Death’s Game Night

About
Death’s Game Night is a short and comedic TTRPG for two people. I originally designed it as part of an assignment for a class, where the goal was to make a two player RPG. I really enjoyed the design process, and trying to figure out how to make a two player game fun without being unbalanced!

Game Overview

Death’s Game Night is an asymmetrical two-person TTRPG, where one player takes the role of the titular “Death” in one of their many forms and the other, the poor “Mortal” they have come to claim. In a last bid attempt for their life, the Mortal challenges Death to a game, the winner keeping the Mortal soul.

As the game progresses, the Mortal makes offers of things they care about other than their soul in an attempt to persuade Death to leave them. This back and forth continues over three rounds of the unique card game I developed for Death’s Game Night, with offers and counteroffers after every move of the cards.

Player Roles

Both players have a deck of cards with specific character types that will inform their decisions. Players can either choose a specific one they want to try out, or choose at random!

Death’s Forms

For Death, these are different forms they can take based on popular personifications from across mythology and pop culture. This includes The Guide, a form based on psychopomps like Hermes, and The Fiend, based on the classic depiction of the devil.

As Death is extremely powerful, each form gives the player a special ability unique to it. Each form also includes some things they may accept over a soul, to give some guidance on what to accept.

Mortal Tropes

For the Mortal, the roles are derived from the different kinds of people that may challenge Death to a game. These people include The Welcoming, someone who is just excited to have someone over, and The Gambler, someone willing to risk it all on the roll of the dice.

While the mortal doesn’t get a special ability like Death, they still have a few ways to turn the odds in their favor. For one, they get to offer first every round, to hopefully entice Death. Each Mortal role includes a small list of example offers, things that the character would care a lot about. One thing I really wanted to include in each role was an intangible thing, like the Gambler’s Luck.