In this review we talk about Print Weaver, a unique RPG in which fingerprints are the protagonists; the atmospheres are dark fantasy and in some ways, it is inspired by the Dark Souls saga by FromSoftware.

The game comes from the mind of N. L. Morrison, while in Italy it is translated by Nigredo Press and distributed by MS Edizioni; we thank both for providing us with a copy for the review. I recommend following the author on his Itch.io and X (Twitter) page to discover many new projects.

If you are interested, you can find Print Weaver on the Exalted Funeral store for 20$ in physical format + PDF; otherwise, here you will find only the digital version for 10 USD.  

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 Print Weaver Structure and Art Review

The Print Weaver manual is an 88-page milled paperback entirely in black and white. The artistic style of the manual is well done and captures at a glance, not only for the illustrations but also for the layout. With the black and white and the illustrations often stylized or sketched, especially in the bestiary, make the general tones of the manual very good. In short, Print Weaver is a gem to keep in your library also for the artistic aspect, of which you can see some glimpses in this review.

The writing style is fluent and allows a quick and pleasant reading; the paragraphs are very stringy and contain the information necessary for the game. There are some examples, but personally, I would have liked some more.

A point in favour is the presence at the end of the manual of a summary facade that we can use as a quick guide to creating the characters; in addition to the presence of a fun mini-game for your hands, the Cleromancy. There are also many random tables to use with our fingerprints, instead of the classic dice; certainly an original idea that immediately catches the eye. In addition to this, for the GM (Game Master, the narrator in this game) there are a lot of tips and advice on how to conduct a game and how to take full advantage of the peculiarities of the game.

From Fingerprints to Character

The most innovative feature of Print Weaver is that the character, called Travelers, is created through the use of the player’s fingerprints.

The core of the system is represented by the three Marks, that is, the way in which the various fingerprints are divided; they are the Loop(L), the Arch (A) and the Whorl (W).  

Thanks to these Marks we will determine the values of the Attributes, which are:

• Strength: represents the character’s physical abilities, it is linked to the Loop.
• Will: associated with the Arch, it is the sum of the mental qualities and wisdom of the character
• Dexterity: this value indicates cunning and speed and is linked to the Whorl.

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To calculate the value of the Attributes, we just have to count the number of Marks on our hands, after dipping our fingers in the ink. For example, if we have 4 Loops, 1 Arch and 5 Whorls, we will have 4 Strength, 1 Will and 5 Dexterity. If we lack fingers, we will get the Obscure Mark (O/?) which will allow us to have access to better initial equipment.

The last value to be calculated is Vitality, just take our Strength value and add the result of the roll of 1d10.

As a system, it is truly innovative, intriguing and quick to implement. The only flaw is that when playing online you have to be clever or the experience could be at least difficult; having to dip your fingertips in ink and then show them to our group risks becoming complex. For this reason, the manual also presents alternative methods for creating the character (from the exchange of fingerprints between them to the use of tables); this is also very useful to prevent a player must necessarily create all Wanderers identical to each other.

Brands and Equipment

Thanks to the Marks, we will also establish the starting equipment of our character.

Our Wanderer will be given Gifts for each pair of the same fingers between the two hands, then thumb with thumb, index finger with index finger and so on; these are different according to the Marks present; so if we have, for example, on the thumb of the right hand the Loop and on the left one the Whorl, we will obtain the LW pair. As a Gift, we will be given the Chainmail, a heavy armour.

The Gifts available are many and well differentiated, allowing a great variety among the Travelers. Basically, we will also be given 5 torches, a mat and 100 drops of Ink.

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However, we must be careful because our backpack can hold a maximum of 10 objects. As in a soulslike video game, we will also have to decide which object to equip in the right hand and which in the left, in addition to having a ring slot for each hand.

In the management of the equipment, we find very interesting mechanics. When we want to quickly pull an object out of our backpack, we will have to pull 1d10; we will only be able to pull the object out if the result is equal to or greater than the position of the object. So if we want to get something out in position 5 we’ll have to do 5 or more.

 Print Weaver Rules Review

One of the strengths of Print Weaver is its very simple regulation but with particular and intriguing mechanics.

Whenever you want to take an action whose outcome is uncertain, you must declare it to the GM who will expose us to the risks we face and the Obstacle Number (OB) of the test. Accepting the possible risks, we must choose the most suitable Attribute and roll as many d10 as the value of the chosen Attribute is; every die that equals or exceeds 6 is a Success. The total of the Successes will be compared with the RV and if it equals or exceeds it then the test is to be considered passed.

If the value of our attribute is 0, we will roll the Chance Dice; it is a 10 dice rolled with a Disadvantage (that is, it generates a success with values equal to or greater than 7) which, in case of 10 as a result, allows another roll; there are no limits to the number of rollable Chance Dice. Other circumstances that cause us to make trials with Disadvantage are adverse situations. If, on the other hand, there are external factors that favor us, then we will roll with Advantage; in this case, the Successes will be counted for each die that equals or exceeds 5.

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A very fun mechanic comes into play when we want to increase our chances of success; the value of each Attribute corresponds to a reserve of points that we can spend to add dice before or after making a test. So, if our PG has 6 Strength, it means that in a test concerning that attribute it can add from 1 to 6 extra dice; once spent, these points can only be recovered by resting.

Attack, Defend and Survive

In Print Weaver fighting is very risky, but death is not the last stop.

When a fight begins, it is necessary to decree who has the initiative, that is, who strikes first; just make a Dexterity check and add the number of Successes of the members of the group. Then they will be confronted with the successes of the enemies and the faction that has the largest total begins.

The fight is divided into Rounds and Turns and each entity involved can play 1 action and 1 movement in their turn; once everyone has played their turn, they move on to the next Round. The simplicity of the system lies in the fact that everything that needs a test is an action.

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Particularly when we have to attack we will make a Strength (melee) or Dexterity (ranged) check, adding the dice of our Attribute to the dice of the weapon and comparing the results with the OB of the enemy; the difference (if positive) between our number of Successes and the OB of the enemy is the damage we inflict on it. So if the enemy has OB 5 and we do 6 Successes, we will do 1 damage to them. The damage received must first be removed from the Strength Attribute score and once it reaches 0, any additional damage received will affect Vitality.

You have to be careful because if the number of Successes matches the OB, the creature will stop the shot and can launch an Attack of Opportunity; but if this attack fails, the creature will fall prone and cannot defend itself.

Instead, the movement is very simple: the game takes into account three distances: Engaged, Near and Distant. During your shift, you can move one of these distances by moving away or approaching.

Review of Print Weaver Sad and Grim World

In the game we do not have a precise setting, but only fixed points that help us outline the game world. Corruption characterizes the world and the only surviving human beings are gathered in separate camps. Important is the presence of Shrine, places where the Print Weavers forge new Wanderers and offer shelter to mankind.

In this landscape emerge the Travelers, who travel the world to defend humans from corrupt creatures, found new camps and Shrines. The really interesting thing about the Shrines is that they become the respawn points of our protagonists. In fact, every time the Vitality of our PC reaches 0 we will return to a previously visited Sanctuary losing all the equipment and what we have obtained during our adventure; from that point, we must then try to return to the place of death and recover the lost goods. This leads to interesting game dynamics, since there may be situations in which part of the group is still fighting and those who have perished will have to walk from the Sanctuary to join their companions.

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When we die in our place, a Printless will form, a distorted and evil version of the Travelers. This being will attack anyone who is equipped with Marks to eat them and a death at his hand will mean definitive game over, we will not be able to be reborn again and it will be necessary to create a new character. This mechanic creates a lot of positive tension because it forces players to always be on their guard and to want to help their teammates, to avoid finding themselves in double trouble.

Ink and Shrines

A fundamental resource in the world of Print Weaver is ink, a substance useful for killing monsters and for many other purposes. Up to 1000 units can be accumulated and, once finished, they will be recovered in various ways, such as by hunting monsters.

The uses of ink are multiple: we can infuse our weapons to do more damage to enemies, use it as a bargaining chip or to protect our field while we rest; the most intriguing use in my opinion, however, is that thanks to this resource we can establish permanent camps to help humankind repopulate the world. It will take 100 drops of ink per inhabitant (they can be both PG and PNG) to create the Outpost; with this done, the Wanderers will have created forever a safe place that they can call “home”. If more than 1000 drops of ink are spent, the place could become a Shrine and a new respawn point.

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Even the GM will be able to create their own Safe Havens and Shrines to be scattered on the world map, ready to welcome Passers-by; for the Shrines they will just have to decide where to place them and, through a table, they will be able to be characterized with various types of details. On the other hand, Safe Heavens represent settlements with various types of services; they have a creation mechanism very similar to that of PGsin which the GM, by dipping his fingers in ink, observing his Brands and consulting tables, will be able to create many unique and characteristic places.

Surely these are fascinating and engaging systems that immerse all players at the table in the game world.

An Ink Bestiary

Inside the manual we find a bestiary full of opponents to hurl at the poor Travelers. This Monstrata (as it is called in the manual) provides us with archetypes of opponents and for each of them a monster ready to use; among them, we find Dragons, Humans, Golems, Spirits and much more.

Each archetype has its own tables to generate its traits; moreover, when the GM goes to create a monster, he can use the Marks on his fingers to give him unique characteristics. In addition to this, you will have to decide the points of your Attributes thanks to a table from which to choose a row with the various scores already distributed. Definitely a quick system to create many different and never trivial opponents.

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In addition to the monsters, we also find the system of random encounters; each time the Wanderers enter a new territory the GM will have to roll 1d10 and compare the result on the appropriate table. Depending on the stage of the day, we will have to add a modifier to the roll: if we are in the morning it will be a +0, while at night it will be a +4; this is important because the results of the table after 5 contain monsters and dangerous situations. After all you know: traveling at night is very risky!

 Print Weaver Review Conclusions

To conclude this review, I can say that I find Print Weaver an excellent product with an innovative and very solid game system, all accompanied by a high-level artistic sector and truly engaging tones.

Its various strengths are the immediacy of the regulation and the innovative way in which the creation of the PG and many other elements is approached, using a tool as simple as it is effective: fingerprints. In addition to this, we find great care in writing and in wanting to offer a lot of narrative freedom.

Definitely, a product highly recommended for all lovers of dark fantasy who are looking for a particular experience that will capture and engage them. Therefore, Travelers, begin your journey, because the world needs you!

 

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