Dungeons & Dragons isn’t piratey enough for you? Would you rather play One Piece, Pirates of the Caribbean or Monkey Island? Then you should take a look at Rapscallion.
Arrrr, this pen&paper is definitely not for landlubbers: Rapscallion transports you to the high seas, where you and your friends form a pirate crew, fight monsters, conquer treasures and uncover the secrets of the oceans.
The role-playing game was created by Magpie Games (Avatar Legends, Root, Cartel) and is currently being financed via the crowdfunding platform BackerKit. All but one of the stretch goals have already been reached. Especially cool: You can download a first guide directly for free. We have all the info for you!
What’s inside Rapscallion
Rapscallion (old word for “rogue”) wants to pick up fans of Pirates of the Caribbean, One Piece, Our Flag Means Death, Sinbad and Monkey Island The rules are based on Powered by the Apocalypse, a system based on moves instead of classic skills and so-called role books as classes, which sets it apart from Dungeons & Dragons and the like. Dice are rolled exclusively with D6
In Rapscallion you can play as a captain, swashbuckler, navigator, gunslinger or ship surgeon (with a large cleaver), for example. More classes are yet to be added. However, the world is only loosely based on historical pirates; there is also magic, sea monsters and so on The exact setting is determined by the game group itself
A basic rulebook already exists and you can download it directly for free: Click here for the digital quickstarter set Please note that you will need to create an account on the drivethrurpg.com website to download it.
What is being crowdfunded? Rapscallion will also be published as a physical book series, with matching dice, a game guide screen and so on. An overview of all rewards for backers can be found at BackerKit.com The campaign has already reached 153,014 US dollars, at least 25,000 were needed. This means that almost all stretch goals have been reached, such as additional adventures and ships with special rules
When will all this be released? The rewards for backers are scheduled to be sent out in March or April 2025. It is not yet clear when the items will end up in the store, but this should happen shortly afterwards. According to Magpie Games, almost all the texts have already been written.
Are you interested in Rapscallion’s pirate rulebook? Have you already had experience with Powered by the Apocalypse and if so, how did you like it? Or do you personally prefer to stick to dragons, chain mail and swords like in classic D&D, DSA or Pathfinder? Let us know what you think!
