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Urban Shadows (1st Ed.)

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The City Hungers. Will You Feed It?

The streets bleed shadows as the supernatural politics of the city threaten to swallow you whole. Will you die a hero—a savior for those who have never had enough—or live long enough to become the villain? Will you fight the darkness...or give in for power?

The choice is yours. 

ENnie 2016 silver for Best Rules

Winner of the 2016 silver ENnie for Best Rules


Urban Shadows is an urban fantasy tabletop roleplaying game in which mortals and monsters vie for control of a modern-day city, a political battleground layered just under the reality we think we know. Vampires, faeries, hunters, and wizards fight to carve out a piece of the streets and skyscrapers, ready to make deals with all those who have something to offer. 

Here’s what you’ll find inside this book:

  • Ten unique character Archetypes spread across four supernatural Factions, each carefully tuned to put characters at the center of awesome stories.
  • Clearly-defined mechanics that push the fiction forward every time a player rolls the dice, advancing your group’s story at every turn.
  • Detailed instructions for the Master of Ceremonies, the player in charge of running the game and portraying the political machination of the powers-that-be.
  • Easy-to-follow rules for creating custom settings, cities, and mechanics to make your game of Urban Shadows all your own!

Urban Shadows makes use of the same rules-light engine as Apocalypse World, Monsterhearts, and Dungeon World—while drawing on fiction as diverse as The Wire, The Dresden Files, and The Shield—to create a game of urban politics and supernatural drama. Packed with mechanics that create hard choices and meaningful fiction, this game is easy for new players to learn and complex enough to play again and again. 

The city is waiting for you. What will you make of its secrets and sins?

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Reviews (14)
Discussions (11)
Customer avatar
Jesse R November 05, 2016 3:31 pm UTC
The group that I play with tends to run short campaigns (four, maybe five, sessions). Is US suitable for that sort of gameplay?
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Customer avatar
Alan C L December 30, 2017 1:42 am UTC
PURCHASER
I find that the fast pace of PbtA games means that a lot of action can happen in a single session. I think you could play in a short time. Some aspects of the game like corruption want be a big part of the game.
Customer avatar
Pierre S September 30, 2016 12:00 am UTC
Reminds me of the NIGHTLIFE RPG by Stellar Games (1990). Various kinds of supernatural creatures called the Kin were way different from regular humans and had a life centered around various Kin-owned nightclubs. Factions engaged in secret street warfare.
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Customer avatar
David F June 14, 2021 11:20 am UTC
PURCHASER
I have a lot of love for Nightlife. I was actually just looking at this for alternative mechanics for a Nightlife game. Although even for a D100 game, Nightlife was pretty rules light and ahead of its time in many ways.
Customer avatar
Tim O September 15, 2016 9:50 pm UTC
Was watching a video on YouTube where this game was being played via Google+ hangout. One player had a playbook for "The Immortal", but it's not listed in the core book. Was this an archetype that was in the beta/play test version that didn't make the final cut, or is it included in a set of bonus material elsewhere?
Customer avatar
Andy H January 02, 2016 3:48 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Any news on the .mobi and ePub versions of Urban Shadows? I'd really appreciate to have those. =)
Reply
Customer avatar
Mark T January 03, 2016 4:50 pm UTC
PUBLISHER
We're still working on it. I would expect the epub / mobi versions and the new GM sheets will be out this month.
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Customer avatar
Andy H January 13, 2016 2:56 am UTC
PURCHASER
Awesome. =) Thanks!
Reply
Customer avatar
Andy H February 02, 2016 11:37 am UTC
PURCHASER
So, how about February for a .mobi release? ;-)
Reply
Customer avatar
Mark T February 02, 2016 8:04 pm UTC
PUBLISHER
Yes! We should get it back form our layout folks soon. They were trying a few different styles of .mobi this month, and I think we've settled on one. Thanks for your patience!
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Customer avatar
Andy H February 04, 2016 12:20 pm UTC
PURCHASER
I'm happy to hear that and thank you for your quick replies. =)
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Customer avatar
Andy H March 02, 2016 2:38 pm UTC
PURCHASER
So ... March? ;-)

(Yes, I won't stop asking until I'm reading Urban Shadows in MOBI. Sorry! :P)
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Customer avatar
Mark T March 02, 2016 3:04 pm UTC
PUBLISHER
Glad that you're excited. :D

I'll poke our layout folks again. We should have it up as soon as they get it back to us.
Reply
Customer avatar
Mark T March 13, 2016 4:59 am UTC
PUBLISHER
And the ePub and MOBI versions have now been updated! Thanks for your patience. :D
Reply
Customer avatar
Douglas C April 01, 2016 11:43 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Google Play Books thinks that the title of the .epub version is "US reflowable unknown".
Customer avatar
Sarah P December 23, 2015 2:46 pm UTC
Hi,
I can't seem to find the print version of this (I'm also brand new to this site- coming here for the first time just now to buy Urban Shadows). Can you give me a link or a hand otherwise? Thanks!
Reply
Customer avatar
Mark T December 23, 2015 4:24 pm UTC
PUBLISHER
Hey Kale! You can find print copies through our webstore: http://www.magpiegames.com/shop/
Customer avatar
Douglas S October 07, 2015 9:04 pm UTC
PURCHASER
any news on if / when it will be available in print?
Reply
Customer avatar
Mark T October 08, 2015 7:04 pm UTC
PUBLISHER
So soon! We're basically waiting to get the books from the printer!
Reply
Customer avatar
Mark T November 23, 2015 9:31 pm UTC
PUBLISHER
Print books are now available through the Magpie Games webstore.
Customer avatar
September 18, 2015 10:49 am UTC
PURCHASER
Is this a fully bookmarked pdf? I guess that it is but I've bought enough PDFs with no bookmarking at all that I'm wary of it.
Reply
Customer avatar
Mark T October 08, 2015 7:04 pm UTC
PUBLISHER
Yup! Full bookmarked and indexed.
Customer avatar
Garth W August 01, 2015 8:56 pm UTC
So basically this is like... an apocalypse version of World of Darkness?
Reply
Customer avatar
Luke W August 02, 2015 8:08 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Pretty much. Its not a direct derivative, but they both draw from the same stories and sources and so both cover similar ground.

The big difference is that US deals with a supernatural community that includes mortals and all supernatural types as a default, where as WoD focussed on the community of a single supernatural type as a default.
Customer avatar
Tony M July 24, 2015 12:09 pm UTC
afocalypse now
Customer avatar
Ian S July 23, 2015 8:01 pm UTC
Is there any plans for a POD, or any other way to get a print copy?
Reply
Customer avatar
Luke W July 23, 2015 11:27 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Files have just been sent to printer, so it seems Magpie will be doing a traditional print run.
Reply
Customer avatar
Mark T July 24, 2015 1:08 am UTC
PUBLISHER
Yup! We're going to have print copies available via the Magpie Games webstore just as soon as we get things straightened out with the printer...
Reply
Customer avatar
Mark T November 23, 2015 9:31 pm UTC
PUBLISHER
Print copies are now available through the Magpie Games webstore. Thanks!
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Product Information
Mithral seller
Artist(s)
Pages
300
Publisher Stock #
MPG007
File Size:
54.13 MB
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File Last Updated:
March 12, 2016
This title was added to our catalog on July 23, 2015.