HELLWHALERS
A downloadable Damned Whaling TTRPG
A collaboration between Brewist Tabletop Games and Bogus Cheesecake...
HELLWHALERS is an original TTRPG of both nautical and Christian-religious horror. Play as damned whalers, sailing hell's oceans to hunt a monstrous leviathan whale in a bid for redemption of your immortal souls.
Whalers will earn souls through roleplay, challenges, and gambling, eventually collecting enough to pulse the Hellwhale's disembodied heart, a blackened, grisly organ kept locked away by the captain. To pulse the heart is to summon the monster you seek: the dreaded Hellwhale. Slaying this titan of Hell's waters is said to earn you a place back in God's graces.
Suitable for 2-5 players and one Guide, who plays the captain, a foul tempered figure driving the whalers ever onward in a maddened quest for the whale's flesh and blood.
Gambling plays a central role in the gameplay loop, creating a procedurally generated series of events each day. Gambling takes place on a Sic-Bo board, a game played with three six-sided dice.
Collect lore, gamble with souls, fish hellish creatures from the depths, and fight a demon whale.
Physical books will be available through PlusOneExp
HELLWHALERS contains:
- 56 pages, dripping with carefully crafted lore, tables, rules, and art.
- A multitude of gorgeous linocut and digital prints within the book’s pages, by Albert Johnson, Lepish Susano, and Charles Torok.
- A stylized and decorated sic-bo board, with art by Kaye Mahoney, used for the gambling metagame the whalers play.
- Tables and charts of hellish locales, curses and blessings, flavorful items, and more.
- Digital assets and tips for playing online using virtual tabletops.
- 54 pieces of collectible lore making up nine storylines, as well as seven possible endings.
- Procedurally generated events, challenges, and twists that come from the gambling results.
- Six base playbooks with thematic moods, moves, and items.
- Resource tracking in the form of weaponry, food, and repair supplies.
- A fishing minigame, with six varieties of ghastly sea life to catch.
- Beautiful character sheets that include info for the ship, with a variety of picklists and customization options.
- A bevy of old religious and maritime public domain art, edited to fit the style and layout of the book.
- Rules for side characters, including a captain’s playbook for the Guide.
- Content warnings and safety tools for the variety of heavy subject matter present in the game.
- Climactic rules for the Hellwhale encounter designed to ratchet up tension and provide a fitting end to the journey.
See you in Hell, sailor.
Purchase
In order to download this Damned Whaling TTRPG you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $15 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Community Copy
Support this Damned Whaling TTRPG at or above a special price point to receive something exclusive.
Community Copy
If you can't or don't want to purchase HELLWHALERS at full price, for any reason, feel free to grab a free, no-questions-asked community copy of the digital version here! These will drop in limited quantities periodically.
Comments
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I did a flip through of this game!
What I really love...The text provides methods for creating a one-shot, few-shot (a few sessions), or full campaign!
After reading the description, and bc it's the first time I've ever seen this terminology, what does "christian-religious" horror mean?
we get this question quite a bit! the first, and main reason is that it's set in hell, with players attempting to rise above their sinful nature. This is baked into the core mechanics of the game and can lead to really interesting choices and gameplay.
on a deeper level, it's strongly influenced by the creators' religious upbringings and how that affects people and can bring out the worst in them.
it's a very gritty game, with no sympathy, and strong religious (and moby dick) tones.
Nice, well answered. As someone raised southern Baptist Christian but also pagan growing up and now pagan, I definitely resonate with how it can bring out the worst in some people. Thanks for the quick reply, thinking I'm gonna review on my channel in the near future.
Absolutely beautiful book.
Hey, just wanted to take a second and give you a shout-out. This is one of the best games I've ever bought, just an amazing experience from cover to cover. Y'all did real good on it.
Thank you so much for the kind words, Roland! The team is incredibly proud of what we did, but I will pass along the compliments regardless!
Hey there! I put an order in over on PlusOneExp, but they’ve not responded about a new target delivery date. Do you know what’s happening over there? It would be nice to get the digital version, too.
I can check in with them; the holidays have them pretty busy right now.
Feel free to email me and I’ll get you a download key! BrewistTabletopGames at gmail.
Quick question, but do physical copy orders also get the digital versions as well? (I ordered this as a christmas gift and if the physicals dont get here in time I want to give them the digitals)
I’ll double check with our physical publisher! That was my intent. Worst case, I’ll give you a download code.
PlusOneExp said they’re doing digitals with every physical purchase. They just need to update something. Feel free to grab my attention if you don’t get them soon!
Awesome! Glad to hear it, Ill update you with a comment either way! :)
Hi! Sorry to bother you, just got the physical versions today (theyre gorgeous!) but still no word on the digital copy.
I can set you up with a digital manually! Feel free to email me. BrewistTabletopGames@gmail.com!
Thank you so much! I really appreciate it.
It is not Ahab’s fate to slay Moby Dick. It is not Satan’s destiny to overthrow God. And it is not man’s place to snare the Devil.
But your doomed crew will try anyway, commit hubris of the highest order, and if you’re incredibly lucky, fill the Hellwhale’s hide with harpoons, to earn your final reward.