In swamp horror TRPG Gravemire, alligators are the least of your problems

Survive a myriad of horrors haunting the Louisiana swamps in Gravemire, an upcoming tabletop roleplaying game set in the Bayou.

Taking place in 1894, Gravemire is a horror RPG that’s focused around the terrors of living in a deadly swamp within the state of Louisiana. Known for alligators and sinking mud, the Bayou has become that much stranger thanks to unknowable horrors that lurk in its depths - causing the backwaters to stretch on for a seemingly endless expanse. As outsiders to the rural town of Scarstone, the player characters will have to survive the consequences of the event that caused this terrible transformation - the Convulsion.

Even though Scarstone has managed to continue thanks to a magical barrier that protects it from the sinister forces that stalk beyond its borders, the town has changed. In the roleplaying game, the players must create characters who have a reason to enter the doomed town of Scarstone - whether they’re researchers interested in the Convulsion or a monster hunter looking for their next job.

Rather than assigning numbers to set attributes and skills, like in many roleplaying games, players create their characters by allocating various points to whatever skills they invent. Specific skills - such as map making or fishing - won’t cost too much to take, whilst more general skills like shooting and athletics will be more expensive. Players can also choose to take fears or weaknesses in exchange for more skill points, with the games master - or the Dealer - able to exploit these at appropriate moments.

The RPG takes place in two different phases - play within the border and play beyond the border. Whenever players decide to venture out into the Bayou, they’ll be working together to complete whatever job they’ve taken and survive the dangers of the swamp. Staying alive means taking care of both health and willpower, with every encounter risking the livelihood of both these stats. Should the party make it back to Scarstone, then the player characters can enjoy some downtime to rest, restock and remember their experiences - before going out into the Bayou once again.

Gravemire was created by David Gales, alongside lead illustrator and art director Sara Belote. The RPG is being released by Clawhammer Games, with Gravemire being the studio’s debut title.

The Kickstarter campaign for Gravemire is live until October 1st, with a pledge of $40 (£29) getting backers a copy of a paperback version of the RPG book that’s estimated to arrive in February 2022. Alternatively, a digital copy of the game is available for a pledge of $20 (£15).