Warlock Knight is a programmed solo adventure for The Fantasy Trip for 32–34-pt characters. Battle strange monsters in the wild, explore labyrinths, face danger on the high seas, and meet brave companion in the always-dangerous Warlock Kingdoms of Sedra.
The Warlock Kingdoms—Karnathia, Renambria, Tarnathia, Vixengard, and Margolosia—are bloodstained realms ruled by feuding dynasties of sorcerer kings. Your parents were once Knights of the Warlock Kingdoms, only to be disgraced and driven into exile.
But though raised in foreign lands, you remembered the vows they swore as Warlock Knights to defend the weak and destroy the wicked! After long years away from their homeland, three young knights seek fortune and glory in a dark fantasy realm of haunted forests, swamps, witches, sinister cults, and sorcerer-kings—the Warlock Kingdoms of Sedra!
Battle strange monsters in the wild, explore labyrinths, face danger on the high seas, and meet brave companions on the road in this epic sandbox adventure for one to three players.
This adventure can be played with or without a GM, and is extendable into an ongoing campaign.
Warlock Knight is a programmed solitaire adventure for The Fantasy Trip. It is designed as an ideal entry point for starting (32–34-pt) characters.
This solo adventure is set in the always-fractious Warlock Kingdoms. It uses the backdrop and history established in the Isle of Sedra sourcebook to frame the adventure.
The Sedra Sourcebook is not required to play Warlock Knight. All the information you must have is contained within the pages of the book.
Even so, within the pledge levels and add-ons, you will find the setting material from Gaming Ballistic, further solo adventures, plus assorted books of monsters from Steve Jackson Games.
More than the other solos, Warlock Knight establishes a sandbox-style adventure that just begs for further exploration ... and Gaming Ballistic and SJGames have you covered.
The Isle of Sedra is the first setting in the Infinite Archipelago product line; The Isle of Elazar is being penned by David right now, for release later this year. Each setting in the series is self-contained, but can be utilized and inserted into a world - any world - as your players journey across the boundless sea.
Cidri - the explicit setting of The Fantasy Trip - already provides such a tapestry. The islands of the Infiinte Archipelago provide enough meat to set whole campaigns within each one, but are small enough to allow for changes of pace as a party might choose to journey from (for example) Gwalathar to the Drakkarheim Islands - a (forthcoming!) TFT-native adaptation of Gaming Ballistic's Nordlond Setting.
The GM can take or leave individual settings and their implications as they like. Want "totally not Ancient Egypt" to be within a fortnight's journey by ship to a land remarkably similar to Ancient Greece, or Nordlond, or even the Duchy of Dran? Make your own quilt of fantasy, using the settings of the Infinite Archipelago as building blocks.
The Fantasy Trip(TFT) is an “old school” RPG created by Steve Jackson. Its first element was released in 1977: the combat game Melee (available FREE from Steve Jackson Games!). That was followed by the magic game Wizard and a full roleplaying rulebook: In the Labyrinth.
The Fantasy Trip is more “cinematic” than “simulationist” — speed and ease of play are the goal, not an exact representation of every swing and every defense. The background is unabashedly swords and sorcery. Elves are noble, dragons are greedy, and gunpowder weapons exist...but might blow up in your face!
TFT was off the market for more than 35 years, until 2017 when Steve Jackson regained the rights to his work and set about creating a new edition. The Legacy Edition was officially released in 2019 . . . and Gaming Ballistic is pleased to provide support under official license from SteveJackson Games for that amazing deluxe edition.
If you're new to The Fantasy Trip . . . you can get the rulebook as an add-on to any pledge. Or if you like jumping in with both feet, there's a Give Me Everything level that also includes the rules.
Sometimes things get in the way of gaming. Life happens. Schedules change. Or the world goes on lockdown for two years.
That doesn't mean you have to stop gaming.
Gaming Ballistic is pleased to offer The Fantasy Trip community six solo/programmed scenarios, including Warlock Knight, new for this crowdfunding project. If you are familiar with the Choose Your Own Adventure stories, released by Bantam Books between 1979-1998, these have a similar flavor.
You won't need a referee - you follow the branching pathways as you make choices. If these choices lead to violence, resolve conflict using the In the Labyrinth core rules book.
Warlock Knight WIP - Temporary Illustration, Branching Paragraph format (art by Piotr Jamroz)
The six adventures span a range of play from "just starting out" (32-34 points) through "accomplished major hero (37-39 points). Use these adventures to:
Keep gaming when you can't get together with your usual group
Learn The Fantasy Trip game rules at your own pace
Run players through a scenario with near-zero prep - they can experience roleplaying within moments of sitting around a table. Great for bringing in new players, or even stress-free convention play.
The six solo adventures are:
Warlock Knight (32-34 points): New for this campaign. A great starting adventure designed as more sandbox-style play. Set on The Isle of Sedra, but the Sedra Sourcebook is not required for play.
Dark Lord's Doom (32-36 points): A fantastic introductory adventure, a pure military campaign focusing on a major event on the neighboring Isle of Elazar (forthcoming later this year). Fight to overthrow the dark Lord Saethor.
Till Death Do Us Part: (34-36 points): Who doesn't love an escort mission? Two baronies on Elazar seek to cement an alliance through marriage. The PCs get the honor of escorting the bride to Prufax for the wedding. What could be simpler?
Vampire Hunter Belladonna (37-40 points): The majordomo of Ironskull Castle is a lot more than she appears. When she's not running the household of Lady Raelle Ironskull, she moonlights hunting vampires. Set on the Isle of Sedra.
Monster Hunter Belladonna (38-40 points): Belladonna is back, this time as part of the Duke of Thorn's new Monster Hunters Guild. Play as the titular character or create your own. Set on the Isle of Sedra.
Dragon Hunt! (38-40 points): With her husband and the majority of the realm's forced called across the sea to Elazar to face the threat of Dark Lord Saethor, the Baroness of Gwalathar is left to face a resurgence of ornery dragons. She calls for help: The PCs! A very challenging, very lethal adventure for advanced characters.
1) Just Warlock Knight, with or without print or supporting card deck 2) Warlock Knight plus the Sedra Setting, with or without the supporting card decks 3) You love solos and don't have any of the Gaming Ballistic prior material 4) You love big, one-click pledges and are new to TFT. You want the setting, solos, oodles of monsters. All of it.
To keep the campaign focused and fulfillment reasonable, not all of the Gaming Ballistic material is available as an add-on. This project is focused on the solo adventures, but there's a lot more ... and you can see it all on the Gaming Ballistic Shopify Store.
The core item - included with every pledge - is the PDF of Warlock Knight and the quick-reference card PDF, which includes all the PCs, NPCs, and monsters that appear in the adventure.
If you're new to TFT, you will also need a copy of In the Labyrinth, the comprehensive core rules for The Fantasy Trip. You can get these as an add-on in either PDF-only or a Print+PDF bundle.
Finally: Remember that shipping, taxes/VAT, and any applicable and identifiable duties are assessed in the post campaign phase, as part of the Backerkit Survey. These surveys allow a second pass at any add-ons, pledge upgrades or changes, and collect shipping/tax payment as well as any add-on balance from the campaign. Please look for the survey announcement, and complete them promptly at the end of the campaign!
Warlock Knight (Digital)
This introductory pledge level is "just the adventure, please." It is digital-only, and includes:
Warlock Knight (PDF)
Digital Quick-Reference PDF
Warlock Knight (Print+PDF)
This pledge level adds the softcover, print version of the book to the basic PDF pledge level, and includes:
Warlock Knight (Softcover print)
Warlock Knight (PDF)
Digital Quick-Reference PDF for NPC/Monsters
Warlock Knight and Card Deck (Print + PDF + Card Deck)
The solo adventure and supporting reference material in both physical and digital format. The included items are:
The expanded setting material and reference aids in digital format only, which will help a GM and players start an ongoing campaign in Sedra. It includes:
Warlock Knight (PDF)
Sedra Sourcebook (PDF)
Digital Quick-Reference PDF for NPC/Monsters for Sedra and Warlock Knight (~170 entries)
Sedra + Warlock Knight (Books and Cards)
The expanded setting material and reference aids in both digital and physical format, which will help a GM and players start an ongoing campaign in Sedra.
Isle of Sedra NPC/Monster Card Deck (Physical, ~120 cards)
Digital Quick-Reference PDF for NPC/Monsters for Sedra and Warlock Knight (~170 entries)
The Sedra Card deck is a bundle that also contains the PCs, NPCs, and monsters for the GM'd adventure The Scorpion Labyrinth as well as the Solo Adventure Monster Hunter Belladonna. The MHB cards are also included in the card deck for "Six Solo Adventures" pledge levels; there will be some duplicates.
Six Solos (Digital)
All six published solo adventures by David Pulver with Gaming Ballistic in digital-only format. They present a range of challenges from "starting characters" to "experienced heroes who may meet their doom anyway."
Warlock Knight (PDF)
Dark Lord's Doom (PDF)
Till Death Do Us Part (PDF)
Vampire Hunter Belladonna (PDF)
Monster Hunter Belladonna (PDF)
Dragon Hunt! (PDF)
Digital Quick-Reference PDF for NPC/Monsters for Warlock Knight (~50 entries)
Digital Quick-Reference PDF for NPC/Monsters for the other five solos (~180 entries)
Warlock Knight, Vampire Hunter Belladonna, Monster Hunter Belladonna, and Dragon Hunt are all set on the Isle of Sedra. Till Death Do Us Part and Dark Lord's Doom both occur on the neighboring Isle of Elazar—look for more on that later this year!
Six Solos + Cards (Books and Cards)
All six published solo adventures by David Pulver with Gaming Ballistic in both physical and digital format. It also includes the Decks of Destiny style NPC/Monster cards for the adventures. They present a range of challenges from "starting characters" to "experienced heroes who may meet their doom anyway."
Warlock Knight (Print + PDF)
Dark Lord's Doom (Print + PDF)
Till Death Do Us Part (Print + PDF)
Vampire Hunter Belladonna (Print + PDF)
Monster Hunter Belladonna (Print + PDF)
Dragon Hunt! (Print + PDF)
Physical + PDF Card Deck for NPC/Monsters for Warlock Knight (~50 entries)
Physical + PDF Card Deck for NPC/Monsters for the other five solos (~180 entries)
Warlock Knight, Vampire Hunter Belladonna, Monster Hunter Belladonna, and Dragon Hunt are all set on the Isle of Sedra. Till Death Do Us Part and Dark Lord's Doom both occur on the neighboring Isle of Elazar—look for more on that later this year!
The cards for the solo adventures (obviously) include the Monster Hunter Belladonna cards. If you also get the Isle of Sedra card set as an add-on, the MHB cards are duplicated in each set.
Give Me Everything (Core Rules, Sedra Sourcebook, Solos, Cards)
For "one-click and done" folks who love solo adventuring and are new to TFT. This pledge contains all of the books, cards, and SJGames support material on offer in this campaign.
It contains a bunch of stuff, in both physical and digital format from Gaming Ballistic:
Warlock Knight (Print + PDF)
Sedra Sourcebook (Print+PDF)
Dark Lord's Doom (Print + PDF)
Till Death Do Us Part (Print + PDF)
Vampire Hunter Belladonna (Print + PDF)
Monster Hunter Belladonna (Print + PDF)
Dragon Hunt! (Print + PDF)
Physical + PDF Card Deck for NPC/Monsters for Warlock Knight (~50 entries)
Physical + PDF Card Deck for NPC/Monsters for the Isle of Sedra (~120 entries)
Physical + PDF Card Deck for NPC/Monsters for the other five solos (~180 entries)
It also tosses in the supporting bestiary material from Steve Jackson Games, in both physical and PDF format. Note that Old-School Monsters and The Fantasy Trip Bestiary both come with extra stuff. Old-School Monsters is the 64-page hardcover book, two different 8.75" x 11" counter sheets, and 56 dry-erase game cards. The Fantasy Trip Bestiary is a 192-page hardcover book, has 183 monster cards, and also over 250 die-cut counters. This is the same package available from the SJGames crowdfunding campaign.
The Fantasy Trip Bestiary (Hardcover Print, Cards, Counters)
All told, this pledge level contains ten books, over 580 NPC/monster cards, and hundreds of physical counters, from single-hex creatures to 14-hex monstrosities.
There are limited quantities of Old-School Monsters remaining, thus the pledge limit. The physical version of Old-School Monsters is only available as part of the pledge level during this campaign, and as an add-on in the post-campaign late pledge stage.
Mockups Shown. ITL (176 pages), TFT Bestiary (192 pages), Old-School Monsters (64 pages), The Book of Unlife (64 pages)
In the Labyrinth
Old-school dungeon-crawling is at its best in The Fantasy Trip. This book covers roleplaying, character creation and experience, and advanced magic and combat rules. Everything you need to play TFT in one volume! First released in 1980 and unavailable for decades, In the Labyrinth is back in a new, expanded, and improved edition for daring dungeon-delvers!
PDF: $15
Softcover Print+PDF: $40
The Fantasy Trip Bestiary
The Fantasy Trip Bestiary is a hardcover book with nearly 200 pages of creatures from giant ant lions to treacherous wyverns. Each listing includes basic stats, descriptions of their appearance and behavior, and typical habitat. It’s a fantastic companion for Game Masters who want to challenge their players or find inspiration for their next campaign. This 192-page PDF includes rules and lore for over 200 creatures. It presents creatures by habitat in Environment tables, and also includes information on loot.
The PDF version of this product does NOT contain the extra cards and counters that are available with the physical version.
Gaming Ballistic is offering a bundled Print+PDF version of this product. It contains the hardcover book, cards (183 cards!) and counter tiles, plus the PDF of the book.
PDF-only: $25
Physical Bundle + PDF: $110
The Book of Unlife
They are neither alive nor dead. They inhabit the world in between. But all too often the living are their prey.
This book includes 44 creatures for The Fantasy Trip, a guide to the general powers and vulnerabilities of the unliving, and a complete adventure setting, The Haunting of Holner House.
PDF-only: $15
Softcover Print+PDF: $35
Old-School Monsters
Fifty-five monsters from the oldest of old-school games, compiled under the OGL, and translated to The Fantasy Trip by Steve Jackson himself. Negotiate with the Grippli! Flee from the fearsome Gnolls and their Flind masters! Find a way around the Gelatinous Cube, and think fast, because it's still coming . . .
Each monster comes with stats, description, at least one suggested encounter, and at least one digital game counter. Except for the Throat Leech and the Ear Seeker, because you don't see them coming . . .
Also included with this set are print-your-own double-sized cards for each monster, with a picture and basic encounter information.
This is a supplement for The Fantasy Trip. You will need at least Melee to play, and preferably In The Labyrinth. This is the PDF-only version of this product, and comes with three files: book, counters, and cards. Only the PDF version is available in an unlimited fashion during the campaign. A limited number of physical copies (35-50) will be made available during the post-campaign Pledge Manager portion of the survey process.
PDF-only: $30
Print+PDF: Available with the Give Me Everything pledge level during the campaign, and any remaining will be offered on a limited basis during the post-campaign survey period.
Isle of Sedra A setting guide to the land that includes Gwalathar and Ironskull Castle, and provides the backdrop for Warlock Knight. Factional alliances and conflicts support all manner of adventures, including dark gothic fantasy, monster hunting, labyrinth and wilderness adventuring, and political intrigue.
PDF: $15
Print+PDF: $30
Dark Lord's Doom This solo/programmed adventure features a squad of soldiers fighting in an all-out war to defeat the evil Lord before it's too late. Will the Dark Lord's Doom fall upon the party, or on the villain himself?
PDF: $10
Print+PDF: $20
Till Death Do Us Part Till Death Do Us Part is another solo adventure from David Pulver. It finds the PCs escorting a small party across a treacherous route to deliver the promised future spouse to the altar in time for the wedding. It's a simple escort mission; surely nothing could go wrong.
PDF: $10
Print+PDF: $20
Vampire Hunter Belladonna Vampire Hunter Belladonna is David Pulver's first programmed adventure for The Fantasy Trip written for Gaming Ballistic. It is an independent adventure, but it has ties to Ironskull Castle, so you can use both together in a campaign if you wish. If you think of it as "Vampire Hunter B," we won't mind that either.
PDF: $10
Print+PDF: $20
Monster Hunter Belladonna The life of a vampire hunter is never dull: Belladonna is back … and this time she’s brought friends. Monsters never rest, so neither does the vampire huntress Belladonna. As work piled up, she found it politically expedient to join the Monster Hunter's Guild, newly formed by the Duke of Thorn.
PDF: $10
Print+PDF: $20
Dragon Hunt Baron Gwalathar's armies marched off to war. Without its defenders, the dragons of the wild sensed weakness, ravaging the realm. The young Baroness Tanith calls for heroes: It's time for a dragon hunt! For 44 action-packed pages, square off against the baddest critters TFT has to offer. This solo is not for the faint of heart!
PDF: $10
Print+PDF: $20
Quick-Reference PDFs and Card Decks
These double-size (3.5×5") reference cards are exactly the same layout as those found in other Decks of Destiny products for monsters and NPCs. Each set has either a PDF-only or Print+PDF option available.
The Sedra Set and Six Solo Adventures set both contain the cards from Monster Hunter Belladonna; if you order both you will have duplicate cards for this adventure.
Warlock Knight (50 cards): PDF $5; Card Deck+PDF: $20
Isle of Sedra (118 cards): PDF: $15; Card Deck+PDF: $50
Five TFT Solos (180 cards): PDF: $20; Card Deck+PDF: $60
All the Cards (Over 300 Unique Cards): PDF: $35; Card Deck Sets+PDFs: $115
All told, there are over 300 unique cards between the three sets.
The book is written, laid out, the cover is done—even the hyperlinking is done. Art should be finalized before this short campaign (only runs June 18 - June 28) is finished.
Here are a few Work-in-Progress images from the current layout!
Part of the Introduction, with overland and lodging encounter tables
Some of the branched paragraphs, with artwork
As always, Glynn Seal has provided most excellent maps
A project isn't a project without a schedule. Gaming Ballistic is making all efforts to have the project move along with due dispatch. The writing, layout, hyperlinking, and cover are all done. Is all that remains by the time the project launches is finalizing the artwork, which should be complete before the campaign ends.
As a result, the campaign is only 10 days long. This one is intended to go very quickly; the longest lead item is going to be actually printing the physical products.
The Pledge Manager and Lock/Charge initiation are milestone based: As soon as the pledge manager data is sorted out, the add-ons imported and matched to product, and other block-and-tackle items taken care of, the surveys go out.
Once 85% of surveys have been completed, I'll start to lock orders and charge cards. I'll have a good enough idea of who's getting what, and where in the world they're going, to place product orders, which usually take 2-4 weeks to arrive. International orders are locked and finalized when the product orders are initially placed; domestic-hub orders lag by a few weeks.
The surveys are very important. Once you acknowledge the survey, you'll be given an opportunity to change your pledge, plus-up with any add-ons, and if you've ordered physical product, enter an address and pay any taxes or shipping charges. International orders with physical goods must have complete surveys by the time physical product is ordered (end of July).
Failure to complete the survey by the noted fulfillment milestone will result in your pledge being downgraded to the nearest digital equivalent (PDF-only), and 80% of the balance refunded.
Estimated schedule:
Campaign Start: Tuesday, June 18
Campaign End: Friday, June 28
Pledge Manager Start: On or before July 15
Backerkit LockOrders/Charge Card Start: On or before July 26
Manufacturing/Printing of Softcovers and Cards: On or before end of August
Print FulfillmentBegins: Before September
Survey Waves
Pledge Manager: Once the campaign is complete, a survey will be sent out using Backerkit Pledge Manager to finalize add-ons.
Fortunately, Backerkit has improved their pledge and add-on integration with Pledge Manager. Choosing levels and add-ons will have the product associated with your choice in Pledge Manager. You won't have to do it twice. Shipping will also be charged at the same time - I've gotten adept enough at setting rates that it shouldn't be too far off.
Digital Product Delivery: Initial delivery of PDFs will be via Backerkit. After any errata are hammered out from the initial distributions, the finalized PDFs will also be sent out via Complimentary Copy distribution on DriveThruRPG.
Physical Product Delivery: There's always plausible opportunity for schedule slip in physical product delivery, especially on large successful projects. But it often takes about 2-3 weeks to print the books at Mixam, and 2-4 weeks to get the cards done (close enough I can drive to pick them up). US based shipping is then 1-2 weeks more; UK-hub takes a week to get there, and then 1-8 weeks depending on the destination country's mail system.
Shipping fees shall be assessed during the Backerkit Pledge Manager phase.
Domestic books will be printed in the USA and fulfilled from Gaming Ballistic via USPS Media Mail.
SJGames add-ons are only available from the US hub
Delivery to Canada,Australia, and New Zealand will be shipped via USPS from the United States to avoid the usually egregious "handling" fees that couriers charge, which are frequently more than the shipping fee and sometimes more than the product itself.
Shipment to an international freight forwarding service such as MyUS is strongly recommended for international parties who want more economical access to the full range of products.
International Shipping
Softcover books from Gaming Ballistic may be printed at Mixam in the UK, and delivered for fulfillment by GamesQuest, if the project does well enough. Otherwise, I'll ship a bunch of product by DHL to GamesQuest and reship from there. GamesQuest does not currently ship to Russia or Brazil.
International Shipping is usually expensive and challenging. Be prepared.
International Duties and Taxes
Delivery in the UK uses Royal Mail and is usually reasonable. Delivery to the EU via GamesQuest uses DDP terms and is usually relatively smooth (though Spain has frequent hiccups, Italy always seems to take a few weeks longer than other places, and other quirks). Other nations should be careful: shipping is high, service charges are legion, and such transit is under DDU (Delivery Duties Unpaid) terms. As noted above, GamesQuest does not ship to Russia or Brazil.
Any and all fees levied by your local country customs are the sole responsibility of the recipient. Refunds will not be offered for packages rejected for customs fees.
If a package is returned by the courier/post to GamesQuest, the backer will be contacted to resolve any fees due on reshipment.
Furthermore, if a shipping address is not provided or shipping costs for physical product are unpaid in BackerKit after survey deadlines, Gaming Ballistic will revert your physical reward pledge to the digital reward pledge equivalent and refund 80% of the difference (accounting to funds lost to fees and other costs).
