Planet Arcana is crowdfunding A Fool’s Errand, a new tarot-fueled science fantasy TTPRG on Kickstarter on October 22nd.

A Fool’s Errand uses tarot cards to tell an expansive science fantasy story over several phases.

First, the group collaborates on the Big Oops - the biggest calamity in this world’s history. Players pinpoint what the world lost when the previous Fools reached their journey’s zenith, and which Major Arcana consorted or clashed with each other along the way.

Then, players create their Fools - Android or Human characters who become intertwined with the Major Arcana gods (including those who had a hand in the Big Oops), and whose journeys are led by unique tarot decks built with choices made in character creation.

Finally, the player’s characters play in the post-calamity, exploring both the waking world, and the Dream & Digital Networks - the surrealistic subconscious realm of Humans & Androids, respectively. Both are places of heightened power and quantum knowledge accessible to the Fools.

Players’ unique decks determine success, failure, and when a Major Arcana can’t help itself but to intervene in the adventure. Characters always have the option to accept the obligations from the Gods, or deny them.

Can they keep the Gods in check, contend with calamity, and spare the world another Big Oops?

At a glance…

• For 4-6 players, including GM(s)
• Digest size soft-cover book
  • ~150 pages
  • Perfect bound book
  • Cover art by B Marsollier
• Large-scope worldbuilding and robust character creation
  • Suitable both for campaigns (3+ sessions) & one shots with an abundance of resources to tell a variety of stories
  • Create a unique and science fantasy world using provided locations, adventure seeds, and NPCs
  • Highly replayable and customizable with open-ended worldbuilding prompts and Session 0 aids to guide you down new paths each time
• Tarot-powered mechanics
  • Each player chooses a tarot deck to represent their character’s relationship to the gods and the world
  • Each obstacle asks players to draw from their decks, using the number on the card to determine the results. Watch out! Drawing a Major Arcana injects a heightened chaos to the story
  • Characters’ chosen abilities change the way players interact with the cards
  • Failures allow for improvement both to the character’s abilities and the player’s decks

Team

• Lead Designer: J Strautman (Contact, Insatiable Cravings)
• Designer & Art Director: B Marsollier (100% Modern Ghosts)
• Additional Development: Peter Marsollier (Planet Arcana)
• Editor: Samantha Leigh (Outliers, Anamnesis)
• Guest Writers & Additional Artists: TBD

The Game - Overview

Tell a sweeping science fantasy tale with your table.

The Big Oops

The group first collaborates on a prologue about the biggest calamity in recorded history.

The Big Oops was the result of Fools who came before and the Major Arcana who involved themselves in the lead-up to the calamity. During this phase, players draw Major Arcana cards to discover which gods were at war or in collaboration with each other as the world approached this impending disaster.

The setting manifests around the characters as players answer prompts about how the Big Oops shaped the world, what was lost, and how long afterwards their story begins.

Character Creation

Using this newly-crafted history as foundation, players then build their Fools by selecting three motivations, each tied to a different Major Arcana. Included among these choices are the key Major Arcana who involved themselves in the previous Big Oops.

Each Major Arcana has a list of motivations to choose from. These three selected motivations provide a springboard for players to conceptualize their character. The three chosen Major Arcana are then inserted into the player’s play decks.

Players then expand upon their character builds by selecting their Lineage (Human or Android), Archetypes, Skills, and Power Trees (a list of abilities themed after the Minor Arcana and branching into either Magic or Tech).

Each Fool is a mix of two Archetypes from a list of six: Influencer, Inquirer, Operator, Outlaw, Protector, and Virtuoso.

The Campaign

Then, the group is ready to begin the campaign. The GM now has a wealth of story resources, including pre-written adventure seeds, motivations established for each player’s character, and the effects of the Big Oops .

During the adventure, players draw from their tarot decks to determine success or failure. Drawing a Major Arcana card adds an element of escalation and themed chaos, as well as a tick in that player’s Obligation Track, bringing the group closer to their own calamity.

Characters pursue their motivations by exploring both the post-calamitous waking world and the Dream and Digital Networks.

All the while, the Major Arcana intervene, planting seeds for players to clarify and satisfy their requests, or “Obligations”.

As the Obligation Tracks fill up, the Fools flirt with godhood and draw closer to the advent of their own Big Oops.

Calamities

Obligation Tracks are a mark of the Major Arcana aiding, interfering, or simply taking credit for the character’s decisions. Once an Obligation Track to one Major Arcana has been filled, another neglected Major Arcana becomes jealous and incites a calamity - a world changing destructive event. During these events, the Fools become more powerful as they decide to ally with certain Major Arcana or deny them entirely.

How many calamities will the Fools incite as they build towards the greatest calamity of them all: another Big Oops?

A Fool’s Errand in Actual Play

A Fool’s Errand: The Network Defenders premiered alongside Planet Arcana’s announcement of the game. It’s a three part mini series, in audio format or with an accompanying bespoke visualizer.

Read about this series more on Rascal!