Getting TPK’ed in Beast Slayer ttrpg

The Highs and Lows of a Beast Slayer TPK

Isn’t it just the worst when you’re playing a tabletop rpg and you get tpk’ed (total party killed)? This can happen in most rpg systems (most famously in D&D), and after all the work you and your party put into a campaign, it can really suck. But what about getting tpk’ed in Beast Slayer?

The main reason from what I’ve seen after running many demos, is an unbalanced party. There are three main stats in Beast Slayer: Athletics, Cunning, and Magick. If your party favors heavily on one or two, but the Lair focuses more on the third, this can pose a challenge for any PC. But the more critical moments come in the fight against the Beast itself.

In my first test run of the game, I wasn’t the GM. I had a friend create a Liar and boy did he create a Lair! It was me and one other friend making our way through it, and when we got to the Beast, we got tpk’ed.

Thing is, even though we got tpk’ed, we still had a lot of fun. Ironically I have a habit of losing my own games the first time I play them. Which I do plan to release if this project ends up taking off, but anyways back to the main point. We were smiling by the end of it. We talked with the GM and the reason we got tpk’ed was because our party was unbalanced.

This can pose a problem for some players, but others might view this as a challenge. If you have a party of knights focused on Athletics and Cunning but you end up facing a a Lair full of Magick this will be hard. The are odds of success are low. But it is still possible! Which adds to the fun of Beast Slayer.

If anything, if you do get tpk’ed view it as a challenge. Half the fun of Beast Slayer is that it is a casual ttrpg where running it as a one-shot is the point. Just because you failed the first time doesn’t mean it’s over. Build a new party and tackle the Lair again!