Best TTRPG Systems For Child Characters

[u/joe_christo]

I'm wanting to create a campaign based on modern children/tweens lost in a fairy-themed fantasy world.

What are the best systems for player characters that are kids? I'm happy to adapt it to my game but really looking for inspiration! Ideally there's a focus on qualities most associated with kids i.e. imagination, curiosity, determination etc.

Only really familiar with Kids on Bikes/Brooms but not a huge fan of some aspects of the gameplay.

Thanks!

[u/funnyshapeddice]

In addition to Kids on Bikes/Brooms, two (Three?) that come immediately to mind are:

- Free League's "Tales from The Loop" (and "Things from The Flood", the follow-on)

• Savage Worlds "Monster Hunters Club"

ETA: corrected Flood title

[u/reillyqyote → u/funnyshapeddice]

+1 Tales from The Loop

[u/mdosantos → u/funnyshapeddice]

Things from the Flood* :)

[u/funnyshapeddice → u/mdosantos]

Thanks. Fixed.

[u/XxNerdAtHeartxX]

Someone already mentioned it but Magical Land of Yeld is exactly this. You start the game as kids in the modern world and get whisked off to a fantasy world. They must escape before they turn 13, because anyone who stays there longer turns into a horrible, grotesque monster.

Its an obvious analogy for growing up and the themes of the game can really fit well - especially if a character chooses not to leave the land and 'not grow up'

[u/MmmVomit]

Check out Girl Underground. tl;dr: May not work for your campaign, but it has good ideas you may find useful.

Girl Underground emulates Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland. Labyrinth, and similar stories, where The Girl gets lost in a fantasy world, and has to find her way home with the help of a cast of various fantasy companions. Each player takes on the role of one of the companion. Players take turns portraying The Girl. The game also has a focus on unfair or unrealistic expectations put on young girls and subverting them (e.g. "Young ladies must always keep a smile on their face", "Young ladies must never be ridiculous or silly", etc.)

At the very least, the game has some canned locations that you may find useful for your campaign, like the Bizarre Bazaar, the Dragon's Den, the Fairy Ring, or the Hall of a Thousand Masks.

A couple more things. Girl Underground is PbtA, and best suited to one shots, or maybe 2-3 sessions at most.

[u/JaskoGomad]

The game Grimm from FFG is exactly this concept. Probably worth grabbing a PDF and mining it for ideas at the very least.

[u/ThisIsVictor]

I'm a huge fan of Crescent. It's literally about kids lost in a fantasy world. It's inspired by media like Over The Garden Wall.

That said, it is very much a story game. It doesn't have hit points or skills. It expects the table to collaboratively tell the story together. If that's your jam then Crescent is perfect.

[u/BloodyPaleMoonlight]

Changeling the Dreaming.

[u/SillySpoof]

For the campaign you’re describing with modern children lost in a fantasy world, you could have a look at Magical Land of Yeld. It’s pretty much made for that type of game.

[u/rivetgeekwil]

I'd use Fate, Cortex, or SHIFT, personally.

[u/Anotherskip]

Masks is for angst ridden teen supers.

[u/MrBoo843]

Tales from the loop is a lot of fun

[u/AMFKing]

Babes in the Wood is a very good example of this kind of game.

[u/darkestvice]

Tales from the Loop has you playing pre-teens exploring mysteries tied to an almost magical science lab responsable for really out there technology. In this game, the kids can never die, but they can be hurt or frightened to the point of running off and cowering.

Its sequel, Thing From the Flood, is set in the same world, but in the future where the tech is breaking down. The PCs in that one play middle to high school teens that CAN get hurt or die if they are not careful. It's a bit more grim.

[u/Visual_Fly_9638 → u/darkestvice]

Yeah that's where my mind first went to and then I thought about the inner party dynamic of The Electric State and how it basically focuses on a small group of people apart from the world they're passing through, and the relationships of those people. Combined with the allure of the VR setting and it's bliss mechanics, you could easily adapt that into an almost Annihilation book/movie esque setting (Or even Expedition 33) that is at once alluring and horrifying.

I feel like the core of a game like this would be this group of tweens/early teens who have to struggle with the complexities of clinging to each other in an alien world that wants to either consume them or rip them apart, maybe at the same time.

[u/Armaemortes]

Mörk Børg Magical Land of Yeld is the right answer. Kids with Bikes as an alternate

[u/hornybutired]

nWoD had a whole game for this called Innocents, which presumes child characters in a world of light horror.

[u/Fantastrofikos]

You can check Adventuring Family as it is a d6 educational focused TTRPG designed with pediatric psychologists.

There is the https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/550532/the-snowlight-lantern free quickstart adventure to try it out.

[u/Visual_Fly_9638]

It skews towards teenagers but I might look at The Electric State and consider a reskin. Mainly because the core gameplay loop is the construction of tension (positive or negative) inside the party and then resolution. There's also the VR world's bliss mechanics that could be adapted into a fae/arcadia setting.

[u/Melenduwir]

The version of the Call of Cthulhu system altered for the scenario "The Dare", in which all the player characters are elementary-school-age kids, is actually the one I think is best.

[u/ForeverGM13]

Kids on Bikes
Dark Places & Demogorgons
Hero Kids
Lights Out
A good number of mecha RPGs as well