It’s really starting to annoy me how Western magical-girl-themed tabletop RPGs tend to jump through hoops to explain why Only Girls Can Have Magic Powers when that’s just... not really broadly true of their ostensible source material?
Like, yes, a few magical girl shows do make a big deal out of gender, but for the most part there’s no indication that having magical powers is gender-specific, and most classic examples of the genre prominently feature boys with powers similar to those of the female leads – usually in supporting or antagonistic roles, true, but that’s typically less a reflection of the metaphysics of the setting and more a reflection of who the show’s target audience is.
(Imagine explicitly citing Sailor Moon as one of the game’s core inspirations, then turning around and swatting players with a rolled-up newspaper if they want to be Tuxedo Mask. Now don’t imagine it, because I’ve encountered games that literally do this!)
It feels like the games that go this route are trying to invent in-character justifications for something that exists for out-of-character reasons (i.e., the gender demographics of the leading characters reflecting the gender demographics of the target audience), and in the process tumbling headlong down the slippery slope of gender essentialism when they just plain didn’t have to do that.
I’ll grant that some games make a valiant effort to address those implications, but it feels like they’re making a lot of work for themselves when they could just have said “hey, this game is about magical girls, so you should probably play as a girl”.
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THEME: Magical Girls
Today's recommendations are all games that allow you to play as magical girls, and explore the themes around balancing responsibility, magic, and fighting for the good of the community without seeking fame or fortune.
Macarons, Milkshakes and Magic, by Starshine Scribbles.
The Lace Bloom Cafe has been sitting in the same spot for years. While it is in a quieter part of town, it is impossible to miss due to its big pink sign and overly cute exterior.
The inside is even cuter, with bright artwork on the walls and frills on every surface. Scattered around the cafe are various wands and pictures, letting you know that Lace Bloom isn't just a cute cafe. It is a Magical Girl-themed cafe.
Macarons, Milkshakes, And Magic is a fusion of a solo-journaling game and a group storytelling game.
In the solo-journaling segments, players will use a deck of tarot cards to play out their girl's day-to-day life as she juggles school, romance, and fighting evil.
Then, all the players come together for group sessions. During these group sessions, all of the Magical Girls meet up at the cafe and talk about their week. They'll also use these meetings to work out how to take down a villain that is terrorizing their city.
If you want to play a game that allows you to spend time with friends who have shuffling schedules or who live across time zones, this might be a good fit, especially if you are anxious about performing in front of your friends!
Tea & Crumpets, by c.a. mckinney.
Deep in the heart of Central City, a strange phenomenon has occurred: Normal citizens are suddenly changing into strange, flowery monsters with flower-based powers! But to what end? Why are they here? And why are they working for Earl Grey, the illusive thief? Gather your friends, get your transformation sequence out of the way, and get ready to monologue every time you use a power because it's time for Tea & Crumpets: A game of magical girls and tea leaves!
In Tea & Crumpets you play colour-coded magical girls with tea-based powers. Character creation is simple enough: each step you choose from a list of options in order to create a picture of your magical girl.
The game also comes with a built-in antagonist and advice for the GM in order to make facilitating the game easy. It's also got a pretty solid central theme that's not too heavy. If you want a game that is light on the wallet with enough lore to get you started but not too much lore that you get overwhelmed, this could be the game for you!
Hardcaptor Sakuga: Full Metal Petticoat, by Ironykins.
Magic is real. It is dangerous and terrible and beautiful. It is a flame that burns at the hem of reality, threatening to set it all ablaze. It is an integral part of you, and it is your only weapon against The Darkness.
HARDCAPTOR SAKUGA: FULL METAL PETTICOAT is a Tabletop Roleplaying Game about Magical Girls. You will take on the role of a young girl who has awoken her latent magical powers and finds herself bearing the weight of a heavy responsibility. You will delve into liminal nightmare-scapes to defeat magical manifestations of the darkest parts of humanity. You will eradicate or redeem evil and protect the innocent. And you’ll do all this while trying to make friends and stay on top of your schoolwork.
The goal of this system is to tell a story about hope triumphing over insurmountable despair. Along the way, your characters will form wholesome bonds and struggle through adolescence. You’ll also get to narrate cool action-packed magical girl fight scenes.
For a free playtest, this download has a lot. 74 pages of character creation, setting information, combat mechanics and GM advice. This game cites games like Apocalypse World, Forged in the Dark, and Fate Core as inspiration, so if you're interested in narrative-focused games, this might be the game for you.
Last Hope, by Wendigo Workshop.
“There’s a world, much like our own, where darkness lives. Its influence seeps into our world, corrupting those with a weak soul. That is why The Gift exists. Those with The Gift must travel to The Beyond and free the world from Shadows. But The Gift always comes with a price…
We never know, it is never said, we understand too late. Do not accept The Gift. It is tempting, it seems beautiful, but when something appears too good to be true, it is usually the case…”
Last Hope is a tabletop roleplaying game within which you play as a teenage character trying to fight evil corruption in an alternate version of the world, while also living your daily life as a student. Through a strange contract, you were given The Gift, transforming you into a Magical girl and giving you special powers.
This game is a game with many darker themes, similar to Hardcaptor Sagura, so enter with caution. It's run on Caltrop Core, which means it relies primarily on d4's, although there is a Corruption mechanic which can also rely on a d10 if you like. For $10 you get a significant amount of lore, the structure of a day, character abilities broken down into Magical Girl Types, and some really lovely art. If you would like a solid indie game with some structure to help you build a session, this is a game for you!
Ribbons: A Setting for MASKS, by Eva Forevermore.
Monsters from the moon are wrecking havoc downtown. Your rival's face is on the billboards selling toys. You're running out of estrogen. Your parents think you should quit and inherit the store. Your friend wants you to do vandalism. You didn't even have breakfast yet and you have fifteen minutes till class.
Ribbons is a setting guide for Masks: A New Generation that imagines a whole new city that stars magical girls instead of super heroes: Serendipity. The city has a long history filled with both grim and hopeful times for magical girls. It has developed a culture around magical girls over the decades and now it has entire fandoms, marketing, and schools dedicated to them. Play as magical kids and explore the dangerous, crazy, and fun lives they lead.
It's important to note that this is not a standalone game - it's a setting guide for Masks, a Powered by the Apocalypse game about teenage superheroes. This document provides setting information for a city called Serendipity, as well as advice on converting the MASKS playbooks for teenage girls with magic. For $5, you're basically getting an alternative setting that you don't have to build on your own - so if you like MASKS, or want to play a PbtA Magical Girls game, this is a product for you.
Disaster / Peace, by A Couple of Drakes.
Deal with drama, pass the test, doubt yourself, trust your friends, face down monsters, and SHINE. You're a DISASTER/PEACE.
DISASTER/PEACE is a tabletop roleplaying game designed to emulate your favourite stories in the "Magical Girl" genre. The Characters of DISASTER/PEACE are teenagers in a world very much like our own. They go to school, get embroiled in teen drama, and try to find their place in the face of onrushing adult responsibility and societal expectation. They are also, through no fault of their own, the chosen guardians of a world which is under constant threat of destruction by twisted monsters, evil magic, and vengeful immortals from beyond our realm. They exist between these worlds, juggling their teenage feelings and responsibilities with the duty that has been thrust upon them.
These characters are trying their best. But their best may not be good enough.
If you like the mechanics and setting design of Forged in the Dark games, if you prefer rolling d6's and only d6's, if you like jumping into action without having to worry about the plan, this is a game for you.
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