A downloadable game

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VECTOR CITY used to gleam, its wireframe skylines shimmering against a perpetual pixel sunset. But the Vector's heyday is long gone, and you — the ECHOES of this former metroscape — are left tending to the wreckage.

You’re no more special than any of the other stragglers stubborn enough to stick around; people here live hardscrabble lives full of risk and danger, and the difference between success and obliteration is as fickle as static in the wind. But without somebody to keep things running smoothly, it’s only a matter of time before the ghosts and the glitches and the corporate bastards eat away at every last bit of data and render this husk of a city entirely unrecognizable.

You won’t let it disappear without a fight.


DWINDLE is a fantastical cyberpunk tabletop role-playing game for one or more players. It can be played with a single GM, or multiple players facilitating and GMing for one another.

The following PDF includes all the guidance you need to play Dwindle, including:

  • A rules-light, flexible system great for one-shots and short form games
  • Streamlined character and setting creation to quickstart your game
  • Over a dozen tables of people, places, and mysteries to inspire and guide your city
  • Print-and-play character/reference sheets

For easy online play, check out Cybergrid, the Dwindle digital interface, designed and programmed by Tim Busuttil:


StatusReleased
CategoryPhysical game
Rating
Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars
(59 total ratings)
AuthorCaro Asercion
TagsCyberpunk, GM-Less, One-shot, poc-made, Post-apocalyptic, Robots, rules-lite, Sci-fi, Tabletop

Purchase

Buy Now$7.77 USD or more

In order to download this game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $7.77 USD. You will get access to the following files:

Dwindle singles.pdf 3 MB
Dwindle spreads.pdf 1 MB
Dwindle print and play character sheet.pdf 421 kB
Dwindle text only.pdf 436 kB

Exclusive content

Support this game at or above a special price point to receive something exclusive.

Donate a community copy

For $15 USD, you'll get a copy of Dwindle and also donate an additional community copy to the pool!

For every $7 above the base reward price, I'll add an additional copy as well (paying $22 will add two community copies, paying $29 will add three, etc)

Community Copies

Community copies of Dwindle are free on an honor system basis to those who cannot afford the game at its listed price.

If you have taken a community copy from the pool, consider — but do not feel obligated — taking a moment to leave a positive review, comment, or five-star rating to help boost the game's visibility.

QTPOC: if there are no community copies of the game listed and you would like a copy of the game and can't pay for it, send me a DM at @SeaExcursion on twitter and I will get you a download key, no questions asked.

Comments

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what is the unique mechanic at the core everyone is talking about?

(+3)

I introduced this to a couple friends of mine that have been stuck on D&D and Pathfinder for a long time and I've happy to give this a very big five star rating!

It's such a unique game mechanic at its core, and incredibly interesting of a twist - my players had a couple harder moments where they were discussing what it was best to use from whose grid, knowing there was an extended job up ahead of them and wanting to conserve their resources was a big feeling. They had quite a lot of fun with it, since it adds more risk than the systems they're used to.

We did wind up swapping out the "what's in your pockets" for the homebrew method of handling inventory that I've been using with them for a while - mostly because they like the freedom that method offers and are a bit attached, aha. 

There are a couple different ways I'm curious to see how it would work with shifting the grid around, so I fully intend to mess around with this some more - it certainly helps that the vibe and tone are absolutely my favorite combination of things, so I might even see how well I can run something set in my original 'verse with this too.

(+5)

I'm reading this and I am HYPED by its innovation, specifically the stat sheet. It is intuitive yet hackable, much like the tone and setting of the game.

Probably the most fun and interesting rpg mechanic I've seen in a while. 

The potential is high on this game, in that you could do:

- advancements by adding a bit or two on the square edge 
- conditions/effects that "shuts down" certain bits
- rearranging the bits into a different shape, to create new stats
- classes/jobs that have a weirder starting shape and many more!

(+2)

You could make a system of adventure fronts that uses the grid!