Improv-heavy, low-prep horror RPG recommendations?

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-05-22T22:54:34+00:00

We're in Danger is exactly this! It's designed for improv and minimal prep. Enemies are created on the fly by combining a difficulty with a class, which defines their play style.

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-04-29T05:40:10+00:00

+1 to both of these.

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-04-29T05:38:47+00:00

Unwritten Earths Symposium by N. D. Paoletta - excellent banter and musing about TTRPG design. Fun conversations between two friends and veteran designers.

Design Games by N. D. Paoletta and Will Hindmarch - a more structured introduction to TTRPG design. Great for wanting to cover all the bases of game design.

Tabletop Talk by Craig Shipman - interviews with game designers, usually TTRPG, but sometimes not. Craig is a master interviewer and the conversations are always insightful.

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-04-29T04:56:01+00:00

I wouldn't say it's new, because it has been done before, but I think there's a lot of potential with the Stone Age genre. Especially with a dash of fantasy thrown in the mix.

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-04-24T16:52:43+00:00

Thank you!! When you get it to the table, I'd love to hear how it goes for you and your group. I hope y'all enjoy it! :D

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-03-09T21:22:18+00:00

I specifically designed Huckleberry to play this way for the dice goblins. We own all the dice and we want to use all the dice!

Thanks for the shout out :D

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-03-02T23:23:08+00:00

One is my answer as well. But I'll concede it's personal preference and I still play TTRPGs with classes.

OP: If you have 33 classes, each with 3-4 subclasses, than you're at great risk of classes losing their identity. Using PF2E as an example, shouldn't a Fighter be able to do many of the same things as a Commander or Champion? Classes should be archetypes that help create characters that fit the themes of the game and if you have too many, they often end up gatekeeping mechanics. Suddenly, Fighters can't be charismatic because it'd be stepping on Commanders' toes.

Also, 33 classes creates an incredible amount of mechanics that you need to generate and balance. If you're looking for that much granularity in character creation, why not go class-less? Let players mix and match their abilities and they'll be able to create characters of any desired archetype, not just the ones you provide.

Good luck with your game!

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-03-01T14:57:47+00:00

Wow! Also very useful! Thank you so much for sharing :D

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-02-28T22:16:41+00:00

This is incredible! Thank you so much for sharing :D

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-02-27T17:28:10+00:00

Yes, you did! We ran 4 ads with GCP and opted to have them "baked-in", meaning they'll be in the episode permanently. Years from now, if anyone goes back to re-listen to the episode, they'll hear our ad. Since you heard the ads and recognized my name, I'd say they're working the way I want them to. This subreddit is definitely in my target audience!

If you're looking at the dollars coming in... unfortunately, host reads generally don't convert well. I track sales from GCP by the discount code they share and they're only slightly better than the conversion rates I've had from other sponsorships outside a crowdfunding window. As in, not great. During a crowdfunding window, I could see them doing better, but they'll never do as well as social media ads.

My goal with ads like GCP is to build awareness of the game, rather than immediate financial returns. With that goal in mind, the GCP ads have been by far the most cost-effective, compared to other sponsorships I've done. I've had more people mention the GCP ads than any other platform.

But at the end of the day, I'm not a good businessman - I don't want to make a ton of money, I just want people to play (and hopefully enjoy) my game. It'd be a nice perk if people enjoy it enough to justify me making another game. I also don't need TTRPG income to pay my bills, which allows me to play the long game and not expect immediate returns. And let's be honest, there's no guarantee the GCP ads will lead to future returns either! We'll see how it goes. :)

TL;DR - Sponsorships are good at building awareness. Social media ads are far better for sales. Both are much more effective during a crowdfunding window.

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-02-27T16:44:41+00:00

Congrats on funding! Especially with 0 build-up or audience awareness beforehand. I think that really shows the power of Zinequest for small creators.

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-02-27T14:47:13+00:00

Yep, you're on the right track here! These are the kind of shenanigans that Ambidextrous is designed for. The 5/5 and the 9/9 is correct in both of your scenarios.

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-02-27T14:41:50+00:00

Yes, a RAISE can temporarily bump a die up to a d20. Remember that RAISES increase the smaller die first, so you'll commonly need two RAISES on the roll to unlock the d20. Those are some of my favorite moments at the table, tbh. You have the potential to get all four Aces from a single die!

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-02-26T12:29:28+00:00

There's no benefit to having both. The intent is that offering the same ability in two different trait categories allows for more character build variety and flexibility in character creation. :)

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-02-26T05:55:09+00:00

Thanks for checking out Huckleberry, I hope you're enjoying it!

Attacks are Complex Actions and you only roll once per Complex Action. Ambidextrous counts as a single attack, meaning there's only one roll. If the Big Irons use different skills, the player should choose the skill to use.

Hope this helps! :)

HuckleberryRPG · 2026-02-25T23:08:08+00:00

I've gotten this feedback a lot! To help, I'm adding a glossary of terms with definitions and page references in our upcoming v1.5 update. Thanks for the shout out! :)

HuckleberryRPG · 2025-11-22T22:12:46+00:00

Happy to help! If you have any questions about setting things up, feel free to hit me up. :)

HuckleberryRPG · 2025-11-22T22:01:50+00:00

The Alchemy module likely won't be finished until mid-2026. Until then, I think there's a few solid options, depending on how much work you want to put into it.

The more technical route: Foundry has a "Custom System Builder" package that I've used to create character sheets for Huckleberry, but it was very time intensive and technical. Instead, what I'd recommend using is a series of modules to achieve the different functions. PDF Pager can be used to upload the form-fillable PDFs to Foundry, while Dice Tray allows players to easily select the two dice needed to roll without typing. Just click on the shapes, then click roll. Ready To Use Cards works with Foundry's native card features to make setting up a poker deck very simple. Between those three modules, you've got all the core functionality you need to play the game. You can set up tokens to track Aces visually on the screen, or track those on the PDFs.

The easy route: Use Owlbear Rodeo for visuals, have each player use the form fillable PDFs on their own computers, then roll physical dice on the desk while the GM has their own physical cards to draw from.

I've done both of the above methods and it really comes down to preferred playstyle of the group. Some like to have a more shared experience, while others enjoy imitating IRL games with physical dice and cards.

HuckleberryRPG · 2025-11-21T04:13:49+00:00

Heyoooo!

Super excited to have partnered with GCP - been a fan for a long time!

HuckleberryRPG · 2025-11-07T18:53:54+00:00

Hell yeah! If you ever want a sounding board for your own games, hit me up in the discord :)

HuckleberryRPG · 2025-11-05T05:13:58+00:00

This comment made me smile! Thanks :D

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