RPG Review: ‘Rapscallion’ from Magpie Games

Rapscallion from Magpie Games sends players on high-seas adventures in a table-top roleplaying game with magical pirates. With their daring passions and life of freedom, sailing where the wind may take them, pirates have been storytelling favorites for centuries. From the Dread Pirate Roberts, Captain Jack Sparrow, and the more villainous Hook to real-life figures like Blackbeard and Stede Bonnet, their exploits fascinate us. In Rapscallion, players get a chance to roll through their own adventures upon the Great Sea.

Endless Possibilities of Adventure

While some TTRPGs have their game-worlds detailed down to individual streets and even the shops on them, Rapscallion is intentionally player-created. Part of the initial setup for the game is to begin a map of the Great Sea, each map unique to the group since their campaigns will chart out what lies in the unknown. The book suggests several locations, such as Cantaloon, a “misty archipelago containing the jungle-covered ruins of a lost empire” with plenty of treasure to be found; the Flotsam Jungle of kelp that grows so tightly it supports a driftwood village of refugees; and Siren Cove, a wide bay whose cliffs are populated by wondrous creatures like rocs and the namesake sirens. The possibilities are endless, and it is up to the players and the Fates to show what is beyond the horizon.

One way Rapscallion goes into more depth is regarding the opponents. The Great Sea is filled with dangers and challenges, which are what make the adventures great. If the game is too easy, it will lose its vitality, so it’s important to include rivals and, scariest of all, the Law. As Rapscallion is more about fanciful adventures at sea than actual pirates, with their brutality and opportunistic oppression, the true villains in the game are order and greed.

These dominant social forces are made literal with vast corporate figures that are always after the players simply for being who they are. The Queen’s Company seeks to force their vision of rule on all the world. The Lace Empire is garish and ostentatious despite the rot it brings. The Guild of Inks establishes economic domination through guile, predatory loans, and outright force. The players, meanwhile, pursue their own goals of individuality.

Playing by – and Beyond – the Book

Each player builds their character with a playbook, which establishes their character’s background. A players might take on the role of the captain, with leadership and cunning; a fighter, such as a dark, vigilante gunslinger and flamboyant swashbuckler; or even a lowly, sneaky shiprat. Each comes with its own strengths, meaning the players will have to work as a group to achieve their goals. Players gain skills and, more importantly, legendary status as they complete their campaigns.

Unique to Rapscallion is the playbook, not only for the individual characters but also the ship itself. Because a pirate without a ship is just a landlubber, the game wouldn’t be complete without a named transport with its own strengths, weaknesses, and spirit. Ships also need crews that are usually much larger than a typical gaming group, so Rapscallion offers Lackeys, non-player characters who are still responsive to players’ orders, giving a broader dynamic than in some other role-playing games.

A Fresh Take

Rapscallion is distinct enough from other TTRPGs that it serves well as both a first-time role-playing game for those new to the genre and as a new style for gaming veterans. With the time-tested Apocalypse system, it focuses more on roleplaying than on detailed statistical simulation, making for maximum storytelling. The free Quickstart available online provides a run-through of the rules and several sample playbooks for characters and ships for a taste of the salty sea air of adventure.