The Cunning Folk
A Game of Mischief and Magick
Playtesting now completed *editing in progress*
The Cunning Folk is a tabletop roleplaying game with a Storyteller and a party of Folk; the most mischievous creatures of fairy tale and folklore.
Ultimately, The Cunning Folk is a game about revenge.
The players are the forgotten beings of folklore, nature, and magick, that work together to remind mortals exactly how dangerous it can be to forget them. Using a sprinkling of Magick, and accompanied by an unhealthy dose of Mischief, the Storyteller will help guide the offended Folk from their initial Slight to their ultimate Satisfaction, all while trying not to be seen.
At long last we get to see what it’s like to be on the other side of the fairy tale!
“A slight can’t go unpunished, and this mortal will soon come to understand the true meaning of ‘an eye for an eye’.” - Drubsnort the Deviant
What is The Cunning Folk?
Forging the Folk
When you think of the creatures throughout folklore, where does your mind go?
Do you imagine an old and hunched Baba Yaga? Perhaps a ballsy shapeshifting Tanuki? Or maybe even a hairy but hideous Tokoloshe? The British Isles have spawned many of the more commonly represented Folk, but there is so much wonderful folklore from around the world that deserves to be celebrated!
There are 5 Archetypes to choose from, each with a unique theme for how they navigate the world. You can be inspired by the stories of the Folk from all around the world and choose an archetype that feels appropriate, or you can select a theme that interests you, and then breathe life into something that has never ever existed before!
When creating your Folk it’s important to remember that as you play through the game your Folk will change, not just magickally, but physically when levelling up and down throughout the game. Your magickal changes are set out for you already through the Archetype you choose, however your physical ones are not. This physical change, alongside your magickal one, is a narrative device to show the impact growing in power will have on your Folk interacting with the world.
But what does it look like when this happens? That is completely up to you! There can be subtle changes in appearance or there can be very big differences, but however you decide to do it, have fun with it!
Typically, Folk start at about 1ft tall at level 1, and end up somewhere around 12ft at level 5, but the aesthetic is entirely up to you.
Meet the Folk
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The Elemental
All creatures must die.
It’s not cruel, it’s just the way of things. -
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The Beast
There is no rest for you or I.
No sleep, nor comfort, till the job is done. -
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The Light
Hush now, don’t cry little one.
It will all be over soon. -
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The Crone
The old ways aren’t lost;
they’re hidden just beneath the surface. -
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The Trickster
Shake my hand and I’ll resign,
until I return to take what’s mine.
Mischief, Magick & Luck
Did I mention that throughout the game you level up and down?
That’s right Folks, throughout play you will fluctuate up and down in both physical size and magickal ability across 5 possible levels each session. Every time Mischief is attempted, or you try to use some Magick, you will roll with a dice pool of D6 that grows and shrinks as you do. The result of that roll ultimately decides whether you are spotted in your attempts. If you’re not seen you succeed and level up, but if you are seen it means that it was an over-success, and you level down.
But what happens if you don’t even succeed in the first place, let alone over-succeed?! It’s important to note that The Cunning Folk don’t believe in failure, they’re too proud for that, and failing forward is encouraged at every opportunity. So, if you fail in your Mischief or Magick, you gain a point of luck instead.
I’m sure you’ll be pleased to know that success is based purely on die face results, so there’s no pesky number crunching or maths to have to figure out! Phew.
Without going into too much detail, it’s all been designed so that the bigger and more powerful you become, the harder it is to do tasks without being spotted. Whereas the littler you are, the easier it is to do things unseen, though you have less access to your Magick.
‘You see, the Folk can’t be seen. And by that I mean they are unseen. Which is seen to be a good thing. So to be seen would be unseemly.’
- Grotcha the Iridescent Stunning Devine Short
The Storyteller
The Storyteller’s role is to help tell the Folk’s story, not work against them.
To begin the story, all you need to have ready is the Slight, the Offender and their Cares, along with a couple of other characters you think will be meaningful. This means setting up a game of The Cunning Folk is simple, easy, and can be done with very little prep.
The Slight is the catalyst that gets the Folk into action.
The Offender is the person responsible for the Slight.
The Cares are what the Folk use to get their revenge.
Once the game begins you are in charge of deciding when Mischief rolls need to take place, the successes they need to roll based on how challenging it is, and then narrate how the people and the world react to it depending on whether they are spotted in the process.
The kinds of Mischief the Folk will want to cause will be many and varied, but to give you a hand in figuring out how difficult they should be, the book is filled with examples of Mischief and suggested success rolls needed to achieve them.
See? Easy! Now all you have to do is sit back and watch the chaos.
I can’t say too much more about it because I’ve signed a contract that says I have to give up my first born if I do… but I will say this:
In a game where failing is never really failing, The Cunning Folk brings to life a simple TTRPG that provides more structure than a one-page RPG but less complexity than other crunchy systems, it’s the perfect size for beginners and veterans of TTRPGs alike. It creates a sitcom-style storytelling experience where every session is fresh and unique even with returning characters and Folk which is an experience not often seen amongst games written by mortals.
