Crisis, the Countdown RPG

Crisis is a roleplaying game of escalating stakes racing against disaster to tell a story. Players define the margins and color in the major points at the beginning of the session, and explore those plots, people, and places in detail during the scenes themselves. Each scene features a player character designated the Protagonist whose story is told for that scene. Another player is their Foil, putting obstacles in their way to test them and show all of us what they are capable of. In this way, every player is both a character and a game master.

These challenges are resolved without dice by raising the stakes and pushing back against each other until a satisfying conclusion presents itself. At the end of every scene, one of the crises lurking on the horizon comes a step closer to fruition as clocks tick closer to doom, lending an urgency to the scenes as disaster is always an option.

The release version contains new art from Aaron Radney, updated mechanics that put the focus back on the impending deadline, and comes bundled with rules for creating your own scenarios.

 INCLUDED:

• Character and setting creation guidelines
• Full rules to play a one-shot session of Crisis lasting between 3 and 6 hours. Diceless, GMless, with players alternating scenes as protagonists and gamemasters framing scenes for their fellow players.
• Three scenarios in different genres to explore the mechanics of Crisis: sci-fi aboard a failing generation ship, weird west when the Devil wants his due, and a new airship fantasy adventure escaping pirates and sky serpents.

VERSIONS: 

• The primary pdf is the game formatted for viewing on a screen.
• The No Background version makes at-home printing easier and has better contrast for reading.
• Making Your Own Scenario provides insight in how to build your own custom adventures.
• The BITE upgrade provides a fourth scenario making use of the social deduction party game's hidden role cards. Role descriptions and a print-at-home version of cards are included if you don't have a copy of the game.