Titles, Tools, Tables - British Fantasy & RPGs

A guide to generators, titles and tools for British Fantasy

Disclaimer: I'm an affiliate for DriveThru RPG. I've also created tools for WFRP and other British RPGs. If you like this article, consider becoming a Patron

Starting Points for British Fantasy RPGs

WTF is British Fantasy? Look at Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, Dragon Warriors and Advanced Fighting Fantasy for classics. And there's a longer (and periodically updated) list of British RPGs also on Rand Roll

Then more recently games such as Into the Odd, Warlock!, WFRP 4e and Dolmenwood. And maybe Troika (but it's more Science Fantasy.

British RPGs often have a grim and gritty feel to them, often with generous amounts of humour and strangeness.

For the best of grim and gritty head over to Glumdark and Table Monger. Bothhave random tables inspired by Mork Borg, but for sure with a Grim flavour.

RPGs

There is a longer list of British RPGs from a different article. And Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay has it's own section.

Advanced Fighting Fantasy 2nd Edition from Arion Games is an updated version of Dungeoneer with all you need in one book. Plus lots of supporting titles.
Troika from Melsonian Arts Council is a perfect example of quirky space fantasy. It uses random tables for character concept / profession, spells, monster mien, and anywhere else it matters.
Warlock! is a 146 page book from Fire Ruby Designs. It's a simple d20 system with careers and a dynamic combat system. Plus lots of support.
Electric Bastionland Free Edition from Bastionland Press is a odd game with an old-school feel where you have a failed career and colossal debt. This is the cut-down free version of the game.

British Historic Tables and Tools

From dicegeeks is the Book of Random Tables: Vikings, with tables covering items, names, norse mythology, encounters and people.
I have d100 lists of British Fantasy Names from Chaos Gen, with 30 pages of tables from the Romans up to Medieval times.
The Welsh Name Generator from D10 Dimensions has lots of combinations of family and given names.

Gamebooks

Gamebooks have a strong tradition in the UK, starting with Fighting Fantasy and Lone Wolf. There's a full guide of digital gamebooks on drivethru and lots of Gamebook articles on Rand Roll.

Some classics include...

Heart of Ice by Dave Morris is set in icy post-apocalyptic Earth, with you and others searching for an artifact that holds the power to change everything.
ACE Gamebooks by gamebook veteran Jonathan Green are a series using simple mechanics to retell classic tales, such as The Wicked Wizard of Oz and Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland.
Way of the Tiger by Jamie Thomson and Mark Smith starts with Avenger and goes on for several more books. You play a ninja with many special tricks, progressing to rule over a city and command armies. I could only find the first 2 titles on DriveThruRPG so far.
The GNAT Adventure Gamebooks are a mix of open-world. Grave of the Kraken by David Donachie is a good place to start. Each one lets you explore it with more freedom than most gamebooks. And you can take the same character between books, but only once you've completed the current one.
Fabled Lands by Dave Morris and Jamie Thomson started off the first open-world gamebook series with the War-Torn Kingdom, an adventurer wandering a sprawling fantasy land. The other books in the series are Cities of Gold and Glory, Over the Blood-Dark Sea, the Plains of Howling Darkness, the Court of Hidden Faces and Lords of the Rising Sun. I couldn't see book 7 up there yet, but the Keep of the Lich Lord (a quest for Fabled Lands) is there.

Solo RPGs

Some solo rpgs by British creators or with British themes include...

English Eerie Second Edition from Trollish Delver Games is a journalling game about being stuck in rural england. There is also a pay-what-you-want 36 page pdf version.
Delve: A Solo Map Drawing Game from Blackwell Games takes you on a journey below ground, drawing the horrors that a dwarven hold unearths in the depths.
Five Leagues from the Borderlands from british publisher Mophidius is a solo miniatures game where your warband explores a fantasy world.

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay has been a classic British rpg for decades, through 1st to 4th (and soon 5th), preferably skipping the strange 3rd edition.

It has support with names from the Fantasy and Blood Bowl Name Generator at Snow White Hills and the Book of Imperial Names PDF over at Winds of Chaos. Then Fantasy Name Generators has name generators for Warhammer Races by army. Other random bits include a Character Doom for humans

My own site is Chaos Gen, which has several wfrp tools. Starting with the WFRP Name List which gives many names by race and gender at once. For taverns there's a Simple WFRP version which can be enhanced with Dwarf Beers or Pies. Also have a Road Encounter or Forest Encounter. For a simple NPC in 3 lines there's a Quick NPC tool.

For 4e generators you have Paco's Miscellaneous Stuff with Paco's Character Gen (which includes gnomes) and 4E NPC Generator. If you want loot there is a Treasure Generator has options for jewels, coins, clothes, weapons and documents. And another one for Potions. And a Monster Generator for foes with lots of options. Plus a list of Character Motivations at Chaos Gen