SNAIL KNIGHTS

SNAIL KNIGHTS is GMless TTRPG for 2+ players. Players will take on the role of Snail Knights, noble Knights who mount sacred snails and engage in an elaborate tournament for fame and glory! Inspired by the Medieval scribes fascination with putting Snails like... everywhere, and a few knights mixed in too, SNAIL KNIGHTS is a silly romp through an unbelievably silly tournament. 

It is time to prove your mettle and the strength of your soul, Snail Knight! Take up your righteous sword and your valiant Snail to gain Renown from the layfolk and royals alike! And, who knows, maybe even catch the eye of an eligible royal to marry or a charming commoner... It's your choice to make! 

What's so cool about SNAIL KNIGHTS? 

There are so many cool TTRPGs out there. Here's some of what I think makes SNAIL KNIGHTS kind of neat: 

• Silly, over-the-top (Snail) Knight action, all contained within an easy-to-run one-shot format. 
• GMless system, so everyone gets to be a whacky little knight riding a snail! 
• Remember doing collages in school? Well, this is kind of that, dialled up to 11! Filled with a bunch of illustrated medieval manuscripts that are filled with all the rules you'll need.
• You literally are a knight who rides snails in a tournament I don't know what else will convince you if not that.

What you will need

To play a game of SNAIL KNIGHTS you will need: 

• A way to read the PDF or, if you happen to be in Toronto, Canada, the chance to possibly grab a small printing of this book!
• For rolling on the many tables within the booklet, you'll need a d8, d12, and d20. For rolling in the various competition you'll want 2d6 readily at hand. These can be real life math rocks or just digital rollers.
• Character Sheets (COMING SOON, I THINK) for the players or a sheet of paper to keep track of important information about your Snail Knight. 
• Something to take notes on and write with

Content Warning and Themes

Themes: Nobility, Knighthood, Chivalry, Silliness, Snails, Competition.

SNAIL KNIGHTS intentionally set up to be an absurd little game that doesn't take much of any of itself seriously. However, as is possible with anything, one should always keep their own mental health at the forefront. This game has religious tones with plenty of Christian iconography and illustrations, which may be unpleasant or triggering for some folks. 

As with any game, please be attentive to yourself and your table's emotional state during play. Take breaks, laugh and cry should those feelings bubble up, and be valiant little Snail Knights! 

Attribution

This game owes a great debt to a bunch of long dead monks who drew silly things whose names are many and I don't really know them all. However, most would probably hate me as a queer pagan, so, y'know, think we're even there. The majority of the artwork comes from the amazing collection of works over at the New York Public Library Digital Collection.  

The game actually getting done is thanks to the great little Game Jam Illuminated Manuscripts TTRPG Jam. If you want to check out other TTRPGs brought to life with whacky little Medieval Manuscript illustrations, you can check out the fellow submissions Here. 

What's to come...

SNAIL KNIGHTS is structurally done, fully functional, unplaytested, scrappily collaged together Weirdness ready to be played. I still have a list of things I'd like to do, and I'll list them here for those interested. Once they're fully completed, I'll put out a DevLog about it. 

• Another round of edits and revision
• Redo the first half to cut back on Generic Page Usage for core rules.
• Polish up some of the collage pieces. They're always going to look like a toddler plastered together a bunch of Medival texts, but, like, a little nicer this time. 
• Some playtests + gathering feed + integrating that feedback.  

The game is still very much playable with a bit of duct tape! If you have the chance to play it, feel free to let me know about your experiences! I'd love to hear them. And if you do draw your Snail Knight's Coat of Arms, show me at Marrensmusings on Twitter!