Sailor Moon-esque tabletop RPG sees players become magical girls
Be Alchemistresses.
Embrace the lifestyle of a magical girl in the upcoming tabletop roleplaying game Alchemistresses.
Based on the classic magical girl anime series – such as Sailor Moon or Pretty Cure – Alchemistresses is a tabletop RPG that sees players becoming a group of average teens with a secret. Whilst the player characters will be going through their everyday school lives, they’ll also be coming to terms with being the reincarnation of powerful entities who must use their abilities for good. Depending on which of the five mistresses players are connected to, they’ll have access to a range of magical powers that will gradually manifest themselves as players open up to their pasts.
Over a number of seasons of the game master and players’ anime campaign, the players will slowly unlock the forgotten memories of their past lives and come to terms with who they really are. Though the term ‘mistress’ is used in the fantasy tabletop roleplaying game, the players are not restricted to creating characters who identify as any particular gender. Players are also free to have their characters’ previous lives identify as any gender or orientation, with Alchemistresses being a LGBTQ+ supportive tabletop title.
Throughout the game, the player characters will be attempting to balance all the usual aspects of teenage and school life – such as classes, clubs, friendships and even relationships – alongside their identities as mistresses. Being a mistress of an element not only grants players fantastical powers, but it also puts a marker on their head – leading to all sorts of supernatural trouble finding them.
As a rules-light TRPG, Alchemistresses will have players collaboratively telling their stories, establishing relationships with others and growing as young people. Though the game does have a combat system, it is easy to learn for players and easy to run for GMs. The entire game is designed to work within 12 sessions, providing a comprehensive narrative arc for the player characters to progress through.
Alchemistresses was co-created by Allison Kyran Cole – who has previously worked on other tabletop RPG projects called Denial & Yearning and Candences – and Dora Dee Rogers, a creator behind Sapphic Slumber Party and a contributor on Denial & Yearning. Contributors for Alchemistresses include Sadia Bies, a designer behind Suburban Consumption of the Monstrous, Honey and Hot Wax writer Sharang Biswas, Consentacle’s Naomi Clark, Jess Rowan Marcotte, Brandy Rose and Legendary Vermin.
The Kickstarter campaign for Alchemistresses is live until July 29th, with a pledge of CA$ 35 (£23/$26) getting backers a physical copy of the core book in November. Alternatively, a digital-only copy is available for a pledge of CA$ 20 (£13/$15).