{"id":1034,"date":"2026-04-06T20:01:44","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T02:01:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/banejanzen.ca\/?page_id=1034"},"modified":"2026-04-29T13:04:31","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T19:04:31","slug":"lords-of-the-backstairs","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/banejanzen.ca\/?page_id=1034","title":{"rendered":"Lords of the Backstairs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Lords of the Backstairs <\/em>is a fantasy tabletop roleplaying game where you are a noble in control of a small fiefdom from which you rise through the feudal hierarchy by gaining more fiefdoms through diplomacy, trade, marriage, and war<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This not a simple map-painting game. It features an in-depth combat system<\/strong> that mixes real-world strategy with fantasy shenanigans. Want to build manoeuvrable battlefield formations? You can do that! Want to fling a hundred soldiers across the map in random directions with a tornado spell? You can do that! LOTB is based in the world of Orilon, the same setting as Hector Valerious<\/em>. Elements of exploration, lore, battlefield strategy, city building, character creation, and turn-based combat are incorporated simply and playfully in a game where roleplaying ties everything together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Political map of the world of Orilon c. 1370 AO<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What You Can Expect<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This is a TTRPG inspired by Dungeons & Dragons<\/em>, Pathfinder<\/em>, Warhammer<\/em>, Triangle Agency<\/em>, Cypher System<\/em>, Dungeon Crawl Classics<\/em>, and Paranoia<\/em>. The core Lords of the Backstairs <\/em>rulebook will be published in-paper and online. To play, you only need the book, paper, a set of polyhedral dice, and 3-6 players!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A video game version is also in development!<\/strong> I am working with a group of game devs to first make a free-to-use online character sheet manager. If this goes well, we plan on turning the TTRPG into a full video game for single player and multi-player! This is a project that will likely take years, so don’t expect a video game anytime soon. But if all goes well, the online character sheet creator may be available along with the book’s release!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Current Status<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

LOTB was originally an add-on to Dungeons & Dragons that turned one-on-one D&D combat into army-versus-army battles. I am now developing this system into a full TTRPG.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you are interested in learning more, getting regular updates, and being a beta tester, you can join the Orilon Discord server and grab the LOTB tag.<\/p>\n\n\n\n