This Spells Trouble

This Spells Trouble is a messy, silly game about magical mistakes. This tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) includes materials for both in-person and online play, a rulebook, and an audiobook narrating its rules.

Here's the thing: magicians are awful at doing anything that isn't magic. Their problems always seem to spiral out of control as they fumblingly summon spirits to deal with the things they can't. In This Spells Trouble, players quickly cycle through roles that see them summon spirits, cause problems, and helplessly watch the chaos that unfolds.

Quick stats:

• 60-90 minutes
• 3-4 players
• No GM
• Rotating asymmetric roles
• No advance prep for online play, some printing recommended for offline play

This game includes:

• All materials required to play the game online or in-person.
  • One 16-page PDF file containing the rules and cards of the game in full colour, best viewed on desktops and tablets.
  • A link to an illustrated spreadsheet (via Google Sheets) for online play.
  • A separate 4-page PDF file with the 15 illustrated cards for printing and in-person use, available in colour and black+white.
• Additional materials to accommodate alternative play platforms or accessibility.
  • One 18-minute mp3 file that narrates the full rule text -- basically, an audiobook of the rules.
  • 16 card images (.jpg) for use with your preferred online playing card program (such as Roll20 or playingcards.io).

This game was developed using the Google Docs Office Suite, Affinity Publisher v1.8.5, and Adobe Photoshop Elements v9.0.0. It was developed between September 2020 and February 2021, and released on February 28, 2021.