Written by P. Moore

Hoist the colors and make ready to set sail, because Kobold Press has released the first playtest materials packet for their new “Core Fantasy System” known currently as Project Black Flag, and hoo boy is it looking like good news for tabletop fans. From the mechanics to the design, from the new to the familiar, Kobold Press has made a clear statement to the tabletop space with their opening salvo. It’s important to note that, as this is playtest material, everything is up in the air still, but here are the takeaways that I think are the most exciting:

Path-five-der

Multiple times in the PDF, Kobold Press expresses that the system they are developing is intended to be fully backwards-compatible with Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition. I had the feeling that we were about to see history repeat itself when Project Black Flag was announced in the first place, but this is proof-positive that what we’re going to see will be akin to what Pathfinder did for D&D 3.5E. For those not aware of the history, Wizards of the Coast made some massive changes in moving to the 4th Edition of their game, and Paizo—themselves a 3rd Party Producer at the time—took the publicly licensed parts of 3.5E and crafted their own updated experience around that. I may do a deeper dive into this in the future, but for now that's what you need to know, because it seems to be almost exactly what's happening with Kobold Press and D&D 5E.

If you’re currently a D&D 5E player, you’ll see a lot of familiar mechanics. You get six ability scores: Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. You can set these scores using the tried-and-true 4d6 method or alternatively through the Standard Array or through a Point Buy system. Your character will have a class, a background, and feats (known in this material as "talents"). 

You’ll roll dice to resolve conflicts and use bonuses from your ability scores, class, and background to add to that roll. If your eyes are glossing over from all the things you already know by heart, that’s by design. Project Black Flag is clearly meant to feel as familiar as possible, and that’s a definite start on the right foot to lead into the changes they’re already bringing in with this playtest material.

Nature Vs. Nurture

Project Black Flag has introduced an updated Lineage & Heritage mechanic to the game to replace the slightly simpler but somewhat archaic Race system from D&D 5E. Now, your character’s physical attributes will come from their biological Lineage, and any social boosts will come from their cultural heritage. While heritage options are divvied up into the different lineages, the section opens with a statement that you are welcome to mix and match as you please.

A pleasant effect of this approach is that it de-emphasizes one of the more problematic elements of character creation, as it recognizes upbringing to be at least as formative to who a person is as their genetics. Plus, it ties the alignment suggestion (and they take great care to make sure you know it's ONLY a suggestion) to the Heritage you select, not the Lineage. They’ve still kept the morality side of the alignment scale, which some might find problematic in its own right (might I suggest using the actual cultural values of individualism and collectivism as a scale instead? I may, and you may too if you signed up for the playtest.) Also of note is that Kobold Press has joined Wizards of the Coast in removing Ability Score Improvements from the racial side of things to the more individual Floating ASI system (one that I personally think is more balanced than WotC’s version).

This choice is another leaf seemingly taken directly from Paizo’s book, and while it ultimately results in a little bit of extra time and thought required to develop your character, it allows for more flexibility in character generation and more opportunities to use the rules-as-written (commonly referred to as RAW) to develop more complex—and thus more lifelike—characters that more closely match the story you want to tell. Want to play a human miner who's been mining since they were a minor? Just hit them with a Stone Heritage, and suddenly you don't have to waste feats or downtime (or beg your GM for special treatment) just to get the proficiencies you need to play the vibe you're looking for. Want to run a wood elf who's been long-separated from nature and whose family has worked hard to build a reputation in the capital city instead? Simply choose the Cosmopolitan Heritage, and you're all set. These sorts of characters, while technically possible in D&D, have never felt actively supported by the rules, despite their growing popularity, so it’s nice to see them represented in the core rules here.

The World is What You Make It

Where Kobold Press seems to be sharply diverging from the Paizo model is in the setting. On page 1, the playtest packet establishes the setting of their new system as The Labyrinth, a multiversal maze comprised of literally any reality that players and GMs can imagine. This seems to be a strong nod towards the homebrew community who’s been spinning tales further and further away from the traditional elements of Faerûn for a long time now.

While it’s never felt entirely restrictive playing D&D, and I’m sure even Pathfinder campaigns find themselves wandering outside of Golarion from time to time, it’s a nice feeling when the rules don’t just give you permission to create your own world lore but actively encourage it while allowing you to still feel like what you’re creating is a part of the larger story. Suddenly, your homebrew campaign setting feels like it belongs somewhere beyond just your own notebook, and you can feel a strengthened connection to the community around you.

In keeping with the rest of the rules and mechanics on display here, this decision feels in line with the familiarity principle. It harkens to how most people were introduced to the game, not by a massive toy company selling new setting books every quarter to boost profits, but by your friend who invited you over to their house to join them in this fantastical world they created. It speaks to every one of us who grew up with a bunch of stories in our heads and thought how cool it would be to mash them up in interesting ways. It’s a subtle distinction, but it makes the game feel more like home than ever before.

Set Sail For The Horizon

Kobold Press has released more than just rules with this playtest. They've released a defining declaration of intent that, in my opinion, will separate them from the other big players at the table. Project Black Flag seems poised to take the familiar and hijack it in service of the ever-expanding sea of opportunity.

More than anything, Kobold Press seems to understand the growing needs of the homebrew community, the social players, the content creators who aren’t quite to the level of Critical Role and Dimension 20. They’re reaching out to all of us and acting on a message Wizards of the Coast has only managed to verbalize thus far: You matter. We want you at our table. Let’s raise our flags high and find that next horizon together.