I may be a little late to this particular dungeon crawl, but after years of wandering the fantasy RPG landscape, I think I’ve finally found MY game.
There are moments in a geek’s life when you have to hold your hands up and admit that, just occasionally, everyone else might have been onto something before you. In all truth, for me it wouldn’t be the first time and I doubt that it will be the last.
While the tabletop roleplaying world has been singing the praises of the Shadowdark Roleplaying Game for the past couple of years, I’ve been doing what I do best: arriving fashionably late to the party, looking around, and asking where the snacks are.
Shadowdark has won me over. Completely, unexpectedly and with rather alarming enthusiasm, it has become my fantasy roleplaying game of choice. And yes, as I’ve said, I realise I’m a little late to the party. In my defence, I’ve been busy creating unnatural horrors, promoting suspicious government cover-ups and generally trying not to let my players become too insane in Delta Green. A chap can only create so much cosmic dread before he fancies a return to his first loves – fantasy, some dungeons and the occasional dragon.
So, what’s the big deal about Shadowdark?
There’s something wonderfully refreshing about Shadowdark. It takes the bits of roleplaying that stokes this forever Geek’s fantasy fire — dangerous dungeons, mysterious ruins, strange monsters, questionable decisions and treasure that probably isn’t worth the risk — and in the strips away much of the unnecessary faff.
Now don’t get me wrong, because this isn’t going to be a dirge of dislike for all things D&D 5e. On the contrary, I firmly believe (despite the best efforts of the associated powers that be) 5e/5e2025/5e.5/insert other name here, can still be incredible and has a lot to offer. If one it hadn’t become quite so bloated, crunchy and corporatised.
I wanted something more, but at the same time, something less………and then I fell in love with Shadowdark. This is a game that feels immediately understandable without feeling too lite and simplistic. It has that old-school dungeon-crawling spirit, where the world is dangerous, resources matter, and a clever plan can be worth considerably more than spending 20 minutes reading through and deciphering your spell description.
Did I mention the game has darkness? Not just the metaphorical darkness of an ancient civilisation collapsing under the weight of its own hubris, or the existential darkness of discovering that the thing you’ve just disturbed has been waiting beneath the earth for several thousand years. Actual literal darkness.
Light matters – so when your source of illumination is burning down, standing around debating the finer points of tactical positioning suddenly seems a little less appealing. Dark vision doesn’t exist here, and therefore is no longer the get-out-of-jail feature that it has been. It’s a beautifully simple idea, but one that changes the feel of an adventure, both in planning and playing. A dungeon becomes somewhere to explore rather than merely a collection of rooms waiting to be cleared. Every corridor might contain treasure, danger or something that makes you wish you’d stayed at the inn.
Less spreadsheet, more sword-and-sorcery
One of the things I’ve come to appreciate is how easily Shadowdark gets to the good stuff. You create a character, gather your friends, grab your dice and get on with the adventure. There’s room for clever thinking, imaginative roleplaying and the occasional spectacularly poor decision. All of which often take place in my gaming group (you know who you are!).
It also encourages the sort of storytelling I love as a GM. A room doesn’t have to be a complicated mechanical puzzle to be memorable. A strange sound in the darkness, a suspicious statue, a locked door or a pile of bones can be enough to set the players’ imaginations running. The players supply the theories. The GM supplies the consequences.
And sometimes those consequences involve some lethal combat…… or very fast running away.
That balance is what has really hooked me. Shadowdark gives me the tools to create an exciting fantasy adventure, without making me feel that I need to prepare a small encyclopaedia before anyone can sit down at the table.
So, how does Shadowdark differ from you-know-who?
If you’re coming from Dungeons & Dragons 5e or Pathfinder, Shadowdark feels a little like someone has taken the familiar fantasy RPG toolkit, removed a few layers of administrative paperwork and reminded everyone that dungeons are supposed to be dangerous places.
Character abilities and tactical options are generally more streamlined, the rules put a greater emphasis on player ingenuity, and the real-time torch timer means that light is a precious resource rather than a minor detail on your equipment list.
Spellcasting is riskier, resources matter, and a clever idea can be every bit as valuable as a character’s next level-up. The great news is that there are no spell slots – you can use a spell as many times to your little player’s heart content….hurrah!!!….But erm, the bad news is that you roll each time to pass a spell casting check, and if fail you can’t use it again until after a long rest……..NOOOOOO!!!!
Compared with the more mechanically detailed, character-build-heavy approach that Pathfinder offers, or the broader heroic progression many players enjoy in D&D 5e, Shadowdark leans into fast-moving, old-school adventure where the emphasis is on exploration, tension and making decisions with incomplete information.
Now, I could give you a dry, point-by-point breakdown of initiative, spellcasting, armour classes, character progression and the various mechanical differences between the systems. But honestly? Boring!
There are plenty of excellent videos and articles that will happily dissect every rule until the proverbial cows come home. I’d rather tell you what it feels like to play Shadowdark, why it has grabbed me by the scruff of the neck. The rules matter, of course — but the stories we create around the table are what make us come back for another session.
Our next adventure
Naturally, having discovered my new fantasy RPG obsession, the sensible thing to do would be to take it for a gentle spin. Perhaps a quiet little village. A few friendly locals. A missing cat.
Instead, our next session will take us into some deep dark forest, perhaps even jungle, abandoned villages and temples with dungeons…….many dungeons. Because apparently I have learned nothing.
The adventure takes the group into the remains of an ancient civilisation, where ruined chambers, forgotten treasures and unsettling secrets await. There are strange murals, deadly traps, abandoned rooms, hostile inhabitants and the lingering sense that something very unpleasant has made itself at home.
The things Shadowdark has inspired me to create practically begs players to investigate things they would be much better off leaving alone. What lies behind that door? Why is there blood in that bowl? Is that statue actually moving, or have we simply been playing for too long? And, most importantly, how much treasure is enough treasure when the alternative is being turned into a smear on an ancient stone floor?
The adventure promises exactly the kind of fantasy escapade I want from Shadowdark: exploration, atmosphere, dangerous encounters and plenty of opportunities for the party to make decisions that will either be remembered fondly for years or brought up at every subsequent gaming session as evidence of someone’s spectacular incompetence.
I’m very much looking forward to finding out which.
Meet the adventurers
Every great fantasy adventure needs a suitably questionable band of heroes. Fortunately, our latest expedition has three characters ready to venture into the darkness.
Iraga — Half-Orc Priest
Iraga brings a little divine authority to proceedings. A priest can be a reassuring presence in a dangerous dungeon, particularly when the rest of the party is considering whether a suspicious altar might make a comfortable place to rest. Of course, being a half-orc means Iraga is hardly short on physical presence either. Faith, fortitude and a willingness to get stuck in could prove invaluable when the citadel begins revealing its less welcoming inhabitants.
Whether the gods will be listening when things go horribly wrong remains to be seen.
Jorbin — Dwarf Fighter
Jorbin is a dwarf fighter, which sounds like a reassuringly straightforward proposition. There is something comforting about having a sturdy dwarf with martial experience on your side when the corridor ahead is suspiciously quiet. Jorbin is our party’s frontline muscle — the sort of character you want nearby when negotiations have failed, the monster is advancing and someone has just announced that they would like to try something “a little risky”.
I suspect Jorbin may have some opinions about that last part.
Creeg — Human Wizard
Creeg brings the arcane arts to the party. Wizards are wonderfully useful adventuring companions, capable of turning an impossible situation into a merely terrible one. They also have a habit of making everyone nervous when they start examining mysterious objects, muttering strange words or suggesting that the party would benefit from just one more look at the obviously cursed thing.
In places where we are going, magical knowledge could be the difference between uncovering an ancient secret and becoming a footnote in someone else’s archaeological report. Let’s hope Creeg remembers that some things are best left unexplained.
Three adventurers. One very bad place to visit.
On paper, we’ve got a priest, a fighter and a wizard. A solid little adventuring party, with divine support, martial muscle and magical potential. In practice, we have three players with low Hit points (yes, Shadowdark as a dark sense of humour), dungeons full of surprises and a GM who knows where at least some of the unpleasant things are hiding. He may also know a few of the rules as well.
What could possibly go wrong? I shall, of course, be entirely impartial. Mostly.
Why Shadowdark has become my fantasy RPG of choice
I’ve played and run plenty of tabletop roleplaying games over the years. Different systems have different strengths, and I’m certainly not suggesting that Shadowdark is the only game worth playing. But it has found a sweet spot for me.
I want fantasy adventures that feel dangerous without becoming bogged down. I want players to solve problems through imagination as well as character abilities. I want the tension of a dark corridor, the excitement of discovering something unexpected and the glorious uncertainty of not knowing whether the next dice roll will save the day or make everything considerably worse. Shadowdark delivers that in a package that feels easy to pick up and exciting to run.
It also reminds me of something important: tabletop roleplaying isn’t about playing safe and getting everything right. It’s about creating stories with your friends. The near misses, the unexpected victories, the terrible plans and the moments when everyone around the table starts laughing because things have gone so spectacularly wrong.
The Forever Geek is going dungeon crawling
So, yes. I’m late to Shadowdark. Not fashionably late, perhaps. More the sort of late where the party has finished, the host is stacking chairs and someone is wondering why you’ve turned up carrying a bag of dice. But I’m here now, and I’m thoroughly enjoying myself.
Our journey is the next step. Three adventurers, a dangerous ancient ruin or two and a beast or two that sounds as though they might have something to say about uninvited guests.
I’ll be sharing how the campaign develops, the memorable moments, the close calls and, inevitably, the occasions when the party demonstrates that adventurers are often their own worst enemies.
Because that’s the joy of tabletop roleplaying. You can read the rules, prepare the adventure and make all the plans you like. Then the players arrive. And everything changes.
Let me know your thoughts
Have you played Shadowdark RPG?
Is it your fantasy game of choice, or are you still loyal to another system? Let us know in the comments. We’d love to hear your experiences.
After all, forewarned is forearmed…..Though in this case, perhaps forewarned is simply a slightly longer way of saying ‘run’.
Until next time, keep rolling those dice — and watch where you point that torch.
About Shadowdark
Kelsey Dionne is a critically-acclaimed new and old-school TTRPG designer who founded The Arcane Library® in 2017.
Her modernized take on OSR gaming, Shadowdark® RPG, launched on Kickstarter in 2023 and funded for $1.3 million.
In 2024, Shadowdark RPG won the Three Castles Award for best role-playing game design, as well as four gold ENNIEs for Product of the Year, Best Game, Best Rules, and Best Layout and Design.
Shadowdark’s latest upcoming release, the Western Reaches campaign setting, funded for $2.4 million on Kickstarter in April 2024.
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