Zelda-inspired tabletop RPG Twilight Sword wears its heart containers on its sleeve

[ad_1] The most popular new tabletop role-playing recreation on Backerkit is definitely Twilight Sword, a brand new enterprise from Italian studio Two Little Mice (2LM). Since launching on Nov. 20, the sport smashed by its €10,000 fundraising aim, elevating greater than €300,000 in 24 hours.

At a look, Twilight Sword attracts apparent inspiration from Ultimate Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Ni No Kuni. However spend quite a lot of minutes with the rulebook preview — or discuss to the builders — and it turns into clear that The Legend of Zelda sits on the core of this recreation’s design. And in contrast to many fantasy RPGs that quietly borrow from Hyrule, Twilight Sword is blissful to put on these coronary heart containers on its sleeve. (And sure, your well being right here is measured in hearts — similar to Hyperlink’s.)

“We needed a recreation that felt like Breath of the Wild you may play on the desk,” Sirignano instructed Polygon in a video name. “We performed a number of Breath of the Wild after which Tears of the Kingdom — lots of of hours — throughout the pandemic. That’s when the primary concept got here to thoughts.”

In Twilight Sword, you play as newly woke up Champions with no reminiscences. After a thousand years of peace, the scourge Vardas claimed the titular Twilight Sword and used its primordial energy to summon a military of monsters to take over the gorgeous, lush lands of Radia. It’s your job to revive “Hope” and free Radia from “Despair,” a dueling mechanic that closely influences the place the occasion is allowed to go.

That design philosophy permeates the whole lot in Twilight Sword. As an alternative of a static marketing campaign map, gamers discover the Realm of Radia by modular playing cards that slowly reveal new areas, quests, and landmarks in a manner meant to echo open-world discovery. On the identical time, the rule system is constructed to be as quick and intuitive because the traditional video video games it attracts from.

Sirignano and co-creator Simone Formicola are significantly happy with the cooking and brewing system they’ve created, one more essential mechanic that evokes Hyperlink’s journey by Hyrule.

“Cooking is a big a part of Zelda, however crafting techniques in RPGs are often inaccessible with tons of charts and guidelines,” mentioned Sirignano. “We made a system the place elements have results, and the principles inform you how results mix. You possibly can prepare dinner something with out cross-referencing charts.”

<div class="responsive-img image-expandable img-article-item" style="padding-bottom:52.333333333333%" data-img-url="https://static0.polygonimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/tlm_ts_pmax_1200x628_map.png" data-img-desc=""Though the environments look lush and inviting, they're overrun by monsters."" data-modal-id="single-image-modal" data-modal-container-id="single-image-modal-container" data-img-caption=""Image: Two Little Mice""> Although the environments look lush and alluring, they're overrun by monsters. Picture: Two Little Mice One of many extra novel mechanics at play within the recreation is its method to cube. Within the Realm of Radia, the inverted d12 is king. Twilight Sword’s core system — known as Created at Twilight (CAT) — flips conventional tabletop logic on its head. Rolling a 1 is a essential success, whereas rolling a 12 is a catastrophic failure. Your character sheet units the goal quantity, not the GM. In response to Sirignano, this roll-low system got here from experimentation.

“We begin by constructing round mechanics we don’t immediately like — it’s the way you create one thing new,” he mentioned. “You don’t need to ask the GM for issue. Every little thing you want is in your card.”

Say you make an assault roll, and your character’s Power is 8. All it's important to do is roll a d12 and get an 8 or decrease to succeed.

Formicola mentioned this simplicity is meant to make the sport accessible for these on either side of the desk: “New gamers and new recreation masters alike want some type of construction, one thing to depend on when taking part in.”

These twin priorities — wandering discovery and approachable construction — outline Twilight Sword. In addition they tie again to 2LM’s inventive philosophy. The studio has turn out to be recognized for fashionable, art-first TTRPGs like Outgunned, Family, and Damaged Compass, which have collectively taken residence a number of ENNIE Awards for each recreation design and manufacturing worth. Twilight Sword goals to translate the language and vibe of video video games, not their literal mechanics, into one thing that works on the desk.

<div class="responsive-img image-expandable img-article-item-portrait" style="padding-bottom:183.07692307692%" data-img-url="https://static0.polygonimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ts_preview_eng-1.jpg" data-img-desc=""A pink-haired Huma character from Twilight Sword looks like she could be Link and Zelda's child."" data-modal-id="single-image-modal" data-modal-container-id="single-image-modal-container" data-img-caption=""Image: Two Little Mice""> <img width="325" height="595" loading="lazy" decoding="async" alt="A pink-haired elven Huma warrior from Twilight Blade" data-img-url="https://static0.polygonimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ts_preview_eng-1.jpg?q=70&fit=crop&w=325&dpr=1" src="https://static0.polygonimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ts_preview_eng-1.jpg?q=70&fit=crop&w=325&dpr=1" class="img-brightness-opt-out"/> A pink-haired Huma character from Twilight Sword seems like she could possibly be Hyperlink and Zelda's little one. Picture: Two Little Mice

For all its emphasis on simplicity and accessibility, Twilight Sword has a stunning quantity of complexity by way of character creation and development. Among the many 5 races, known as Kin, there’s the elflike Huma and muscular, horned Toluna, which really feel corresponding to Zelda’s Hylians and Gerudo, respectively. However then there are anthropomorphic cats known as Kedi, big penguins known as Pengu, and the Strix designed within the spitting picture of Vivi from Ultimate Fantasy 9. Every Kin has sure racial Feats however in any other case can are available in all styles and sizes, with no affect on capacity scores.

Formicola mentioned they regarded on the numerous environments on the map and thought of what sorts of Kin might dwell in them: Kedi dwell within the desert, Pengu within the snow-capped mountains, and Toluna on the coasts. Every Kin needed to share a type of whimsical vibe.

“One of many first photographs we had of Twilight Sword was this actually buff penguin, the Pengu,” Formicola mentioned.

“Individuals have been like, ‘What are you speaking about?’” Sirignano mentioned. “However as soon as they noticed them, they cherished the Pengu.”

Each Champion then chooses to observe as much as two Methods (basically jobs or lessons), together with Blade, Wild, Gentle, Magic, Shadows, and Track. The myriad of combos accessible right here decide the playstyle of the character and make for some fairly cool-sounding lessons: Method of the Gentle Blade? Method of the Shadow Track? Method of the Wild Magic? And as you progress, you may dip into different choices.

“You begin easy, then as you develop snug with the sport, you see what number of completely different prospects you even have,” Formicola mentioned.

Layered atop this are Radia’s elemental affinities and vulnerabilities, which govern the whole lot from fight to exploration. Fireplace, Ice, Wind, Earth, Thunder, and Water make up a hexagonal sample. Within the center, there’s Gentle and Darkness. (It’s a traditional rock-paper-scissors complication.)

“Gentle and Darkness meet on the Twilight, and Twilight is the union of all eight components — and the cornerstone of our cosmos,” Sirignano mentioned. “The Twilight Sword is the illustration of stability. In our world it’s a sword, however in yours it could possibly be something: an individual, a spot, or a spell.”

Twilight Sword game box contents might look like."" data-modal-id="single-image-modal" data-modal-container-id="single-image-modal-container" data-img-caption=""Image: Two Little Mice""> <img width="1650" height="928" loading="lazy" decoding="async" alt="An image showing the contents in the upcoming board game box for Twilight Sword." data-img-url="https://static0.polygonimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/all_mockup.jpg?q=49&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=2" src="https://static0.polygonimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/all_mockup.jpg?q=49&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=2" class="img-brightness-opt-out"/> A mock-up of what the whole Twilight Sword recreation field contents may appear like. Picture: Two Little Mice Events progress by gathering Hope, gained by serving to NPCs, exploring landmarks, and defeating bosses. On the flip aspect of that's Despair, basically the depth of evil corruption stopping the occasion from transferring in sure instructions till they stage up sufficient. The last word goal of the occasion is to entry the Fortress of Evil, defeat Vargas, and reclaim the Twilight Sword.

In one of many TTRPG's greatest nods to the latest Zelda classics, "When the night time sky is stained with crimson, the Monsters return to life and hang-out the lands of Radia.” Each as soon as in awhile, this atmospheric occasion revives enemies on the map, in order gamers are backtracking and exploring to stage up their Hope sufficient, they will need to struggle enemies — and probably bosses — once more.

Like Breath of the Wild, Twilight Sword believes discovery ought to really feel joyful and targeted on serving to individuals to encourage hope, as a result of even the smallest act of kindness can change the world.