The Lantern Hall
Painting: an ancient lexicon open on a carved lectern in a dark chapel of books, glowing runes and symbols lifting off its pages like fireflies.
TermTabletop term2010

Powered by the Apocalypse

A family of games built on the design of Apocalypse World, in which players trigger moves by describing fictional actions and roll 2d6, where 10+ is a success, 7–9 a success with a cost and 6 or less lets the GM make a move. Dungeon World and Masks are well-known examples.

A family of games built on the design of Apocalypse World, in which players trigger moves by describing fictional actions and roll 2d6, where 10+ is a success, 7–9 a success with a cost and 6 or less lets the GM make a move. Dungeon World and Masks are well-known examples.

Origin

Developed by Vincent and Meguey Baker for Apocalypse World (2010).

Quick answers

What does "Powered by the Apocalypse" mean?
A family of games built on the design of Apocalypse World, in which players trigger moves by describing fictional actions and roll 2d6, where 10+ is a success, 7–9 a success with a cost and 6 or less lets the GM make a move. Dungeon World and Masks are well-known examples.
Where does the term "Powered by the Apocalypse" come from?
Developed by Vincent and Meguey Baker for Apocalypse World (2010).

Nearby in the archive

Apocalypse World

Tabletop RPG2010

Vincent and Meguey Baker's post-apocalyptic game of 'moves' and a two-dice roll that rarely just succeeds or fails — the seed of the Powered by the Apocalypse movement.

Vincent Baker

Game designer

The indie designer and Forge theorist behind Dogs in the Vineyard and, with Meguey Baker, Apocalypse World, whose 'moves' became Powered by the Apocalypse, the most imitated RPG engine of the 21st century.

Dungeon World

Tabletop RPG2012

Classic dungeon fantasy — fighters, wizards, thieves and hit points — rebuilt on the Apocalypse World engine, where every roll moves the story and the GM is told to 'draw maps, leave blanks.'

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Roleplaying games built to tell a particular kind of story: the indie-design movement of the Forge, Dogs in the Vineyard and Apocalypse World, whose 2d6 "moves" spawned hundreds of Powered by the Apocalypse games.

Blades in the Dark

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John Harper's game of scoundrels in a ghost-haunted industrial city, where position and effect frame every risk, clocks track every danger and flashbacks let the crew plan after the heist begins.

GNS theory

Tabletop term1999

Ron Edwards's model of roleplaying that sorts players' priorities into Gamism (overcoming challenges), Narrativism (creating meaningful story) and Simulationism (exploring a consistent world). Controversial and much revised, it shaped a wave of indie story games.