The Wildsea
A downloadable tabletop game
Some three hundred years ago the empires of the world were toppled by a wave of fast-growing greenery, a tide of rampant growth spilling from the West. This event, the Verdancy, gave rise to the world you’ll explore as you play - a titanic expanse of rustling waves and sturdy boughs known as the Wildsea.
Now chainsaw-driven ships cut their way across dense treetop waves, their engines powered by oilfruit, ropegolems, honey, and pride. Their crews are a motley, humanity’s weathered descendants rubbing shoulders with cactoid gunslingers, animated wrecks and silkclothed spider-colonies, humanesque slugs with driftwood bones and other, stranger things. Each has a role and a reason to be out on the Wildsea, and it’s their stories - your stories - that this game is designed to tell.
Playing a Game on the Rustling Waves
Your character is a wildsailor, part of a crew cutting their way across the island-studded wilderness of the treetop sea on a vessel of your very own. You’ll clash with survivor cultures and wild beasts, scavenge and salvage for wreckage and trade-goods, chase rumours, and uncover secrets. The focus of this game is on exploration, progress, and change - you’ll define the world of the Wildsea as you sail it.
Adventures on the Wildsea start as hooks, elements of the setting or of a character’s history with the potential to blossom into an arc - a story for you and your crew to experience. While playing through an arc you roleplay scenes, montages, and journeys to make decisions, take actions, and resist your baser impulses. Completed arcs, and the triumphs and disasters within them, will allow you to develop your character as you play.
Decisions are made through the conversation, a collaborative process that keeps all players at the table involved in the outcome of an event. The Wildsea's GM figure, the Firefly, is there to ask the right questions to keep the conversation flowing, as well as to bring the rules into play when necessary.
The Wild Words Engine
Rolls are made using d6 dice pools, quickly assembled from the information you have on your character sheet and the situations your characters find themselves in. Dice rolled in this way help to direct the conversation toward outcomes of triumph, conflict, or disaster. Whatever the result, the story moves forward.
Tracks are used as a visual reference for many aspects of your character, their relationships with various factions and developments in the wider story. Their boxes are marked or cleared by your actions.
You’ll also collect resources, anything from salvage and charts to living secrets and forbidden spices. These resources are tracked on your character sheet, and can be combined or sacrificed for various effects. Their precise uses and qualities are drawn out as your group’s own unique version of the Wildsea develops.
Buying the Game - Digital Copies
Buying the digital version of the Wildsea gives you access to both the single page and double-page spread versions of the game, as well as links to a set of digital resources (standard and fillable ship/character sheets and a quick reference PDF) .
Updates to the resources and core PDF are free - the current core PDF version, Yewtide 1.3, was added on the 11th of December 2024.
Access the virtual play surface HERE
Join our Discord server HERE
Additional Content
A free teaser for The Wildsea: Storm & Root has been added , currently live on kickstarter!
Quick Credits
Words - Felix Isaacs (support me at patreon.com/felixisaacs if it takes your fancy)
Additional Words - Ric Heise, Ryan Khan, Mistletoe_Kiss, Democritus, Rob Leigh, Seren Briar
Art - Omercan Cirit, Shmeckerel, Pierre Demet, BlueTwoDays, Grumpy Anise, Mon, Heru
Purchase
In order to download this tabletop game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $25 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Exclusive content
Support this tabletop game at or above a special price point to receive something exclusive.
Kickstarter-Funded Community Copy
The first burst of community copies of the core Wildsea PDF and associated digital materials, generously funded by our incredible kickstarter backers.
Because times can be tough, but the wild waves are for everyone!
Kickstarter-Funded Community Copy Giveaway 2!
The second burst of community copies of the core Wildsea PDF and associated digital materials, generously funded by our incredible kickstarter backers.
Because times can be tough, but the wild waves are for everyone!
ENNIE Celebration Community Copy Giveaway 3!
In recognition of our ENnie nomination for Best Writing, we thought it
would be a good time to let more people read... Well, the writing!
This is the third burst of community copies for the Wildsea PDF, covering the core game and associated digital materials. As with previous bursts, this has been generously funded by our amazing kickstarter backers.
Because times can be tough, but the wild waves are for everyone - and also because we have something to celebrate!
If you like what you read and fancy throwing a vote our way for the ENnies, that would be absolutley lovely.
Development log
Comments
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Hi! Alchemy RPG released Wildsea on their platform, but I can't play with the system unless I pay 25USD for the core book. I've already bought the wildsea here, so is there some way I can transfer my ownership to Alchemy RPG as well? Thank you!
Heya, I don't know if you heard back from anyone at mythworks, but just in case you didn't there was an alchemy tie-in for backers (of Storm and Root, I think, it was a while back) but no agreement with them outside of that. Sorry!
Hi! I bought the core rulebook on DTRPG but it has only the main book pdf. Do I need to buy it here to get access to quick reference sheet and other materials? Thanks!
Same question here... the DriveThru version only seems to come with the "1.1 Singles" file, so no character sheet, no ship sheet, and we're behind, version-wise, by around six months...
I shall poke the publisher!
This looks incredible! Will more community copies be made available soon? I run a tabletop club for middle and high school students.
There's actually a bundle offer for Wildsea books on Bundle of Holding right now, which is a good way to pick thing up on the cheap. As for community copies, we will do another round at some point but I'm not sure when yet - maybe early summer?
a variably opinionated question for my curious soul: what would you consider the high end (or "late game") when it comes to skills and aspects? (im assuming an old dog character is set up for an "early-mid to mid game" area)
I'd say a late game character should have six or seven aspects, at least some of which have been altered through combining them with others over time. Skills-wise, three or four at rank 3 and a decent spread at rank 2.
how solo playable is this?
The dragonfly rules give some good solo-style advice, as they cover splitting GM rolls and storytelling among players, but it would still take some adaptation. Possible, but with dedication.
Found the book in a Swedish store (Alphaspel) in December, bought it on impulse, and it is easily one of the best base rule books I have ever encountered. I will be playing this with some of my students, as we have an RPG group. Their excitement is currently on par with mine. One of them got so inspired by the book, he started working on a setting of his own over Christmas break. I tip my hat to you, Firefly Felix Isaacs.
Aww, thank you so much! And major kudos to you for sharing it with your students, a lot of the Wildsea writers and contributors (including myself) either are now or have been teachers in the past, so it's always lovely to see an educational slant on gaming. :)
So i bought the book from a local store in Sweden recently and got the PDF through Bits and Mortar. But the pdf seems to not match the book? I could not find the Kindness Rule in the PDF for example. Is one of them not up to date? Thank you kindly! Love the game!
You have good timing! The updated PDF to match the reprint should be up here in about a week :)
I sent you an email about buying Garden-Ship twice by accident. Any way for a refund?
Did a quick google - It's not something I can do, but it should be possible if you contact itch.io support.
I purchased the physical copy at my flgs, any chance on a discount for the pdf?
You don't need a discount if you've bought the physical, I'm happy to throw you one for free! Shoot me an e-mail at felixisaacs@thewildsea.co.uk with a picture of the book in your hands (or on a table, I'm not fussed) and I'll send you a link to the full free PDF. :)
Well that is awesome
Hi Felix, I fear I may have missed the boat so to speak (please excuse the pun). I was hoping to pre-order the Storm and Root collectable book expansion as well as the screen, dice and a few other things. It looks like the pre-order has now been disabled so wondered if it might be possible to buy these after the launch planned in October. Or whether the pre-order might be re-opened at any time.
Hey Jeremy, I don't think the KS pre-order will open up again, but the books are starting to move so should be around in a couple of months (hopefully), and will definitely be available then. Hope that helps!
Hey Felix, many thanks for taking the time to reply so quickly. You must be super busy with the launch of the expansion hard copies now imminent and wishing you every success with it. I'm sure in the not so distant future, you'll be telling us about the release of the new Wildsea movie. The Wildsea is pure genius. :)
Hi Felix! I really love the setting, and managed to snag a physical copy awhile back from a local game shop. I was hoping to run a group in person, but the way things are panning out it looks like the first real opportunity I'm going to have to run the game is going to be with a group online. I was hoping to be able to share the Free Playtest Guide with the group so they have a resource to preview and start getting some ideas for their characters, but it seems like there are a few things missing between that and the final game (some Bloodlines, resources for ship customization, etc). Are there any other digital options out there we could look to (or any options for digital copies/resources for folks who have picked up physical copies of the book), or would purchasing an additional full digital copy be the only real option at the moment?
Thanks so much for all the work you and the team have put into the project! I think it provides a great framework for getting into some really interesting collaborative storytelling, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how it plays out with this group!
Hey there! You can e-mail me at felixisaacs@thewildsea.co.uk and, if you've got proof of purchase (or a picture of the book in your hand, I'm easy) I'll send you a link for a digital copy. Hope that helps!
Hello again! Thank you so much, that would be amazing! I will send out an email in the next little bit. Thanks again!
Hi there! I LOVE this game, and I was wondering if there will ever be reprints of the physical book, or if there are, where could I get one?
You're in luck! A kickstarter update just went live on the current progress of the reprints!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stormandroot/the-wildsea-storm-and-root/pos...
Have I ever told you how much I love you? (?
Wow! What a game.
What would it be possible to license some of the breathtaking art for a Startplaying listing? More people need to experience this first hand and none of the stock images have the same life in them that the art does.
Aww, thank you! I'm sure that would be possible, it would probably be best to mail the publisher, ray@myth.works, to try to sort something out on that front. :)
Hi there. I am a teacher that runs a middle school ttrpg group. I was just wondering if you ever post more community copies. Thanks for your time! Game looks great!
~Tom H
Hey Tom, we will indeed post more community copies, but I can't specifically tell you when apart from 'this year sometime'!
That's great. Thanks for responding!
Hi! Is it still possible to pre-order the core book and storm and root bundle as well as the firefly folio on the backerkit? Thanks!
I'm pretty sure it currently is, but I don't think it'll be up on the S&R backerkit for too much longer - as printing draws to a close, the backerkit will end sometime relatively soon.
Hi! I‘m really intrigued by the looks of this game and I love the theme. I‘m considering buying the physical book simply to read through it (I‘m not sure yet if my group is interested in TTRPGs and if I can get a campaign going). I just have two quick questions. Is the game suited for just two people (either as a one on one with a GM or as a two player game without a GM somehow)? And are there any plans for translations to other languages (specifically german)? Thanks in advance and have a nice day!
Hello Ulbo! The game can definitely run with two people - in fact, I ran a session with just me and a solo player at a convention last week, and it was excellent!
As for translations, we've had offers from a few translation companies over the years and we have one translation that's complete already (though not into German, I'm afraid). So there's hope for the future, but nothing specific yet. I hope that helps!
Thank you for your quick reply, that helps a ton!
Hi! Is it possible to setup The Wildsea on AlchemyRPG?
Alchemy does have an official Wildsea module in the works, I believe, but I don't know when it will be going live I'm afraid!
Thats alright. I appreciate the response!
Couldn't find a definite answer on the backerkit page, but I was wondering whether "The Wildsea: Storm & Root Bundle" on backerkit also includes immediate access to the PDFs in addition to the print copies.
Thanks!
It does as a far as I know, and if for some reason there's a holdu-up you an message mythworks with proof of backing/sale and they'll supply you one :)
I really can’t afford a copy of this right now, but I’m very intrigued by the concept. I mostly only solo though, so before I start budgeting for it can you tell me if it has robust solo support like setting specific oracles and the like?
Not at the moment, but I'm in talks with a designer who might do just that...
But as of right now, no - it can be played with a GM, and GMless, but not solo.
I am also fully planning to jump in once solo is available. Id love updates on this. :)
Much appreciated! If and when we do get a good solo rules-set up, we'll update on the KS, the discord, and here on itch. :)
Hi Felix,
I've been reading through the starter rules to get a feel. As someone who plays a lot of solo, I don't see any reason this couldn't be played solo as is.
I realize some folks like to have oracles with setting specific results, and it's a fine thing to provide, but totally not necessary.
FitD is one of my favorite systems, and it's great to see something with comfortable mechanics and a completely different vibe.
Hi Felix, I am a podcaster/YouTuber and starting a second channel/show focused solo on indie solo and coop RPGs, and would love to play and review this on there.
Do you by any chance ever do review copies?
We do from time to time! Your best bet would be to e-mail the publisher at support@myth.works, they're the ones with the stocks and the warehouses (although not much at the moment, tbh :D )
Ok, I meant for PDF though, not physical.
Oh, that's much easier! email me directly at FelixIsaacs@thewildsea.co.uk :)
Thanks so much, just emailed you.
Hi Felix! Where can I buy a physical copy of your games?
Thanks
You can grab one from the myth.works store, but supplies are starting to run low! If they run out I think you can still pre-order them from the Storm & Root campaign on kickstarter, and even if threy do run out completely we'll be printing more ASAP. Hope that helps!
Thanks!
Hi Felix - is there any process / support for PDF copies for those of us that've bought physical copies of the book?
You can either get in touch with the publisher at mythworks, or you cna shoot me an e-mail at FelixIsaacs@thewildsea.co.uk with some kind of proof of purchase and I'll make sure you get something digital :)
When I just bought the core book on the Mythworks store, I got a link to all the material on Google Drive automatically.
Yep, that's how it's meant to work - but the internet is a strange and fickle place, so I like to have a back-up in mind. :P
Hi Felix! I want to pre-order the Storm and Root Bundle so I can get both books and not have to buy them separately. The thing is I see that I wouldn't get the books until April if I do. Is there any way to get the first book shipped first or get a PDF version to use until then? Any help would be appreciated. Thnx.
We can't ship the first book first, but I can certainly send you a PDF version to use!
Email me at FelixIsaacs@thewildsea.co.uk with proof of pre-order (or something similar) and I'll make sure you get a PDF ASAP. :)
Actually I just bought the bundle and gave me the PDFs for both the core book as well as SAR. Thank you very much though. I can't wait to get my hands on physical copies come April.
Hi, I was wondering if there will be any upcoming community copies in the future? I love the concept and am reading the Basic Free Rules at the moment
We will definitely do some more community copies in the future, but I don't know exactly when!
Whenever we do though, we announce it on the discord (and usually the kickstarters as well, just in case people have friends that want a copy)
Appreciate that! I'll have to join the discord then!
Big congrats for the ENNIE nominee, Felix and team! Well deserved one for Wildsea! I will vote for Wildsea, Fabula Ultima, Rivers of London and Blade Runner RPG!
Thank you Zerodan! I'm celebrating, whether we win or not :)
Hello, any possibility on getting a community copy?
Hey Gundi! We do community copy giveaways every now and then rather than giving them out individually, usually in sets of a hundred, and there's likely to be another one very soon - if you follow me here on itch I think you'll be notified when that happen,s and if you're a part of the discord you'll definitely know! Hope that helps!
Yes, it does. Thank you!
In fact, there's one happening right now!
Just in case you're still wanting :)
Thank you so much for the reminder!
Also just bought this and also very excited to try it out--but I think I found one more inconsistency. The resistance/weakness sidebar on p. 55 says you decrease or increase damage by two boxes, but the rules breakdown on p. 353 says one box (which also seems to jive with the fact that the general description of damage says a 'more effective Damage Type' increases the damage by one box, and the fact that reducing damage by 2 boxes would basically mean resistance for hazards is the same as immunity, since PCs can't really get above 2 damage except with massive impact)
Yes, this is something we realised we'd missed after printing, unfortunately - two rules from two different stages of the game's playtesting phases. For the best experience, treat resistances on hazarda as decreasing the marks they take by one, and resistances on CHARACTERS as decreasing the marks by two. This relfects that, as you say, it's difficult for characters to deal more than one or two marks of damage, but hazards can throw that out far more easily.
It'll be corrected in PDF next time we do a release, and in print if we ever get the chance to do a version two :)
Funnily enough, I found that discrepancy because I was sure there had to be a rule somewhere that said hazards calculate weakness and resistance differently for exactly that reason, and that I must have missed it on my first read. Glad to know my instincts were right! :D Thanks for confirming!
Bought the pdf a few days ago, and I can't wait to bring this to the table. Is there a good place to send typos to, though? I just noticed a reference to a skill that doesn't exist (maybe a playtest name)
Oh, thank you! I thought I'd caught all of those :P
You can drop it here and I'll get it sorted and corrected for the next PDF update
Ah, nice!
There's a reference to the 'Scrutinize' skill on 92 (old name for Study?)
And a misalignment of bullet points on 172
Correct on both counts!
whoops, didn't mean this to be a reply
Can you explain the difference between the digital version offered here for $25, and the "digital deluxe" version offered through Mythworks for $35?
Hey Mark! I don't know exactly (as I'm not privy to exactly what mythopoeia offers in addition to the PDF), but I do know that the actual PDFs themselves are identical. Itch is my own digital storefront, which I control the prices of myself - I dropped it a while back in recognition of being out for a year, so it may just be that they haven't mirrored the price drop on their webstore. Regardless, I've messaged the publisher about it and they're taking a look - they may well drop the price on their end too. Thanks for the heads-up!
Is there a possibility you'll ever allow other creators to make and sell games using the Wild Words engine?
Oh, completely! Working on the SRD for the Wild Words engine as wek speak, hopefully to be out VERY soon, and also a license option for stuff using the actual Wildsea as a setting itself (different thing to the SRD, though they do of course link together pretty well!)
oh amazing! The Wildsea is one of the more wildly imaginative settings I've seen in a long time. I've been working on a pbta build for a setting I've written stories in for years -- a fantasy setting imagined more akin to the late 19th century America and mexico instead of the bog standard medieval style fantasy. Though the deeper I get into the project the less sure I am the system is a good fit.
Is Wildsea FITD based?
Hey Crestwork - it's not, but it shares enugh DNA from similar influences that it's appeared on Forged In The Dark-related podcasts and such, and quite a few players I speak to liken it to a kind of journey-based Blades. And Im flattered by the comparison, so I don't mind! The only direct FITD influence is the dice spread, the 6/54/321 results.
OK thank you!
any chance we could get a higher quality Quick Reference sheet? the one downloaded seems like a JPG saved as a PDF, instead of digital with highlightable text.
I can ask the publisher on that one and see what I can do :)
awesome, thank you. i was going to say the same for the Character Sheets, but it seems that that is only the individual pdfs... the 'fillable' pdfs are are crystal clear, good looking.
100% recommend.
This is one of the RPGs I frequently turn to for inspiration. It takes a familiar action resolution roll (from Blades in the Dark) and extends it to... basically everything. I especially love how travel and exploration are emphasised, it's often overlooked outside of OSR-like games and Wildsea shows how to do it in a more narrative-oriented system, providing enough mechanical crunch without bogging gameplay down.
The vibe of the setting is like a jungle version of Sunless Sea/Skies, and it has the two of my all-time fave character species: Ektus (beefy cacti) and Mothryn (raggedy moths). Absolutely packed to the brim with amazing landscape and character art.
Lots of GM and player advice, too, which I can see being taken into any RPG. How to think about scenes and montages, how to participate in conflicts even if you're not a typical fight-y character, etc. Even has a section on how to play solo/GM-less, which is a big plus for anyone looking to play Forged in the Dark games that way.
I've been wanting a paper copy ever since its crowdfunding campaign, and if the stars align this year, perhaps I'll finally be able to have it on my shelf!
Thank you so much for this review. I have the biggest smile on my face right now. :)
Is it still possible to purchase an offset print copy of Wildsea?
Yep, Mythopoeia still handles all of the physical stuff that's Wildsea related - you can find their store at https://www.mythopoeia.us/store/c1/myth-store. Hope that helps!
Much obliged!
I've been gaming for nearly 40 years and I've seen and played a lot, too many🤔, of games. It's rare when something surprises me with it's originally but Wildsea certainly qualifies. This game combines a unique setting with narrative focused mechanics, fans of Forged in the Dark games will take to this system like ducks to water while still having unique mechanics to realise their stories . Highly recommended, though the colonies of sentient spiders as PCs is not good for my arachnophobia 😰
Aww, thank you! That's really lovely to hear. And one of my favourite tzelicrae characters was made of bees, so you can avoid it that way if spiders aren't your thing! :P
Hi Felix, this game was recommended to me by Rob, Leigh of Isolation Games during a playtest. I nabbed a physical copy but wondered if, like Fezmic, I could appeal to your good nature for a pdf copy. Either way thanks for a great game.
Of course! Send me an e-mail at felixisaacs@thewildsea.co.uk and I'll give you the whole digital suite vis secret link :)
Hi Felix! I bought a physical copy at my FLGS. Is there a way I can request for a pdf copy as well?
Of course! Send me a message at felixisaacs@thewildsea.co.uk and I'll throw a secret link your way :)
Hi! I have a quick rules question that I couldn't find an answer to in the book. I have a PC in my group who has 2 total dice for a Vault roll, and because of an Injury they received in an earlier conflict, and the unstable environment they are in, they would need to Cut 2 results from their roll. Since the Cut and the total dice in the pool are equal, what happens? Do they make a roll at all?
they do indeed - I'm away from the book at the moment so I can't remember the exact page, but they roll 1d6 and treat a triumph as a conflict :)
Thanks for the quick answer! That makes sense to me.
This is one of those games that gets a huge amount of points from me based off aesthetics alone. I'm more into lore than mechanics, and I love the whole Wildsea concept.
Amazing worldbuilding and incredible artwork to go with, especially in helping me visualise what the rest of the world would look like. Thank you for this game.