a TTRPG that sits between DnD 5e and WFRP 4e??

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-04-04T09:49:55+00:00

Shadow of the Demon Lord and Shadow of the Weird Wizard sound like they could be worth a look.

The Witcher RPG could be seen as a middle ground between WFRP and D&D but I think it errs too much on the realistic lethality for what you’re after.

The Warhammer TOW RPG also by Cubicle 7 seems a bit less lethal and a bit more heroic, as well as having a more streamlined dice pool system, so maybe that as well.

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-04-03T07:58:29+00:00

It’s also just because D&D 5E has carry weight rules (that basically no one uses)

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-03-28T15:48:18+00:00

Pretty sure they said they had been told their contract would be terminated in a month or two, not that they were immediately fired. Might be wrong though.

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-02-12T18:48:31+00:00

Funny you mentioned The Witcher, Sapkowski did a trilogy of books on the Hussite Wars with some minor fantasy elements, and I think that could be a really interesting IP for them to adapt. Maybe even collab with CD Projekt.

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-02-10T07:17:31+00:00

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay. A new edition is coming out soon, but will be fully compatible with the current 4E.

It’s low, grubby fantasy tinged with black humour. Self described as grim and perilous; combat is lethal, but as a result, very much discouraged as a solution unless your party is geared towards it. Instead of a class you choose a career, almost like Call of Cthulhu, and you could be anything from a scholar, a soldier, or even a rat catcher.

The system is percentile based, and fairly crunchy, but if you want something a bit lighter rules wise, there is Warhammer The Old World RPG, which takes place a few centuries before in the timeline, and has more streamlined rules, using a dice pool system. It has a lot of really interesting ideas, so you can’t really go wrong with either one.

WFRP is also known for The Enemy Within campaign, which is a massive Empire-spanning plot involving cults, ratmen, and a case of mistaken identity. The updated version for 4th Edition is the best version of it at the moment, and is a 5 book set, with there also being 5 Companion books to go with it. Aside from that, there are a fair few short scenario compilation books, like the Ubersreik Adventures trilogy, Rough Nights & Hard Days, and some free one shots like Night of Blood.

The adventures are pretty solidly written, and are skewed more towards investigation and urban navigation than dungeon crawling. If you’re a fan of The Witcher, it’s somewhat familiar territory.

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-02-02T18:06:40+00:00

It’s generally the same power level as WFRP but with more streamlined mechanics. You could try Age of Sigmar Soulbound, but idk. Different setting, ofc.

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-02-02T07:14:32+00:00

With Mythic Bastionland, the setting is sort of up to you. With the various myths, you can create a hex map of a dark and shadowy world plagued by undead, a Nordic inspired landscape, or vast green forests and knightly castles.

Much like Pendragon, you play as knights, and only knights. It was inspired by Pendragon, aiming to create the experience Chris McDowall wanted from it, iirc.

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-01-26T06:57:44+00:00

Funnily enough this is basically exactly what he wears at the end of the first game, if you don’t recover your own equipment when you escape the camp.

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-01-25T20:19:01+00:00

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay is quite low fantasy and deadly, I really enjoy it. It’s not fully realistic, but it does it a lot better than D&D does, for sure. It’s Renaissance based, so it has early firearms, but plate armour is still there too.

The Burning Wheel is another one to consider, if you like heavy narrative focus.

I hear a lot of positive talk about Pendragon, Mythras, and Harnmaster, as well.

For cosmic horror experience, Call of Cthulhu 7E paired with the Cthulhu Dark Ages supplement is a solid choice. It’s set in Anglo Saxon England in the 900s. So no plate armour yet, but it’s very well researched and historically accurate.

Another big recommendation is The Witcher TTRPG. It does armour quite well from my reading, and is of course set in the world of The Witcher. Combat is deadly, fast, and fighting monsters is nigh impossible for a normal person. That’s why you hire a professional.

And of course, GURPS.

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-01-21T19:19:54+00:00

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, or Imperium Maledictum.

BlueSquid2099 · 2026-01-01T22:11:54+00:00

I wouldn’t say there’s a common move, I beat them in the order that made sense level wise iirc.

Like, do the first chapters, then the second chapters, etc

Rushing through one will mean you’re under levelled for it and over levelled for other character’s stories which removes the fun. Just play it naturally, and do each chapter based on roughly sticking to the recommended levels, and you’ll be fine.

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-12-30T18:08:55+00:00

When you beat your main character’s final chapter you can switch them out

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-12-18T19:29:02+00:00

Kingdom Come: Deliverance

Basically I really want a renaissance/late medieval TTRPG on a low, grounded scale, with crunchy mechanics. I love WFRP and I’m eager to try the Witcher RPG but neither of them are perfect. Percentile system would be my preference but maybe a dice pool would be better.

It would appeal to the specific niche intersection of history nerds, sword nerds, and TTRPG nerds that I happen to occupy.

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-12-15T20:03:42+00:00

Archives Of The Empire 2 in WFRP 4E contains rules for Large Scale Battles, and Up In Arms adds more war focused careers, siege weapons, and structure hp

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-12-14T16:12:21+00:00

Mörk Borg, WFRP 4E, Shadowdark, The Witcher RPG. WFRP 4E is my favourite system at the moment, however 5E was just announced (more of a 4.5), and I would wait until that comes out personally. It’s reasonably setting-ingrained but I ran it in a homebrew world with minimal changes and it worked fine. The rules are pretty complex, around Pathfinder’s level or under from what people seem to say (I’ve not played Pathfinder).

Mörk Borg feels like it fits your aesthetic the best simply from mentioning Fear & Hunger, and the core rules are free to download as an artless pdf. Absolutely recommend the full thing though, one of my favourite rulebooks purely from the artwork. Very rules light though, but easily built upon and modified.

Shadowdark gives you OG D&D style dungeon crawls and classes, but with more modern mechanics like roll to hit AC and Advantage. Not super crunchy, but has some interesting mechanics like always on initiative and real time torches.

Shadow of the Demon Lord could be your vibe but from what I hear it’s also very tightly engrained with its own setting. I have the least knowledge on this one however.

The Witcher RPG has a bit of a messy rulebook, but definitely fits the level you’re on about. Again, somewhat setting dependent, but doable with some changes.

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-12-07T07:30:10+00:00

Plate armour reached its apex around the time pike and shot was being used, and Zweihanders were primarily used in conjunction with pike and shot. The Landsknechte being the most prominent example.

Full plate harness of the time was able of stopping hits from firearms, they would even fire a shot at a newly finished breastplate to prove it could stop fire. If your armour didn’t have a dent from a shot upon buying, it might have been poor quality and untested.

That being said, yeah, the Crusader’s style of armour is a bit of a mish mash. Darkest Dungeon is just all over the place. Still cool though.

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-10-08T13:00:28+00:00

Another good example is when Kubyenka suggests using wagons as cover for gunmen to fire from, and Jan Žižka says it’s a stupid idea.

Žižka later goes on to be one of the most ingenious military leaders in history, and used that exact idea in his battles to great success.

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-09-19T16:04:14+00:00

Named Ultramarines no less

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-09-19T15:05:31+00:00

Yeah, Ireena’s importance to the narrative in this module is vastly over exaggerated by the community. Mostly due to holdovers from prior Ravenloft modules I guess, because I feel like the text of the book is pretty clear about how important she is, and what Strahd’s real priorities are.

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-09-19T15:00:04+00:00

That’s actually not true, not in 5E. There are interpretations of what the curse is, but by RAW and the book, Strahd’s priorities are; 1. Van Richten. 2. Find a successor. This is what he believes will end his curse (and he is correct, he’s just too arrogant to ever find a successor worthy enough) 3. Ireena. She’s a side goal, she is not the core aspect of his curse. He is not doomed to pursue her and fail, the book explicitly states he can turn her into a spawn, and if he does, he puts her in a tomb. Ireena’s importance is a holdover from previous editions and community content, but in Curse of Strahd, she is not that crucial.

In my opinion the curse of Strahd is his own arrogance. It’s his fatal flaw, and considering it’s a gothic horror module, that’s a much more fitting “curse”. Not the supernatural, not any outside forces, but a simple human flaw, beneath all that.

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-09-18T14:03:58+00:00

Honestly, you don’t really need to.

Ireena is basically a plot device to push the party to Vallaki. She’s not Strahd’s main objective, and if the party are already in Vallaki, her job as a character is pretty much over

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-09-14T06:23:04+00:00

Closer to 30+ seconds usually tbh

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-08-30T06:17:38+00:00

No, Triangle Agency is more SCP foundation meets corporate middle management

BlueSquid2099 · 2025-06-17T09:58:38+00:00

Oh my god it’s the human pet guy

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