RPG Books

2019 Silver ENnie for Best Game2019 ENnie nominee for Product of the Year2018 Indie Groundbreaker Award Game of the Year2019 IndieCade Europe Tabletop award Dialect is a game about an isolated community, their language, and what it means for that language to be lost. Dialect is a GM-less game for 3-5 players where you’ll tell the story of the Isolation by building their language. New words will come from the fundamental aspects of the community: who they are, what they believe in, and how they respond to a changing world. Players take away both the story they’ve told and the dialect they’ve built together. Includes hardcover book, deck of language generating cards used to play the game, and a free digital copy delivered immediately. "Dialect is fascinating and fun and innovative" -- Jason Morningstar (Fiasco, Night Witches) "A language-building story-telling thing of beauty" -- Jay Treat (Legacy of the Slayer, Strange Gravity) "This is a game about how culture, language and thought interact... and that is amazing!" -- Alex Roberts (Backstory Podcast)   What's Included 150 page hardcover and language generating deck, both gorgeously printed with professional layout and beautiful art. Playsets contributed by eleven world-class game designers, linguists, language creators, and generally-formidable humans Contributed chapter on language invention by David Peterson (author of The Art of Language Invention and language creator for HBO's Game of Thrones) A chapter on sustaining the world's language by Steven Bird, linguist, community organizer and champion for language vitality. Free printable play references availabe here. For some examples of play and more about Dialect, check out the podcast episode One Shot plays Dialect or the Waypoint by Vice article Playing the Birth and Death of Language in 'Dialect'.

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In The World We Left Behind, play as astronauts trekking across an alien planet. Learn about the planets flora and fauna while uncovering vestiges of the past. What happened to the sapient species that called this planet home? Why do only remnants of their lives remain?During this casual worldbuilding game, players draw symbols on playing cards to create a planet, populate it with traits, and uncover the mystery of the species that left this world behind. Tell a story of wonder, companionship, and legacy in the midst of a lonely planet.The World We Left Behind is GMless and designed for 1-5 players. The game is 44 pages long (including covers), there is zero prep needed to play, and a full game lasts 2-4 sessions. Alternate rules for one-shots are found in the back of the book.Instructions and templates for online, one-shot play are included in the digital bundle.To play The World We Left Behind, you will need the following:A standard deck of playing cards (these cards will be written on during play)At least one fine-tipped permanent markerA six-sided die (d6)A flat surfaceA few hours of time per sessionThe World We Left Behind was originally commissioned by BalletCollective to be used as Source Art in their 2023 season, THE MOMENT IS IMMINENT. Composer Phong Tran and choreographer Troy Schumacher played The World We Left Behind and used it as inspiration for the music and choreography of the ballet.

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