Gunslingers traveling across a dying world of magic and mayhem on a quest to find the Black Tower standing at the center of it all. The Black Tower Hack is an NSR ttrpg built on the Black Sword Hack and inspired by Stephen King's The Dark Tower series.
The world has moved on. The shining kingdoms and civilized traditions of old have been brought to ruin. Folks struggle to survive as they are preyed upon by monsters, twisted sorcery, and the very fabric of reality unraveling around them. Even time itself has begun to break down. The monstrous children of the Red Mother, led by the scheming wizard, Brother Jack, seek to topple the BLACK TOWER, the hub upon which the wheels of all worlds spin.
You are Gunslingers, relics of a time gone by, one of a fated few with the skill and heart to stand against the collapse. You have taken the Gunslinger's creed, honed your skills, and hardened your heart. Most importantly you have taken up the quest to reach the BLACK TOWER. Only there can every world truly be saved. There will be horror, hardship, and trials along the way; but the only thing that matters is the Tower.
Brother Jack, a fearsome wizard, tempts a gunslinger with answers from beyond.
The Black Tower Hack is a dark fantasy western tabletop roleplaying game. As players you take on the role of a Gunslinger, akin to a wild west cowboy combined with a medieval knight. You travel through dying worlds on a mission to save them from the forces of Chaos. Along the way you battle mutants, monsters, demons, wizards, and robot guardians. Inspired by the Dark Tower series by Stephen King, the game is built off of the incredible Black Sword Hack: Ultimate Chaos Edition by Alexandre ‘Kobayashi’ Jeannette, and published by the Merry Mushmen. Black Tower Hack is a stand alone game, but is also compatible with the original BSH.
GUNSLINGER'S GUIDE (player book)
DOOM: Every one of you was doomed from the moment you took up the quest for the Tower. You have a Doom Die that can be used to push your luck or power unnatural abilities. However if you roll a 1 or 2, the die drops down a size (d8 to d6, etc.), and you get one step closer to being DOOMED.
Classless Character Creation: Gunslingers are made by rolling up your classic 6 stats, and combining 3 Backgrounds, each one giving you a special ability.
5 Unique 'Magic' Systems: You have access to Unnatural Abilities that each offer unique but simple mechanics.
Mutations: Your body has been twisted by the warping of reality, but you have learned to draw strength from it.
Miracles of Weary God: Those who are exceptionally strong of faith can still beseech the power of God, distant though she may be.
Rites of the Vulgar Gods: The lesser gods and demons answer the call for power if the right offerings are made. But beware, sometimes their hunger craves more than you were prepared to offer.
Shimmer Powers: The weakening barriers of the worlds touch some by gifting them with psychic powers to shape minds and change reality.
Way of the Gun: The Gunslingers of old practiced techniques of martial prowess that bordered on the supernatural.
A New Twist on an Old Classic: BTH at its core is a d20 roll under system with the classic 6 attributes (STR, DEX, CON, WIS, INT, CHA). All of the rolling is done by the players, keeping them engaged and leaving the GM free to focus on the action. Special abilities, the Doom Die, the Rule of 19, and others keep the gameplay fast and fresh.
ATLAS OF THE LANGUISHING LANDS (game master book)
Beasts and Bastards. A host of flavorful, but easy to run enemies. From varmints and bandits to soul gouging wizards and robotic titans.
The Road to the Tower. A unique point crawl campaign frame where the world is ending around the players as they journey to its rotting heart. Locations on the map randomly fall, leaving the gunslingers scrambling for new routes. The map extends to other worlds as well via magical doorways.
Workings and Relics. Mystical items for the gunslingers to find or quest for. Minor items called workings get used up until they lose their magic. Relics are powerful items of legend that have stood the passage of centuries.
Ready to Run Starter Adventure. In "A Town Called Gasoline" the gunslingers arrive at a one horse town in the shadow of an abandoned refinery. They've been given a deadline by a sorcerer to clear out or he'll have his un-men kill every last one of them. Of course folks aren't too keen on leaving their home. What is the sorcerer after? What lurks in the old refinery? What is the sorcerer's connection to the town?
The Red Mother, queen of Chaos who seeks to tear down the Black Tower.
Although The Black Tower Hack is nearly text complete, I took part in Backerkit's Zinetopia to drag this book from the Outer Dark and into the real world. Here are the main changes that will come to pass when we fund.
Editing: This is where my editor turns a pretty good book into an excellent one. Worth every penny and then some.
Art: The free preview on itch is mostly public domain art, and will be replaced with original artwork by yours truly. (Some public domain images may stick around if they are particularly fitting.)
The game will be split into 2 zines: the Gunslinger's Guide and the Atlas of the Languishing Lands.
Gunslinger's Guide: This zine will contain everything a player needs to know to set out on the dusty trail, including character creation, equipment, and the rules of the game.
Atlas of the Languishing Lands: This zine will contain everything a Game Master needs to run the game, including mythic items, a bestiary, a point crawl campaign framework, and a ready to run adventure.
Each zine will be approx. 40 pages in length. They will have saddle stitch (stapled) binding, 'soft touch' laminated covers, and uncoated paper for a more rustic feel.
SHIPPING IS NOT INCLUDED IN PLEDGE LEVELS. It will be charged closer to the ship date to keep costs accurate and fair for everyone. This is an unfortunate area of instability that I have no control over, but will ensure I get the cheapest ship rates for all backers. Estimated shipping costs: $5-7 within the US, $10-20 outside of the US.
$30$25 Inscriptions of the Tower For those who want the whole package at a bundle price.
Gunslinger's Guide in physical print
Atlas of the Languishing Lands in physical print
Gunslinger's Guide and Atlas of the Languishing Lands in PDF
$35 Resident of Gasoline For those who want to leave their mark on the Languishing Lands
Name an NPC in the starter adventure, "A Town Called Gasoline"
Gunslinger's Guide in physical print
Atlas of the Languishing Lands in physical print
Gunslinger's Guide and Atlas of the Languishing Lands in PDF
$20 Gunslinger's Creed For those who are ready to walk the path to the Black Tower.
Gunslinger's Guide in physical print
Gunslinger's Guide and Atlas of the Languishing Lands in PDF
$20 Wizard's Writings For those who seek to master the dying world.
Atlas of the Languishing Lands in physical print
Gunslinger's Guide and Atlas of the Languishing Lands in PDF
$15 Traveling Light For those who don't like to get weighed down.
The Gunslinger's Guide and Atlas of the Languishing Lands in PDF only.
ADD ON $5 Extra Gunslinger Guide print copies
Extra print copies for your players at the table. Campaign exclusive deal.
Stretch Goal
We're only doing one stretch goal for the campaign: For every $100 the campaign hits over the funding goal my editor, Mari, gets a raise. She's worth every penny, so I'd like to giver her more pennies.
Here is the estimated timeline for the project. I've built cushions into the framework in order to keep expectations reasonable, but I tend to deliver my projects ahead of schedule.
February: Running the Backerkit campaign; complete writing of new material for The Black Tower Hack March: Pass the zines off for editing; artwork April: Revisions from editing; send PDFs to backers; start printing process (Mixam generally has a pretty quick turn around) June: Send Backerkit surveys; charge shipping (there will be a 2 week notice before charging shipping), begin sending out zines to backers
My games are made entirely by human effort without the aid of AI garbage mills.
💥 Zinetopia 2026
This project is participating in Zinetopia! A Small-format TTRPG event celebrating Zine Month running February 2–27, 2026.
📖 What is Zine Month? Zine Month is a month-long online celebration observed every February by the tabletop roleplaying game (TTRPG) community where creators share and launch new DIY zines.
🔥 Unlock the Limited Zinetopia Freebie! Receive the limited edition Zinetopia 2026 Group Zine when you back 5+ projects featuring 60+ pages from participating creators full of mini-games, sketches, activity pages, and more!
