Rabbit Ronin

Rabbit Ronin is a roleplaying game about wandering adventurers. The characters are people: samurai, ninjas, monks, gamblers, bounty hunters and bodyguards. They are also animals: rabbits, dogs, cats, pigs, bears and more. They live in Edo-period Japan, in a milieu of masterless samurai, squabbling warlords, put-upon farmers, rowdy inns and landscapes both tranquil and dramatic. 

Gameplay Structure – Samurai Picaresque

The GM sets the scene for the beginning of the story and the players explain how their characters come to be in the vicinity. Two or three PCs may be travelling together, but no more. Our heroes often bump into one another along the wanderer ’ s way, but they do not go about as a gang. They might be rivals, but not enemies. The PCs involve themselves in events, often as cross-purposes though without hatred.

The feel is one of contrasting yet complementary tones of tragedy and lightheartedness, of violence and light comedy. This is, I hope, addressed through the gameplay structure and the GM resources. 

Character Creation – Animals and Occupations

You choose an animal species, which gives you among other things an innate special ability, and a job, which gives you a learned special skill. 

Basic System – 3d6, Opposed

Roll three six-sided dice, add your attribute and skill numbers, and compare it to the similar roll of your opponent or the obstacle that stands in your way. All rolls in Rabbit Ronin are opposed in this way: if you can't think of someone or something that stands in opposition to the character, there is no need to roll for it. 

Two Forms of Combat

Duels in Rabbit Ronin involve choosing from three possible approaches to the fight, and may be changed from one action to the next, depending on your available actions and how you are armed. Less disciplined combat – termed brawls – uses a more freewheeling approach suitable for multiple combatants. This is the system you use for tangling with bandits, kicking off in a wayside inn, and so on. 

Rabbit Ronin is published as a 48-page PDF. 

The creation of this game was made possible by erudite and perspicacious supporters on Patreon. If you'd like to join them, please visit https://www.patreon.com/porcupinepublishing