Designing a tabletop RPG is a labor of love, whether it’s a single-page system you scrawl on a napkin or a 300-page rulebook fine-tuned over years. Despite the huge amount of passion that fuels this industry, few designers can match the ardor of R. Talsorian Games’ Cody Pondsmith. On October 1, he launched a Kickstarter for his latest TTRPG – a project he’s been working on for 20 years.
Pondsmith is the second generation of tabletop RPG designers in his family. His father, Mike Pondsmith, created the revered Cyberpunk RPG and founded R. Talsorian Games. Cody began working for the family business as young as 14, and he’d go on to spearhead one of the company’s best-known titles, The Witcher TTRPG.
Before that, though, there was Shadow Scar.
Pondsmith tells Wargamer that he first dreamt up the system at a childhood sleepover with his best friend. “We were 10 and 11 at the time, and we had just spent most of the evening playing Naruto Ultimate Ninja 1 on the Playstation 2”, he says. The pair were already a fan of roleplaying games, and they saw a clear gap in the market: a Naruto TTRPG. Since 10-year-olds don’t worry about things like licenses or finance, the two got down to designing immediately.
Naturally, Shadow Scar didn’t stay Naruto-themed. Instead, its identity grew from the ashes of Pondsmith’s original anime adaptation. “Shadow Scar has changed a lot over the past 20 years”, he explains. The tabletop RPG always took place in a Japan-inspired fantasy setting, but the finer details evolved over time.
“From its origin as a Naruto roleplaying game it evolved into a ninja high school game where players played members of an elite shinobi academy”, Pondsmith says. “Then it became more of a general adventure game set in a fantasy world where humans were being hunted by demons.” “During that era, I introduced the concept of alternate worlds but only in my home game. From there it started to take a final shape.”
During each iteration, Pondsmith was constantly testing his passion project with friends – and even family. Mike Pondsmith apparently played a crucial role in refining his son’s vision. “After a while, I got serious about making the game a reality, and I talked to my dad about how to make it work”, Cody Pondsmith says. “Having been in a few Shadow Scar games, he told me to emphasize the multidimensional aspect of the world and make it a major part of the game – and that takes us to the form the game has now.”
The ultimate ninja fantasy
The Shadow Scar we’ll see crowdfunding on October 1 blends Japanese myth, magical ninjutsu, espionage, and adventures in parallel dimensions. Players become members of the Shadow Scar Agency, special operatives tasked with defeating Yokai. These mythic demons once assaulted the game’s core setting, Nakatsukuni, but they were driven into hiding after many years of war. Now, the Agency must ensure they cannot infect other dimensions – and that the goddess of death who leads them does not return to wreak havoc.
Where Dungeons and Dragons fifth edition has DnD classes, Shadow Scar has six ninja clans. First, there’s the Arashi, “a clan of pirates and bandits who use storm magic and underhanded techniques to fight the Yokai”. Pondsmith adds that the Futsumashi are “spiritualists and sword people who focus on maintaining balance and using spirit magic”.
The most traditional ninjas are the Hibana, artificers who craft poisons and strike with enchanted weapons. “They’re also extremely well-versed in fire magic”, Pondsmith tells us. The Kuromaku are “more traditional James Bond secret agents” that can manipulate time, space, and people’s minds to infiltrate and assassinate.
“The Tantei are Yokai sympathizers“, Pondsmith continues. “Their goal is not to kill the Yokai but to free them from the evil corruption that is currently making them dangerous.” This is achieved through stealthy spy work and by using the Yokai’s own powers against them. On the opposite end of the spectrum is the Wanami, monster hunters who employ animal companions and nature magic in their mission to wipe out all Yokai.
Mechanics-wise, Shadow Scar relies on D6 dice pools to resolve its conflicts. Inspired by systems like Powered By the Apocalypse, Shadow Scar “aims to provide a strategic experience that doesn’t get bogged down in rules”.
“Enemies can be very powerful and victory conditions sometimes rely on things like going entirely unseen”, Pondsmith says. “This makes strategy and tactics very important. However, the system is kept fairly simple so that the game doesn’t grind to a halt when you try to play it tactically.”
Stealth gameplay that actually works
According to Pondsmith, the real star of the rules is Shadow Scar’s stealth mechanics. A simple yet rich skill-check-based system, it’s designed to address the biggest issues that stealth faces in other RPG systems.
“One of the biggest stumbling blocks of stealth gameplay is when you are forced to attack someone and you immediately break stealth”, Pondsmith says. “In Shadow Scar, if you can get close enough to your opponent, you can make a Stealth Check to assassinate your target, taking them out silently before they can alert anyone.”
“Of course, if you fail, you deal no damage and alert everyone in the area. But if you succeed, this ability allows you to sneak through enemy territory without ever being seen and taking out multiple opponents like a hidden assassin.” A well-executed assassination can make you feel like the ultimate ninja warrior, but beware – enemies can assassinate you if you aren’t careful.
A Kickstarter with no filler
Armed with all these ways to track, trap, and kill, you’re ready to plane-hop through the Mosaic, Shadow Scar’s vast and varied multiverse. Shadow Scar’s core rulebook introduces four worlds infected with Yokai that are in need of help. These span all sorts of genres, from Steampunk 19th-century Europe, to Stepford-Wives-style ’50s dystopias, to aquatic worlds stuffed with sailing ships and pirates. Pondsmith says more official settings are planned, and Shadow Scar is designed to seamlessly support any setting you can dream up.
The core rulebook is the main event of Shadow Scar’s Kickstarter, but there’s also a starter set up for grabs that’ll help you ease into the new system. To make things even easier, R. Talsorian Games has already released a free Shadow Scar quickstart. Pondsmith tells Wargamer that the quickstart is a prelude to the story found in the starter set, so it sets you up for success from step one.
“The quickstart is a guided tour of the Mosaic with six cool characters and a few very interesting challenges”, he explains. Players can expect criminal Yokai, tense negotiations, and even a high speed chase through a cinematic version of New Orleans. Once you’ve learned the rules and set the scene, you’re ready to take your ninja team on more daring adventures across the Mosaic. The Kickstarter launching on October 1 may be streamlined, with only two products available, but it contains all you need to tell stories inspired by your favorite anime.
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