You want to dive into your dark side and let out the worst within you?
There are only two options, next to mine...
The Military Gangster
Available on Amazon as latest edition or here as a free download first copy.
Shadowrun is a popular tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) and media franchise set in a dystopian, near-future world where traditional cyberpunk technology (like hacking and cyberware) co-exists with high fantasy magic (like elves, dragons, and spells).
The Lore and Setting
The universe of Shadowrun, known as "The Sixth World", takes place in an alternate timeline where magic returned to Earth in 2011, triggering the awakening of classical fantasy races (metahumans) like orks, trolls, dwarves, and elves.
Key pillars of the setting include:
Megacorporations: Powerful, ruthless corporations have effectively replaced governments, controlling all aspects of daily life and running secret wars against one another.
Shadowrunners: Because corporations need plausible deniability, they hire deniable, off-the-grid mercenaries—known as Shadowrunners—to do their dirty work, such as industrial espionage, assassinations, and data theft.
Magic and The Matrix: The world heavily features "deckers" (hackers who plug their brains into a global internet called the Matrix) and mages/shamans who cast spells and summon spirits.
Gameplay and Mechanics
First published in 1989, the game is played similarly to improvisational theater or other RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons. A Gamemaster (GM) leads the story, and players control specific specialized characters—such as a "Street Samurai" (cybered-up mercenary), a "Decker" (hacker), or a "Rigger" (vehicular specialist)—to complete dangerous jobs.The system relies heavily on a pool of six-sided dice (D6s) to determine success or failure in various real-world, magical, and digital scenarios
When Shadowrun is Muay Thai, this is Aikido and the Tao of Zen:
Available on Amazon and Ebay.
Ars Magica is a classic tabletop role-playing game (RPG) set in "Mythic Europe" around AD 1200. Originally created in 1987 by Jonathan Tweet and Mark Rein-Hagen, the game's defining feature is its revolutionary, fluid magic system that allows players to invent their own spells dynamically.
Key Features of the Game
Mythic Europe: The setting is a historically grounded version of the High Middle Ages, but with a twist: the folklore, superstitions, and beliefs of medieval people are entirely real. Faeries, angels, demons, and magic all exist alongside mundane history.
The Magic System: Instead of choosing from a strict, pre-determined list of spells, players use a matrix of Verbs (such as Creo/Create, Perdo/Destroy) and Nouns (such as Ignem/Fire, Mentem/Mind) to intuitively build and cast customized magic effects on the fly.
Troupe-Style Play: Rather than playing a single character forever, players control a "troupe" consisting of three types of characters: a powerful wizard (Magus), a skilled human ally (Companion), and disposable guards or servants (Grogs). This allows players to choose different characters depending on the adventure at hand.
Building a Legacy: Gameplay revolves around the "Covenant," a fortified home base or laboratory where the player characters live, study, and craft magical items over in-game decades or centuries.
The Core Rulebook
Currently published by Atlas Games, the game is universally renowned for its dense, simulationist design that requires significant rulebook engagement. You can read more about the game's structure, houses of magic, and expansions on the Ars Magica - Atlas Games hub
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