Just finished runing this game and had a blast! It is rules lite, and I was able to run it immeditaly after the 5 minutes it took to read the pages. The writing of the supplement and the system in itself encourages a more chaotic sort of story, heavy on the improv and rolling with the punches as your players think up of nutty solutions to nutty scenarios. My only minor qualm is that the link to the "online play resource" is broken, but the mechanics are light enough that it was mannageable to have tracked things on our ends seperately.

I ran this game for three friends on my podcast, and it was really fun! Really easy to run, with lots of scope for wild role-playing and improv, especially with the concept of crones interfering in the mortal realm. Great for a one-shot, but I did also fall in love with my players' characters so I would love to have another go at some point.

Just finished running this for a few friends. I am new to GMing, and I felt like it was really easy to just jump in. It's simple and easy to pick up. We decided last minute to play so it was perfect that this game worked with minimal prep. I ran one of the missions in about 3 hours. It was perfect for a little Saturday afternoon fun. It also worked well online. We played together over Discord and I didn't feel like I was missing anything. Would definitely recommend if you are looking for some light fun with some magic mixed in.

Mundane Magic is fun and easy game to learn. I'm usually pressed for time and worry about learning a new game system, fear not as this game is easy to pick up and play. The game is also very flexible with what you want and what you can do. As a GM let your creativity throw chaos at your players. As a player I loved using my spells to somehow turn the chao thrown upon the Coven previously and turn it back onto the GM at a future point. 5 stars all around and would love to play again!

Mundane Magic by Lysa Penrose (@lysapenrose)

A magical storytelling game of escalating consequences “You are one of the fates: a coven of crones charged with the care of all mortals. You weave the fabric of reality with the source of your power, the mighty Loom of Destiny!!! Or you would. If your fellow crones— definitely not you—hadn’t broken it. Again. But time and space wait for no one. Quickly! Descend unto the realm and interfere in mortals’ everyday lives the old-fashioned way: your witchy magic and wits.”

A phenomenal back and forth of collaborative storytelling and descriptive roleplay with witches bumbling through time and space, causing chaos, dealing with their consequences and trying to achieve their goals, so reality, time and space don’t come afoul of the knotted mess the skein has become!

From the glorious cover art by Maldo Illustration (@maldo_art) depicting the fates in contemporary witchy glamour perched on the moon all tangled up in the threads of fate which have become a knotted yarn ball of destiny, it’s clear you’re in good hands! Maldo perfectly captures the wibbley wobbley timey fatey vibe. This game is most certainly not serious, rather it’s as seriously silly and fun as witches, the fates (Moirai less), roam time and space to avoid disasters that would destroy reality or perhaps more importantly convince their favourite coffee place to serve pumpkin spice all year round! And that’s before you even factor in that every use of their magic unleashes more chaos in a cycling flow of magic and chaos building into “a snowball effect of consequences”. What’s not to love?!

The newt’s eye at the centre of this cauldron is “descriptive roleplay”, meaning the game exemplifies the collaborative storytelling of TTRPGs with a focus on the players describing what they want to do and the actions they take in great detail. You are witches with powerful Gifts, funky Foci with flavoured spells and, of course, mundane magic, and as so everything you do is freaking awesome and should be described with appropriate flair, detail and ridiculousness. The key tenet being: “If you can describe it, you can cast it”.

Besides a d6 for the Game Master (GM) to roll at the beginning to determine Moon Phase the game takes place in, Mundane Magic is a diceless game using the Spell Tokens, character sheet and the power of imagination for the players, while the GM uses the Chaos Tokens and Mundane Missions or their own witchy brews to set the scene and objective.

The Moon Phase determines the makeup and number of cards in the game from “Waning Gibbous (1) – Start with 2 Spell Tokens and 3 Chaos Tokens” to “Full Moon (6) – Start with 5 Spell Tokens” and everything in between. Essentially, this dictates the power level of the witches and how chaotic things start off the broom.

Witches use Spell Tokens to do the magic, using the number of tokens either previously set or agreed upon proposal of the spell with more tokens being needed for spells of greater power and effect from “[heating] lukewarm tea” to “[shielding] a town from a flash flood you probably also somehow caused.” After being used Spell Tokens become Chaos Tokens, which the GM then spends to cause chaos and hijinks to ensue from nosy neighbours all the way to “[introducing] a curious demon lord who tiptoed through a tear in reality.”

“All crones have certain Gifts that represent their natural strengths and talents and inform how they tackle challenges.” These are represented by three attributes, “MINUTIA” for the studious and perceptive who wield the power of knowledge, “MUSCLE” for the supernaturally honed and changed physically with tiger’s teeth or the snout of a bloodhound, and “MOXIE” for the charming and glamorous with honeyed words and uncanny influence. A pool of points is split between these three Gifts determining their potency and the Gift Points available in those areas. Each Gift has a special ability “Minutia can be used to ask the GM one question. Muscle can be used to remove a foe. Moxie can be used to avoid double the Chaos Tokens”. Otherwise, Gift Points are used to cast simple, basic spells that “must do no harm’, avoid Chaos Tokens or “do mundane shit”, which covers significant non-magical actions. Gift Points are earned back by using Spell Tokens for “mundane shit.”

There’s a sidebar that focuses on Foci, your required and bonded...Focus for casting spells. In Mundane Magic the nature of the Focus dramatically effects the signature spells at your fingertips. It’s made clear that the list of seven examples, ranging from a “Green-Flame Candle” with fiery magic to using a Familiar for animal magic, through my personal favourite, the empathic and healing Besom, is not exhaustive and working with your GM to create and balance your own unique Focus is encouraged. Examples are given for using one, two or three Spell Tokens to cast from your focus, with one from the Candle “heating lukewarm tea” (an ability I sorely wish I had!), two from the Familiar “[Summoning] a swarm to your side” (buzzy friends), and the absolutely glorious suggestion, “you might shield a town from a flash flood you probably also somehow caused” for three from Besom. Creating your own Focus could be a really fun part of a session 0 and/ or character creation to make the actual item and flavour of magic just right for your witch. I was thinking glasses that allow you to see through solid material and into other dimensions, but then I realised I need to play a witch based on the Australian comedian, Demi Lardner (@DemiLardner) with a Secret ‘stache. No idea what or does, but it’s a bit ole fake moustache!

The game begins with the GM laying out the goal of the witches’ Mundane Mission, along with the setting and situation where appropriate. “Perhaps reality hinges on the crones inspiring a 1920s writer with the confidence to pen her first poem, or ensuring Jasmine wins her student body president election, or simply matchmaking dinosaurs.” A supplement containing three hilarious Mundane Missions is included, but more on that later.

The witches then have some time to prepare and plan, possibly pick just the right spot for Grimsby in 2001 or wherever they end up, not to mention having excuses and explanations ready for when things inevitably get chaotic.

Arriving in the time and space forewarned and Foci-armed the witches do their best to fulfil their goal in style, using their gifts and casting spells, leading to a build up of chaos, which the GM then cashes in to create chaos and present unique fun and vexing challenges.

“With 1 token, the GM might have a snooping neighbor spy the crones’ witchcraft. With 2 tokens, the GM might cause the crones’ spell to cool a drink to freeze all liquids within 5 miles. With 3 tokens, the GM might introduce a curious demon lord who tiptoed through a tear in reality.”

From here the spell cards and chaos flip back and forth as the game progresses, building to a crescendo of chaos and the success or failure of the mission. In all honesty this could keep going back and forth and building and building, and getting more chaotic, though Penrose does advise the GM to “avoid adding additional major challenges (Alas, the game must end eventually.)”

That’s it! The simple fact of flipping up to five cards from one side to the other, making up glorious nonsense and describing it in style is the essence of the game. I absolutely love the ludicrousness of the power scale which ramps up so quickly and how it’s just so simple, fun and silly!

Character creation and the Crone Card character sheet are extremely quick and easy to complete. The game asks nine easy bullet point (or rather teeth point) questions, including your witch’s name, an “adjective to describe their personality”, a “fatal flaw”, allocating Gift Points, choosing or creating a Focus, and two fantastic questions to have you thinking about your covenmates: “What do you owe the crone to your left and why? The crone to your right has an annoying habit. What is it?” Such simple, but insightful questions to get you thinking about your character and the group.

The sheet itself is a small and clear, easy to fill in and read. A form fillable version is also included, as well as Online Play Resources, which provide a Google Doc with all the Crone Cards and Spell/ Chaos Tokens, which can be set allowing for easy online play. This is a lovely addition and very much needed these days.

Mundane Magic is certainly going to bring the smiles, silliness and cackling in cauldrons full, which is something we can all do with right now!

Remember “If you can describe it, you can [do] it”

Mundane Missions

“Quibbling quests for Mundane Magic, a magical storytelling game of escalating consequences. The chaos inside these pages include suggestions of people, places, challenges, and consequences for your games of Mundane Magic. But crones are as creative as they are powerful—let their hapless actions guide the story, and don’t be afraid to toss away these guidelines as true chaos unfolds. There are many ways to complete a Mundane Mission... for better or worse.” There are dinosaurs in period costume on the cover! There are freaking dinosaurs by Kenny Web (@Volfmyr) on the flipping cover! This supplement contains three Mundane Missions that truly show the farcical fun and stupendous silliness to be had in Mundane Magic. Penrose has a delightfully wicked and wonderful sense of humour, which radiates from these pages and had me giggling and snorting trading them.

The first mission, “Wanda for President” is a high-school drama set in 2360 in which it’s essential the eponymous Wanda must become student body president, so she can go on to eventually become president of Cascadia. There’s a lot working against her, not least of which is a broken heart. What could be simpler than ensuring a favourable outcome, you are witches and this is high-school, right? Oh, there is a chance Wanda’s ex could crash her speech, revealing herself as a “giant ghost demon”...

The second mission, “Breakfast at Rex’s” takes place in Victorian England in a timeline in which dinosaurs take the place of humans with all the pageantry and propriety one would expect. This is a mission of love, Virgil Raptor needs a lot of help to be ready for the Rex Breakfast Ball and make his true love notice him. If that’s not enough, tensions between herbivores and carnivores are escalating... What’s the worse thing that could maple happen? ...an asteroid...

The third mission, “Best in Show” finds the witches in New York in the peak F.R.I.E.N.D.S era 90s with a mission to ensure a vaccine be available for an emerging disease in 500 years’ time. How? Well, you just need a cat named Zuzu to win the Great American Cat Pageant. Only problem is Zuzi is hideous, “This author thinks all cats are cute. But Zuzu...” [This reviewer adores cats and is aware of Penrose’ love of cats which is widely known, so I shudder to think what the poor wretch looks like...]. First things first, you must get Zuzu a presence on the Internet, and pray there isn’t a full moon!

While these three everything but mundane missions are bloody brilliant, what might be even better is the perfect formula for creating a mission for Mundane Magic in how they are laid out:

Problems to Solve This gives you some direct things to present the players to overcome.

World Facts Add some flavour, context and detail, such as “Everything hovers. Everything.”

People & Places Important and interesting places and important NPCs – The who’s and the where’s.

Extra Special Chaos Sauce A personalised three tier chaos-o-meter for the mission with appropriate flavour and irony.

1. “It’s love at first sight. Temple grows infatuated with one of the crones.”
2. “Someone let loose carnivorous leeches in the Extreme Aquatic Obstacle Course!”
3. “In the middle of Wanda’s speech, Hazel Vo “unzips” her flesh suit to reveal a giant chaos demon, who accuses Wanda of being a sham.”

It’s such a delightfully simple and effective way of providing just what you need, as once you start playing it will be improvised chaos. This is a seriously impressive, silly, fun and well thought out game that takes so little to play, but provides unquantifiable amounts of joy and ridiculousness. I’m blown away and have been giggling to myself over the missions and thinking up my own, realising this is the perfect one shot game to palate cleanse between campaigns, when you can’t get the whole group together or when you just want to have a really good laugh. Also, due to the relative simplicity of the rules and mechanics, this would be a great game to play with family or friends unsure about roleplay and learning tomes of rules. A phenomenal back and forth of collaborative storytelling and descriptive roleplay with witches bumbling through time and space, causing chaos, dealing with their consequences and trying to achieve their goals, so reality, time and space don’t come afoul of the knotted mess the skein has become!

It takes a whole lot of smarts to come up with something so simple, silly and super duper fun!. Must be witchcraft!

Credits Game design & layout by Lysa Penrose (@lysapenrose) Editing by Jessica Ross (@writejessr) Mundane Magic Cover art by Maldo Illustration (@maldo_art) Mundane Magic Interior art by Thora Ford Mundane Missions Cover art by Kenny Web (@Volfmyr) with background by Maldo Illustration Mundane Missions Interior art by Thora Ford Special thanks to my playtesters: Celeste Conowitch, James Introcaso, LaTia Jacquise, TK Johnson, Rin Marigold, Dustin Miller, Hannah Rose, Jessica Ross, Kelly Shaver, & Jen Vaugh

My Affiliate Link: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/337120/Mundane-Magic-RPG?affiliate_id=1507682