Belly of the Beast RPG

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A tabletop RPG about callous survivors scavenging the abyssal guts of the world-eating Beast that consumed their home.

You are a scavenger. Driven by the primal instinct to survive¸ you venture into the depths of the Evergut in search of some remnant of the past that will postpone your inevitable digestion.

The land was resplendent once; sprawling forests¸ massive ranges¸ glittering coastlines. Hundreds of clans¸ nations¸ and empires carved their homes from mountain and glen - living and killing and loving beneath the sun-kissed boughs.

But that was a lifetime ago. For generations the survivors have known nothing but sorrow. The Hungry God consumed all¸ leaving the world as little more than a skinned carcass moaning to be put out of its misery. Millions were swallowed during the Great Devourer's gluttonous feast; and yet¸ humanity pressed on.

Belly of the Beast is a tabletop roleplaying game focusing on scavengers: brazen survivors that plumb the depths of a world-eating monster's guts¸ scouring the remains of the mighty Empires that were eaten by the Beast.

The physical book is available in standard quality softcover¸ and premium quality hardcover. If you just want to hold the thing in your hand¸ I suggest the softcover. It is cheaper and the quality is still pretty good. If you want to have it as a bookshelf / coffee table piece¸ the hardcover is the way to go.

Both are 6x9" in size¸ and just shy of 250 pages. The PDF is heavily bookmarked for easy reference.

The core mechanic uses the well-tested Ethos Engine (Vow of Honor¸ Hunt the Wicked). It is a d6 dice pool in which you gain and spend dice toward your Instincts (Greed¸ Violence¸ etc)¸ and roll against the most relevant Skill's rank. The more successes you roll out of your d6 pool¸ the better your outcome.

The game is certainly task-resolution oriented¸ and focuses on grim and gritty people and their personal stories¸ rather than epic or high fantasy. You can check out the quick start rules for a glimpse into how it works.

Take the trappings of a late-medieval Byzantine Empire and throw it through a blender. The Beast is a monster the size of a mountain range¸ and it has happily gobbled up all of the world's surface -- including its cities¸ people¸ and artifacts. You're one of the survivors¸ either recently swallowed in the Beast's inexorable buffet¸ or you were born there in the last 60 years¸ eeking out a living within the cavernous innards of the Evergut.