Pine Shallows
A downloadable game
Small town, big adventures
Welcome to Pine Shallows, a small coastal town. A sunny and cheery tourist destination in summer, Pine Shallows empties when autumn’s chill comes. Strange things keep happening in the town’s off season, but local adults are so focused on preparing for next summer that they simply ignore or write off these strange occurrences. That’s why it's up to you kids to get to the bottom of things.
What is Pine Shallows?
Pine Shallows is a tabletop roleplaying game inspired by The Goonies, Stranger Things, Gravity Falls and middle grade adventure book series like The Legends of Eerie-on-Sea in which you portray small town kids going on adventures and solving mysteries.
The digital book contains the rules to create your characters and play the game. In addition, the city of Pine Shallows is detailed with numerous locations, supporting cast and hooks. Also included are Catch Of The Day & Grasp of the Understory, two complete starting adventures.
The crowdfunding campaign ran during autumn 2022.
Pine Shallows features
- 38-page A5 digital PDF zine
- A simple 2d6 resolution mechanic
- The Plot Points token system gives players narrative control
- 10 character backgrounds, like the Mysterious Orphan, Wiz Kid and New kid in town
- 13 detailed locations in and around Pine Shallows, with their supporting cast members
- Catch of the day, a complete starting adventure as 15-page A5 digital zine
- An extensive Appendix N
New features now itchfunding for editing & art:
- Grasp of the Understory, a deptcrawl adventure as 11-page A5 digital zine
- No Parents Allowed, downtime clubhouse rules
Credits
- Peter Eijk - Writing & Layout
- bertdrawsstuff - Cover & interior art
- Emiel Boven - Chapter opening art
- Evlyn Moreau - Character art
- Tyler Crumrine (Possible World Games) - Editing
What People Are Saying
“Pine Shallows is a rules-light, story-first game where you play as kids solving mysteries while trying to be home before dinner. Guess which one's harder.” - Jean Verne (Reminiscence of Decay, Oniria's Slumber)
“Reading Pine Shallows I had a constant grin on the face. The coastal setting is at the same time super fun and easy to grasp, the system is nimble and quick to master. The whole game reinterprets 80s tropes with a great feel good and spooky vibe. It's one of my 2022 fave games. Go for it!” - Iko (The Lost Bay Podcast, Skyrealms, Broken Luck)
“Pine Shallows is the perfect pick-up-and-play RPG for anyone wanting to create the paranormal teenage adventures of their dreams! With plenty of character options and locations -- along with an elegant, easy-to-understand dice-rolling mechanic -- this game will have you up and running quickly, especially with the adventure included to help springboard you into this small, spooky town filled with supernatural shenanigans.” - Edaureen Muhamad Nor (Equinox, Honey Hex, Camp Elementa)
Meddlesome Kids
Pine Shallows is a Meddlesome Kids game. It’s the first in a series of planned games. Future games include the Forever Never, a game inspired by worlds such as Oz, Wonderland & Narnia.
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Purchase
In order to download this game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $15 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Exclusive content
Support this game at or above a special price point to receive something exclusive.
Community Copies
If for whatever reason you can't afford a copy of the game, feel free to take a community copy. If you just want to see the free rules, check the demo section below.
New community copies get added when people buy or review the game!
- Every sale or rating adds a community copy.
- Each review or actual play adds 10 new community copies.
- Each sale of over 15 USD or over adds 5 new community copies.
Development log
- The Pine Shallows Guide to AdventureNov 18, 2023
- Presenting the Pine Shallows Third Party LicenseOct 16, 2023
- No Parents Allowed - Pine Shallows Halloween BonanzaOct 10, 2023
- Pine Shallows Halloween BonanzaSep 16, 2023
- 🌲 Pine Shallows - Final version (for now...)May 09, 2023
- 🌲 Pine Shallows - New character artMar 11, 2023
- Pine Shallows - New art!Dec 07, 2022
- 🌲 Pine Shallows - We've funded!Oct 30, 2022
Comments
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Is there going to be a physical copy?
I am thinking about it for sure!
Maybe after I’ve fullfilled my current Kickstarter, I’ll run another campaign.
I do want to have a few more adventures available before, maybe two zines: a rule book and an adventure bundle!
(Adventure number 2 is being playtested, shoot me a mail at jimmy@jimmyshelter.nl if you’re interested…)
Awesome. I'll send you an email asap.
how many players is this?
Like most ttrpgs it depends on how a GM runs it. At least 1 GM and one other player, up to a GM with 6 players.
I like it best with 4-6 players including GM
The Pine Shallows Town Guide is adorable. I love the Pine Shallows Town. Lovely game, Jimmy.
Thanks so much!
Winner of the SMAFF RPG Awards 2022.
Thanks Randy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdf83izRh8s&t=205s
I know it's early for making this question but the various Meddlesome Kids games will be compatible with each other? I'd like to use a character I made in this game in The Forever Never once it comes out.
That’s the plan!
It’ll include some new character backgrounds, but the idea is to have the same core concepts and rules.
I know that it's still early in the process but I do see a LOT of typos and errors in the text of this thing so far - which is weird as there is already a credited proofreader.
At any rate, it looks like a nice, breezy take on the core PbtA engine - although it would be nice if the character archetypes had a few more leveling up options in regards to adding new skills/abilities.
I do like that hit points are replaced with a morale system but I am curious how that might apply to dealing with enemies/monsters/static objects that needs a whacking (unless all of that stuff is dealt with purely via the fiction rather than mechanically).
Hi!
It is indeed very early in the process! All errors are mine, while there is a proofreader credited, I’m still working on the text.
People who buy it now will get the WIP text now, with regular updates. And if we manage to fund the editor, the complete and edited version will be made available to everyone who already bought it.
Replacing hit points with moral is indeed to encourage using the fiction whenever a combat occurs, but ideally most problems are solved differently anyway.
In playtests so far it has worked great! For people interested in playtesting, visit the Lost Bay Discord where we have a dedicated Pine Shallows channel, or contact me on Twitter
Are there character sheets to keep track of stats?
There are not… yet.
Pretty high on my TODO list, but I guess I need to bump it a bit ;)
Ok. I wasn't sure if they weren't done yet or if it just didn't come with them. I already purchase a copy so I'm guessing I'll be able to download them when available.
You will! All additions and improvements will be available to everyone who bought the game.
I really dig this. The art, the setting, the mechanics, and the writing, all work well together. Wishing you much success with Pine Shallows. :)
Thanks so much!