Ghost of Lovers Past
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In the game of blood¸ gold¸ and crowns¸ a single indiscretion can be fatal. Even great statesmen fall when their skeletons are found out.
So¸ those that go looking to clear out such closets should be wary.
The players are hired at the last minute by mysterious strange to do a heist: they're told not to steal anything except a small trinket: a brass necklace engraved with a sheep suckling a young girl.
Odd but the job pays really well.
What is an Encounter?
Encounters are small challenges that GMs can devote a single session to. They're meant to provide a framework for a session and important rules to run it but not be a full adventure.
It is kept purposefully light to be flexible so you can adapt it to your needs.
What is Bonfire?
The greatest hurdle of any TTRPG is to take the hero we have designed in our minds¸ and place them within the rules of the game. Invariably¸ the rules fall short of being able to realize the true potential of any character.
Bonfire¸ with its nuanced skills¸ incremental combat¸ and custom social-confrontation system seeks to alleviate that handicap and be the most comprehensive and elegant system possible.
Allowing players to create the characters of their dream¸ is our dream.
All with as little resistance as possible. Whether your playstyle is heavily influenced by roleplay¸ and you want drama and intrigue¸ or marked out as a highly specialized stoic combatant¸ Bonfire has you covered.
Gone are the days of having to choose one or the other¸ all playstyles are welcome to come and sit next to the warm light that is BONFIRE.
Features Simple Complexity: Simple to learn but hard to master¸ Bonfire uses your common sense to build frameworks that allow you to quickly pick up and learn and then build off of. Hybrid Class/Classes System: Preserving the strength of a class-based system¸ Bonfire introduces elements of easy customization that allows your character to stand out from others of their class and continue to grow into a character that is all your own. Never Have a Boring Combat Again: Bonfire is the next step in the evolution of tabletop gaming. It sacrifices turn-based combat for an elegant semi real-time form of play that does not result in chaos. Ditch Arbitrary and Unintuitive Skill Challenges: 3 successes before 3 failures? Boring. Instead utilize a skill framework that's intuitive to use and rewards players for creative use of skills and contacts and equipment. Revel in Tactical Intrigue: Ever dream of playing Tywin¸ Moist Von Lipwig¸ Bilbo Baggins¸ and/or Admiral Adama? Now's your chance as Bonfire provides a deep Confrontation system that mechanically rewards you for roleplaying your character in a way other games don't. Wealth of Playstyles: Ever had a session of no combat? Sure¸ but how do you apply experience? How do your characters grow without reducing every NPC and stray animal to potential murder hobo fodder? You can have a whole campaign with a rewarding climax and the tense moments of uncertainty that keep you on the edge of your seat without any combat Impossible¸ you say? Well¸ in Bonfire¸ you can. Full Customizable Magic System: Create just the right spell for just the right occasions as you can mix and match spell Rudiments to build unique conjurations. Join The Conversation
Join a vibrant community¸ partake in the discussion and the memes¸ on our Discord.
Playing The Game
Bonfire focuses on intuitive mechanics that help you get up and running as quickly as possible.
In fact¸ the fastest way to learn the Bonfire system is to forget what you know about other RPGs: forget rounds¸ lists of actions divided into specific categories¸ Bonfire is aimed at letting you do what you want¸ when you want¸ how you want.
Roleplaying Is The Min-max Option
It sucks to have to cripple your character just so you can play someone that you find interesting and compelling. We've all been there: picking suboptimal choices because they align with the character we want.
But why have that choice? Why can't the roleplaying option also be the best option?
Well¸ in Bonfire¸ it is: no more tension at your table between the min-maxers and the roleplayers.
Turn Permissions Into Pillars
In other games¸ they say they have 3 pillars of play¸ combat¸ social¸ and exploration¸ but what gets the most support? Combat¸ with barely two pages side-by-side for the others. All those games are really giving you is permission to run those types of encounters and that's it because all those games give you to make calls are rules for combat.
Combat Isn't Your Only Option Now you can play a gang of cunning thieves or a cabal of powerful lords¸ or blend them to create rich campaigns with deep¸ varied¸ and tactical encounters of all kinds using a simple but powerful framework.
Don't Worry: We Also Have Violence Even still¸ Bonfire's combat is revolutionary. Once you've run a combat or two¸ you'll be hooked. You'll never wish to return to the monotony of round-based combat again. Instead of stacking dice while the rest of your party takes forever to take their actions¸ you'll be able to move¸ react¸ and change tactics as needed every second of combat¸ all while on the edge of your seat as you watch an ever evolving drama play out before you.
Meaningful Choices
From the second you pick up your dice for character creation to the moment you step away from the table¸ Bonfire is aimed at giving you meaningful choices through which you can express your character.
With frameworks to help the GM with arbitration¸ you'll know that the crowbar you picked up and have been carrying around will mean something: that choice matters.
Watch your character grow and their unique choices be rewarded.
Basic Mechanics
The basic mechanics of Bonfire are simple: you roll a d20 + the applicable Rank + the applicable stat modifier vs a d20 + the difficulty die.
But that's just the beginning: employ strategies and tactics to be able to consistently gain bonuses to come out ahead.
Combat
Combat ditches round-to-round combat for a count-up system where every second counts.
Instead of having to arbitrarily determine whether an action is a major¸ minor¸ move¸ or free one¸ you can use real life to determine things¸ making it much easier for everyone involved.
Additionally¸ every fighter is different with weapon¸ shield¸ and even armor choice meaningfully changes how your character plays in a natural and intuitive manner. This means that no two fighters are the same without the rules bloat.
And¸ even then¸ due to combat styles¸ which are open to all fighters without a feat-tax¸ a fighter can change and adapt their strategy during play¸ giving them more meaningful choices.
Confrontations
Confrontations are battles of will between two opposing forces. Ever wanted to run a game inspired by the climax of the original Dune? If so¸ Confrontations are your jam.
Confrontations allow your character's beliefs¸ goals¸ and convictions to have an impact on the story in a real way that you have control over. Reinforce roleplay with a light-weight framework that allows you to easily arbitrate roleplaying situations; turn Charisma from a dump stat to a must-have stat.
Challenges
Planning a heist where you want to slip in and out like a shadow's breath? Or perhaps a wild chase across a wilderness in search of a fugitive? Challenges got your back.
Fill out whatever Obstacles the players are going to be facing and you're good to go: the system and the players will take care of the rest¸ allowing you to focus on bringing them to life with Boons and Complications that create thrilling and memorable adventures¸ no swords required.