Knives at Knightfall

Knives at Knightfall is a game of perilous adventure about a coterie of preternaturally skilled warrior spies in service to the orphaned heir of the realm: the Dauphin. We play to find out if our heroes will honor a sorcerous oath to protect the prince, allow their ward to fall into the influence of aristocratic conspirators, give them up to the blades or rivals and rebels, or help them escape from the fate of becoming the chief tyrant in an age of butchery.

Knives at Knightfall is played in two main modes:

• During a mission the player characters match their wits and prowess against conspirators who have some ill planned for the Dauphin, moving between free form investigation and stealth, and gritty tactical battles.
• During downtime the player characters mentor the Dauphin, attempting to instill in them the virtues of a good sovereign and counteract the influence of the various conspiracies that seek to turn them into a puppet.

Included Materials

Knives at Knightfall includes five vital game documents:

1. The Player Booklet. A combined player reference and character sheet. It contains all the game information players need to create and play their Knives. Print one half-letter booklet for each player.
2. The Arts Trees. Reference sheets to track the progress of the Knives as they learn the secret arts of their profession. Print as landscape letter pages; one set for the players and one for the facilitator's reference.
3. The Rules Booklet. A detailed reference zine for the various rules of the game, expanding on the content of the player booklets. Print one half-letter booklet for the facilitator and a couple to pass around the table.
4. The Dauphin Booklet. A combined rules reference and record sheet for portraying the Dauphin: the orphaned heir to the realm. Print one half-letter booklet for the table.
5. The Book of Foes. A rules booklet containing guidelines for running antagonists in combat, including stat blocks for six opponent types. Print one half-letter booklet for the facilitator and do not show it to the players.

Inspirations and Influences

Knives at Knightfall is a love letter to FromSoftware's catalog of dark fantasy games. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, in particular.

Aspects of its design are also indebted to:

Blades in the Dark by John Harper.
Dungeon Crawl Classics by Joseph Goodman.
Dungeons & Dragons, 4th ed. by Andy Collins, Rob Heinsoo, & James Wyatt.
Honey Heist by Grant Howitt
Maze Rats by Ben Milton.
Mouse Guard by Luke Crane & David Petersen.
Shadow of the Demon Lord by Robert J. Schwalb.
The Sunfall Cycle by Stephen Lumpkin.
World of Dungeons by John Harper.