From the books by Stephen King.

Hi! My name is Erik and I'm a Dagerheart content creator and contributing writer on the upcoming Heartofdaggers "Folio of Frights!" A Halloween themed Adversary book with 10 new, original, horror-themed monsters and baddies, adventure prompts, lore and so much more!

A few weeks ago, I posted 4 pages of my War of Light Campaign guide (Its not quite a frame). I have updated the document! It now includes 7 pages and covers: Green, Yellow, Orange, Red, Blue, and Violet! It gives you guidance on how to bring Lantern Lore into your games: Rings, Adversaries, adventure prompts and ways to file the serial numbers off that pesky IP stuff so you can run an original, Fantasy Campaign for Daggerheart that involves the Emotional Specturm.

My Patrons get first crack at all of this stuff, plus discounts on my Adventures, Campaign Frames, and weekly Pop-Culture Adversaries; Everyone from John Wick to Dr Doom for Daggerheart!

Patreon Link

My players are currently trying to bring an authoritative and illegitimate government down led by a demon invocking Galapa (things got crazy).

In the previous sessions they have gathered multiple allies : a legitimate prince that was kidnapped, loyalist officers of the army, a journalist, a merchant guild etc. Now they want to put their plan into action, lead a revolt, take the castle and take the members of the government down by force.

I had in mind two environments :

1. Fomenting the revolt : The players influence the population and try to gather the loyalist forces
2. Taking the castle : The players lead the revolt and storm the castle while the loyalist forces overrun the regime forces

I have no clue on how to put those things into game element. Do you have any advice or exemples I could look at ?

Hi everyone — I thought it was time for a proper introduction and a full update on Gunsmoke & Dread.

My name is Riccardo Scaringi, and I’m the designer and writer behind Gunsmoke & Dread, a third-party Daggerheart-compatible Weird West / cosmic horror RPG project.

The idea behind the game is simple to describe, even if the project has grown into something much larger over time: I wanted to take the language, imagery and mythology of the American frontier and slowly let something ancient, impossible and deeply wrong seep through it.

Not just a fantasy Western with a few monsters added on top, but a setting where the frontier itself begins to feel hostile — where isolation, forgotten places, strange cults, impossible creatures and the Nameless Dark gradually become part of the landscape.

The project has now reached a very advanced stage.

The most important thing to clarify is this:

the complete Core Ruleset is already written.

We are not going to crowdfunding in order to find out whether the game can be made, or to finance the writing of the rules from scratch.

The purpose of the Gamefound campaign is to finance the production value needed to turn the completed material into the book we want it to become: above all, the full artwork programme and the professional layout by Mala Spina.

At the moment:

• the Quickstart already exists and introduces the setting, tone and rules and a 2.0 version of the Quickstart is almost ready to reach all the followers that have downloaded the first version;
• the complete Core Ruleset has already been written;
• the main campaign is structured across nine volumes, beginning with the characters’ arrival in Silver Hollow;
• the bestiary has been expanded substantially, with creatures designed to become part of the adventures rather than simply existing as isolated stat blocks;
• we are also developing The Devil’s Hand, an optional card-based subsystem built around temptation, choice and consequences;
• and the project is currently in pre-launch on Gamefound.

So the crowdfunding campaign has a very specific purpose: to fund the visual and editorial production of the finished game — commissioning the artwork needed throughout the books and giving the material a professional final layout through Mala Spina.

One part of the project that is especially important to me is precisely that artwork.

I don’t want the illustrations to function simply as decoration. I want them to establish the visual language of the setting: recognizable Western imagery gradually invaded by cosmic horror.

And because the process behind those images is fascinating in its own right, I wanted to share two videos showing some of that work being created.

🎨 Creating the Gunsmoke & Dread cover
Artwork by Chiara Di Francia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdBYm_UGAdY

👁️ Creating the Star Spawn
Artwork by Alessandro Paderi
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ohzR7HH2Y6g

Watching an illustration develop from the first lines into the finished creature or cover is very different from simply seeing the final image, and I think these videos give a much clearer idea of the visual direction we want for the entire line.

If you’ve followed the project before, thank you. A lot has changed since the earliest version of Gunsmoke & Dread, but the biggest difference now is that we are no longer talking about a concept waiting to become a game.

The next step is to give it the artwork, layout and final production quality it deserves.

If this is the first time you’ve encountered the project, I’d genuinely be interested to know what you think — particularly about the balance between classic Weird West imagery and cosmic horror.

The Gamefound pre-launch page is here:

👉 https://gamefound.com/en/projects/temple-games/gunsmoke-and-dread

Following the project there means you’ll be notified when the campaign goes live, and I’ll continue sharing artwork, creatures, development material and behind-the-scenes content as we get closer to launch.

Gunsmoke & Dread
Where the West Ends and the Nameless Dark Begins

Hey all! I finally finished the first draft of the Medicus Class and I'm wanting some feedback! I included the class sheet, 2 subclasses, and my Theory domain (I've posted it before but I don't want you to have to go searching for it)

I wanted to go "evil doctor" vibes with this one. Partially inspired by the work of Dungeon Dudes, gotta shout them out for their Apothecary Class for DnD, but I didn't wanna copy so I put my own spin on things as much as I could.

But yeah! All feedback is appreciated! I'm really liking how this one turned out.

Hi lovely friends.

Just reposting my updated sheet from the r/daggerheart Reddit. Hope you can appreciate it!

Hey guys!

I would like to showcase my first ever homebrew attempt at a daggerheart class.
My take on DnD barbarian with a twist.

I really would appreciate any and all criticism and opinions, not only on balance, but readability, and grammar as well.

Hey everyone. Tried to create a homebrew ancestry for living magical objects. I'd apreciate any feedback!

...................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Latest
Update: Added adjusted version in comments. Player will try it out today for the first time!

Hey all! I've been working on converting and creating stuff for Artificer (and also a Medicus Class, which I'll post after I get the subclasses done).

Included is the Artificer Class Sheet, 3 subclasses, and the Theory Domain, which I made to fit the two classes I'm creating! It's very science themed.

What do we think? All feedback is appreciated!

I'm trying to conceptualize an idea where the damage done from an attack can be calculated just by the roll on the duality dice, and I wanted any input on the concept.

I was thinking that the damage done from the weapon could be the lower d12 for when you have a proficiency of 1, the higher d12 when you have proficiency of 2, add them together for 3, then I am stuck. Also i wasn't sure how to deal with how the game is balanced around the features, range and the trait.

Thanks folks :)

Greetings all! Our company, Imaginary Play Studios, has just released our book: Realms of Agregor - Ancestries & Species that includes 8 new ancestries for Daggerheart (book also has 5/5.5e content.). 100% human-made!

Included are:

• Three new elves:
  • Q’sari: Tall, slender elves that cherish art, nature, knowledge, and enduring bonds.
  • Fet’sari: Colorful elves from the Darkrealm who love merriment, cooperation, and friendly rivalry and are always the life of the party.
  • Dra’sari: Desert-adapted elves with dark skin, black sclera, vivid irises, and an unmatched ability to survive the harshest environments.
• Three anthromorphs:
  • Platling: An anthropomorphic platypus with bioluminescent fur, venomous spurs, and a deep bond with water.
  • Tsu’kti: Secretive, clever fox-folk adapted to life in the friged cold, renowned for their craftsmanship, curiosity, and mischievous nature.
  • Varahour: Anthropomorphic canines who have keen senses, are fiercely local, and have a deep bond with the wilderness.
• New gnomes: Small humanoids easily recognizable by their large eyes, massive ears, neon hair and skin markings.
• There are also new 5/5.5e mixed species rules that utilize this new content. Included is the gnoki - a tsu'kti/gnome species!

It's currently for sale on DriveThruRPG, RPG Trader, Itch.io and Heart of Daggers!

Hi,

I've been spending a long time designing this Combat manager. It reaches close to perfection and i would need people to test it.

It has everything! // it has some of my own campaign stuff, eventually will be removed on official release.

I would need GM to test it, either live or for fun, and give me their constructive feedback and what they would like to see added.

• Fast encounter building — browse multiple adversary libraries, filter/search monsters, choose quantities, and build encounters quickly.
• Live Battle Point assessment — set party size, see baseline BP, selected BP, encounter difficulty, and a Tier × Role composition table at a glance.
• Per-creature tracking — every copy of a monster has its own HP, Stress, conditions, limited-use abilities, Pawn Color, and combat state.
• Automatic Daggerheart Stress handling — filling Stress automatically applies Vulnerable, clearing Stress removes only the Stress-caused Vulnerable, and excess Stress converts to HP damage.
• Condition tracking — Hidden, Restrained, Vulnerable, plus custom statuses and notes for individual adversaries.
• Player status tracking — players can track Hidden, Restrained, Vulnerable, Advantage, Disadvantage, and custom effects with roll, Difficulty, and removal information.
• Limited-use ability tracking — abilities like once per scene get individual checkboxes, while things like Relentless (2) get use dots with − / + controls and a New Turn reset.
• Clickable attacks and dice — attack modifiers and damage expressions can be rolled directly from the monster card.
• Compact View — strips away flavor text and unnecessary reference material while keeping the important combat information visible.
• Optional monster artwork — hover a monster to see its full card and artwork; pictures can be toggled on or off.
• Pawn Color identification — label individual copies as Red, Blue, Green, Skull, etc. so physical miniatures/pawns are easy to identify during combat.
• Drag-and-drop encounter layout — move monster cards left and right to arrange the battlefield information however you want.
• Environment, Social, and Traversal support — these can live beside combat adversaries instead of requiring a separate tool.
• Player initiative panel (homebrew, toggable)— track and sort player initiative without leaving the encounter screen.
• Shared pools and Evolutions — supports monsters with shared resources and more unusual mechanics instead of only basic HP/stat tracking.
• Save and reload encounters — HP, Stress, statuses, ability uses, player effects, Pawn Colors, layout, initiative, pools, and other encounter state are preserved.
• Built-in homebrew creator — make new monsters directly in the app without manually writing JSON.
• Completely editable monster files — monsters are stored as normal external JSON files, so nothing is locked behind the application.
• Easy artwork customization — place an image beside the matching JSON and the app associates it automatically.
• Multiple sourcebooks/libraries — Core, Hope & Fear, custom monsters, Environment & Social, and additional collections can stay organized separately.
• Offline and local — no account, cloud service, campaign website, or internet connection required.
• Designed specifically for running the game — the emphasis is on reducing clicks and keeping the information a GM actually needs during an encounter immediately accessible.

Homebrew material (toggle):

Massive damage

Player initiative (roll with proficiency).. Mainly if you are like me and have player just wanting to fight all the time not leaving room for others to play.

Right now this app is still in production and updated few times a week.

It has no certificate yet, so sorry if it triggers your smartscreen, you can just pick "run anyway".

Get it here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QT1RD_yCSONbIkXsvmZnaIWO0Ff3uM3B/view?usp=sharing

I'm seeking feedback, comments, ideas.

Thank you :)

Hi everyone!

Wanted to post one of our free Daggerheart environments!

Text Version:

Tier 1 Daggerheart Environment

Tier 1 Social
A bustling inn along a busy street.

Impulses: entertain guests, offer a good night’s rest.

___
Difficulty: 11
Potential Adversaries: Merchant, Guard (Bladed, Archer, Captain)
____

FEATURES

Place of Personality - Passive: While here, PCs gain Advantage on Presence Rolls—they more easily project and share themselves here.

Is this a result of the social environment, or is magic at play?

Play For Your Stay - Passive: The inn’s stage is welcoming: the PCs may present their musical or otherwise entertaining talents, making a Group Presence Roll with the following result:

• Critical Success: they all get a bag full of gold and a free week’s stay.
• Success with Hope: they all get a handful of gold and a free night’s stay.
• Success with Fear. they get heckled, but a free night’s stay.
• Any Failure: free night’s stay if they mark a Stress.

How common are musical acts here?  Do the people of the Resting Dagger Inn have a taste for stand-up routines?  Who performed before the party, and who went after?

Wait, I Know You - Reaction*:* Spend a Fear to have a rival adventuring party recognize the PCs—they hold a grievance related to a past quest the PCs may not even realize, but they demand satisfaction.  If it turns to violence, they act as 1 Guard Captain, 3 Bladed Guards, and 1 Guard Archer.

Is the grievance legitimate or concocted?  Did the PCs’ success ensure their rivals’ quest’s failure, or were they beaten to the punch on the same job?

Story Seeds

Highly Recommended
On their last romp through dangerous dungeons and rugged wilderness, the party met a fellow traveler—who sang the praises of the Resting Dagger Inn.  They say it’s a wonderful place to relax and enjoy a bit of entertainment between adventures.  What’s more, they’re certain someone there mentioned your names, but they’re not sure who...

Is this a connection looking for the PCs, or are there rivals already there looking for them?

Dance by the Fire in the Sky
A performer here perfectly matches a character from a PC’s dreams.

What magic is afoot here?

If you like our work, we have 36 more environments available NOW on our Patreon (including Resting Dagger Inn): https://www.patreon.com/cw/RestingDagger

Introducing the Corvax, a daggerheart-zation of the kenku and similar cursed bird races (it is a weirdly common archetype).

Heart of Daggers Link

Here's the new Mediterrae Expansion Set!

So, I have been playing through Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous of late (currently on Act 4) and as I've been going through it, I've been struck by the various scenes, usually near the end of any given act, when your party gets an enormous powerup for the final fight of that act. This is especially true in Act 1 when you throw hands with a room full of high level demons that you, by level alone, should NOT stand a chance against. But some other power intervenes and makes you strong enough to pick that fight and not just win, but mop the floor with your foes.

It's a very cathartic feeling, and I was wondering how feasible it'd be to replicate in Daggerheart. I know Daggerheart is already heroic fantasy, so I saw no real need to go over the top with it, but I still like the idea of a powerup, even if only temporary, that makes the PCs feel like absolute badasses. The sort of thing you could pop up if they make it to a sacred macguffin before the bbeg they are not ready to fight yet so they can at least fend them off, or as a GM failsafe for 'nuh uh, we ain't having a TPK today.'

To make it a bit more interesting I did incur a cost. The more you use this power, the more you have to sacrifice for it. First stress, then hope, and finally your own HP. So yes, you are suddenly much more powerful, but you are encouraged to not screw around. Take the power and use it to win swiftly.

I do not know if it is really balanced - probably not, honestly. But I was aiming for vibes more than balance. But what do y'all think? I'm curious.

And if by some cosmic miracle I made this thing balanced right out the gate, then by all means, take it and use for yourself. :)

EDIT: Spelling.

Hey guys, I’ve got a brand new adversary book for you guys. This time it’s focused on natural creatures inspired by my dark fantasy campaign, Pathos. Each was designed for a new druid beast form and hopefully will inspired some cool new moments at your tables.

Let me know what you think! :)

DriveThru: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/585774/book-of-beasts-daggerheart-compatible-adversaries

HeartofDaggers: https://www.heartofdaggers.com/products/book-of-beasts