Blades ’68 is genuinely what got me interested in spending more time with Blades in the Dark. While I’ve always found its premise as a heist-based system fascinating, Blades ’68 gives me what I crave for most in TTRPGS: unabashed soul. The sheer amount of funky flavor brought to the world in Blades ’68 is awesome, and the suave setting just fits the fast-paced chaos of the system.
This homebrew supplement somehow makes the chaos spicier.
The Contender by Justin Ford is a supplement for Blades ’68 which adds new archetypes and factions inspired by the Americas of the ’60s. The playbook feels like such a natural extension of Blades ’68 that I was genuinely surprised to find out it was a one-person project. Instead of DnD classes, you play as Contenders, upstarts who want to break from the chains of the city and become superstars.
Contenders can be buskers barely making ends meet or wide-eyed beauty school graduates looking to make a name in the fashion world. All that matters is they have a dream and the drive to see it through. Blades ’68 is already among the best tabletop RPGs in the heist genre. The setting jump to the Americas during the rise of hip-hop and soul music was guaranteed to get me back in.
Speaking of, I absolutely adore the aesthetic of The Contender. With the use of cleverly edited stock icons and images, Ford recreates the look and feel of an auteur ’60s magazine. The vivid colors and powerful silhouettes of up-and-comers, gaudy business cards of struggling joints, all with a dash of art deco chic, this playbook oozes style. I am a particularly big fan of Leisure & Lace, which adds eight new factions that also provide campaign hooks for Blades ’68.
From a simple case of a struggling comedy bar all the way to a Warhol-esque mega fashion firm, there’s so many options for psychedelic adventures. If any of these sound like your jam, you can check out The Contender on itch.io here.
Disco may be dead, but the Wargamer Discord is absolutely thriving with tabletop fandom.
Source: Wargamer
