RPG Encyclopedia: N
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Name Keeper
1st ed by Jose Luis Pumarega (2001) La Factoria de Ideas
A Spanish-language fantasy RPG. The world is flat and falls towards the floor of the universe. The gods were defeated by the demons and now the hell is physically in the world (i.e. on the map) and when people die they appear there, always. When they were defeated the gods gave a magical language to the humans to allow them to survive, though the magicians (the Name Keepers) are not so sure. The PCs are from Isla, which has the more advanced civilization of the world. Isla has makers of the "clocks": robots that work by clockwork mechanisms.
Nameless Streets
1st ed by Charles Green (2010) Alephtar Games
A paranormal detective RPG set in modern-day Portland, Oregon - developed as a setting and variant of the HeroQuest system created by Issaries, Inc. It includes full keywords for various supernatural creatures including vampires and werewolves, to lamia and djinn. It also adds rules for five different magical traditions, including Witchcraft, Necromancy, and Wizardry.
Narnia - Das Rollenspiel
1st ed by Ulrich Drees, Oliver Plaschka (2008) Brendow Verlag
A German-language fantasy role-playing game set in the world of Narnia, based on the book series by C.S. Lewis. It uses a simple though not minimal set of rules aimed at beginners.
The Nearside Project
1st ed by Stephen Herron, Tom Bisbee, Barry O'Connor (1996) Nearside Games
A sci-fi RPG of parallel earths, set among 13 parallel dimensions of the modern world caused by unknown forces. The "variants" (as the dimensions are called) are traveled by people known as "Nearsiders", who have a neural anomaly allowing them to find and penetrate the doorways between variants.
Nebuleon SF RPG
1st ed by William Corrie III (2004) HinterWelt Enterprises
A spacefaring sci-fi RPG with a percentile skill-based system (the "Iridium System"). It is set in the RFW (Republic of Free Words) which establishes regular diplomatic ties, encourages trade, keeps shipping lanes open, protects traders, and maintains peace. Alongside it, the Andromedaen Council of Guilds, the Grou-Lynn Empire, and the Kolkesh Empire seek to strengthen the galaxy from the threat of the Jiran Theocracy. Character creation is random-roll attributes (best of 3d20), followed by choosing a class which influences skills.
Neighborhood
1st ed by Kristan J. Wheaton (1982) Wheaton Publications
An RPG where the PC's are kids role-playing fairly normal childhood adventures.
Nemesis: A Perfect World
1st ed by Malcolm Harris (2001) Maximum CNG
A post-apocalyptic superhero RPG, set in the modern world after a supernatural disaster (the "Nemesis event") which gave certain people supernatural powers. It uses a skill-based system. Action resolution uses 2d6. Character creation is either an original character, or creating a version of yourself with powers. There are six templates for superpowers.
Nemundir
1st ed by Lambert Tóth (2007) Delonaran
A Hungarian-language fantasy RPG.
Neotech
1st ed by Marco Behrmann, Dan Hörning, Carl Johan Ström, Krister Sundelin (1993) Neogames AB
2nd ed (1999)
A Swedish-language cyberpunk / technothriller RPG, set in the year 2059. It has a detailed background as well as rules for netrunning and cyber implants. The system and background try to be as realistic as possible regarding weapon rules, social changes and the world as a whole.
Nephandum
1st ed by Massimo Bianchini, Mario Pasqualotto (2005) Asterion Press
1st [English] ed by Massimo Bianchini, Mario Pasqualotto (2007) Mongoose Publishing
An Italian-language dark fantasy / horror RPG, using the D20 system, later translated into English and released by Mongoose Publishing. Set in a fantasy world where five dark cosmic entities rule over five different aspects of fear: Disease, Madness, Blood, Darkness and Savagery.
Nephilim
1st [French] ed by Fabrice Lamidey, Frederic Weil (1991) Multisim
2nd [French] ed (1992)
1st [English] ed by Fabrice Lamidey, Sam Shirley, Greg Stafford, Frederic Weil (1994) Chaosium
An occult RPG where characters are immortal creatures that awaken in human form. First edition was French-language, later translated into English.
Neuroshima
1st ed by Michal Oracz, Ignacy Trzewiczek (2003) Portal
A Polish-language post-apocalyptic game which action takes place in the U.S. after the rebellion of great strategic military computer. Cities are burn to the ground, people are fighting with machines and so on. World is somehow similar to computer RPG "Fallout" or movie "Mad Max". It uses a game system emphasizing speed of play. Action resolution uses 3d20 vs difficulty.
NeverWorld
1st ed by Erin Laughlin (1996) ForEverWorld
A fantasy-genre system, focusing on a variety of fantasy races and cultures. The world is one where the various races are closed off from each other, casting the PCs as explorers. It uses a skill-based system with complex character generation.
New Gods of Mankind
1st ed by Richard Leon (2007) Dark Skull Studios
A fantasy genre game where the player characters are minor new gods who have latched onto a struggling human tribe in a largely Bronze Age fantasy world. The humans' worship of the new gods empowers them with Belief that allows them to stay in existence and perform miracles. Humans are threatened by warlike Salamanders and rampaging Jurelian Giants, but live at peace with the taciturn Gnomes, water-dwelling Undines, and knowledgeable Sylphs. There are also Light and Dark breeds of Wood Nymphs, that live in forests and generally ignore humans. Resolution uses a step-die dice pool, where players generally roll d6s unless incarnate in a mortal form, when they roll d10s for most actions except skills in their domain that they roll d12s for. The new gods and their human worshipper face various threats including elder races and their gods, god-like beings that feed on fear called Leviathans, and rival gods of humanity. Character creation is point-based, with each new god getting 50 belief points and 100 followers. Player character also pick one primary domain - such as Birth, Death, Adventure, or Magic - and three secondary Domains such as Intrigue, Lightning, Cats, or Gambling. Advancement is based on getting Belief Points per year equal to 20% of the number of worshippers for that god.
Nexus: Live Action Roleplaying
1st ed by Rick Dutton, Walter O. Freitag (1994) Chaosium
A live-action RPG game/scenario intended for 44 players and 5 referees. The scenarios is about aliens who manage to land their meeting right in the middle of a sci-fi convention, and accidentally mistake the con-goers for their comrades. The book comes complete with characters, handouts, and a brief rules set.
Nexus: The Infinite City
1st ed by Robin D. Laws, Jose Garcia (1990) Daedalus Games
An interdimensional action game, set in a city which extends across dimensions and constantly changes its geography and connections. It uses a precursor to the system in Feng Shui, with stat+1d6-1d6 resolution and a point-bought character creation system.
Ngenesis: the Trials of Flesh
1st ed by Justin Killam, Damien Hunt (2008) Apocrypha Studios
A post-apocalyptic science fantasy RPG set in the far future where the player characters are modern gods called Ngen reawakened after ages of sleep to survive through the plagues of the apocalypse. The Ngen first appeared in the near future, using a mystic energy called the Pyur to become rulers of a thousand-year golden age. Then creatures of chaos and darkness called Hrongyr appeared, spreading contagion. The Ngen and their custodians retreated underground and went into hibernation to wait out the plagues. The player characters are Ngen newly awakened after an unspecified time, their custodians now missing. The game uses a dice pool system called the Providence system. In resolution, the player rolls a number of dice equal to skill rating (0 to 6) of a type based on attribute rating (from d2 to d12). The result is the highest die, modified by +1d6 (Fate Die) and -1d6 (Doom Die) and any modifiers for difficulty or other circumstances. A positive result is a success. The result is used as level of success, such as for damage in combat. There are 12 attributes, divided into 4 each for Mind, Body, and Soul. There are also about 50 skills divided among controlling attributes.
Nightbane
1st ed by C.J. Carella (1995) Palladium Books
A modern horror game about supernatural shape-changers who can appear human, but are really creatures from another dimension (the "Nightlands"). PCs are "Nightbane" who fight to protect humanity from the "Nightlords" who are poised to take over the world, with human sorcerors and vampires somewhere in the mix. The system is a variant of the Palladium Fantasy RPG system. It was formerly known as "Nightspawn" but the name was changed for legal reasons.
NightLife
1st ed by Bradley K. McDevitt et al. (1990) Stellar Games
2nd ed (1991)
3rd ed (1992)
A modern-day horror game where the characters are various monsters: vampires, werewolves, zombies, etc.
Night of the Ninja: Reality Role Playing Game
1st ed by Tom Wall, Sandford Tuey (1986) IIE / Mastery Manual
A martial-arts RPG in a modern-day setting, with an emphasis on combat. The opponents are terrorists and organized crime.
Night Prowler
1st ed by Croc (1995) Siroz
A French-language medieval fantasy RPG, set in the world of the Seven Cities, a giant megalopolis where crime is everpresent. PC's are thieves who fight machiavelian authorities to earn their livings. It includes detailed background on the Seven Cities. Character generation is class-based, with a wide variety of classes and races. Races include dwarves and elves but also many other varieties.
Night's Black Agents
1st ed by Kenneth Hite, Robin D. Laws (2012) Pelgrane Press
A modern-day supernatural spy thriller RPG, combining inspiration from movies like Ronin and The Bourne Identity with classic supernatural horror like Bram Stoker. It uses a variant of the GUMSHOE that first appeared in The Esoterrorists - expanded to include more combat options along with chases and high-tech espionage operations.
Night Witches
1st ed by Jason Morningstar (2015) Bully Pulpit Games
A historical RPG about the Soviet 588th Night Bomber Regiment in World War Two, which consisted entirely of women. It uses rules adapted from Vincent Baker's Apocalypse World. Play alternates between day and night scenes, with different Moves available for each.
Nil
1st ed (1985) Fondation du Stratège
A French-language historical RPG set in ancient Egypt. The is diceless, using order sheets with wargame-like overtones.
Nine Worlds
1st ed by Matt Snyder (2004) Chimera Creative
A science fantasy RPG with an original setting, a fantasy solar system with elements of Greek mythology where aetherships traverse the swirling mists of space between the nine planets, each ruled by the Eternals (Aphrodite ruling Venus, etc.). The rules use playing cards, where each player has a deck of cards to draw from. Characters draw based on their Arete or Hubris attribute, with bonuses for related Muses; then select a number of cards of the same suit. Winning conflicts results in the accumulation of Tricks.
Ninja Burger: The Role-playing Game
1st ed by Michael Fiegel, Kenshiro Aette, Christopher O'Neill (2001) 9th Level Games 9th Level Games Aetherial Forge
2nd ed (2006)
A humorous RPG system where the PC's are ultra-powerful ninjas who have taken day jobs as fast food deliverers. They go on missions to deliver the food in 30 minutes or less (even to inside a high security installation) without being seen by the customer. If they fail, they must commit seppuku. It uses a very simple system. Four stats are generated by rolling 3d6 (Strength, Agility, Ki, and Endurance). Resolution is by rolling under your stat on a multi-d6 roll, with more dice rolled for more difficult tasks. The second edition uses a variant of the Prose Descriptive Qualities (PDQ) system introduced in Dead Inside.
Ninjas and Superspies
1st ed by Eric Wujcik (1988) Palladium Books
A cinematic modern action/adventure game, using a variant of the Palladium System. Most of the book is dedicated to combat of one form or another, especially martial arts.
Nobilis
1st ed by R. Sean Borgstrom (1999) Plainlabel / Pharos
2nd ed (2002) Hogshead Games
3rd ed (2011) EOS Press
A game of theological conflict, where the characters are Powers each set to defend some aspect of reality (like Joy, or Duels, or Calenders Days, etc.). They are fighting "Excrucians" who are trying to destroy all of the larger reality, of which our world is only a small part. It uses a diceless system where players spend "miracle points" to accomplish their actions. The second edition greatly expands the text with examples of play and GM advice.
Noctum
1st ed by Mischa L. Thomas (2005) self-published
A Swedish-language modern horror game similar to the earlier game Kult. cf. http://www.ad-noctum.com/.
No Dice - Pure Role Playing
1st ed by Leo Stableford, Suzanne Jordan (2009) No Dice RPG Team
A universal minimalist RPG, concentrating on advice for players and GM. The base mechanic uses playing cards - drawing from a deck against a difficulty from 1 to 10 set by the GM. A Jack is an automatic failure; a Queen is an automatic success; a King is kept by the player to be traded in for a future redraw.
noir
1st ed by Jason Inglert, Jack Norris, Curtis Werner (1997) Archon Gaming Inc.
A film noir RPG (i.e. pulp-era mystery and intrigue). It uses a free point-build character creation, with an additive dice pool resolution (roll d6's equal to trait plus skill and total them vs difficulty). The combat system is fairly involved.
No Press Anthology
1st ed by Luke Crane, Alexander Cherry, Michael S. Miller, Kirt Dankmyer, Daniel Solis, Matt Machell, Jeffrey Schecter, Mike Holmes, Ben Lehman (2004) Key 20 Publishing
A collection of eight short roleplaying games published as a single volume, edited by Luke Crane. "Snowball", by Alexander Cherry, is a variant of the free RPG "The Pool" which works backwards in time from a strong image. "Discernment", by Michael S. Miller, is an RPG where the players puts someone in differing situations in order to discern the overall soul quality of the one being examined. "Pretender", by Kirt Dankmyer, is fantasy game about supernatural beings hidden as normal people in the 1980s. "WTF", by Daniel Solis, is a surreal game with many GMs and only one player. "The Agency", by Matt Machell, is about characters fighting the supernatural in the 1960s. "Pagoda", by Jeffrey Schecter, is a game of Chinese wuxia (kung fu fantasy). "Cell Gamma", by Mike Holmes, is a game where the PCs start out in prison cells, with no memory. (The rules are GM-only.) "Over the Bar", by Ben Lehman, is a combined RPG and drinking game.
Norwegian Style
1st ed by Erlend Sand Bruer, Tor Kjetil Edland, Arvid Falch, Ole Peder Giæver, Martin Gudmundsen, Matthijs Holter, Magnus Jakobsson, Håken Lid, Lasse Lundin, Anders Nygaard, Tomas HV Mørkrid, Erling Rognli, Margrete Somerville, Øyvind Stengrundet, Even Tømte, Rune Valle (2009) self-published
A collection of 17 short role-playing games by Norwegian designers. They vary in length, form and content from 15-minute "game poems" to year-long campaigns, from GM-less freeform to competitive resource management games, from light-hearted fantasy slapstick to grimly realistic stories of patricide.
Noumenon
1st ed by Caias Ward, Chris Welsh, Darren Maclennan, Darwin Leary, Jens Rushing, Josh Benton, Khairul Hisham, Lee Foster, Monica Valentinelli, Nathan Hill, Nick Bousfield, Robert Hansen, Thomas Eliot (2006) Abstract Nova Entertainment
A strange fantasy role-playing game of mystery and abstraction. Players assume the roles of the Sarcophagi -- strange insect-like creatures trapped within the Silhouette Rouge, who encounter bizarre entities and explore strange locations. It uses a domino-based task resolution system that enables players to build upon each other's successes, emphasizing player cooperation.
Nova
1st ed by Daniel Schuler (1997) self-published
A German-language sci-fi RPG, set at the end of the 27th century. It is set in a vast galactic set of empires both human and alien. The system is similar to Das Schwarze Auge. cf. the official website.
Novus Fantasy Roleplaying Game
1st ed by Tim Dugger (2012) Firehawk Games
A fantasy RPG, set in an original fantasy world on the large island of Tyrlon. Originally inhabited by semi-barbarian Halflings and a peaceful spider-folk, it began being colonized a hundred years ago by other races. The game includes six races (Human, Elves, Dwarves, Halflings, Half-Elf and Half-Orc) and eight classes (including Archer, Fighter, Martial Artist, Minstrel, and Dual Mage). Resolution uses an open-ended 2d10 roll. There are Fate Points that modify resolution, and combat uses Action Points.
Now Playing: Roleplaying the World of Television
1st ed by Bradford Younie (2004) Carnivore Games
A universal system for roleplaying which adapts from a television series, or just emulates the style. The mechanics are a variant of Fudge. The core rulebook includes a sample series (the "Foundation for Paranormal Investigation") and a sample episode.
Nylon Angel
1st ed by Cary Lenehan (2006) White Mice Games
A cyberpunk role-playing game based on the books by Marianne de Pierres. It is set in a near-future cyberpunk Australia.
John H. Kim <jhkim@darkshire.net>
Last modified: Mon Jul 2 09:15:53 2018