Moonlight on Roseville Beach
A downloadable Queer RPG
Queer pulp meets cosmic horror! It's 1979, and you're spending the summer working in Roseville Beach, the queerest little town on Rose Island. You might have come here looking for an escape, some fun, a little extra money, or even love, but now people are seeing phantasms, strange animals—and stranger old gods—wander the woods, mysterious monoliths appear randomly, and that strange music is coming from somewhere.
Check out the free Quickstart and Demo Kit. If you just want the ePub, pick up the Art-Free ePub.
What's in the Book?
- Character creation, including your origin story before you got to Roseville Beach, jobs on the island, and strange events that introduced you and your housemates to Rose Island's strange supernatural happenings.
- Over 20 options for Guest Star characters: Ready-to-play characters for those friends who drop into your game for a session or two, created by Sharang Biswas, Ezakur, and Alison Cybe.
- Rules of play driven by simple d6 mechanics inspired by Psi*Run and Goblinville Gazette.
- A full chapter on running the game and another with deep dives into the town and Rose Island from Ethan Harvey, Rick Chia, and Rob Abrazado.
- Mysteries and mystery starters from Maxwell Lander, Catherine Ramen, Sean F. Smith, Anne Toole, and Noora Rose.
- Six flash fiction pieces by Sharang Biswas, Bendi Barrett, Ennis Rook Bashe, and Erin Roberts.
Print Copies
Print copies are available for online order from Spear Witch, Ratti Incanti, Plus One EXP, Indie Press Revolution, and Exalted Funeral, or in retail stores including Brooklyn's Twenty Sided Store, Salt Lake City's Under the Umbrella, Gabi's Olympic Cards and Comics in Lacey, WA, and Labyrinth Games & Puzzles in Washington, DC.
What People Are Saying
The pulpy goodness in Moonlight on Roseville Beach is a satisfying blend of familiar themes and genres that have been mixed together in such a way that feels absolutely unique. Between the occult mysteries, the vibrant queer community setting, and intense nostalgia, I can see this becoming many people's comfort game. It somehow manages to evoke all those guilty pleasure feelings of reaching for a vintage pulp story while also taking full advantage of contemporary knowledge of queer identities and cultures to create a thoughtfully inclusive experience.
Yeonsoo Kim, Women are Werewolves
Moonlight on Roseville Beach is full of wonders. Its queer pulp aesthetic and its minimalist, collaborative system offer new and veteran gamers alike a chance to explore Rose Island's bohemian community and many secrets. I never realized that the confluence of weird fiction and queer pulp could be so engaging, whether for an evening or an extended sequence of mysteries, but Richard Ruane and his creative team have charmed me. Let those who can heed its call pack your bags—Roseville Beach awaits!
James Estes, Mage: The Ascension and Fading Suns
Probably the RPG with the best art I've seen this year, at least! Also the RPG with the best advice on romance as plot I've ever seen, period.
Côme Martin, Broken Cities and Meanwhile, in the Subway
Reviews
From Logan and Griffin at The Story Told podcast
From Brandon and Josh at The Goblins & Growlers podcast
Demo Files and Free Content
See below for links to the free online character keeper and consent worksheet and check out the playlist from Sam Leigh (now with bonus Donna Summer)!
Updated | 28 days ago |
Status | Released |
Category | Physical game |
Rating | Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars (27 total ratings) |
Author | R. Rook Studio |
Tags | cosmic-horror, dnd, Dungeons & Dragons, LGBT, LGBTQIA, paranormal-romance, Queer, Tabletop role-playing game, urban-fantasy |
Purchase
In order to download this Queer RPG you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $19.99 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Review, Press, and Community Complimentary Copies
Support this Queer RPG at or above a special price point to receive something exclusive.
Actual Play Producer Copies
Do you produce an actual play series, whether streamed or recorded? Considering doing a one-shot or series on Roseville Beach? Please feel free to pick up the book as a comp copy while you're making your programming decisions. You definitely don't need my permission to stream or record this game, but if you have questions, reach out at R-Rook.studio.
Community Copies
Reserved PDF copies! These PDF copies are for students, supporters from marginalized communities, and those experiencing financial hardship. If you self-identify in one or more of those categories and need the discount, feel free to choose this level. These initial community copies were funded by our Kickstarter backers.
Press and Review Copies
Are you a blogger, reviewer, or press member interested in reviewing or covering Moonlight on Roseville Beach? Please feel free to grab a complimentary press copy here. If you end up reviewing the game, please leave a link here (even if your review or coverage is critical), and I'll add more copies to the review copy pool.
Download demo
Development log
- Funding Reprints, Hardbacks, and ZinesSep 05, 2023
- Calibration & Consent WorksheetJun 20, 2023
- Roseville Beach Stream & The Beach Reads Blog SeriesJun 12, 2023
- Dunes & Disco Jam Starts Today!Mar 14, 2023
- Dunes & Disco Jam!Mar 07, 2023
- Character SheetsFeb 11, 2023
Comments
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Hello R.Rook Studios. I have been playing your game for a while (about half a year now) and it is definitely on my top 10 TTRPGs likely right now. I decided to write/create a review/analysis of the game on Youtube and send folks over here.
Seriously thanks for all the work your team put on Roseville Beach and Boardwalks and Sorcery.
PS: My favorite origin story will always be The Scandalous!
Thank you so much for this!
Yes, how many players is this game? Im a bit lost. Is it a solo game, or...?
The game is made for a handful of players and a game master. However, from my experience, it also works well solo (although it kinda nulls the dynamic of the bungalow ?.)
3-5 players and GM are the ideal (in my experience)
got it, thank you!
Hello. Thanks for the press and review copies, I've used it to write my review of the game (in french) : https://www.jeuxderole.com/moonlight-on-roseville-beach/
If everything goes well, I might also be able to start a written solo actual play on the same website on the first sunday of august.
Thank you! This is great. Let me know if you’re able to start the solo play!
And here it is! It will be up in about 1.5 hour from now, at 9am CEST. It's only the session 0 of the solo play, but I'll post an episode each sunday : https://www.jeuxderole.com/moonlight-roseville-beach-session-0/
hey there! I got this in the bundle for racial justice and Equality and it just takes me to a 404 page when I try and access my files :/ is there a fix for this?
Hey - that’s an older version of the game, but I’ve set it so that link should work again. If you’d like this version, feel free to grab a community copy.
Was looking at this, and Drivethrurpg has it listed at 162 Pages but looking at other store fronts they have it listed at 64 - Are there two different versions I just can't figure out haha
Definitely not 2 versions. Print is 160 (164 with cover). I’m on my phone right now, but I believe the PDF is 162 since the inside covers are blank and got deleted. 64 must be a typo.
Awesome! Was thinking that may be the case but best to hear from the source :) purchase made and I can't wait to get it!
Hey ho, added your game to GoodReads.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/123848515-moonlight-on-roseville-beach
Thank you!
Hey, we talked a little bit about Moonlight on Roseville Beach on our podcast. Would love to devote an episode to talking about it at some point.
https://goblinsandgrowlers.podbean.com/e/scratching-our-indie-game-itchio-the-go...
Listening now! I'd love to know more about what y'all think. I've got a press kit coming out next weekend, and you should also feel free to download the press copies on the Itch page. Thank you!!
Awesome. Would love to see the press kit! I'm planning to make some time to read through the whole book this week.