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ZWEIHÄNDER Grim and Perilous is a dark fantasy role-playing game, loosely based on the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay tabletop system. Set for release in autumn of 2012, ZWEIHÄNDER embraces the dark and gritty nature of older RPGs of yore while simultaneously providing many modern advances found in today's roleplaying game industry. The finished product will be "world-agnostic", universally adaptable for any low or dark fantasy campaign (similar to GURPS). ZWEIHÄNDER will be made available as a print on demand product, physical books available on Amazon, a full PDF digital release with a living ruleset.

Come check us out over at GrimAndPerilous.com (http://www.grimandperilous.com) or Like our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous) for daily updates!


Best,
Daniel

Zweihänder, really?
What made you choose that name?

The name seems okay to me.

please keep us updated here--i no longer have a facebook account but am intrigued by your upcoming game.

Quote from: Phantom Black;558649Zweihänder, really?
What made you choose that name?

It's analogous to Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite.asp?eidm=93), it has an umlaut and sounds sort of "metal". :cool:

But seriously, I really dig the name. It was actually upon the suggestion of a forum goer over at Strike to Stun. Although it's a fun title, the living ruleset will be released as Grim & Perilous (http://www.grimandperilous.com). We've been considering releasing a "rules lite/no art" edition, inspired by Lamentations of the Flame Princess.

Best,
Daniel

Quote from: beeber;558653please keep us updated here--i no longer have a facebook account but am intrigued by your upcoming game.

Will do! I am going to share all of the information posts both on our home page (http://www.grimandperilous.com/) Grim & Perilous and on Facebook.


Cheers,
Daniel

So WFRP Dnd? So tell me more, I'm not convinced currently.  Tell does it have careers? Dance monkee you know you want to pimp your game, dance, details already! :D

the character sheet linked on your home page is pretty cool.  something about it reminds me more of Rogue Trader as opposed to WFRP--but i'm only versed in the 1st edition of the latter.  regardless, it's good to have fantasy alternatives; i think i'm pretty much over anything d&d at this point (WoW scratches my class/level itch just fine).

Quote from: Marleycat;558695So WFRP Dnd? So tell me more, I'm not convinced currently.  Tell does it have careers? Dance monkee you know you want to pimp your game, dance, details already! :D

Professions (careers) are the baseline of character creation. There are over 62 Professions in the core game. Here's a link to the complete professions list (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Professions_List.pdf).

Each profession receives 2 unique Professional Traits that only they receive upon character creation. These traits are a reflection of their profession's focus, enjoying truly unique benefits that aren't necessarily about fiddly math bonuses. Fiddly math is for the birds! Although you do not get to choose your 2 professional traits, only your character gains access to them. Here's a sampling of 12 traits from revision 4.5:

Acrobatic Flourish - Bravura
A Bravura is a nimble fighter and uses fancy footwork to best his opponents. While armed with an epee, main gauche, rapier or saber, you may substitute your Coordination skill in place of any Melee-based skill to fight and defend. Reference your Agility bonus (AB) instead of Melee bonus (MB) to determine damage under these conditions.

Fast Hands - Thief
A Thief’s hands are their most precious tools, and spend years honing their innate dexterity. You reduce the time required to use Skulduggery tests by half. This includes disarming traps, picking locks, pilfering goods and slipping out of ropes. Furthermore, you can attempt a Skulduggery test whenever you use the Arm Yourself special action, gaining the Defenseless condition against one foe on your first turn of a combat encounter.

Guerrilla Warfare - Partisan
Sharpened sticks covered in toxins, jagged hooks set to tear muscle or even a dash of gunpowder makes the Partisan's traps extremely deadly. You add an additional d6 Fury die for any booby trap you construct.

Hamstring - Bounty Hunter
Bounty Hunters can stop their quarry from escaping in the blink of an eye. You may use the Ensnaring Attack combat action for 1 Action Point. Furthermore, whenever you are successful they must spend 1 additional Action Point to disentangle themselves with the Focus special action.

I am the Law - Reeve
A man so hard, the Reeve bleeds ice; when they speak, they never speak twice. Whenever you roll a critical success with any weapon that possesses the Gunpowder equipment trait, you automatically intimidate a number of foes equal to your Fellowship bonus (FB), otherwise functioning as the Shakedown special action.

More Work? - Peasant
The long, arduous days the Peasant faces never ends, until the day they die. You may flip the results to succeed Resilience tests in order to resist all degrees of Fatigue. Furthermore, you may reference your Toughness bonus (TB) instead of Agility bonus (AB) to determine your Hustle value.

Oldest Profession - Prostitute
A Prostitute must know their way around the bedchamber in order to please their clientele. Whenever you sell your sexual services for money, your clientele earns 1 Fortune Point which must be spent in the next 24 hours. Your client cannot accumulate more than 1 Fortune Point per day in this manner.

Pfennigworth - Valet
A Valet illustrates impeccable grace and confidence, seeing to their duties with professional charm. Whenever you roll a critical success with Bargain or Charm tests, you add a Fortune Point to the group pool.

Pliers, Scalpel, Scissors, Bonesaw - Barber Surgeon
With an assortment of bizarre and frightening instruments, the Barber Surgeon sees to “curing” the injured. You may flip the results to succeed Awareness and Heal tests when recognizing illness and treating the injured.

Scoundrels Shoot First - Smuggler
Every Smuggler is ruthless at heart, resorting to villainy when the situation necessitates. Once a combat encounter begins, you gain 1 additional Action Point that may be spent at the top of the initiative order, as you always go first. If other Smugglers are present, compare one another’s Perception characteristic to determine who goes first.

Soldier of Fortune - Sellsword
Saw-toothed Sellswords always haggle with potential employers over pay by telling of their victories, letting the notches on their sword speak of their stock. Whenever you negotiate pay, you may substitute Bargain with your Resilience skill. With a successful Resilience test, you increase your pay by an additional +20% bonus, or an additional +40% bonus with a critical success.

Vow of Pacifism - Adherent
So as long as an Adherent makes no means to harm another, they are above reproach. If you do not intentionally bring harm upon foes that are of your same race or faith, they cannot harm you unless they succeed a Discipline test.

Instead of racial bonuses to characteristics/ability scores, races receive unique traits as well. Similar to the Professions, each race may pick two traits from a unique list of 7 per race, with another 14 more general traits. Humans, Elves, Dwarves and Halflings are all standard races, so that comes in around 42 total choices. Each Racial Trait is entirely unique from one another.

Definitely check out the home website for more information over at grimandperilous.com (http://www.grimandperilous.com). It has a link to our web forum, where we're engaging the community daily for feedback.


Cheers,
Daniel

This thing sounds beautiful; thanks for the work here, man.  I think it would be a hoot to do a modified Paizo Adventure Path via a rules-set like this just to see the the dyed-in-the-wool D&Dists flip their poo.

What do you envision the pricing to be like?

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;558720Professions (careers) are the baseline of character creation. There are over 62 Professions in the core game. Here's a link to the complete professions list (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Professions_List.pdf).

Each profession receives 2 unique Professional Traits that only they receive upon character creation. These traits are a reflection of their profession's focus, enjoying truly unique benefits that aren't necessarily about fiddly math bonuses. Fiddly math is for the birds! Although you do not get to choose your 2 professional traits, only your character gains access to them. Here's a sampling of 12 traits from revision 4.5:

Ahahaha, love this! You seriously risk out-WFRPing WFRP, and I love you for it. :D Good job! Looking forward to Zweihänder!

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;558720Professions (careers) are the baseline of character creation. There are over 62 Professions in the core game. Here's a link to the complete professions list (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Professions_List.pdf).

Each profession receives 2 unique Professional Traits that only they receive upon character creation. These traits are a reflection of their profession's focus, enjoying truly unique benefits that aren't necessarily about fiddly math bonuses. Fiddly math is for the birds! Although you do not get to choose your 2 professional traits, only your character gains access to them. Here's a sampling of 12 traits from revision 4.5:

Acrobatic Flourish - Bravura
A Bravura is a nimble fighter and uses fancy footwork to best his opponents. While armed with an epee, main gauche, rapier or saber, you may substitute your Coordination skill in place of any Melee-based skill to fight and defend. Reference your Agility bonus (AB) instead of Melee bonus (MB) to determine damage under these conditions.

Fast Hands - Thief
A Thief's hands are their most precious tools, and spend years honing their innate dexterity. You reduce the time required to use Skulduggery tests by half. This includes disarming traps, picking locks, pilfering goods and slipping out of ropes. Furthermore, you can attempt a Skulduggery test whenever you use the Arm Yourself special action, gaining the Defenseless condition against one foe on your first turn of a combat encounter.

Guerrilla Warfare - Partisan
Sharpened sticks covered in toxins, jagged hooks set to tear muscle or even a dash of gunpowder makes the Partisan's traps extremely deadly. You add an additional d6 Fury die for any booby trap you construct.

Hamstring - Bounty Hunter
Bounty Hunters can stop their quarry from escaping in the blink of an eye. You may use the Ensnaring Attack combat action for 1 Action Point. Furthermore, whenever you are successful they must spend 1 additional Action Point to disentangle themselves with the Focus special action.

I am the Law - Reeve
A man so hard, the Reeve bleeds ice; when they speak, they never speak twice. Whenever you roll a critical success with any weapon that possesses the Gunpowder equipment trait, you automatically intimidate a number of foes equal to your Fellowship bonus (FB), otherwise functioning as the Shakedown special action.

More Work? - Peasant
The long, arduous days the Peasant faces never ends, until the day they die. You may flip the results to succeed Resilience tests in order to resist all degrees of Fatigue. Furthermore, you may reference your Toughness bonus (TB) instead of Agility bonus (AB) to determine your Hustle value.

Oldest Profession - Prostitute
A Prostitute must know their way around the bedchamber in order to please their clientele. Whenever you sell your sexual services for money, your clientele earns 1 Fortune Point which must be spent in the next 24 hours. Your client cannot accumulate more than 1 Fortune Point per day in this manner.

Pfennigworth - Valet
A Valet illustrates impeccable grace and confidence, seeing to their duties with professional charm. Whenever you roll a critical success with Bargain or Charm tests, you add a Fortune Point to the group pool.

Pliers, Scalpel, Scissors, Bonesaw - Barber Surgeon
With an assortment of bizarre and frightening instruments, the Barber Surgeon sees to "curing" the injured. You may flip the results to succeed Awareness and Heal tests when recognizing illness and treating the injured.

Scoundrels Shoot First - Smuggler
Every Smuggler is ruthless at heart, resorting to villainy when the situation necessitates. Once a combat encounter begins, you gain 1 additional Action Point that may be spent at the top of the initiative order, as you always go first. If other Smugglers are present, compare one another's Perception characteristic to determine who goes first.

Soldier of Fortune - Sellsword
Saw-toothed Sellswords always haggle with potential employers over pay by telling of their victories, letting the notches on their sword speak of their stock. Whenever you negotiate pay, you may substitute Bargain with your Resilience skill. With a successful Resilience test, you increase your pay by an additional +20% bonus, or an additional +40% bonus with a critical success.

Vow of Pacifism - Adherent
So as long as an Adherent makes no means to harm another, they are above reproach. If you do not intentionally bring harm upon foes that are of your same race or faith, they cannot harm you unless they succeed a Discipline test.

Instead of racial bonuses to characteristics/ability scores, races receive unique traits as well. Similar to the Professions, each race may pick two traits from a unique list of 7 per race, with another 14 more general traits. Humans, Elves, Dwarves and Halflings are all standard races, so that comes in around 42 total choices. Each Racial Trait is entirely unique from one another.

Definitely check out the home website for more information over at grimandperilous.com (http://www.grimandperilous.com). It has a link to our web forum, where we're engaging the community daily for feedback.


Cheers,
Daniel

We have Prostitute! Nice.

Quote from: Marleycat;558796We have Prostitute! Nice.

Yep, there are mechanics for getting lucky!

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;558681It's analogous to Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite.asp?eidm=93), it has an umlaut and sounds sort of "metal". :cool:

But seriously, I really dig the name. It was actually upon the suggestion of a forum goer over at Strike to Stun. Although it's a fun title, the living ruleset will be released as Grim & Perilous (http://www.grimandperilous.com). We've been considering releasing a "rules lite/no art" edition, inspired by Lamentations of the Flame Princess.

Best,
Daniel

So basically, you don't want Germans to play the game, yes?

No, it's not a fun title. It's a hilariously ridiculous name that's almost as ridiculous as naming it "Grimdarkgloom - The Dystopia" would be.

Quote from: Phantom Black;558819So basically, you don't want Germans to play the game, yes?

No, it's not a fun title. It's a hilariously ridiculous name that's almost as ridiculous as naming it "Grimdarkgloom - The Dystopia" would be.

I'm sorry you are not a fan of the name. It's intentionally cheeky. I like the name, and it doesn't have anything to do with omitting Germans, dwarven grognards or even Talislantan elven impersonators from playing.

Asides, big honkin' two-handed swords of Grimdarkgloom (http://www.grimandperilous.com) are just as cool as Warhamm (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warhammer_Fantasy_Roleplay)...err, two-handed hammers of fantasy roleplay.


Cheers,
Daniel

I like the cheekiness of the title, but that doesn't matter. Whether it does the job of a WFRP 1e clone well is what will matter in the end.

So...I hear some of you like magic in your low fantasy roleplaying games (http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_foros_temas.asp?efid=149&efcid=3)? I believe we have just the right fix for you. Take a look at our 8 page early draft preview of Petty Magick: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Petty_Spells.pdf

DISCLAIMER: while this does not fully represent the finished product and is presented in a semi-casual manner, it should give you a rough idea how magic works in ZWEIHÄNDER Grim and Perilous RPG (http://www.grimandperilous.com). Those already familiar with Warhammer Fantasy Fantasy Roleplay will recognize some of the mechanics, although there's a new twist on how they work and function.

Let me know what you think!

I like the title and I love the art.  I am unsure about the system, but I will wait until I play a demo to decide.

I like the Petty Magick and especially like the reagents and components.

My only problem is why would I play Zweihander when I could just play Warhammer 1e.  Certainly the name recognition is key to drawing players to a table, especially at a convention.

I hope you put out a cool worldbook to complement the game. Its clear that you have an implied setting. It will be interesting to see what your fantasy Europe looks like.

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;558681It's analogous to Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite.asp?eidm=93), it has an umlaut and sounds sort of "metal". :cool:

ANYthing German sounds Metal.

"Schwartzwalder Kierschetorte!"
"You do realize that just means 'Black Forest Cake'?"
"Well... except for the 'cake' part, it still sounds metal."

JG

I'm officially interested after reading the "petty magic" PDF.

Quote from: Spinachcat;559087I like the title and I love the art.  I am unsure about the system, but I will wait until I play a demo to decide.

I like the Petty Magick and especially like the reagents and components.

My only problem is why would I play Zweihander when I could just play Warhammer 1e.  Certainly the name recognition is key to drawing players to a table, especially at a convention.

I hope you put out a cool worldbook to complement the game. Its clear that you have an implied setting. It will be interesting to see what your fantasy Europe looks like.

Thanks for the feedback. You make a fair point about Warhammer 1e. But the primary goal of ZWEIHÄNDER (http://www.grimandperilous.com) is to create a world agnostic rule set that's applicable across all campaign settings. In fact, this product is sort of a love letter to all three versions of WFRP, with a dash of Dark Heresy thrown into the mix. It's parceled together from a number of game mechanics we've been using around the table for a long time. I'd like to think that it's the product of my own disappointment to Warhammer Third Edition. But, there's a lot I still like about FFG's system that's influenced a few minor design decisions.

The core book won't have an implied setting, but if ZWEIHÄNDER sells well I plan to bring my 17 year old homebrew to the public, powered by the system. It's a low magic fantasy world that's in its early Renaissance. It's a far cry from the Warhammer world; more political, more humanocentric, less humorous and more George RR Martin. However, the sample adventure included in the book The War Within takes place in my game world.

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;559145It's a far cry from the Warhammer world; more political, more humanocentric, less humorous and more George RR Martin.

Ever since Pundit started posting his Dark Albion stuff, I've wondered whether a WFRP-ish deal would be a better fit than the available systems out there for a ASoIaF game. The whole "Medieval caricature" aspect of the books' setting just screams WFRP to me.

i really like the magic mechanics so far.  detailed but with some leeway, well done.  :D

(there is a typo in the Snowshoe:  "hair" for "hare", sorry to reflexively nitpick, lol)

Hello all,

I have been a player in Daniel's games for a number of years now.  We have played several systems and they have all had strengths and weaknesses.  

DND is really fun for me in low level, combat heavy games.  Anything past 10th level and I'll have time to go have a cigarette before it's my turn again.  Before that though, I adore DND.

Warhammer was an eye opener when I first saw it.  and to this day I still love its magic system.  I like the schools and d10s and everything.  Whereas others think more modularity is preferable.

The reason I would say I prefer this over WHFRP is the balance it creates.  I started as a protagonist, went through duellist, and was working on a third career (More melee based).  My friend started as a huntsman or scout or something, then went to targeteer, then Champion.  For the entire campaign, he was frail when it came to melee.  Then, when we both hit our third careers, he was all of a sudden besting me at something my character had been doing his entire life.  I just chose the wrong combination, and he had chosen the right (If you could call it that).

I appreciate the fact that now as a Reeve, I will be the best at what I do.  Which is drawing a gun in the middle of combat and leaving foes defenseless because I am the Law! (and a lot more too)

This game is one groups (mainly Daniel) take on a system that plays the way we want it.  I hope you like it because I do, but that's why there's more than one role playing game.

Quote from: The Butcher;559157Ever since Pundit started posting his Dark Albion stuff, I've wondered whether a WFRP-ish deal would be a better fit than the available systems out there for a ASoIaF game. The whole "Medieval caricature" aspect of the books' setting just screams WFRP to me.

I just started digging into his Dark Albion thread. It's pretty interesting stuff. I'd totally be interested in working on a "powered by ZWEIHÄNDER" free PDF version if he likes the system. Hell, for that matter if Pundit had a short 10 page adventure already written I'd be more than happy to adapt it to ZWEIHÄNDER and just release the damn thing for free alongside or even in the core book.

I saw that Raggi didn't want to work with it, which is an odd choice. I'd think that Dark Albion would be right up his alley. But, he has an interesting take on weird fantasy that I don't necessarily share in common with him. Me? I'm more of a grimdarkpolitick low fantasy guy. Dark Albion is right up my effing alley.

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;559366I just started digging into his Dark Albion thread. It's pretty interesting stuff. I'd totally be interested in working on a "powered by ZWEIHÄNDER" free PDF version if he likes the system. Hell, for that matter if Pundit had a short 10 page adventure already written I'd be more than happy to adapt it to ZWEIHÄNDER and just release the damn thing for free alongside or even in the core book.

Hey Pundit -- ball's on your court.

We can negotiate my agent's fee later :D

Dark Albion powered by ZWEIHÄNDER - yes, make it so plz !

Quote from: Sean !;559381Dark Albion powered by ZWEIHÄNDER - yes, make it so plz !

Alright all, go convince the pundit! http://www.therpgsite.com/showthread.php?p=559740#post559740

Click the link below to see our new promotional poster!

ZWEIHÄNDER - this ain't your Uncle Siggy's Fantasy Roleplay (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/PromoPoster.jpg)

well done :) love the font choice

For every 100 LIKES to our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous), we'll share a new image from ZWEIHÄNDER Grim and Perilous. As promised, here's a look at the Beggar, Berserker, Bounty Hunter and Busker! And if you haven't already, go  LIKE our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous) to reveal more images over the coming weeks!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/03_72.jpg

We are proud to announce that Dejan Mandic has joined our art team here at ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous! His work evokes a Warhammer 1e feel and look. I think you're going to love it!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Adventurers.jpg

Pappa Gary's Wizards Never Saw This Coming.

Here's our second promotional poster for ZWEIHÄNDER (http://www.grimandperilous.com) Young & Rebellious!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/redbox.jpg

sweet, i like the mixing of (to me) new red box (my basic set had the erol otus cover) and classic d&d font :cool:

"Age Mature"

We're still grinding towards completion here in autumn. Skill Traits are nearly finished. Here's a sneak peak at a few as to whet your appetite. I believe you'll find these vastly improved from revision 1 "Corehammer":

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Skill_Traits.pdf

i like that cloak & dagger one, very swashbuckle-y.

Quote from: beeber;563381i like that cloak & dagger one, very swashbuckle-y.

Thanks!

I am actively trying to avoid "number-crunchy" 3.5 D&Disms in the traits, while giving them wide application. Since characters only get to pick 12 of these over the course of their profession's development, I wanted them to have broad application with a few specific uses.

The more I run WFRP, the more I want to see what this game will look like. WFRP 2e is a great game, but I'm looking forward to check out Dan's "fixes" to stuff like the career and characteristic progressions.

Also, I can't wait to run a Zweihänder game on Earth, as opposed to the Old World. Nothing against the Old World per se -- I can do away with the metaplot just fine -- but fantastic alternate Earths are still my favorite setting for just about everything.

We are giving away an original WFRP 2e book and Career Compendium (now replaced in a three-ring binder) to one random person on our Facebook page August 6th!

Head over to our Facebook page by clicking this link (https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous), and be sure to share the top-most post to enter and win!

Who wants to see the Introduction "Example of Play" for ZWEIHÄNDER? While the lay-out, margins and text isn't final, it should give you an idea how some of the mechanics can be employed to support grim & perilous adventures - http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/4_7.pdf

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;564003We are giving away an original WFRP 2e book and Career Compendium (now replaced in a three-ring binder) to one random person on our Facebook page August 6th!

Head over to our Facebook page by clicking this link (https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous), and be sure to share the top-most post to enter and win!

Today, we did our drawing. Visit our Facebook page to see if you're the winner!

We've put the finishing touches on the Professions' skill distributions. You can view a sneak peak to see how some of your favorite "careers" stack up in ZWEIHÄNDER at this link -

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Screen%20Shot%202012-08-15%20at%202.43.43%20PM.png

Looks like we hit another 100 LIKES at our Facebook page! As promised, here's a new piece of art from Dejan Mandic called "Witch Huntress".

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Witch%20Hunter.jpg

For every 100 additional LIKES, we'll continue to share new artwork with the community. Thanks again!

sweet pic--looks like she got the right guy LOL

I've been extremely impressed with Dejan Mandic's work with ZWEIHÄNDER. It strikes very close to the look and feel of Warhammer while capturing the spirit of a "grim & perilous" game system.

We've decided to change the direction of the artwork with the book. With that, I present to you the first of our revised Profession's artwork. Meet your local village Reeve!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/download.jpeg

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;575473We've decided to change the direction of the artwork with the book. With that, I present to you the first of our revised Profession's artwork. Meet your local village Reeve!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/download.jpeg

Very cool illo!

But as a hopeless fan of shit-and-mud WFRP, I must nitpick :D isn't a brace of pistols and a breastplate a bit too extravagant for a reeve (or watchman, or militiaman, or whatevs)? This guy just screams "advanced career" (or more generally, "experienced adventurer") rather than "your village reeve" to me.

Check out my interview with the guys over at The Going Last Podcast on ZWEIHÄNDER! We made a special announcement, with more details to come: http://goinglast.net/session-82/ The interview starts around 33:00 in.

You can also download an early draft of the Introduction chapter from the book! http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Going_Last_Lowres_Unfinished.pdf

We at Grim & Perilous Studios don't believe in a grim & perilous economy. For those who listened to our recent interview over at The Going Last Podcast (http://goinglast.net/session-82/), some listeners may have picked up on an important announcement. For those who missed it, we're proud to announce that we'll be releasing an art-free version of ZWEIHÄNDER for free. Want more details? Read the PDF to learn more!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/CreativeCommonsLicense%20(1).pdf

very cool!  :hatsoff:  looking forward to the art version too, of course :D

In case you may have missed the post from over the weekend, you can read our second draft of Chapter One: Introduction for ZWEIHÄNDER now! http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Going_Last_Lowres_Unfinished.pdf

Want to know more about Zweihänder? We'd love to hear from you! Send us your questions and we'll provide answers at our home website on Tuesday September 18th. Ask us anything! We'll do our best to explain the concepts of design, along with new insights, of our favorite grim & perilous RPG. Feel free to post your questions below or over at http://forum.strike-to-stun.net/viewtopic.php?t=4479

Best,
Daniel
Lead designer of Zweihänder a Grim & Perilous RPG

From the nightmare terrors beyond, to isolation and powerlessness of the self, tension is a hallmark of any grim & perilous game.

Here's a first look at the first few pages of Chapter XI: Fear and Insanity. While it doesn't represent the full chapter or the final product, it should give you the broad strokes of the mechanics while informing the role fear should play in in ZWEIHÄNDER. We'd love to near your opinions on its presentation!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Fear_Preview.pdf

Interview #2  is up over at The Small But Vicious Podcast! Be sure to visit the link so you can download an exclusive preview of the Combat Encounters chapter!

http://www.d20radio.com/sbv/?p=158

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/TSBVP_combatpreview.pdf

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;581788From the nightmare terrors beyond, to isolation and powerlessness of the self, tension is a hallmark of any grim & perilous game.

Here's a first look at the first few pages of Chapter XI: Fear and Insanity. While it doesn't represent the full chapter or the final product, it should give you the broad strokes of the mechanics while informing the role fear should play in in ZWEIHÄNDER. We'd love to near your opinions on its presentation!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Fear_Preview.pdf

cool--good to see the "immersion" sidebar, just a little reminder for folks about trying to roleplay that sort of thing.

Today, we present an early look at how injuries and healing works in ZWEIHÄNDER. As is the hallmark of any grim & perilous system, injuries persist over time. The healing and injuries rules conform to many of the inherent groundwork Warhammer laid out years ago.

We'd love to hear any opinions or constructive criticism you may have!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/HealingandInjuries.pdf

For every 100 new LIKES we get on Facebook, we'll release a new Profession's illustration from the book. In celebration of our 300th LIKE tonight, here's a peak at the Barber Surgeon!

PLIERS...SCALPEL...SCISSORS...BONESAW
With an assortment of bizarre and frightening instruments, the Barber Surgeon sees to "curing" the injured. You may flip the results to succeed Awareness and Heal Tests when recognizing illness and treating the injured with your medical Skills.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Class%20Barber%20Surgeon.jpg

We've vastly simplified the rules for healing as of our last play test. Does it still elicit a "grim & perilous" feel? Please share with us any constructive criticisms you may have for or against it.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/AlternativeHealingRules.pdf

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay Fans! Want to learn more about creating characters with Zweihander Grim & Perilous RPG (http://www.grimandperilous.com/)?

We are looking for a few good people to give feedback on Chapters I and II for the character creation process. The only requirement is that you provide constructive criticism throughout the process on Google docs using the comments feature.

Interested? Sign the Playtest Agreement (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HTLjQ2LYIYHpLKeU-z5XqBkaRKQFpH1RkLpKJB9iIXg/edit#heading=h.vl7a3wc61swc) and send back to mformoniker at gmail dot com so we can get you started.


Best,
Daniel

You can check out our new video, along with our new artist Dejan Mandic at the following link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ptf9bl-6CR4&feature=youtu.be

We've been speaking with Ingo over at Obskures.de (http://www.bskures.de) For our German-speaking audience, you can view an exclusive preview of the Coachmaster Basic Profession image and learn more about ZWEIHÄNDER by visiting this link (http://obskures.de/2012/zweihaender-rpg-aktuelle-informationen-exklusive-preview/).

As for those who're wondering if we're going to print a German (and Polish version), we're definitely in support of it. Once we get closer to the actual print date we're going to explore both of these options extensively. We know there are a lot of fans of grim & perilous RPGs (http://www.grimandperilous.com) across the pond and would love to see what can be done!

Take a look at a new Basic Profession - Pit Fighter! All Professions gain one special ability. We believe it's fitting; what do you think?

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Class%20Pit%20Fighter.jpg

BLOOD AND SAND
The roar of the crowd inspires the Pit Fighter to greatness. Let the lavish spectacle of the sport begin and rally the crowd to your favor! If there are onlookers who are not your enemies or friends watching you fight, make a Charm Test. If successful, you immediately gain a temporary pool of Health equal to your Fellowship Bonus (FB). You can only gain these benefits once per combat.

For every 100 new LIKES we receive on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous), we're releasing artwork from ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://www.grimandperilous.com).

As promised, here's an introduction to one of the other Basic Professions - the Prostitute!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Class%20Prostitute.jpg

OLDEST PROFESSION
Prostitutes use suggestive body language and provocateur to convince others to do their bidding. If you’re not careful, these actions may result in a certain expectation from the person you’ve seduced. When employing your sexuality to seduce and manipulate others, you may flip the results to succeed Charm Tests.

Additionally, when you solicit your services to someone else, they gain the benefits of “getting lucky". If so, they may re-roll any one failed Skill Test within the next 24 hours. But they cannot take advantage of this more than once per day.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/34934670/Class%20Rat%20Catcher.jpg

I am the bard known far and wide,
The travell'd rat-catcher beside;
A man most needful to this town,
So glorious through its old renown.
However many rats I see,
How many weasels there may be,
I cleanse the place from ev'ry one,
All needs must helter-skelter run.

-von Goethe

Have a spooky All-Hallow's Eve, and beware the Rat-catcher!

We'd love to know your thoughts on our "Grim & Perilous Stunt" system. Take a look over at our co-hosted forums and lend us your thoughts either here or in the thread!

http://forum.strike-to-stun.net/viewtopic.php?t=4552

Our new website is now live! We've transferred many of our posts from Facebook, including new artwork and insights to ZWEIHÄNDER's development to the website.

Come check us out over at GrimandPerilous.com (http://www.grimandperilous.com)!

Head over to our home page to take a look at Hugo Stoat, a Peasant in his First Tier!

You'll be able to see what a profession looks like at the end of First Tier completed with enough experience points spent to move into the Second Tier with a new profession. It also illustrates some of the game mechanics of ZWEIHÄNDER, lending insight how the game works from a player's perspective.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=135

Say hello again to Hugo Stoat!

After being drafted into service by his liege lord's press gang, he spent a number of years in the field. Hugo was soft and frightened; he certainly didn't know what was in store for him. Through the crucible and into the flames, Hugo has slowly been honed into an instrument of war. Even after suffering from a particularly frightening defeat (sacrificing a Destiny Point in the process), Hugo emerged a true warrior. He even earned a nickname amongst his comrades, now called "the Beauty" for his half-ear, the mole on his cheek and the horrifying scars he proudly wears as a badge of honor.

This character sheet represents Hugo at the end of the Second Tier. His current profession is as a Militiaman. He has spent enough Experience Points to complete his Second Tier of growth.

Visit our home webpage at the link below (http://grimandperilous.com/?p=143) see Hugo's character sheet and the Militiaman's profession image!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=143

Today marks the end of Hugo Stoat's career.

Hugo had fought for his people, eventually leading the coup d'état against his sovereign lord. But he now bears the many scars of war. Exposure to the horrors of the hidden world, Hugo has developed a crippling fear of darkness. Bearing witness to his lord's dark rituals, Hugo also lost the use of one of his eyes...but in its place, a dark power has taken interest in him. When the moon is right, Hugo will feel a slight passing of warm air on the back of his neck. As this happens, the murk of night parts before his vision. Fearful that others will condemn him as a heretic, he takes great pains to hide this power. And now, Hugo sits as burgomeister of Hastings but the darkness continues to call to him in his dreams. Hugo's innocent mind has been deranged and his humanity eroded before the chaos of the grim & perilous world he inhabits. Although some may call "the Beauty" a hero, dark thoughts preoccupy him as Hugo slowly devolved to become alike the former lord he'd fought to unseat...

Visit our home webpage (http://grimandperilous.com/?p=180) at the link below see Hugo's character sheet and the Peasant Hero's profession image!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=180

Have you seen the cover art to ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com/?p=194) (a Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay retroclone)? Head over to our home website to see an exclusive preview of the cover art! It was beautifully illustrated by Jussi Alarauhio of Liber Fanatica fame.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=194

Very Nice!

JG

One year ago today, your humble author decided to turn Project Corehammer into the RPG you see developing before you now.

I'd like to believe that my vision, coupled with the extreme patience of our playtesters, critical feedback from contributors, proofreading from our in-house editors, the excellent cover and interior artists and its thoroughly-tested ruleset will prove that ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG will be a solid competitor against other top-tier RPG products.

For those who've been waiting for a release date, all's we can say is that "it will be done when it's done" (tentative Q1 of 2013). We want to make sure that all of the kinks are worked out, so that Tier One play is as balanced as Tier Three play. We also want to deliver an affordable product that has professional polish, which we feel is oftentimes missing from old school renaissance (OSR) products.

We appreciate your patience during the development process, and remain dedicated towards putting out the best "grim & perilous" product that's hit the shelves since Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay!

Best,
Daniel Fox
Author and lead designer of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=205

Speaking of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG...

Our new editor came onboard a few weeks ago. We're in the middle of cleaning up the character creation chapter, and have outlined a few immediate considerations you'll make when creating your first "Grim & Perilous" character. Take a look at a sample of what we're writing, and let us know if we're hitting close to the mark:

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=212

Recently, we've been working on Chapter IV: Skills. Here's the layout we've decided to use. It explains what Primary Attribute governs its use, the related Skill Specializations a character may gain with it, a few example Special Uses for the skill and sample Difficulty Ratings.

We'd love to hear any suggestions you may have about the entry layout. Let us know what you think!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=224

Happy New Year everyone! We took a short break during the holiday, but we're back and cracking for 2013. Head over to grimandperilous.com to download a preview of the revised Luck Pool mechanic. Let us know what you think!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=251

We are closing in on final beta with ZWEIHÄNDER.

With the help of fellow contributors Jesse "Gitzman" Burke David Nadj, we have a form-fillable character sheet!

For our other contributors, Grim & Perilous Studios will be releasing the final beta version of the character creation packet in the next week. Watch your inboxes!

Follow this link to preview the character sheet: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=256

I've oftentimes found myself at odds with the binary "alignment" system a number of popular RPGs employ. While they provide a rough guideline for players to roleplay a character's innate leanings, they seem far too restricting.

Personality temperaments are an important facet of any grim & perilous game. Today, we look at Blessings and Curses; the strength of a character and their greatest flaws:

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=267

Hello all,

It's been two months or so since our last update. During this period, we reached the Advanced Tier with the vast majority of our playtest characters within our home game here in Kansas City. Next week, we are beginning a new campaign with the near-final beta rules in the Basic Tier. With nearly 2 years of play testing beneath our belts, I feel the character creation process has reached my vision of how it should work. The remainder of the rules - combat, exploration and social intrigue are in final beta as well. We will be working on magic this month and the next, and expect to have a final beta version ready by the end of summer.

We've been blessed to have a large number of private play testers in our pool, with a lot of great feedback and constructive criticism. Beyond this, we have been talking about how to best raise awareness about ZWEIHÄNDER. One option is to release the game publicly in the same fashion as Lamentations of the Flame Princess.

My hope is that releasing the product art-free in the coming months will not only generate new interest, but also help fuel the pending IndieGoGo campaign we are going to launch in early autumn. Dejan Mandic, our official artist, has done a wonderful job with the 60+ illustrations he's done thus far. But we need far more artwork from him, and I believe crowdfunding will get us where we need to be.

I believe by changing our approach, modeled after Raggi's release of LOTFP, will lend credence to the legitimacy of ZWEIHÄNDER as a stand-along RPG (and a suitable substitute for WFRP).


Best,
Daniel Fox
Lead designer of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim and Perilous RPG
http://www.grimandperilous.com

Many of you have been asking about how Standard Professions work, what Basic Tier means and how Experience Points are spent. Follow this link to a lengthy article direct from Chapter 3: Professions. You can also preview a sample Standard Profession - The Adherent!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=291

The artwork for ZWEIHÄNDER includes both men and women throughout. We make no distinction between the sexes and their role from the perspective of our writing and artwork. There are male Prostitutes, female Inquisitors and even a sexually-ambiguous Squire. In the spirit of inclusivity, we've changed our cover art. Meet Gertrude "the Bride" Skolsdottir, the most bad-ass bounty huntress this side of the Old World!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=307

Hungry for more Professions? Take a look at the Courtier!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=312

VieToday, we are pleased to present the complete list of Standard Professions. There are over 70 different choices, broken out by their role (or Archetype as we call it).

Each Standard Profession falls into one of six Archetypes: Academic, Criminal, Menial, Ranger, Socialite or Warrior.

Your Archetype shapes the choice you make in Intermediate and Advance Tier, as you move into a new Standard Profession. This mimics the Career Paths found in Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, but with far more flexibility. In some cases, your Gamemaster may even allow you to move into an Elite Profession!

Take a look below, and enjoy some new artwork from Dejan Mandic!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=316

ZWEIHÄNDER's Core Mechanics - Feedback Wanted!

In a grim & perilous campaign world, characters will find themselves enthralled in intense action scenes, the machinations of socialites, lethal melee, adrenaline-pumped chase scenes and horrific confrontations with aberrant creatures from beyond. Combined with raw abilities, your character is able to overcome various challenges by calling upon specific aptitudes. Learnt proficiencies that allow you to overcome challenges and tasks, build upon the foundation of your raw abilities. Your skills represent a specific command over situations your character has either grown accustomed to or exhibits a natural command over. And naturally, all challenges have their own measure of risk. The threat of failure is a constant reminder that no character, no matter how far along in age or experience, is immortal or able to conquer challenges without consideration of their environment.

Join the community discussion and submit your feedback with the "comment" feature on Google docs!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZRwqfu-GJ9_YxXd1tZcwkP0xNYbylGMa8iD3T5hFGZg/edit#heading=h.1hy68swj4ckr

Who is ready to create their first character for ZWEIHÄNDER? Follow this post to experience Revision 6.2c for Character Creation!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=328

Keen!

jg

How did you like the character creation chapter? If you haven't already, download the form-fillable character sheet and send us a copy of your Grim & Perilous character to daniel@grimandperilous.com. Be sure to include a background story about them as well. We will post the best of the best on our home website and in the book!

Don't forget to pick up some Trappings! Give your character appropriate weapons and armor to fully flesh out your ZWEIHÄNDER character! Go to our home page to access Trappings!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=340

As requested, the steps to create a ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous character are now centrally located on our home webpage! We've added Trappings and their related Qualities as well.

http://grimandperilous.com/?page_id=343

Calling all artists! We need new artwork for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous (http://grimandperilous.com). Are you looking to get exposure in the RPG industry? We'd like to help. Unfortunately, we're not quite set up to pay anyone, but we can guarantee that every contributing artist will receive a physical copy of the book.

If you're interested in helping our team, please email us direct daniel@grimandperilous.com

One important distinction about ZWEIHÄNDER is that players don't earn Experience Points. Instead, players earn Reward Points (RP) based primarily on the axiom of how well they exemplify their character's Blessing and Curse or otherwise role-playing (RP).

Learn more on our homepage!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=353

CREATE A GRIM & PERILOUS CHARACTER TODAY
Interested in seeing how character creation works in ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG? Follow this link to get started!

http://grimandperilous.com/?page_id=343


Step I - READ INTRODUCTION

Step II - LEARN HOW TO PLAY

Step III - DOWNLOAD THE FORM-FILLABLE CHARACTER SHEET

STEP IV - BEGIN CHARACTER CREATION

Step V - AUTHOR YOUR PROFESSION

Step VI - SELECT ARMS & ARMOR

Step VII - TRACK YOUR ARMS & ARMOR'S QUALITIES

(last updated 25 Sept 2013 with new character sheet)


DISCLAIMERS ABOUT ZWEIHÄNDER GRIM & PERILOUS
All rights title and interest in and to (a) the ideas, concepts, brands and products the Playtest Materials arise from, (b) the Playtest Materials, (c) all related and underlying intellectual property including all trademarks and copyrights, and (d) any and all derivatives of the foregoing belong to Grim & Perilous Studios, LLC Questions and comments regarding these Playtest Materials may be directed to Grim & Perilous Studios, LLC

We have added even more Standard Professions for you to try out during the Character Creation beta phase of ZWEIHÄNDER. Check out our home page for more information to learn more about the up-and-coming Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay retroclone ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com/?p=371)!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=371

How did we address WFRP's "naked dwarf syndrome" you ask? We built in rules for bleeding when unarmored, but also allowed some leeway for those that may wish to pick up this Dwarven Trait.

RUNE-MARKED GLORY
Sage and arcane, all Dwarves know their runes. They mark keepsakes, armor and weapons with chalk and ink, foretelling of an ancient, forgotten glory that came before them. Some even tattoo themselves from head to toe in these arcane symbols of might, evoking the age-old complaint by other warriors dubbed “naked dwarf syndrome”. Yet, these runes harbor an odd power, girding their body against the cold touch of steel and their mind against the effects of sorcery. You are immune to Bleeding, and can run around unarmored without impunity. Additionally, add your Willpower Bonus (WB) to Toughness Bonus (TB) when determining how much Damage or Peril you ignore when you succumb to Magick.

Go to grimandperilous.com to create your own Dwarven ZWEIHÄNDER character today!

http://grimandperilous.com/?page_id=343

Grim & Perilous fans! Have you already created your ZWEIHÄNDER character? Time to join Fight Club! Experience the fast-paced and perilous dangers presented within our open playtest combat system!

After Creating Your Grim & Perilous Character, take them into the ring to fight mano-a-mano, or even get your friends together for a big brawl! We’d love to hear about your experience with our latest revision of the Combat rules. Please submit all feedback to daniel@grimandperilous.com, or simply use the “Comment” feature in Google docs!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=379

Happy Halloween! Head over to our home page to preview an appropriately-themed creature from the ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG bestiary: The Ghoul!

There are those in this world that slave to their own vices. Ones given to gluttony can fall prey to chaos’s touch during their weakest moments of overindulgence. Once upon this dark path, it cannot be abandoned as the road to ghouldom begins…

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=396

edit:
Alternatively, you can view the Ghoul here at Google docs: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mYdqRtkvZE1z_10R1tvkhZjKjmqg3t9Fi2LCO-KfNx0/edit#

Who stands boldly against Ghouls and the forces of disorder? Enter the Inquisitor....

Since the dawn of time, the forces of chaos have sought to corrupt the seeds of life and twist the soul of mankind.  Locked within this eternal struggle, the Inquisitor knows there is no place for half measures.  Vows of unwavering faith and fealty drive them to face the abominations of this world, and perhaps more importantly act as the scourge to those tainted souls that would lead their kin down the path of destruction.  It is their duty to be ever watchful, ever prepared, and ever ready to use any means necessary.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=401

Alternatively, view in Google docs here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dg67lylDm2d9ygxRxUvjHLmO5KwX8lMJNEY_eAOGuqE/edit#

The Spanish translation of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG beta documents are now in full swing!

Follow here: http://www.igarol.org/v4/foro/viewforum.php?f=119

Hail, grim & perilous fans! We have updated the beta documents with the most up-to-date ruleset. This should be the final version before we begin layout. Take a look within: http://grimandperilous.com/?page_id=343

Hail, grim & perilous fans!

Through rigorous play testing, we’ve been working discover imbalances, identify overlooked mechanics and “breaking” the rules of character creation. Although we’re not quite ready for primetime, we are coming close to finalizing the world’s first Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay retroclone. Today, we wanted to share with you our internal beta documents. It includes many changes to the way characters are built, simplification of the Primary Attributes system, revision of the Fortune Point pool and streamlined combat mechanics.

Check out the links here to download the latest version of the play test for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com/?p=421)!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=421

We are continuing to work through the Gamemaster's section, which includes Corruption mechanics, Wilderness Travel, Social Influence encounters and Stress/Fear/Terror subchapters. However, we wanted to give you a sneak peak at Wilderness travel, and how a Gamemaster can shape the narrative around the roles each character plays during the journey.

Head over to our ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG home page to learn more: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=431

Just a reminder that the Q&A offers still stands. :)

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 3rd Edition has been officially retired by Fantasy Flight Games. However, ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (the world's only Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay retroclone) is still here and going strong.

Want to know more about ZWEIHÄNDER? Come participate in the public beta now: http://grimandperilous.com/

Be sure to visit Strike to Stun, where the (un)official  WFRP community still thrives: http://forum.strike-to-stun.net/index.php

Take a sneak peek at one of the most notorious of Knaves, the Footpad! http://grimandperilous.com/?p=445

We have been hard at work revising public beta 1 for what will become beta 2, titled "GRIMDARK Edition". Using feedback from our internal playtest and your suggestions, we've implemented a number of changes across the board.

Catch a sneak peak at our home page here: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=450

Hard to believe it's been over two and a half years since we began development! As we close in on our final beta, titled "GRIMDARK Edition", I'd like to share with you some of the inspiration for writing. Dejan Mandic, our resident artist, penned many of these images during the infancy of development alongside Ana Cmelic and Jussi Alarauhio. They lend a glimpse into ZWEIHÄNDER's principles in design: brutal violence, grim tidings, riveting intrigue, survival horror and perilous adventure.

Carrying a spark of hope, the lost souls of the world are embattled against corruption. Beset by the lure of chaos, these champions of order - both small and large - vie for their place in the world. Reeves ally with footpads, servants bear blades alongside sellswords, cheapjacks find themselves thrown into tense social situations with envoys while rat catchers help blaze the trail with trappers; a true motley crew. What fate awaits these destined children of a grim & perilous world?

View more of Dejan Mandic's work at this video link (http://grimandperilous.com/?p=462)!

Continuing our highlight of the Knave Archetype, come take a look at the Gambler! http://grimandperilous.com/?p=468

Today, we're moving onto the Commoner Archetype. Here's a sneak peak at the Artisan!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=486

Happy Monday, all! Today, let's take a look at a profession underneath the Warrior Archetype, the Berserker!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=495

As a quick wrap-up from today, we wanted to share with you a look at some of the Natural Hazard rules in ZWEIHÄNDER. Natural Hazards include a number of perilous challenges a Character may face: falling, suffocating, sickness, poison and a host of others. We vacillated between sharing the rules for venereal disease or intoxication. First up, we'll show you our vision of how intoxication works. Stay tuned tomorrow to learn about venereal diseases (and other sickness as well)!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=501

Stay tuned tomorrow for venereal disease!

As a part of our ongoing sneak peak at Professions, come take a look at the Preacher, one of the 12 Professions assigned to the Academic Archetype!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=512

As promised, come take a look at Sickness and Disease in ZWEIHÄNDER. We've included a few examples of those we plan to include in the final product.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=517

"Bloody Flux cannot be cured."

"Grey Plague cannot be cured."

"TREATMENT
There is no known treatment for Red Death.

CURE
Red Death cannot be cured."

VENEREAL DISEASE
"TREATMENT
Arguably difficult to treat, some barber surgeons have had luck inserting a number of instruments into the genitalia to relieve the pain of urination (a curved iron rod, wooden catheter, lice and mites). A dull knife may be employed to scrape away any pustules or lingering warts, but only serves as a temporary solution. As the sickness continues to worsen, it may result in the necessity for the infected to take opiates or other sedatives to relieve themselves from pain. It requires a successful (Challenging -10%) Heal Test to relieve the effects as below.

CURE
Venereal Disease cannot be cured."

Nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there.

JG

Today, we take a look at one of the twelve Standard Professions in the Commoner Archetype, the Barber Surgeon.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=521

As a closing to the upcoming holiday weekend, we present to you one of our favorite Professions in the Commoner Archetype, the Rat Catcher!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=524

We're closing in on our final beta internally, codename "GRIMDARK Edition". We're cleaning it up for public consumption now, and will release the documents over the course of the next couple of weeks.

However, you can get a sneak peak at the new Character Sheet, alongside the new mechanics, by heading to our home page. It will take you to a Dropbox link for the revised three page sheet.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=529

An excellent article was just published about the "death" of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay over at Order of Gamers. ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG even received an honorable mention!

http://www.orderofgamers.com/wfrp-3rd-edition-is-dead-long-live-wfrp/

It was pure speculation at first, but the announcement of WFRP 4e has almost been confirmed by Chris Birch of Modiphius.

This is a grand idea, as I absolutely love Mutant Chronicles 3rd Edition. The ruleset is clean, fun and promotes the "dark" attitude prevalent in British RPGs with a grim & perilous feel. However, Chris Birch, Jay Little and the rest of the team from Modiphius have a large hill to climb if they wish to capture the hearts of the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay community.

With every new edition of Warhammer, there has been a distinct lack of new, sponsored content. What about Estalia? Norsca? Lustria? Halflings in Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 3E? The other lands outside of the Old World? Fortunately, the Liber Fanatica and Strike to Stun community have helped fill in the gaps, providing rich content for fans to place into their own campaign.

Jay Little, creator of the most experimental, controversial and community-splitting version of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, will likely be put in charge of development. However, if WFRP 4e is built upon the backbone of the 2D20 system, it could be a real gem. Only time will tell. But it must have new content promoted for adventures outside the Old World.

Either way, ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG is here to stay (and will still be completely free). There's plenty of room for us all to play in the sandbox.

Cheers,
Daniel Fox
Lead designer of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG

EDIT:

As an update from yesterday, I spoke with Chris Birch by email. In fact, they are not announcing WFRPG 4e. This is a real shame. Good news, and potentially bad as well.

The ultimate question is this: what does Games Workshop and FFG intend to do with the license for the roleplaying game? Will Warhammer live on as Diskwars with FFG, or will we possibly see syste,s-agnostic, supplementary material from Games Workshop?

We have received numerous requests to outline the rules for Magick in ZWEIHÄNDER. As a start, let's take a look at a Profession within the Ranger Archetype, the enigmatic Hedgewise!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=539

We ran a poll a few months back, requesting what race the community would like to have added to ZWEIHÄNDER. A number of choices were suggested. The top two contenders were Ogre and Ratkin. As complement to the other Races in ZWEIHÄNDER, we've added the Ratkin to our upcoming beta 2 entitled "GRIMDARK Edition".

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=545

Here's a sneak peak at one of the foes from the Bestiary: the Ruffian. Note that the layout is not finalized. We have also stripped the "fluff" description of the Ruffian and the "seeds" suggestions for the GM how to use them. However, it should give you an idea what to expect as a GM.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=575

To complement the Ruffian from yesterday, we present the Rebellious Peasant. Unlike the Ruffian, they suffer from an Affliction – a disorder stemming from their Corruption Points total. Take a look within to learn more!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=583

The community has been asking about how larger creatures are handled in ZWEIHÄNDER. Naturally, we didn’t want to simply “buff up” their Primary Attributes, as it would throw off the delicate math balance on the back end. Instead, we use Primary Attribute Bonuses to reflect how each size category of creature is handled. To better understand these distributions, we’ll show Gamemasters how to craft their own creatures in the book.

For now, take a look at the Lumbering Giant. You’ll note they’re heavily influenced by the Giants of Warhammer Fantasy Battle with their abilities. Let us know what you think!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=591

One of the most glaring omissions from Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay second and third editions was the Gnome. One of our favorite Races, we've decided to include them into ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG. Although we are still working through their Racial Traits, take a sneak peak at the description of the Gnome at the link below!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=597

A grim & perilous world is fraught with danger from all sides. Beyond the sword blows of marauders and gunshot of highwaymen, there are other ways to perish. Raging infernos, drugged foods, exhaustion, plummeting from upon high and even the Poisonous effects of alcohol can whittle down the weary. Aught for enterprising barber surgeons and apothecaries, the lichyards would be filled with the bones of the dead!

Categorized below are several types natural hazards you will face in ZWEIHÄNDER. They include Disease, Falling, Fire, Intoxication, Poisons, Sleep Deprivation, Starvation and Suffocation. In addition, you can learn how to Heal Damage with bandages, treat Injuries using surgery, stem Bleeding with a hot poker and treat Infection with leeching!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=612

From isolation, utter powerlessness, ambition denied, paranoid delusions, perversions of nature and nightmare-inducing terrors from beyond, madness punctuates all but the mildest of adventures in ZWEIHÄNDER. There are countless horrors waiting to prey upon the intrepid, foolish enough to blunder into their midsts. However, nothing is more insidious and treacherous than one's own mind. As the veil is pulled back upon reality, the unwary begin to realize the decrepit remnants of something far more insidious than merely the dark secrets men hide within their hearts. Nightmares are real, dwelling upon the threshold while seeking to consume or despoil those who wander too close to the wretched truth.

Inspired by other wonderful horror RPGs such as Ravenloft and Unknown Armies, take a closer look at how Madness and Corruption works in ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=617

Since the dawn of time, the forces of chaos have sought to corrupt the seeds of life and twist the soul of mankind. Locked within this eternal struggle, the Templar Fanatic knows there is no place for half measures. Vows of unwavering faith and fealty drive them to face the abominations of this world, and perhaps more importantly act as the scourge to those tainted souls that would lead their kin down the path of destruction. It is their duty to be ever watchful, ever prepared, and ever ready to use any means necessary...

Preview the Templar Fanatic from the Bestiary at the following link: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=623

It's time for another sneak peak in the Bestiary! Today, let's look at one of the most notorious of roadwardens, the Crooked Bailiff!

A deputy so hard, the Crooked Bailiff bleeds ice. For when the road warden speaks, they never speak twice!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=652

Last minute update: return to the page to see the entry for the Crooked Bailiff's dog companion, the Mastiff Hound!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=652

It's time for another sneak peak in the Bestiary! Today, let's look at the Corsair. These fearsome, river-going and seaborn privateers plunder and pillage as they see fit.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=658

You have been very patient with us as we've been working on readying our second public beta. Titled "GRIMDARK Edition", it includes all of the gritty, perilous adventure mechanics you'd come to expect from ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG!

We've prepared the vast majority of what's been internally playtested into one single document. It includes character creation, combat, wilderness travel and more! While some parts of the playtest are not quite ready for GRIMDARK Edition, this document includes practically everything you need to build characters, equip them, run combat, engage in wilderness exploration, fight perilous foes and more!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=663

Unlike most role-playing games, ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG doesn't require you to track "hit points" or wound numeric values. Instead, it uses a narrative mechanic to derive what condition a character is in, and when they sustain long-term Injuries.

Learn more about the world's first Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay retroclone at the following link: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=670

I am seeking to get early reviews in for the second beta version of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous (http://grimandperilous.com/?p=663), my Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay retroclone (http://grimandperilous.com).

Send in a full-page review of the product by email (250 to 500 words) by January 15th, and I'll send the best reviewers a free physical copy of the book once it's ready. We'll publish the review - good, bad or indifferent - on our home website.

Reviews must be written in English, both clear and concise. While we like praise, we also want to hear constructive criticism. Reviews including overt negativity or language which isn't deemed constructive will not be considered. If you are unsure how to construct a review, please see this site's forum for examples (http://www.therpgsite.com/forumdisplay.php?f=37).

Message me here for further details, and thanks in advance!

Many role-playing games use alignment to help illustrate character attitudes and temperament. In ZWEIHÄNDER, characters have a similar approach to overall character disposition, which directly impacts their personalities, how Lady Fate shows favor and the lure of power subvertly corrupts them. A Grim & Perilous campaign is not the stories of people who change the world. It is a story of a world that changes the people within it.

A strong arm or a slow wit are not the measures which fully define a ZWEIHÄNDER Character, far from it. Weaknesses and strengths are not expressed by the same categorizations used for beasts of burden or slaves. Nor indeed, are they simply a general predictor of outward behavior, but rather a deep and personal pair of flaws and strengths which define your very existence. In this world, the true monster is not a scaled drake or a pack of faceless bandits for you to conquer and parade through the main thoroughfares, where you are showered with adoration and coin. Rather, it is your fellow man, whose words conceal their intentions until you run afoul of their cruel intentions.

In this stage of creation, you will select one critical value which will largely determine your Character's personality for both good and ill. These Temperaments are role-playing tools, meant to aid you as you determine the choices and judgements your Character makes. In short, they are your weapons and weaknesses when engaging in tense social situations (such as during Social Intrigue). Put more simply and in broader terms, the first you select will likely be what keeps you alive, more than any well-drawn arrow. The latter is what will likely be your cause of demise. These two Temperaments are defined in the game as your Order and Chaos Temperaments.

Learn more here: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=684

Early reviews for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG – the world's first Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay retroclone – are in. Here's a snippet from Gabriel Lauzon-Payette:

Zweihänder is heavily inspired by Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay's second edition. Designer Daniel Fox's game remains true to its dark, bloody roots and the core themes from Games Workshop's roleplaying system are very present. If you want to play unlikely "heroes" who are down on their luck in an unfair medieval world, look no further. Zweihänder is setting-agnostic, usable for any dark medieval-renaissance universe. The book's writing may not be top notch and there are lots of repetitions and needless enumerations, but it quickly sets you in the game's mood: your characters are going to bleed, suffer, go mad or die from gangrene and somehow, you know you're going to love it.

Zweihänder manages to perfect some of Warhammer's most clunky systems. Character creation has all the fun randomness you'd expect from a game that prides itself on its unfairness. Races are all balanced, no longer giving stat bonuses. Players also get to choose which skills and upgrades they want to buy for their starting profession, making your character's "class" customizable from the start. Beginner characters are also a little more competent than in Warhammer, which feels like a welcome change to me...

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=693

Sounds like more playtesting is needed before you go to print.

Which is fine. Better more playtesting and editing now than errata later. Errata sheets have always been uber lame.

Looking for a few new foes to throw at the player characters for GRIMDARK Edition?

Download the Crooked Bailiff and Deserter Soldier at the following link. It will also give you new information on two Afflictions that threaten these two foes; Bound to the Bottle and Soldier's Heart.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=697

Play testers have been asking what larger, dangerous monsters lurk out there in ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG. Say hello to the Spiny-tailed Manticore over at this link!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=700

Our friends over at IGAROL.org has released the beta (titled GRIMDARK  Edition) for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG in Spanish! Experience a grim & perilous tabletop RPG by downloading here: http://www.igarol.org/otros/zweihander/articulo/5153/primera-version-en-espanol-disponible

Over the past few months, we've been working on pulling together the Magick chapter. Well, we're proud to say that we have completed our first draft!

This first run includes the basic rules for using Magick in gameplay, describes the differences between divine and arcane Magick and how to learn and acquire Magick for characters you are playing in the GRIMDARK Edition beta.

We have kept much of the flavor and familiarity of previous editions, while putting our own spin on it with streamlined mechanics. It also includes most of the Petty Magick spells you'll see in the final version. Note that as this is a draft version, it is incomplete and likely to change before publication. However, the rules as presented are perfectly serviceable for your GRIMDARK beta game.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=704

As mentioned yesterday, Magick is now ready for gameplay in the GRIMDARK Edition beta. Keeping in this spirit, we'd like to present two arcane Magick-wielders: the Diabolist and the Hedgewise.

Additionally, we've included supplemental material for Chaos Manifestations and a revised list of Petty Magick spells. Download the PDFs at the link within! http://grimandperilous.com/?p=709

We have polished up Chapter 11: Grimoire for the GRIMDARK Beta Edition!. The Grimoire will help guide you on how to use Magick in your ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG tabletop game. It includes rules for attaining Magick, the basic principles for using Magick, Channeling Power and more!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=717

For our Spanish-speaking audience, check out the review of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) Spanish Edition!

http://maestroterrax.blogspot.com/2015/09/zweihander.html

Today, we wanted to follow up on a few questions regarding the beta. One constant bit of feedback we receive is with respect to weapons and damage output.

By default, any weapon a character uses references the Combat Bonus (CB) + a 1D6 Fury Die (which "explodes" on a face 6) to determine Damage. Whether its a misericorde, sabre, longbow or arquebus, its Damage output isn’t distinguished weapon by weapon (as you’d see with other role-playing games). Why, you may ask?

Simply put, ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG doesn’t distinguish the actual damage math differences between dirks, hunting bows, knuckledusters, mortuary swords, pistols, arbalest crossbows or any other weapon. Instead, the distinctions are made within the Qualities a weapon possess. Qualities distinguish weapons from one another, and when certain Qualities are combined, they begin to tell much more about what a weapon does (other than deal Damage).

Read the article on weapons, damage and their Qualities at the following link:

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=734

Right in time with All Hallow's Eve, we present a spooky new Elite Profession – the Necromancer!

While other arcanists seek to merge themselves with Aetheric plane by calling into the realm of chaos, Necromancers have a more earthly goal – to live forever. They have embarked on a quest to cheat death, living into eternity either in their current body or a more "divine" form which can withstand the march of time. Rejecting the idea of godly dominion, Abyssal service and the wheel of fate, their singular task is to bind their spirit permanently to the material realm. To them, there are no gods, only men. And through necromancy, they seek to ensorcel their bodies with the darkest of Magicks to live onwards. It is not inherently an evil purpose, so much as a selfish one. Preserving themselves for all eternity to see the fruit of their labors – whether for lineage, largesse or their innovations – is the ultimate goal of every Necromancer.

Download the Necromancer for the GRIMDARK Edition beta on our home website: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=746

Just in time for Halloween, we released the Necromancer, an Elite Profession for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) today. We've included their Petty, Lesser and Greater Magicks in their Arcana of Necromancy as well. This makes the Profession completely playable in the GRIMDARK Edition beta (http://grimandperilous.com/?page_id=95).

Take a look at our home website for more info: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=746

Looking to expand your ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) GRIMDARK Edition bestiary? Look no further – say hello to the Orkish WAAAR! Party.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=755

Quote from: ZWEIHÄNDER;863817Looking to expand your ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) GRIMDARK Edition bestiary? Look no further – say hello to the Orkish WAAAR! Party.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=755

QuoteIt is spoken that Orks cannot reproduce, only able to grow their numbers by a terrible mutation spread across the slaughtered. Victims of an Ork's blade sometimes undergo a horrendous transformation. A deadly fungus crawls across their corpse – spreading at an alarming rate – during the putrefaction and decomposition phase. This fungus seals wounds, and as the body swells with barbaric thew, the viscera are hardened by cirrhosis. As this happens, the face of the corpse changes from its deathly pallor to a porcine-like image. And by the new moon, the victim is reborn, drawing its first breath as a vile Ork. This process has confounded even the foremost of academic minds, but there is no doubt that the seeds of corruption must first be present before this terrible fate for the slaughtered can occur, for not every victim of an Orkish attack results in revivification into this putrid form.

OK, your Orcs are pretty cool.

GRIMDARK Edtion open beta players! We'd like to extend special thanks to Jesse "Gitzman" Burke of Gitzman's Gallery (http://gitzmansgallery.com) for his talents in helping create a brand new character creation sheet for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG GRIMDARK Edition (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com).

Download it here (http://grimandperilous.com/?p=759)!

ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) fans! We have some updates regarding publication, including a few special announcements, over at our home page. Check it out!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=770

ZWEIHÄNDER fans! As promised, we have a special treat for you before we close up for the holidays.

Far below the hustle and bustle of the streets of mankind lies a secret, a myth that few can determine whether is real or not. Whispers of rat-like men that control the aristocracy, a warren filled with terrible half-human monsters and the worship of a god lost to the annals of time are all hearsay and bedtime stories meant to scare. What is more terrifying is these are not myths, but the truth of the Skrzzak…

Find out more about the Skrzzak at the following link: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=793

Magick Items in ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com)

There are legends of enchanted blades of mythical strength, armor which can withstand the most formidable of blows, rings which grant extra lives, mantles which cause one to become invisible and more. From artifacts wrought in the dawn age by the firstborn gods to grimoires bound in the flesh of men, hundreds of stories persist of ancient items of great Magickal repute…

Yet, most of these are simply stories. Sure, there are plenty of amulets out there that swindler priests will pawn off as being Magickal, swearing that such and such ring gave a little old lady two hundred long years of life before she choked to death on a crouton in her soup. They may even spin a hilarious yarn of a pair of silken boots that gifted their brother exquisite dance moves that landed him a local Aristocratic lady’s hand in marriage. The huxster will try to convince you that dropping this simple – yet expensive – coin into a tankard will automatically dissolve the poison from unrequited lovers and turn them into a sex-crazed maniac. But for every story, nine times out of ten, these are useless trinkets pawned off as magnificent objects. However, for the tenth one…there may be some truth to it.

Magick Items in ZWEIHÄNDER are unlike those of other tabletop role-playing games. Magick items are not found in shops nor sold on the open market. There aren’t artificer wizards churning out armor, shields, weapons and fetishes for other’s use. The art of enchanting items has been long lost, and not even the elder races understand how to craft them today.

Only the mightiest of champions in the histories; decidedly doomed heroes to be certain, have beheld items of true Magickal repute. The promise of power is enough to drive anyone mad – rest assured that these same “heroes” were villains through and through, abusing its power for their own mad design. Even if these items were to be uncovered, assuredly inquisitors and other would-be heresy branders would do everything in their power to seek them out and destroy them (unless they, too were ensorcelled by their promises of power).

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=807

Social intrigue systems in RPG seem to have a love it or hate it relationship: either Gamemasters love the complexity of the system or dislike its use (Forge-based RPGs). Universally, players and Gamemasters alike tend to take umbrage at systems which focus solely on "skill rolls" over role-playing to determine success. A few even employ social combat, albeit intensely mechanical in nature (Honor and Intrigue, Song of Ice and Fire). Many tabletop role-playing games don't even have social skills (early editions of D&D), instead leaning on player's ability to influence non-player Characters through role- play to get the job done. Some games, like Pathfinder, distill social interaction down to a handful of dice rolls, without giving players much agency or allowing role-playing to augment their chances of success. Heck – some systems actively discourage third person role-playing all together!

While we certainly see a place for these approaches, here at ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com), we think we found a great middle ground. We encourage role-play above all, with Skills augmenting the conversation yet not ultimately determine success or failure. Both first and third person role-playing is supported, and rewarded. In our optional Social Intrigue system, there are two simple approaches a Gamemaster can take:

SIMPLE EXCHANGE
This is whenever Social Intrigue warrants an expedient answer through use of a Skill. This is the most common type of Social Intrigue in ZWEIHÄNDER (http://grimandperilous.com). For instance, either the player gets the lowest price possible for a piece of equipment using Bargain, manage to Charm a doorman to let them into an exclusive tavern or even Intimidate to scare off onlookers upon a scene of a crime in a crowded marketplace. These sort of Skill Tests are very simple for the Gamemaster to rule on, distilling down role-play into a single, binary result. While role-playing is still considered to be a factor, generation of success or failure determines the outcome. Social Class and the Character's Order & Chaos Ranks influence the Difficulty Rating.

COMPLEX EXCHANGE
Complex exchanges are reserved for specific interactions which require delicate wording, subtle threats and honeyed words to persuade another non-player Character to consider and approve of something they'd normally not agree to do. Before complex exchanges occur, all participants in Social Intrigue discuss above board what their objectives are and what's at risk. Once determined, each player selects one Skill to use – otherwise known as a Social Tactic – which will drive both the role-playing they employ and how it influences the emotions of the non-player Character they interact with. In this system, they make Social Tactics check before in depth role-playing begins. As before, Social Class, along with Order & Chaos Ranks, determine the Difficulty Rating.

The results of these rolls determine emotions, otherwise called Temperaments, that the Gamemaster writes down to help guide them on how to role-play the non-player Character the players are interacting with. Success and failure matter; one can generate favorable Temperaments, whereas the other can generate unfavorable ones. Once these Temperaments are generated, the Gamemaster references them throughout the interaction to determine how the non-player Characters interact with the players in return.

Download the Social Intrigue entry from the Game Master chapter here (http://grimandperilous.com/?p=817), and tell us what you think over at our web forum at Strike to Stun (http://forum.strike-to-stun.net/viewtopic.php?t=5602).

Hello again, ZWEIHÄNDER (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) fans! As promised, here's our January progress report.

We are moving along at a steady clip, on track to finish up Bestiary by mid-February. The chapter is coming in at a monstrous 120 individual entries! This means that we'll have a bevy of creatures for Gamemasters to introduce into their game, ranging from challenges at Basic, Intermediate and Advanced Tiers. We've also introduced a unique band of foes into the mix, called the Elite Tier, who can be used as movers and shakers in your campaign.

In the Bestiary, you'll find many fan-favorites from the Old World, in addition of truly unique beasties of our own design. In ZWEIHÄNDER (http://grimandperilous.com), creatures are classified by families (Abyssal, Animal, Beast, Humanoid, Mutant or Supernatural) and further categorized by Risk Factor, analogous to the Slaughter Margin from WFRP. Each entry in the Bestiary is fully fleshed out; this means that all stats and abilities will be present in the entry, so you don't have to go digging into other chapters to figure out how creature's traits function. Every creature, both small and large, receive at least 1/4 to a full page description of its appearance, ecology and tidbits of mythology to draw upon for your own grim & perilous campaign world.

Follow this link to see the entire listing of creatures! Perceptive readers may even find a hot link or three to nasties we've recently completed, which can be used in the free-to-play GRIMDARK Beta Edition now (http://grimandperilous.com/?page_id=95)!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=835

Hello again, ZWEIHÄNDER fans! Here is our April progress report.

The Bestiary became a monstrous task (pun intended) over the past two months with further edits and the addition of several new creatures. We revamped the entry for Abyssal baddies, up to and including expanding upon the lore behind Higher Demons, Lower Demons and their servants. This resulted in a ton of new narrative material, which was brought to conclusion late last week. You'll recognize Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay fan favorites, along with some of our own design. We'll showcase some of this material later in our update.

As of today, we officially have one entry left in the Bestiary! We need to button a few things up in the Game Mastery chapter, but otherwise we are tracking to have ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG complete before summer hits. We'll have more details in the coming days for our Kickstarter, but otherwise you can watch for live updates over at our Facebook page.

Finally, as promised, here's a look at two classifications of Demons – Higher Demons and Lower Demons. We've included one Demon from each, which you can use today in your GRIMDARK Beta Edition game! Head over to our home page to learn more: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=848

ZWEIHÄNDER fans! We have long stated that we refuse to go to Kickstarter until we had thoroughly play-tested final version of the rules. After 4 years, 8 months and 12 days, we are proud to announce that the final draft for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com) is complete!

ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) will be the first of its kind to market: an inspired version of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, adaptable for any "grim & perilous" campaign set in the familiar Old World, the politically-inspired intrigues of George R.R. Martin's A Song Of Ice and Fire, the racial tensions of Andrzej Sapkowski's The Witcher, the criminal underworld of Scott Lynch's Lies of Locke Lamora, the war-torn adventures set in Glen Cook's The Black Company and other Renaissance-inspired adventures. Thoroughly play-tested by our internal team across nearly 240 game sessions and three major revisions, we are gearing up to bring it to the public by way of Kickstarter. We intend to use Kickstarter to help raise additional funds for artwork, editing and layout, along with providing you a way to get your hands on a Day One PDF release of the rules! Additionally, we'll use Kickstarter to help drive pre-orders for print-on-demand softcover and hardcover options with our partners at Lulu.com. We're aiming for a tentative Kickstarter launch date of July 25th. We are counting on your support to help bring this book to publication. Keep your eyes peeled, and if you haven't already, please go over to our Facebook page and LIKE it (https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous/)! You can also head over to our forum at Strike to Stun (http://forum.strike-to-stun.net/viewforum.php?f=23) to tell us what you'd like to see in our Kickstarter.

In celebration, we're releasing a massive 45 page unedited preview of Chapter 10: Grimoire to you. This includes a full narrative and mechanical overview of how Magick works in ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG. You can also peek at a full list of Generalist Petty Magicks, alongside Prayers of the God-Emperor, the Arcana of Pyromancy and their related Elite Professions. Finally, this preview also includes two new Rituals and mechanics for using mysterious Wytchstone to aid in casting spells.

Download the preview here: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=860

ZWEIHÄNDER fans! Our Kickstarter (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg) is now officially live.

Thanks to each and every one of you for your interest, support and shared over these long years as we prepared the game for the public. We know you’ll enjoy ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com) as much as we do, and hope to count on your support to bring a cool new indie tabletop RPG to market!

Happy gaming, and we’ll see you over at Kickstarter (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg)!

Best,
Daniel Fox
Lead designer

Congratulations!

Hey everyone, this is Tanner Yea, the co-author! I just got a new account, so it's barebones at the moment

But we have been fully funded in just under 5 hours! Not only that, we hit our first stretch goal, which adds 21 new images and 11 new Professions to the game! Next stretch goal is 8.2k, and is 21 more illustrations and the Slaves to Chaos appendix!

Thanks for all the support so far, we appreciate it so much!

We've just breach 8.2k! That means we add 21 more new illustrations, including some more in the Bestiary! We also now have the Slaves to Darkness Appendix, which adds the Skrzzak, Aztlan, Orx and Grendel races!

We'd also like to thank all the supporters for putting us on the second page of the What's Popular section on Kickstarter! This is beating our wildest expectations!

Stay tuned for more!

Chia-like, we have grown past 8.7k, completing our final (current) content goal! This unlocks 21 more illustrations, as well as Dark Astral: rules for playing in a grimdark future where mankind in spread thin about the stars, set upon on all sides by aliens, demons and each other! Since we have busted past these stretch goals, me and Daniel are going to talk tonight about some more great goodies we can offer you all! As of the moment, though, our next goal is 11k, upon which all $50 backers get their softcover upgraded to a hardcover! Very exciting!

Stay tuned for more!

Backed. Been waiting for some time for this one and it has CERTAINLY been through some thorough play-testing. :-) Super Excited.

Quote from: trechriron;909969Backed. Been waiting for some time for this one and it has CERTAINLY been through some thorough play-testing. :-) Super Excited.

Thank you so much for your support! We greatly appreciate it!

Just as I write this, the campaign has breached 16k! Wow wow wow, it's beyond our wildest dreams! We have a whole ton of new Stretch Goals listed (and even more secret ones in the works), and 16k unlocked the Reputation Point section and 37 illustrations for Abyssal and Animal monsters in the bestiary! Our ultimate goal is to get all 120 monsters illustrated individually! Our next goal is 17.2k, where we unlock the Custom Creature rules and 37 more monster illustrations, this time for Beasts and Humanoids!

As a reminder, backing at the $50 level will now get you a hardcover book! We also have two new tiers: 'Channel Power', which gives you the art complete PDF with no print, and 'ZWEIHANDER!' - which not only gets you five books, but you get a real, honest to goodness Zweihander sword! There is currently only one space in the Zweihander tier left! We also have an Add-On option for those who wish to add more books to their order!

Our final goal has been bumped to 33k, upon which we release the art-free PDF for the general public! We still have 28 days left, I know we can do it and make this book so dang amazing!

It's been a while since our last update, but we are know sitting on 27k! We are so very excited and humbled by everyone who backed, and we are here working hard to give you the best product available! All Stretch Goals have been unlocked, save the final one at 33k - which allows us to release the art-free PDF to the public! Those who pledged for that level will get bumped up to a free art filled PDF, and we are just 6k short of making it happen!

We are at that phase in a Kickstarter where we tend to coast on our numbers, but we are still growing daily! Please spread the word to any who are interested, and let's make that general public release happen!

Amazing news! In just four days we raised nearly 6k more, and we have just hit our final stretch goal of 33k! This is so amazing you guys have no idea. We've all put a lot of hard work into this and it is massively humbling to see such support from the community!

So what does hitting 33k mean? It means the Early Access Edition, which is the entirety of the game minus the art by Dejan Mandic, will be released FOR FREE to the general public! That's right - taking cues from folks like Goblinoid Games and Posthuman Studios, we are releasing the whole game without art free of charge! This also means all those of the Basic and Intermediate Tier get their pledges auto-upgraded, meaning they will also get the final PDF with all the art!

We still have 19 days left on the campaign, and we do have some plans on what to do, but we need them to burble like a stone soup before we announce anything. But once again, thank you all for the support and spreading the news! It means so much, really.

As we still go along down the path, we've developed two new Stretch Goals for you guys to really top out the campaign! The first is at 43k, upon which our resident artist Dejan Mandic will draw an exclusive Kickstarter-only cover! The cover can be chosen at the end of the campaign, and we for sure know it will be beautiful! Finally, at 53k, we will release Zweihander under the Creative Commons Liscense, meaning the public can hack and modify Zwei to their hearts content!

And one final thing: we are starting to slowly phase out the Channel Power Tier. Since all Kickstarter backers will now get the PDF with art, the Channel Power Tier no longer has a purpose. If you want to keep pledging 25 dollars that's great, but we recommend downgrading your pledge to Intermediate for $20.

That's all for now! Stay tuned as we keep breaking these goals!

I'm very interested in this project. I hope you guys are being very careful with stretch goals. Don't forget the fees and taxes you will have to pay, before you can even start printing books.

Quote from: danbuter;912020I'm very interested in this project. I hope you guys are being very careful with stretch goals. Don't forget the fees and taxes you will have to pay, before you can even start printing books.

Haha, good feedback. I crunch numbers for a living, and conservatively estimated all my expenses before profit. That being said, our margins are razor thin. However, it's a sacrifice we are willing to make to simply get this book out the door and into the wild.

Once we go print-on-demand after Kickstarter delivery, we're going to competitively price the hardback & PDF appropriately.

I did an interview with Ingo Beyer over at one of my favorite German RPG sites Obskures.de. Come check it out to get an exclusive scoop on the history of ZWEIHÄNDER, along with a look at what’s on the horizon for Grim & Perilous Studios!

http://obskures.de/2016/zweihaender-grim-perilous-rpg-an-interview-with-daniel-fox/

I have carefully read all the preview pages including the grimoire. While I really like WFRP 1E the choice to build my own world using Zweihander is even better. And better balanced rules are also a big plus. The humorous bits are also appreciated.

Quote from: Kravell;913419I have carefully read all the preview pages including the grimoire. While I really like WFRP 1E the choice to build my own world using Zweihander is even better. And better balanced rules are also a big plus. The humorous bits are also appreciated.

Awesome! We appreciate your support. We're aiming to be THE go-to alternative for grim & perilous gaming.

ZWEI fans!

Dejan has finished the front cover, and it looks spectacular! We wanted to evoke an "old school" feel here, a call-back to the first edition WFRP hardback. Below you'll see a few of our iconics: an ogre Pyromancer, dwarven Barber Surgeon, gnome Militiaman, human Godsworn and halfling Rat Catcher - with a small but vicious dog at her side. In the shadows, you can see the mysterious rat-like Skrzzak (as one of their swords has gone flying after having their face crushed by the Godsworn). Our back cover will be done later this week, but will illustrate an elven Slayer going toe-to-toe with the Skrzzak horde. We'll present both once they're ready.

Whenever we send out surveys at the end of Kickstarter, we'll ask you which cover you want for your hardback: the "grimdark" original cover by Jussi Alarauhio, or the old school cover by Dejan Mandic. Simple and easy!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1659407

ZWEI fans!

We are closing in on the last 48 hours of our Kickstarter. We have received a ton of questions regarding additional hardcovers, Add-Ons and pledges. We'll try to address them here.

First things first: once the Kickstarter is over, it's over.

All pledges must be made in full during the Kickstarter campaign. One question we frequently are asked is "can I pledge $10 USD now at Basic Tier, and upgrade my rewards during pledge manager at the Kickstarter prices?"

Our answer to this is "no, we aren't intending to use a pledge manager, so all pledges must be made in full during the Kickstarter campaign."

Let me make this clear: this isn't a wrong question, and don't feel bad if you've asked it. We're not trying to be jerks here, but we need to make sure that our early backers are taken care of. We simply don't feel it's necessary to pay another third party money to handle our Kickstarter. We already worked out how we intend to use the surveys and will go smoothly. Should this change, you'll be the first to know.

Early bird catches the worm: The price for the book post-Kickstarter will be at a higher retail price. This means you can only get hardback copies of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG at the least expensive price only during Kickstarter.

$40 USD Add-On for additional Hardcovers: There won't be an opportunity for you to upgrade or increase your pledge outside of the Kickstarter. This means that if you wish to order more than one hardback, you'll need to do it now. Anyone outside the "Measly Peasant Tier" needs to increase their Pledge by $40 USD for each additional hardcover they want. If you have pledged at a lower tier and are on the fence about upgrading, it must be done before the Kickstarter is over in 48 hours.

Kickstarter-exclusive Dejan Mandic cover: This will never be made available again outside of Kickstarter. In the survey, we'll ask you which hardcover you'd like for each book. This means if you want both covers, you need to Add-On an additional $40 for each additional book you want.

$5 USD Add-On for Games for Soldiers: As a part of our campaign, we wish to give a portion of our proceeds to Games for Soldiers, and organization that works to get games into the hands of US troops overseas. These proceeds will be used to print at-cost ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG. We encourage everyone to drop $5 into the bucket, so we can get a handful of these books out to our troops.

Surveys to those who pledged to receive the hardback won't be sent out until a few weeks before we go to print. Why? People move, postal addresses change and we want to make sure to have all the most recent information ready for you before we ship.

As stated before, hardcover shipping is entirely free for those in CA, US, and EU. We are subsidizing shipping out of pocket. However, all other countries will need to include a $20 USD surcharge for shipping before the end of the campaign. Even if you order multiple hardbacks, it's a flat $20 USD. If for some reason you move into the CA US or EU regions before shipping begins later this year, we will refund in full your shipping cost.

If you have any questions about pledge management, shipping or otherwise, please let us know in the comments below.

-d.fx

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1661524

Hey gang, this is Daniel here, author of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG. My Kickstarter for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG, a Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay Retroclone, ends in 46 hours. Come check us out before our campaign ends: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg

Exciting news - our Kickstarter for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG was featured on Forbes.com Games!

We're now standing shoulder to shoulder among giants, alongside Monte Cook's Invisible Sun, Sandy Peterson's Glorantha: The Gods War, Stewart Wieck's Prince Valiant and Lotus Dimension by Scott Wayne. What an incredible honor! We couldn't have gotten there without the support of our backers - thank you so much for your continued support.

Please come check it out, and share with your friends!: http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2016/08/23/five-really-cool-tabletop-games-on-kickstarter-right-now/#23606af97017

As a reminder, only 26 hours remain until the end of the campaign. If you like grim, gritty tabletop RPGs, come back us on Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg?ref=hero_thanks

We've received a few questions about shipping costs. Remember, if you are purchasing at a minimum one hardback book, shipping is zero cost if you want it shipped in the United States, Canada or EU/Britain regions. All other countries need to add on $20 USD for shipping.

Also, it looks like our PDF is coming in at a meaty 500+ pages! With your feedback, we've addressed layout issues by making it easier to read while optimizing it for tablets. It's absolutely chocked full of content! I am working closely with Milena to get this prepared, which should be ready before the end of the month. We're also working on shoring up our PDF-only release of the GM screen and preparing our introductory adventure "A Bitter Harvest" for you. Note that all digital releases are unillustrated and will be released in concert with one another.

However, we have made the decision to include the fully-illustrated "A Bitter Harvest" in our hardback for print in November 2016. This will result in a ton of savings for everyone, so you don't have to purchase a separate print copy later on. Happy days!

Stay tuned for more details, as the countdown is officially on!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1664316

So we have only about an hour left on the campaign, so it is now your last chance to pledge! This will be the cheapest time the PDF and book will be available, not to mention the only time the Kickstarter exclusive cover will be provided! So if you've been himming and hawing, now is the time. We are at nearly 61k, which is mind blowing considering our starting goal of 7k. Thank you so much for the support, we can't wait to get this game to you guys!

ZWEI fans!

Congratulations everyone! 1,265 backers pledged $61,743 to help bring this project to life.

Thank you all so much for your support and pledges! We said in the beginning we want to be THE go-to for all grim & gritty tabletop RPG gameplay. And we mean it. Here's how we intend to do it:

In the following days, we are releasing Early Access PDF to everyone; backers and the general public

In concert with the release of the Early Access PDF, we're releasing our digital release only adventure A Bitter Harvest and the GM screen exclusively to our backers

In the coming weeks, we are going to work alongside you to address issues you see before we go to print on our web forums at grimandperilous.com

In the coming weeks, we're going to detail the Creative Commons License to the public

In November 2016, we're going to deliver the granddaddy of all gritty RPGs: ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG in all its fully illustrated, 450+ page hardback B&W glory

We're going to include A Bitter Harvest into the hardback to save you all from purchasing a separate physical copy

In the coming months, we're going to show you our next expansion tentatively titled Liber Abyssia

We're going to donate a portion of our proceeds to produce hardbacks to the organization Games For Soldiers

While you all celebrate, we are going to go dark for the next few days to wrap up the Early Access PDF layout. Milena, our Mother of Dragons, is heads down until we get the PDF read for you all. We don't intend to leave our holes until we've got the Early Access PDF in-hand, ready for distribution to you. In the meantime, please be patient with us as we roll everything out. We'll provide details to all our backers, including instructions for each pledge Tier, digital download items, virtual game sessions and the Kickstarter-exclusive cover here on Kickstarter, our home page at GrimAndPerilous.com and on our Facebook page. We'll also talk more about the sword... don't forget about the gunmetal finish ZWEIHÄNDER sword!


As a reminder, we won't be sending out surveys to backers until we intend to ship. However, each Tier can expect a special update via Kickstarter with links where to download your digital content before the end of August.

We're very excited and thrilled to provide you with the world's first open source grim & perilous tabletop RPG system, complete for you to remix, reduce and reuse to your heart's content. Enjoy, and we'll speak with you all in a few days!

Best,
Daniel Fox, Tanner Yea and team
Grim & Perilous Studios

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1664457

450+ page hardcover? Holy moley! I don't think that I have a book that thick. Maybe my History of Art tome.

I'm glad that I backed it. I shouldn't have 'cause money is tight, but WFRP was the first proper RPG that I had played and while 1ed holds a charming place on my bookshelf (and in my memory), Zweihander is a game that I'll actually play.

Regardless, this is totally boss. Congrats on the successful campaign!

We're closing in on final layout for Early Access. It's coming in at a whopping 636 pages!

The team made a second pass over the PDF over the weekend. Although we have layout changes to make, we are on track to release it this week. Should anything change, we'll let you know.

Dejan finished both the front and back of the Kickstarter-exclusive book cover! Due to popular demand, we have made the decision to include it on the gatefold cover of the GM screen, too! For now, we're heading back to our caves to finish out Early Access PDF.

Stay tuned!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1667162

Following our Kickstarter, we have received no less than 45 inquiries regarding late pledges. This is something we cannot ignore.

It wasn’t an easy decision. However, after deliberating with the team over the pros and cons, we have decided to open up late pledges over at CrowdOx. This affords us several benefits for pledge management to our Kickstarter backers, while giving folks the chance to get a copy of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG before it goes out to the general public in December 2016. However, this puts us in a tough situation: we can’t burn our early backers on Kickstarter, as we owe our initial success to them. To balance this out, we’re going to implement fair shipping charges for those who come through as a late pledge and bump up the price a touch. This is only fair; it gives new backers a way to get their hands on a pre-order, while allowing our early Kickstarter backers to take advantage of the free shipping in CA, US & EU with cheaper pricing on the hardback.

https://app.crowdox.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg

We are gearing up to launch the Early Access PDF, the adventure A Bitter Harvest and a few special surprises, which you'll find tonight, in the CrowdOx surveys!

However, the GM screen PDF is a bit behind schedule, as we want to make sure that it's up to the same quality as the Early Access PDF. We expect to have it ready next week at the very latest.

Keep an eye out this evening for an email survey from CrowdOx to help you understand how to input shipping, upgrade your pledges and reconcile shipping charges if you are outside CA, EU OR US or adding on additional books to your pledge.

While you're waiting, I wanted to show you the Table of Contents for ZWEIHÄNDER. The ToC is fully clickable (taking you to the page in the book from the header). We have also added a bookmark sidebar to navigate through our massive 637 page Early Access PDF. Take a look at the link here to preview!

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=964

Hey gang,

What a great way to start an early Labor Day holiday!

As of a few moments ago, CrowdOx begun sending out surveys for Kickstarter backers only. In the survey, you can confirm your pledge, have the opportunity to upgrade, handle add-ons, reconcile shipping charges, choose the cover for hardback books and download digital content. This means the Early Access PDF, along with the adventure "A Bitter Harvest" and a few special surprises are available to download right now! The GM screen is not quite ready, but you should have everything you need to create characters and run adventures using ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG.

Remember, this is the Early Access release. The game is fully playable, and we will do our best to answer any questions you may have about ZWEIHÄNDER and its mechanics both here and on our forums over at GrimAndPerilous.com. We've set up sticky topics on our forum, broken down by chapter. Please post any issues you may see or questions about the chapter within the topic. Feel free to pose more generic questions in our general forum. Our play test lead Adam Rose, co-author Tanner Yea and I will do our best to get to your questions in a timely manner.

We can't wait to hear feedback. Happy gaming, and we'll speak with you all soon!

-d.fx

ps if you didn't get a chance to participate in the Kickstarter, we are in fact accepting late pledges over at our CrowdOx page: https://app.crowdox.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg

Kickstarter backers! If you have completed your survey email from CrowdOx, you will receive a second email indicating where to download your digital content shortly thereafter.

Rumor has it that Fantasy Flight Games has officially ended the licensing rights for Warhammer with Games Workshop. With the announcement of Runewars Miniature Game at GenCon, one can only speculate if this was a planned move. As we all know, Fantasy Flight Games stopped producing products for their WFRP Third Edition line sometime ago. This leaves open a question of whether or not Games Workshop plans to relicense Warhammer - specifically the fan-favorite Old World - to another company.

Check out this link over at EnWorld, and help us spread the word about ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG as a retroclone/USR/loveletter/heartbreaker/successor to Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay: http://www.enworld.org/forum/content.php?3751-Who-Will-Pick-Up-The-Warhammer-Licenses-Next#.V87MEpMrJMY

We have received a number of inquiries about when ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG's Early Access PDF will go out free to the public. We made this a part of our stretch goals, and it's a promise we intend to keep. However, our Kickstarter backers get the first slice of the cake, with CrowdOx late pledgers coming up next in line and the public last. With this in mind, we intend to make the Early Access PDF free to the public at the end of our CrowdOx campaign on October 31st.

If you don't want to wait until November, you can still do a late pledge over at CrowdOx to get all digital PDFs immediately. This includes the Early Access PDF, the 41 page introductory adventure A Bitter Harvest, 6 pre-generated characters and a form-fillable character sheet. You'll also receive the illustrated PDF later in November. Head over to our CrowdOx page to learn more.

https://app.crowdox.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg

We have updated our form-fillable character sheet!

* Reputation Points field on page 1
* Coins and their denominations on page 2
* Magick and Spells on page 4
* Minor layout updates pages 1-4

Did you miss out on ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG on Kickstarter? You can do a Late Pledge over at CrowdOx until October 31st.

Let us know what you think here: http://grimandperilous.com/?p=1014

ZWEI fans!

We have made a five-page PDF of the most common tracking tables you’ll use at the game table. Contained within are:

* Combat Conditions Tracker
* Social Intrigue Tracker
* Wilderness Travel Tracker
* Chase Scene Tracker

Check it out on our home page at GrimandPerilous.com

Plus, our Game Mastery PDF-only screen is ready to download for Kickstarter and CrowdOx backers. Featuring artwork from Dejan Mandic and Jussi Alarauhio, it will come in both portrait vertical and horizontal landscape formats, perfect for print-on-demand/insertion into “The World’s Greatest Screen”.

http://grimandperilous.com/?p=1018

We have some very exciting news to share for fans of WFRP 3e!

In light of the licensing issues between Games Workshop and Fantasy Flight Games, our team has been working on a method to "back in" the dice mechanics from Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay third edition. It took quite a bit of retooling, but fortunately, ZWEIHANDER's ruleset has proven to be very accommodating to this approach.

Our play test phase begins tonight, to see how well they gel within ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG's framework. Providing everything goes according to plan (with tweaks here and there), we will publish these rules as a free PDF in the coming weeks, leading up to the print edition.

Did you miss out on ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG on Kickstarter the first time around? We are keeping Late Pledges open at CrowdOx until October 31st: https://app.crowdox.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg

Come check out the world's first Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay retroclone/loveletter/heartbreaker/OSR/spiritual successor: ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG: http://grimandperilous.com

Thanks to contributor John Williams, ZWEIHANDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) character sheet is now available for Roll20!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1715728

As a part of our $33K Fury Die stretch goal, we promised to release Early Access PDF for free. We originally planned to wait until after Oct 31, but in celebration of Halloween weekend, you can now download the digital release over at CrowdOx!

We will provide an update next week on progress with the hardback release of ZWEIHÄNDER, along with a peek at new artwork by Dejan Mandic.

Enjoy, and let us know what you think in the comments below. If you have direct feedback on rules, please join the discussion on our forum.

https://app.crowdox.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg

Hey gang,

First things first: thanks to your feedback, we've reworked several of the Traits and addressed many of the concerns you had about rule clarity. This also includes a massive revamping of Chapter 12: Bestiary. We're working hard to get everything wrapped up soon, so we can begin shipping hardbacks in December.

For those who backed at the ZWEIHÄNDER! Tier, we have the swords on their way to the office, and will show you pics of them soon. By the way, if you didn't have a chance to back at the ZWEIHÄNDER! Tier and live in the US, we have an option now available for you over at CrowdOx.

In other news, we brought on Matthew Pook (affectionally known as Pookie) as our editor & proofreader. He is a professional editor, working for Sixtystone Press and has edited titles for Chronicle Games, Autarch LLC, Cubicle Seven Entertainment, Miskatonic River Press, Modiphius Entertainment and Triple Ace Games. Currently, Pookie also edits the Age of Cthulhu line for Goodman Games and OSR titles for Lamentations of the Flame Princess. He also is a well-known reviewer, having published each week for a decade in Steve Jackson Games' Pyramid e-zine. We are so incredibly proud to have an industry veteran on-board to professionally edit ZWEIHÄNDER. Even with this latest addition to our team, we are still estimating to have all edits complete before the end of November.

As of October 28th, the Early Access PDF went out to the public for free. If you have a friend who didn't back on Kickstarter or didn't do a late pledge, they can now download it for free over on CrowdOx. We will bring it live on RPGNow.com later this week.

Ok, now onto art stuff! Embracing the order/chaos idea from the book, Dejan has completely reworked our interior borders. For proof of concept, our 'Mother of Dragons' Milena has created a new mock-up of Chapter 2: How To Play. See the artwork and new updates over at our Kickstarter (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1725342)!

The Early Access PDF for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) is now FREE on RPGNow.com (https://www.rpgnow.com/product/192264/ZWEIHNDER-Grim--Perilous-RPG-Early-Access-Core-Rules)

https://www.rpgnow.com/product/192264/ZWEIHNDER-Grim--Perilous-RPG-Early-Access-Core-Rules

ZWEIHÄNDER fans!

As of 3:26PM central, Matthew Pook completed his edits for ZWEIHÄNDER! He managed to cut out a lot of the redundancy, eliminated the more confusing elements and massively swept out font errors, typos and removed excessive use of semicolons. We also backed in many of the errors the community caught, and updated several rules in the book that were confusing. We are so incredibly lucky to have him onboard to bring ZWEIHÄNDER to market!

In the meanwhile, take a look at a few snapshots from our early proof of chapters 1-3. Dejan and our Mother of Dragons Milena have been working hard to whip this book into shape, and it shows. Note that we still have a long way to go, as we're still working on font sizing, image nudging, borders and other technical changes for print. They are by no means final:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1741878

ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) fans!

As we ready to close out 2016 and head into 2017, we wanted to share some updates with ya'll. Head over to our Kickstarter (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1773258) to preview every full-page image from all 12 chapters now!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1773258

ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) fans!

You want updates and a downloadable bestiary? You get updates and a downloadable bestiary!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1789951

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (http://grimandperilous.com) fans!

One of our backers has been running a ZWEIHANDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) campaign set the Old World! You can follow their adventures over here: https://troubleinthemoot.obsidianportal.com/

Are any of you going to Pensacon this weekend?

Co-author Tanner Yea of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) will be hosting a demo of 'A Bitter Harvest' at the Pensacola Grand Hotel on the second floor. You can get in on the action Friday the 17th, from 7PM-11PM. Spots are limited and are first come, first serve. There will be a sign-up book to reserve a spot, so show up a bit early to make sure your seat is secure. Tanner will be wearing a neon pink hat if you need to identify him in the room, or want to corner him at the convention to ask for rules clarifications, give feedback about your experience with Early Access or other questions related to Grim & Perilous Studios (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) release schedule.

Participants will be entitled to receive the illustrated PDF of ZWEIHÄNDER when it is released in March. Be sure to pass your email address, along with your first and last name, to Tanner at the end of the game.
http://pensacon.com/

Happy gaming!

Our art director Dejan is about to wrap up the remaining four pieces of art this week. In the meanwhile, I wanted to share our philosophical vision to art direction in ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com).

Our personal values strongly guided the writing process and art direction. On the outset of the project, Dejan, Tanner and I made the joint decision to include representation of all real-world races and genders throughout the book. In addition, these races are expressed in the art using female and male genders. This includes instances of transgendered and intersex characters and creatures. We also use nudity and sexuality throughout the book. In most cases, nudity is represented as the natural state of creatures, and at other times, we use it in tandem with sexuality. We hope you won't be dissuaded from enjoying ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com) because of this.

Now... with that out of the way, I wanted to give you a taste of some of the new illustrations from our bestiary. Follow the link below (warning: NSFW)!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1813848

ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com) fans!

We appreciate everyone's feedback on the recent batch of artwork for the bestiary. It's a critical part of our design process, and a way for us to self-check ourselves against the needs and wants of the community.
Following this, we spent the weekend revising a number of creatures from the bestiary. This includes dialing back the explicitness, and revamping a handful of creatures whose images could be taken out of context. The changes manage to 'sanitize' some of the images, while keeping with our vision of the bestiary.

The following includes revised images and a handful of ones we haven't made public yet. Kickstarter's interface won't allow us to dial in the image size correctly, so they may appear to be of lower quality than they actually are.

We'll work on releasing Professions and Races images later this week, as to better explain our approach to real-world racial and gender inclusiveness in the character artwork.

Thanks everyone, and happy gaming!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1817859

Hey gang,

Slight change of plans - Kickstarter Live isn't working at the moment. Instead, we're going to livestream from my Facebook profile at 2PM CST today. You can ask any questions in the comments section, and we'll be sure to upload the AMA to our site following the conversation.

Today, I will speak more about ZWEIHÄNDER's progress, shipping updates and clarifications regarding late pledges and the distribution of the illustrated PDF.

Adam Rose - our lead playtester - will also be joining us to help answer any questions related to clarify rules, character creation and helping solve some of the more unusual exceptions-based rules you may have about ZWEIHÄNDER.

Tune in today (Feb 28th) from 2-3PM CST on Facebook, as we go live to answer your questions.

See you all soon!

https://www.facebook.com/mformoniker

-d.fx

Thanks for all the questions and feedback from yesterday. Despite Kickstarter Live going down, we managed to get a livestream set up on my personal Facebook account. We'll plan to do another AMA in a few weeks, once we have the illustrated PDF out to you all.

In the meanwhile, come watch all one and a half (!) hours of our ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG AMA On YouTube!

https://youtu.be/9kkGc0FB_NA?t=1s

As promised, we're releasing a series of artwork from ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com). In our first installment for today, we'll show you the illustrations from Chapter 3: Character Creation. Let us know what you think below!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1820798

In our second installment for today, check out some of the kick-ass ladies of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com)! This represents a mere sampling of the 120+ Professions found in the core book.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1820820

We'd be doing a discredit to our fanbase if we didn't show you the misfortunate 'gentlemen' of a grim & perilous world. In our third and final installment for today, here's a peek at some of the fellas in ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com).

This should give you the full picture of what we mean by inclusiveness - it's portraying a multi-cultural hodgepodge of RPG fans as the characters, as opposed to portraying traditional, 'in-game stereotypes' about elves, dwarves, humans, etc...

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1820863

Happy early GM's Day!

Remember, you can pick up the FREE early access PDF of ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com) - all 625+ pages of gritty adventure - right now over at CrowdOx (https://app.crowdox.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg)! Alternatively, you can pick it up over at DriveThruRPG (http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/192264/ZWEIHNDER-Grim--Perilous-RPG-Early-Access-Core-Rules)!

Have fun storming the castle!

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Hey gang,

We're in the home stretch. Only a few more images remain before we complete layout!

As some of you may have heard in our AMA, we are going to be including the playtest adventure A Bitter Harvest into the main book! Originally written as a fan adventure for Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay by Ovid and adapted for ZWEIHÄNDER, the adventure includes Chase Scenes, Combat Encounters, Social Intrigue and Wilderness Travel. It is meant to teach a GM how to use each of these tools during a game, while providing a structured adventure to better teach players how ZWEIHÄNDER's mechanics work. Although most of the adventure requires the players to follow the story arc, it encourages investigation and critical thinking upon their part to put together a mystery, with a shocking resolution requiring the players to decide the best course of action to bring the adventure to a close. Although this adds about 21 pages, we wanted to ensure that GMs have a go-to adventure to introduce ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://grimandperilous.com) to players.

If you aren't already following our Facebook page, you should take a moment to do so now. We've uploaded a handful of exclusive images for the campaign seeds of Gangs of Kahabro, The Lost Colony of Roanoke and Goth Moran Divided. Come check them out, exclusively on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous/ (https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous/)

Images are finally wrapped up for ZWEIHÄNDER Grim & Perilous RPG (http://warhammerfantasyroleplay.com)! While Milena and Dejan continue working on perfecting layout, I wanted to share the second draft of our fully illustrated Bestiary - all 157 pages of it! Although we are still working on optimizing composition, arranging borders, font changes and image facing, this should give you a good look at what we're trying to achieve... 'old school feel, new school appeal'.

Note that this is a low resolution version and that the headers/borders will be changing in the final version. Let us know what you think: https://goo.gl/MCC5LA (https://goo.gl/MCC5LA)

With your feedback from our forums at Strike to Stun, Facebook and here on Kickstarter, the book is now complete. All the I's are dotted, T's crossed, edits done, cuts made, clarity added and improvements galore. It's been a phenomenal amount of work - far more than we had anticipated - but we couldn't have gotten there without your help. Thank you so much for being an engaged and interactive community!

So here's where we're at: this weekend, Adam Rose (our lead playtester) and I are going to finish up our table of contents. Once this happens, we'll repackage everything for Milena using InDesign, and have her prepare the Early Access Illustrated v2 PDF file for distribution the following week. We'll update our backers - both on Kickstarter and CrowdOx - with where to download. While that's happening, I will be sending off the PDF to Lulu.com (our printer) to have a few galley proofs made for myself and Tanner (roughly a week to get one made and in-hand). This is to ensure that everything meets our criteria and that the colors are correct for the cover art. I anticipate that it will take us a few days to do a quick read and verify all is in place. Once Tanner gives me the go-ahead, I will then pass off the PDF to our shipment team. We have contracted one of our internal play testers (Mike 'The Boss' Bossaller) and a group of trusted individuals to plug in orders for us. The shipments will go out in phases over a period of 3-4 weeks, starting first with domestic orders in North America, followed by international shipments.

So there you have it! Thanks once more for your patience. It's been a wild ride, and I am super pumped to show you what five years of playtesting can produce: the world's first Kickstarter-funded Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (http://grimandperilous.com) loveletter/heartbreaker/OSR/retroclone/whatever you want to deem it as.

Head over to Kickstarter to see some additional artwork: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimandperilous/zweihander-grim-and-perilous-rpg/posts/1852242

Everything is now over to layout to prepare the PDF to release. I will have an update here in the next week when it's ready to pass out. Keep your eyes peeled here and on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/grimandperilous/

edit: As a clarification, the PDF will go out to everyone while we wait for our galley proofs from the printer. Once we okay the proofs, we will begin shipping. In addition we will be working on a "living index" on our home website, and free supplemental print-outs. Finally, we will also be preparing our files for POD at DriveThruRPG a week or so after we ship.