Glitch builds on the best aspects present in two of Dr. Moran's previous ventures, Nobilis 2nd edition and Chuubo's Marvelous Wish-Granting Engine, and creates something streamlined, stylish, and downright sensational.
Some would argue that 2020 needed a story about mourning the self. 2021, in all likelihood, will need a story about rebuilding the self. *Glitch* is rich parchment for telling both of these stories, bolstered by Dr. Moran's trademark dashes of witty sidebar humor as she provides the resources to play a game about existing in a world that sees you as an error to be corrected.
All in all, Glitch is a masterful piece in the hall of diceless roleplaying games. placing its players in the unique role of retired, formerly-human supervillains who often fail to re-integrate into the simplicity of how they remember things being. Called "Strategists," player characters take the form of human-like creatures that are repelled by (and once fought against) reality itself, each imbued with a "bane" that represents the way our world will kill them...
... over, and over, and over again. For these characters, death is not only an inevitability, it's often a footnote during an already-stressful week full of grocery shopping, job interviews, and discovering yet another rift between dimensions in their own homes. The archetypical Glitch PC is simultaneously fearsome, flashy, and downright terrible at existing.
As a diceless narrative TTRPG, Glitch makes the most of its resource-management, cost-focused mechanical system in order to bring the experience of its protagonists, the long-suffering Excrucian Strategists, to the forefront. The checklist-style quest system returns from CMWGE, now bolstered with the new Spotlight mechanic to bring heated moments to the game's forefront, providing players with a variety of scenes to hit during play to accumulate experience points via actually having experiences. Throw in the adapted Fugue chip mechanic that lets you toss XP at your friends for leaving you dumbstruck out of speechless awe, and there's rarely ever a dull moment at the table.
Dr. Moran's vivid descriptions of the Strategists' night-bathed world of Ninuan and the trials they face in trying to adapt to life on Earth is the book's emotional core that provides ample inspiration for the aspiring player, and Glitch is filled to the brim with jaunty microfiction, sordid tales of suffering, and few limits to constrain who or what your Strategist can be.
Glitch is well-suited to both one-shots and longer campaigns, and the quest system grounds stories to be told about a number of potential dramatic archetypes. Heist games, mystery & intrigue, monster-of-the-week, and slice-of-life style play are all supported, allowing for diverse methods of play that encourage players to venture outside of their storytelling comfort zone.
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