Kingsmouth

A unique 5E campaign setting of a dark world built with despair and cosmic horror for the world's greatest roleplaying game

Kingsmouth is a brand-new RPG line for 5E from Shadowlands Games.

Kingsmouth isn't just another Mythos-themed setting; it's a meticulously crafted world that seamlessly integrates dark magic, Lovecraftian horrors, and evocative storytelling. Dread and destiny collide with meticulous precision as you become a part of the dark tapestry of Kingsmouth.

the edition

«Who knows the end? What has risen may sink, and what has sunk may rise. Loathsomeness waits and dreams in the deep, and decay spreads over the tottering cities of men.» H. P. Lovecraft (Call of Cthulhu).

Kingsmouth is a dark fantasy and horror campaign setting for the 5th edition of the most important role-playing game. At its center, the city-state of Kingsmouth —the last great city— try to survive in a place where horror and despair are indivisible parts of the fantasy landscape.

Get immersed in an intense and tempting atmosphere where players will embody vulnerable characters, protagonists of a scenario full of the most emblematic elements of horror. Live thrilling and shocking dark adventures; pay the price of using terrible powers touched by an ancient darkness; face horrifically lurid happenings; try to survive the goosebump-inducing supernatural events and the immeasurable, unknowable cosmic horror lurking in the dark.

Kingsmouth is not just a Mythos-themed campaign setting mixture. It has been designed from a deep understanding of both dark fantasy environments and Lovecraft’s works to create an unique setting. A careful rule-integrating worldbuilding effort has achieved that dangerous adventures, dark magic, cultures, backgrounds, religion, Cthulhu Mythos, even the sick Weave… everything is connected with evocative precision.

The Standard Edition

Kingsmouth – Providence campaign guide is a complete corebook-like “Player’s Handbook” written by the game and scenario designer and fantasy author Ángel G. Olmedo and illustrated by our art director Andrés Sáez «Marlock».

Altogether, its more than 250 full-color pages include:

  • A complete introduction to the history of the world and the Providence region.
  • A detailed chronology of historical events throughout 6 eras, specific to the Providence region and the city of Kingsmouth.
  • 10 playable cultures: Capitalists, Siblings of the Desert, Sons of Jade, Insulars, Matriarchs of Rada, Northerners, Pristines, Trevelians (Restorers), Beastlords, and Vigilants.
  • 50 cultural talents and more than 20 cultural traits that will personalize your character.
  • Familiar character creation, with the classic stat and a new system of character evolution through specialization paths.
  • 9 specialization paths branched from 3 master Classes (Fighter, Scholar and Ruffian): 3 Fighter paths (Duelist, Child of the Dragon, Master of Arms), 3 Scholar paths (Arcane, Religious Order and Academic) and 3 Ruffian paths (Thief, Deceiver and Assassin).
  • 18 character backgrounds: Executioner, antiquarian, aristocrat/courtier, craftsman/artist, raider, chronicler, Kingsmouth police, cultist, dilettante, inquisitor, insurgent, jurist, corpse thief, doctor, military, laborer (trade unionist), pirate, trafficker.
  • New of professional compatibilities and synergies that generate benefits for group backgrounds.
  • 2 types of magic: the dark magic of the sick Weave and the terrible spells of the Mythos.
  • Information about the sick Weave and the functioning of magic: Tetric ingredients and sacred substances to conjure among the darkness for each school of magic.
  • New rules of paying the price of magic: rituals, self-sacrifice and corruption.
  • +70 adapted tricks and spells with modified preparation, casting, effects, including the possible dangerous influence of the Darkness on the spell.
  • 19 new spells from the Mythos, cruel and with a dangerous cost.
  • Optional magic class-conjuration rules according to specialization paths.
  • Optional table of events for corpse exhumers in search of certain ingredients for spells.
  • An evocative pantheon of deities: 8 chthonic gods and 14 ancient gods.
  • 7 divine domains for followers of Religious Orders: Epistemology, Rhetoric, Catharsis, Solar, Orbit, the way of the Sky and the way of Life.
  • 3 masteries for Academic Scholars: Alchemy, Medicine and Occultism, with knowledge traits, specific applications and special combinations of their traits between different fields of knowledge.
    • Resource creation rules for the Alchemist: alchemical substances, potions and alchemical objects.
    • Healing rules for the Physician: knowledge and treatment of the poisonous diseases of Kingsmouth.
    • Trait rules for the Occultist: knowledge and use of the Language of Ravens, dark knowledge and resistance to Anguish.
    • Adapted rules for damage: hit point recovery, rests, massive damage and traumatic shock that will test your survival in this terrible world.
    • Adapted weapons and rules for firearms and 5 old firearms: pistol, dragon, arquebus, musket blunderbuss.
    • New Anguish rules to determine the sanity impact of Providence's horrors: Basic system and Providence system, based on 4 mental traits (Courage, Temperance, Clarity and Identity) with 15 possible mental states.
    • 3 types of temporary insanity, with 10 short-term insanity effects, 12 long-term insanity effects and 12 indefinite insanity effects for when the impact is stronger than you thought.
    • New Popularity rules and their effects to find someone or go unnoticed in Kingsmouth.
    • 10 diseases (natural and supernatural) affecting the inhabitants of this cursed world.
    • A detailed bestiary with 10 creatures of the obscure Mythos, 7 unknowable beings and 9 legendary creatures.
    • A complete guide to the city-state of Kingsmouth and the surrounding lands, detailing each neighborhood, its people, society and manners, fashion, magical objects, the business of the dead, its government and social strata, justice and law, religion, the Holy Inquisition, and the institutional control of magic.
    • 24 magical items specific to Kingsmouth, such as the holy substances, the alchemist's goggles, the fairy deck and the shackles of the Red Death.
    • 7 factions that conspire in the shadows: Schismatics, Sons of Providence, Orphans of the Suburb, Monarchists, Esoteric Order of Dagon, Liberators and Syndicate of Hastur.
    • 15 important Kingsmouth personalities, with a brief history, their motivations and the means they use to achieve their goals, ready to use in your scenarios and campaigns.
    • Tips section for managing the horror in Kingsmouth and its particularities. 
    • 2 unlockable dark adventures as to expand the book: The Miracles of Madame Bernadette and The Terrible Old Man.

    Kingsmouth – Providence traveler's guide contains extended information on the lands surrounding the city-state of Kingsmouth and beyond. Discover new regions and environs of Providence. In-depth information on twisted wildlife danger, towns, watchtowers, ruins, hazards and relevant characters. New dark creatures that dominate secret landscapes. Legends and lore. Even new adventures and a ready-to-play campaign! It includes:

    • Extended information to discover of the Providence region: the history, geography and dangers.
    • 6 new regions to explore: the Maw Bay and the Providence Gorge, Central Steppes, the Darkforest of Nightmares, the Infaust Mountains, the Shadow Plateau, and Trevelis.
    • 6 more unlockable regions to expand the book: The North, Island Domains, the End of the World Mountain Range, the Valley of the Stators, and Moatar Kasil,
    • In-depth useful region information: settlements and populations, ruins, their dangerous landscapes, twisted fauna and flora, legends and important personalities.
    • Many adventure seeds adapted to each region and its legends.
    • 15 new unlockable specialization paths branching from 5 new master classes to expand the book (Hermit, Wanderer, Iconoclast, Barbarian, Scion): 3 Hermitt paths (Anchorite, Druid, Monk), 3 Wanderer paths (Bounty Hunter, Ranger, Ranger Seeker), 3 Iconoclast paths (Sorcerer, Bard, Mystic), 3 Barbarian paths (Berserker, Anointed, Vastling of the Wild), 3 Scions paths (Cthulhu Scion, Nyarlathotep Scion, Shub-Niggurath Scion).
    • +30 Eldritch invocations and 10 spells adapted for the Scions.
    • 17 new character backgrounds: Biologist, Hunter, Circus or troupe member, Rustler, Spelunker, Forager, Cattleman, Farmer, Ranger, Tribal leader, Messenger, Missionary, Furrier, Porter, Innkeeper, Stagecoach innkeeper, and Cowboy.
    • 11 new professional compatibilities for group background: Inns on the road, Farms, Secret cave in a mountain range, Mound, Abandoned village in a safe and incorruptible, Company with a staff of porters, Horses and carts, Transport of goods or people, Troupe/circus caravans, Hermitage or small temple in a village and Ship.
    • New travel rules: Order, Speed, Regions, Events. Importance of the activities during the trip, inclement weather and aggressive nature.
    • 6 tables of travel events according to region and section: sacred places, rural lands, wild lands, unknown zones, corrupt areas and domains of darkness.
    • A full-color hexagonal map of Providence for events, disorientations and unexpected encounters.
    • Rules for travel through the Sea of Mists, from how to charter a ship, types of ships, finding your way around, getting lost, and the use of sacred substances on voyages — even a table of maritime events!
    • New dangerous and legendary creatures who dwell along the regions of Providence.
    • A complete campaign ready to play that will test the characters' courage and ability to face horror: The Rise of the Mad God.

    More unlockable content can expand this supplement.

    Kingsmouth - The Artbook is an impressive book with the art of Kingsmouth. Printed in high quality, this artbook contains a section with notes about the creative process of the artist and all the best illustrations of the campaign setting, the Providence traveler’s guide and the unpublished art of Kingsmouth!

    Check out some of Kingsmouth's art!

    The Deluxe Edition

    All books (Kingsmouth - Providence campaign guide, Kingsmouth – Providence traveler's guide and Kingsmouth – The Artbook) are available in a Kickstarter exclusive deluxe edition. The Kingsmouth Deluxe Edition will feature an embossed cover with golden ink and a ribbon bookmark . In addition, those who choose the Deluxe bundle will get an exclusive deluxe hard slipcase.

    Still like the cover of the basic edition?  Don't worry. You will find the amazing cover artwork inside the Deluxe edition.

    supplements

    Accompanying the Providence, Cthulhu and Deluxe pledge levels are different supplements and accessories that will enhance your Kingsmouth experience. Find out which ones are included in each pledge level in the information of each level or in the Pledge breakdown image.

    Some of them are:

    A trifold and hard high-quality GM's screen. Find inside tools, tables, and information to help make easier running the game, while outside is featuring awesome art.

    A complete set of custom engraved dice for Kingsmouth. Its special design will try to bring some hope when you face the dangers of Providence.

    The Deck of Fates is in  the hands of a special Kingsmouth NPC. Some call her the Old Woman. Other guajona. Very few, lumia. It is said that she was a high scholar at the University of Kingsmouth back in her days. But no one really knows.

    For one silver crown, the Old Woman will shuffle the Deck of Fates and let you draw a card. Pray to your gods to be lucky, because odd blessings and curses await when you flip it.

    The Deck of Fates is a wondrous item (artifact) owned by the Old Woman. It has its own mechanics. You will find them in the chapter 5 of Kingsmouth guide

    Click here to download a sample.

     Manage your pledge and get this unique add-on!

    Awaken, dwelling, guardian, violent. These fearsome creatures protect the eternal sleeper and other hidden places in the world. Encountering one of them brings dire consequences.

    Add now the Star-spawn of Cthulhu miniature (105 mm x 118 mm / 4.13 in x 4.64 in)!

    Minted in the city-state of Kingsmouth by order of Grand Duke Kirian Corel, Seneschal of Kingsmouth, and kept in a personalized pouch, these metal coins are ideal for handing out whenever a player is inspired

    Includes:

    • 5 two-sided old metal coins specially designed for Kingsmouth.
    • A custom pouch with the Kingsmouth logo for storage.

    Get them in the "Add-on" step of your physical pledge!

    Some weeks after the campaign ends, we will prepare a webpage in Backerkit platform: the Pledge Manager. Along with manage shipping info costs, backers will be able to manage their pledge and add some items of this campaign as add-ons —extra copies of Kingsmouth campaign guide, Providence, traveler's guide, dice, GM screen and some of the stretch-goals unlocked are examples of these add-ons.

    Everything will be shipped alongside your pledge-campaign rewards. Please note that addons can incur additional shipping fees, to be paid in the pledge manager.

    Editions and Available Languages

    The Kingsmouth campaign setting will be published in English and Spanish editions —you will be able to choose the language of your edition during the Pledge Manager, some time after this campaign ends.

    The books will be printed in US Letter format using premium paper (hardcover edition). The artbook will be printed in US Letter using high quality paper. At the launching time of this project, the majority of the project’s manuscripts has been written, edited and proofread. Both the translation and the final design of each book are in process or are about to start. The funds we will obtain will be used to complete the edition, translation, layout, printing and shipping of the books, supplements and add-ons.

    Shipping costs will be paid later during the Pledge Manager, some time after the Kingsmouth campaign ends — you can find more information about shipping estimations at the bottom of the page.

    If the threshold funding goal is exceeded, it will be our pleasure to add more rewards for backers by unlocking both physical and digital stretch goals (new adventures, maps, new book sections and expansions, and more!). See more details bellow —stretch goals section.

    The World of Kingsmouth

    «And then they descended from heaven with a colossal roar, sowing their corrupt seeds upon the earth. And all Providence was sick with no possibility of healing; for the Star Beings had come to punish us». —Necronomicon.

    The Earth is no longer the same since the age of Calamity, when «the Arrival» occurred, more than 1600 years ago. Entities from beyond the universe fall from the sky. The devastation was so intense and terrible that the mountains wept blood and the rivers sickened for ten years. The valleys croaked hollow laments and the basins breathed a pestilent and sickly air. The forests closed in on themselves, carrying darkness under their twisted branches. The good land, which once bore fruit for the people of the region, now spat out wild species never seen before by humankind and many plagues followed one after another, while pits and swamps haphazardly flooded roads and counties, to their utter doom.

    The vault of the sky lost its azure blue over the years to become a faded and sad shade. Even the breeze seemed to stop; the world stopped spinning, and its song, the song of the goddess Eli, fell silent all at once.

    Aimless humanity: The lost past

    Now Providence region is a shriveled, mournful and sad place. Although it was always a land inhabited by humankind —and it is evident from the hundreds of sites dotted with ancient remains and ruined buildings of which nothing is known anymore—, there seems to be no reliable record of what happened before the disaster. The few surviving historical documents show that there were once several kingdoms, but absolutely nothing usable remains of them.

    The land of Providence is mapped, but not explored. There are hundreds of dark corners and a multitude of places unknown today, in which few have dared to venture. In recent centuries it has become extremely difficult to consolidate knowledge due to the abrupt changes that an invasive and disruptive nature has produced in the environment.


    Kingsmouth: The last hope

    At the edge of the sea, cornered by all these threats of a degraded nature, stands Kingsmouth, the greatest city in Providence. It is home to the majority of the population.

    Kingsmouth is also a melting pot of the surviving cultures. From the purest generations of Providence to the eastern People of Jade, the city is home to highlanders, inland plateau communities, some islanders and outsiders from nearby countries following the coastline by sea. But precisely where humanity makes the most noise, is where the agents of fear and supernatural darkness approach to corrupt the souls of the rulers and twist the will of the weakest.

    Players are humans that live in the region of Providence —mainly in Kingsmouth— as members of one of the different cultures present in the city. They survive as best they can, facing the harshness of a dark and dangerous existence with the resources and traits they have inherited from their ancestors.

    Select your archetype between 10 new human cultures—Capitalins, Trevelians, Beastlords, Pristines, Siblings from the Desert, Matriarchs of Rada, and many more! Add their cultural Traits to your characters and choose from a list of specific culture Benefits.

    Learning from 9 new specialization paths for one of the 3 Master Classes —Fighter, Scholar and Ruffian— your characters will find their way through this dark world. Is difficult to survive, but if they do characters will learn new skills, abilities and talents escalating from level 1 to 10.

    Specializations: 3 new Fighter paths (Duelist, Child of the Dragon, Master of Arms), 3 Scholar paths (Arcane, Religious Order and Academic) and 3 Ruffian paths (Thief, Deceiver and Assassin). Each of them includes special masteries and options to personalize the way your character try to survive.

    Know more at «The Books», «The magic in Providence» and «Religion and gods» sections.

    Use the new 18 character Backgrounds to develop your character origins and traits, know your wealth, equipment, languages and related skills. See how all the backgrounds in the party benefits with synergy in the new Group Backgrounds!

    In example: some Clases and specializations, the Berserker, the Host, the Monster Hunter and the Hermit

    Providence is ruled by fear, sadness and horror. Monsters domain the withered land, and most of the people who serve them do so out of spite or fear. Adventures are for those who, in desperation, are driven to them.

    Kingsmouth has new mechanics that emphasize horror in a dark fantasy world. One of them are the rules of Anguish reflect the psychological fragility of the characters, making them vulnerable to madness and its consequences.

    Rule modifications to damage, massive damage, traumatic shock, and differences in hit point recovery modulate the sense of danger and the transcendence of damage. Mechanics for the other threats to life, such as common and supernatural diseases that harm the land.

    Natural and supernatural diseases, such as the plage, the Red Death and the Dagon's disease. 

    Adapted rules for weapons, firearms and explosions. 5 old firearms: pistol, dragon, arquebus, musket blunderbuss.

    More info in «The Books» section.

    The gods suddenly fell silent
    and life fell silent with them.
    But the Warp was not silent;
    it was heard by those who had the gift.

    —Anonymous text found in the ruins at Maw's Bay. 

    The Weave is sick. Dark entities from the Shadow Plane influence the Weave, making it difficult and dangerous to pull their strands. Darkness is always watching, and its hungry.

    Being able to do magic safely is difficult. There is a price to pay, sometimes too high. That is why institutions try to control the use of magic, and monitor practitioners who may become corrupted by the vile Holy Inquisition.

    New and modified rules and spells for the obscure the use of magic with 2 Arcane agenda —Arcanist and Mythos. Magic is dangerous, but the Arcanists try to avoid the dark influence of nightmare entities on the Weave by using the more tenebrous materials —specific to each school of magic—. However, sometimes the conditions —or temptation— may push them to make the most terrible sacrifices, paying the price of a spell with blood or their own flesh to avoid a greater evil… or so they think.

    Kingsmouth has new rules for rituals, dangerous or hard situations to make magic and the degradation of conjurers.

    A new way of magic is included —The terrible spells of darkness that undermine against nature itself by appealing to the power of unnamable beings: The magic of the Mythos.

    The Mythos arcane agenda is a dangerous dark magic, hidden from the eyes of the Inquisition, and that is why it is the most persecuted. Cruel, uncontrolled and powerful, these terrible spells feed from darkness that undermine against nature itself by appealing to the power of unnamable beings. But beware, it can consume you completely until it tears your soul out.


    Knowledge paths

    New erudition options and traits for Academic (Scholars) with 3 MasteriesAlchemy, Medicine, Occult—, and horizontal traits for academics with knowledge in different masteries.

    Because knowledge can be a weapon if used properly, especially when you know how to create and manipulate solutions and substances, the weaknesses of the body and the behavior of the dark.

    Different cultures have different ways to understand the faith. However, the city-state of Kingsmouth has chosen one perception of the old gods and the way to understand this dangerous existence. Worship gods can be dangerous, especially those dark ones. The Inquisition watches over the safety of the use of magic and faith, sometimes with too much zeal.

    This campaign setting includes a deep insight in the beliefs, faith and procedures —main religions, dark cults and heretics. Also offers two complete domain- and alignment-related pantheons of gods, including the 14 Old gods and 8 Chthonic gods and how they influence these lands.

    The Religious order path benefits from 7 Divine domains (Epistemology, Rhetoric, Catharsis, Solar, Orbit, the way of the Sky and the way of Life). The gods grace their believers with traits and blessings as they struggle not to be engulfed by the appetite of the nightmares of darkness.

    This campaign guide includes a complete description of the city-state of Kingsmouth. Its history, deep description of the important zones, personalities and key characters, the government, the ways of living and its customs. The dangers and secrets of Kingsmouth and many enriching details are at hand.

    Tables of random events in the different facets of life in the city, from events in taverns and places of different lineage, to the effects of the use of the mysterious Deck of Faeries or events during the theft of corpses to get materials.

    7 factions and cults threat the delicate balance of Kingsmouth (Schismatics, Sons of Providence, Orphans of the Suburb, Monarchists, Esoteric Order of Dagon, Liberators and Syndicate of Hastur). Each of them include a description and their objectives.

    Some act in the shadows, others conspire in the streets and corridors in full view of the authorities. Some just want to improve Kingsmouth with their own vision of the reality. Others are dangerous and will do whatever it takes to achieve their goals. Others threaten existence itself.

    Strange creatures abound in Providence. Some have been sharing their existence with humanity for eons, sometimes hidden in the bowels of the earth or the depths of the sea. Others wandering in the shadows waiting for the opportune moment to attack. And others seeping into the dreams and minds of their victims to torment them.

    Kingsmouth campaign setting has a monster compendium that adapts 10 creatures from the Mythos (Shoggoth, scions of Shub-Niggurath, Cthulhu stellar seeds, Nyarlathotep seeds…), 7 Unknowable beings (Red Death, Hoaxer, Raven…) and 9 Legendary monsters that threaten the sanity of the people of Providence every day (Cluege, Busgosu, Penanggalan, Guajona…).

    And there are more creatures in the Providence Traveler's guide! You know. Exploring Providence can be dangerous.

    Note: Kingsmouth - Providence campaign guide is compatible with Sandy Petersen’s Cthulhu Mythos supplement.