Tame Pokémon-like creatures in the Monster Wrangler tabletop RPG
Gotta wrangle them all!
Find and tame wild creatures in the upcoming tabletop roleplaying game Monster Wrangler.
A tabletop RPG featuring a roster of strange and powerful beings, Monster Wrangler sees players roaming different regions of a fictional world in search of new monster companions. With several similarities to the video game series Pokémon - which also has its own trading card game spin-off – including the fact that players are able to tame wild creatures and then send them into battle, Monster Wrangler provides players with the opportunity to befriend a wide selection of impressive beings.
Players can choose to be a child or adult Wrangler – another similarity to the Pokémon series – with groups in the tabletop RPG being made up of all child characters, all adults or sometimes a mixture of the two. The monsters that players tame can also be juveniles or adults, with the chance for them to learn new abilities or techniques as they grow older.
Whenever a player character encounters a monster, they will have to resolve conflict – whether to tame the creature or even just escape it – using a gameplay system that involves a dice pool. Players roll a number of d10s, depending on how accomplished their character is at the skill they’re attempting to perform, with results of at least seven or more equaling successes. Should players ever roll a 10 on any of their dice then the die ‘explodes’ and allows the player to add another die to their pool to be rolled. If the player manages to overcome the difficulty number, then they succeed in the conflict.
Players will have the opportunity to encounter 36 different monsters throughout their journey, with some being more dangerous than others. Just like in Pokémon, the creatures in Monster Wrangler are organised into a variety of different categories – sometimes multiple – to represent their abilities, strengths and weaknesses. The categories in Monster Wrangler include Light – where a monster uses a focused beam of light to attack – and Poison, as well as more bizarre examples like Tendril or Horn. Players can also choose to change their monsters’ typing if they want, changing the way that they act both in and out of conflict.
The creatures in Monster Wrangler have their own primary and secondary traits alongside their types, providing new options for players to overcome challenges in the fantasy TRPG. Besides their physical aspects, monsters have their own unique personalities as well – which is randomly decided whenever players first meet them.
Monster Wrangler is set to be published by Blackout Games, with artwork created by Alyssa Menold, Victor Puentes, Blaise Rhein and Elaine Crawford.
The Kickstarter campaign for Monster Wrangler is live until July 25th, with a pledge of $50 (£41) getting backers a copy of the physical book in July 2023. Alternatively, a digital version of the book is available for a pledge of $15 (£13).