Who Works Miracles
Octavius, a Clockwork Combatant Who Explores Dark Places
These sample characters will be introduced on our Facebook Page and Discord Group soon by way of art and biographies. As well as the above, much of the header art and interior illustrations have been worked on for the Uncanny Edition and will continue throughout May.
Uncanny Edition Roadmap Updates:
'Sample Characters' moved from Not Yet Started to Draft 1 Complete
'Index' moved from Not Yet Started to Draft 1 Complete (ahead of July deadline)
'Type Illustrations' moved from Not Yet Started to Draft 1 Complete
'Chapter Headers' moved from Not Yet Started to In Development
(You can review the Uncanny Edition Roadmap here)
Moralinth: Gloom Edition
Here at RLG we've been keeping a close eye on the development of the ORC License from Pathfinder developer, Paizo. Because the Gloom Edition is built using the same system that powers Pathfinder: Second Edition, we've been working tentatively behind the scenes under the knowledge that things might change at a moments' notice (see our January update for the whole OGL drama that lost us hundreds of hours of work on the previous version).
Late April saw drafts of the new ORC License go out to the public and it has put our minds at rest that we won't have the rug pulled out from under us again. We've started work on creating our Ancestries and Heritages within the Gloom Edition framework, and Jondo has begun converting our original 5e classes across to their PF2E counterparts.
Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster: On April 26 Paizo announced their Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster Project which along with many rules revisions while remaining backward compatible, was going to be their first product produced solely under the new ORC License and fully unshackling itself from its OGL roots. This is fantastic news for us, Paizo, and any other third-party developers who want to create content using these creative commons rules. The first of these core books ('Player Core' and 'GM Core') are due to be released in Nov 2023, which means we can move full-steam ahead with our Gloom Edition of Moralinth and will only need to make alterations when these books come out rather than full re-writes! NOTE: Unlike the Pathfinder Remastered books, Moralinth will not be split into a 'player' and 'GM' book, all information for both Player and Narrator will be covered in the single Gloom Edition rulebook.
Gloom Edition Roadmap Updates:
'Chapter 4: Ancestries & Heritages' moved from Not Yet Started to In Development
'Chapter 6: Classes' moved from Not Yet Started to In Development
(You can review the Gloom Edition Roadmap here)
Moralinth Worldbook
The Moralinth Worldbook is - bar editorials and potential re-writes - pretty much written in its entirety. We've not had to do any new written content for the Worldbook this month, but where we have had a big drive on art updates for the Uncanny and Gloom Edition rulebooks and Quickstarts, we've been able to recreate much of this work to go into the Worldbook. While creating interior art, we've also started work on the Uncanny and Gloom Quickstart adverts to be included in the rear of the Worldbook.
Worldbook Roadmap Updates:
'Uncanny Edition Advert' moved from Not Yet Started to In Development
'Gloom Edition Advert' moved from Not Yet Started to In Development
(You can review the Worldbook Roadmap here)
Moralinth Quickstarts
Like last month, the work done on the Quickstarts has been yo-yoing in its focus. The Uncanny Quickstart is basically finished bar some minor polishing and has been for a while now, but we've working on the Uncanny Edition Advert which also appears in the Worldbook and Gloom Edition, as well as the Gloom Edition Advert which also appears in the Worldbook and the Uncanny Edition. We've also begun the first draft passes of the front cover of the Quickstarts, which we're hoping will be complete by the end of May.
Uncanny Quickstart Roadmap Updates:
'Cover Art' moved from Not Yet Started to In Development
'Uncanny Edition Advert' moved from Not Yet Started to In Development
(You can review the Uncanny Quickstart Roadmap here)
Gloom Quickstart Roadmap Updates:
'Cover Art' moved from Not Yet Started to In Development
'Gloom Edition Advert' moved from Not Yet Started to In Development
(You can review the Gloom Quickstart Roadmap here)
Roguelike Community
On 21st/22nd April the Moralinth Official Facebook Group was launched giving people a place to find out all about Moralinth in small bite-sized chunks and a place to chat, discuss, and share the project. We're happy with how the launch went, and to everyone who has signed up to be kept up to date on our project. Thanks! We're wanting to grow the group to the point where people can feel comfortable starting and spearheading their own discussions, and where Jondo or myself can answer any questions people might have. Please feel free to share the group with friends and family, or anyone you feel might want to know more about the project!
DISCORD:
On 22nd April we also launched the Moralinth Official Discord, which was designed to give a more in-depth look at the development of the project with those for a little more time to read and sink their teeth into deeper information. In the same manner as the Facebook Group we're really happy with how the launch went (even if the setup was considerably harder!) and are extremely grateful for everyone who has joined. While the FB Group is a great place to get quick, summarised updates, the Discord is the place to come for those more involved deep-dives. Like the FB Group please feel free to share around the Discord with others.
A NOTE ON THE DISCORD GROUP: When first joining the Discord you will be taken to a 'verification' channel.
Please click the tick icon:
to be given the "Uncanny" role and get access to the whole Discord server. This is a precaution to keep unwanted Bots away from the site.
Future Plans
Full steam ahead! We've got plenty to keep us busy over the next few months, specifically on the Moralinth front. Prior to moving it to a Crowdfunded status we have the Uncanny Edition and Quickstart to finish polishing, the Gloom Edition and Quickstart to write and the Worldbook to finalise. Beyond these projects we have the Facebook Group and Discord to keep up to date with new news and info and a community to foster.
....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,
Happy Gaming!
- Adam
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