Beetle Knight - Quickstart Edition

This is a pre-release version of Beetle Knight to get folks familiar with the game. We would appreciate your feedback on the Discussion Board below.

Beetle Knight is a bug-sized role-playing game for your tabletops. It features "contest rolls" where two creatures, or a creature and the arbiter roll dice against one another to determine uncertain outcomes. 

Histories and Mysteries

Deep in the rotting log that is the Millipede’s fortress, a disease spreads like wildfire. No one knows the source. Perhaps they discovered something left by the Termites long ago? 

Innocent Flies have been disappearing, many seem to know something but are too scared to speak. All the while, moss covers once-clean nests. 

Mantises have suddenly begun uncharacteristically blocking all passage through their territory. All, that is, but the strongest diggers.

Unexplained phenomena and deep history permeate the worlds of Beetle Knight with a cast of every bug imaginable and each of their distinct cultures. As a member of the ancient order of Knights, you are driven by honor, or obligation, to investigate the mysteries of the realm.

The world of Beetle Knight is a patchwork of territories. Every meter of the ever-changing land is spoken for and each has several ancestral claimants. 

System

Contests

Beetle Knight uses a unique resolution system known as "Contents". When attempting something uncertain do a Contest roll. The player and the Arbiter both roll a die to determine the outcome. If the player’s roll beats the Arbiter’s roll, the player succeeds. The harder the challenge, the higher the Arbiter’s challenge dice. 

For example, if a Knight with a Presence die of d8 is trying to convince the Termite Queen to make peace with the Wormriders of Peat, they would roll their d8 (Presence) against the arbiter's challenge die. In this case a d12 for the stubborn queen. If the Knight rolls a 6 and the arbiter rolls a 4, the Knight is successful!

Resolve and Emblems

Knights use Emblems, magical tokens, to cast powerful spells. Depending on your character you may be able to use many Emblems. To activate an Emblem, Knights use their "Resolve". This resource refills when resting and when rolling a tie during Contests.

For example, a Knight rolls a tie while trying to convince the Wormriders to meet with the Termite Queen. The Wormriders are suspicious and the contest fails. However the tie restores 1 Resolve for the Knight. The Knight uses that resolve to activate the "Revealing Light" Emblem, thus detecting a hidden Termite spy.

Special Items

Knights level up their abilities by acquiring and modifying Special Items and acquiring new Emblems. Players roll for their initial Special Items when creating their character. 

For example, a player rolls for an item Descriptor and gets "Bark (+1 Defense)", then they roll for the Item and get "Cape (+1 Emblem Slot, +2 Max. Resolve)". Later after destroying the invading Evil Weevil, the arbiter may enhance a Knight's Special Item with the "Carapace (+1 Emblem slots)" descriptor.

Quickstart Version Team

• Jim Hall (he/him) - Game Designer, Illustrator, Layout
• Chris Shorb (he/him) - Game Development Editor, Contributing Writer
• La esquina del rol (he/him) - Spanish Translation
• Perplexing Ruins (he/him) - Contributing Artist 
• Daria LeFevre (she/her)  - Contributing Artist