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Heart: The City Beneath
MAGES HOOKED ON ILLEGAL MAGIC, DESPERATE FOR ANOTHER HIT.
RUINS ANCIENT BEYOND RECKONING, OVERGROWN WITH BONE AND SINEW.
A SUNKEN MOON, FECUND AND GLORIOUS, THAT CALLS THE FAITHFUL EVER-DEEPER.
GLYPH-MARKED BEES THAT SWARM WITHIN YOU AND SEAL YOUR MADNESS UP WITH WAX.
DOWNTRODDEN MERCENARIES BEARING THE WEIGHT OF A LOST REGIMENT ON THEIR SHOULDERS.
REGAL WITCHES WHO CHANNEL UNEARTHLY POWERS THROUGH THEIR OWN DISEASED BLOOD.
VAGABOND KNIGHTS WEARING ARMOUR BRISTLING WITH BARELY-UNDERSTOOD MACHINERY.
CHTHONIC ANGELS THAT SING A SCREECHING, SCRAPING SONG OF RUST AND ASHES.
A RED WET HEAVEN SLUMBERING FITFUL UNDER THE CITY OF SPIRE.
THIS IS THE HEART: THE CITY BENEATH.
Heart: The City Beneath is a tabletop roleplaying game about delving into a nightmare undercity that will give you everything you’ve ever dreamed of – or kill you in the process. It is a dungeon-crawling, story-forward tabletop RPG that focuses on what characters have to lose in pursuit of their dreams in the chaotic darkness beneath the world.
Contained inside are:
• Rules for creating characters with curious abilities and frantic obsessions.
• Full details of the strange subterranean world of the Heart.
• Adversaries both horrific and pitiable to hunt or be hunted by.
• Methods for mapping the unmappable, and creating your own personal Heart to explore.
• Evocative and fascinating consequences for failure and misfortune that push the story onward.
• Pages and pages of beautiful, full-colour art from Felix Miall.
RUINS ANCIENT BEYOND RECKONING, OVERGROWN WITH BONE AND SINEW.
A SUNKEN MOON, FECUND AND GLORIOUS, THAT CALLS THE FAITHFUL EVER-DEEPER.
GLYPH-MARKED BEES THAT SWARM WITHIN YOU AND SEAL YOUR MADNESS UP WITH WAX.
DOWNTRODDEN MERCENARIES BEARING THE WEIGHT OF A LOST REGIMENT ON THEIR SHOULDERS.
REGAL WITCHES WHO CHANNEL UNEARTHLY POWERS THROUGH THEIR OWN DISEASED BLOOD.
VAGABOND KNIGHTS WEARING ARMOUR BRISTLING WITH BARELY-UNDERSTOOD MACHINERY.
CHTHONIC ANGELS THAT SING A SCREECHING, SCRAPING SONG OF RUST AND ASHES.
A RED WET HEAVEN SLUMBERING FITFUL UNDER THE CITY OF SPIRE.
THIS IS THE HEART: THE CITY BENEATH.
Heart: The City Beneath is a tabletop roleplaying game about delving into a nightmare undercity that will give you everything you’ve ever dreamed of – or kill you in the process. It is a dungeon-crawling, story-forward tabletop RPG that focuses on what characters have to lose in pursuit of their dreams in the chaotic darkness beneath the world.
Contained inside are:
• Rules for creating characters with curious abilities and frantic obsessions.
• Full details of the strange subterranean world of the Heart.
• Adversaries both horrific and pitiable to hunt or be hunted by.
• Methods for mapping the unmappable, and creating your own personal Heart to explore.
• Evocative and fascinating consequences for failure and misfortune that push the story onward.
• Pages and pages of beautiful, full-colour art from Felix Miall.
220 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 2020
16 people are currently reading
97 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
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May 3, 2025It's obviously impossible to review a tabletop RPG if you haven't played it, so I won't. All I will say is that the Feral Psychopomp is the single most creative and unique thing I have ever seen in a piece of fantasy. When reading through the Heart rulebook, you will think that every few pages. Deep Apiarists who have replaced their organs with magic beehives, magic-addicted Junk Mages, mushroom-dealing gangster druids, every single page is dripping with so much creativity and every so often you'll think you've seen your favourite thing, then you'll be hit by two more wild ideas that capture your imagination. Can't wait to give this a go.
August 26, 2021
Very good rpg for starting mature players.
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November 3, 2020I enjoy this framing and rule set more than Spire itself. I’ve played in a few sessions of it and find it’s easier to get my head around and the classes are as evocative, but are also more useable than I’d found when playing Spire.
Decent, two column layout with full page, full colour. I find it much easier to read full page games physically. Hate doing it in PDF form because you have to zoom in and the dimensions just piss me off. Always like it when books have a book ribbon too. Nice little extra~
Decent, two column layout with full page, full colour. I find it much easier to read full page games physically. Hate doing it in PDF form because you have to zoom in and the dimensions just piss me off. Always like it when books have a book ribbon too. Nice little extra~
March 3, 2021
I seriously cannot wait to run this. Lavish and weird, and gives plenty of examples and options while putting the emphasis on letting the GM do as they wish with the setting. Reminds me a lot of the surreal and strange video game Baroque.
January 5, 2025
A brilliant concept executed very well. This book brims with incredible ideas and story hooks that ignite the imagination and compel to dive into this world immediately. It's weird, dark, surprising, and nothing like RPGs I played before. Beneath its dungeon-crawling surface lies a rich narrative device that enables players to create memorable stories together.
Heart: The City Beneath is a game about a group of desperate (and often deranged) individuals lured by the surreal and deadly undercity that promises them redemption, power, cure, or whatever their hearts desire. They either get killed trying to find the answer or achieve the impossible - only to die as a result (or at the very least, to lose their humanity). The latter being a happy ending that delivers unforgettable thrill.
This concept is great because of 3 main reasons:
- perfect alignment of PCs and players needs: before each session, players select 2 scenes or achievements tied to their characters' obsession that they want to role-play. The GM needs to incorporate at least one of them. PCs follow their drives, while players get the experience they've specifically asked for.
- PCs are expected to die anyway: players are not precious with their characters. Everyone knows their time is limited, so want to make the most of it - there's no playing it safe. This approach fosters bold choices, heavy consequences, and creates captivating stories.
- rich and dynamic setting: the Heart drips with flavor, everything is larger than life and full of creative story hooks. Also, due to its nature, it morphs and adapts to the PCs desires, dreams, and fears. It's easy to mold it into something perfectly fit for the group's expectations.
It's at the same time the easiest and the most challenging RPG for GMs. The easiest because the GM receives a list of specific needs from players and just needs to deliver. The most challenging because it requires a lot of improvisation and handling unexpected consequences. The authors highlight the importance of being flexible and moving away from rigid plans and story structures. However, there is no detailed lore to fall back on, nor random tables to guide story choices - the GM has to make it all up on the fly. The Heart is what you make of it, and every groups' Heart will be different. For those who are up for this challenge, it might be one of the most rewarding RPG experiences.
The book covers the essentials and nothing more. There is no fluff, no details that might come in handy once in 10 sessions, and no "entry-level" locations or abilities. This makes it feel meaty and dense with ideas. Evocative art makes it even easier to immerse oneself in the Heart's atmosphere of madness, horror, and desperation. Guidelines for GMs and players are surprisingly useful, aiming to prevent the setting of high expectations for grand storytelling and instead focusing on the co-creation of fun experiences.
There are some hiccups, though. The authors suggest a narrative gameplay with a fail-forward approach, but also leave the door open for a traditional dungeon crawl or even a hack-and-slash sessions. I think that the travel (delve) and combat mechanics are rather thin and don't allow for achieving a satisfying tactical resolution. I quickly moved away from original rules and took a more Forged in the Dark style for handling obstacles. This alternative better supports the narrative focus and helps to avoid situations where players make all the right choices but the game drags due to an unfortunate abundance of failed dice rolls.
I find this game to be an original and uniquely satisfying experience. It's not for everyone due to the twisted nature of the Heart and the weirdness of its inhabitants—it's quite a leap from a D&D-like adventure. Despite its minor flaws, I wholeheartedly (pun intended) recommend it for experienced players. 4.5/5!
Heart: The City Beneath is a game about a group of desperate (and often deranged) individuals lured by the surreal and deadly undercity that promises them redemption, power, cure, or whatever their hearts desire. They either get killed trying to find the answer or achieve the impossible - only to die as a result (or at the very least, to lose their humanity). The latter being a happy ending that delivers unforgettable thrill.
This concept is great because of 3 main reasons:
- perfect alignment of PCs and players needs: before each session, players select 2 scenes or achievements tied to their characters' obsession that they want to role-play. The GM needs to incorporate at least one of them. PCs follow their drives, while players get the experience they've specifically asked for.
- PCs are expected to die anyway: players are not precious with their characters. Everyone knows their time is limited, so want to make the most of it - there's no playing it safe. This approach fosters bold choices, heavy consequences, and creates captivating stories.
- rich and dynamic setting: the Heart drips with flavor, everything is larger than life and full of creative story hooks. Also, due to its nature, it morphs and adapts to the PCs desires, dreams, and fears. It's easy to mold it into something perfectly fit for the group's expectations.
It's at the same time the easiest and the most challenging RPG for GMs. The easiest because the GM receives a list of specific needs from players and just needs to deliver. The most challenging because it requires a lot of improvisation and handling unexpected consequences. The authors highlight the importance of being flexible and moving away from rigid plans and story structures. However, there is no detailed lore to fall back on, nor random tables to guide story choices - the GM has to make it all up on the fly. The Heart is what you make of it, and every groups' Heart will be different. For those who are up for this challenge, it might be one of the most rewarding RPG experiences.
The book covers the essentials and nothing more. There is no fluff, no details that might come in handy once in 10 sessions, and no "entry-level" locations or abilities. This makes it feel meaty and dense with ideas. Evocative art makes it even easier to immerse oneself in the Heart's atmosphere of madness, horror, and desperation. Guidelines for GMs and players are surprisingly useful, aiming to prevent the setting of high expectations for grand storytelling and instead focusing on the co-creation of fun experiences.
There are some hiccups, though. The authors suggest a narrative gameplay with a fail-forward approach, but also leave the door open for a traditional dungeon crawl or even a hack-and-slash sessions. I think that the travel (delve) and combat mechanics are rather thin and don't allow for achieving a satisfying tactical resolution. I quickly moved away from original rules and took a more Forged in the Dark style for handling obstacles. This alternative better supports the narrative focus and helps to avoid situations where players make all the right choices but the game drags due to an unfortunate abundance of failed dice rolls.
I find this game to be an original and uniquely satisfying experience. It's not for everyone due to the twisted nature of the Heart and the weirdness of its inhabitants—it's quite a leap from a D&D-like adventure. Despite its minor flaws, I wholeheartedly (pun intended) recommend it for experienced players. 4.5/5!
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February 8, 2023Still love the base of the game system here, and continually impressed with the density of the writers' ideas for the world and the terrible things within it. A great psychedelic wet meaty horrifying dungeoncrawl, always down, down, down towards the unravelling of all your realities. There's a lot to like here, but the fact that it is a dungeoncrawl game can't help but feel less appealing to me than the themes of Spire. I think I'm gonna steal some stuff here, but of the two, I'd choose to run/play Spire every time (which inevitably tells you more about me than the games, but there it is).
August 24, 2022
I wanted to love it (I even have a limited signed copy), but I just like it.
It's well written and illustrated, and the system seems solid, I'd definitely like to try it. However the Heart is chaotic by design and in the end I prefer the slightly more structured Spire, set in the same universe.
As always the narrative hooks are very inventive, but somehow feel more disconnected than I'd like to, making creating a coherent narrative more complex than usual. This seems a bit harder to suggest to my players than Spire would be.
It's well written and illustrated, and the system seems solid, I'd definitely like to try it. However the Heart is chaotic by design and in the end I prefer the slightly more structured Spire, set in the same universe.
As always the narrative hooks are very inventive, but somehow feel more disconnected than I'd like to, making creating a coherent narrative more complex than usual. This seems a bit harder to suggest to my players than Spire would be.
September 3, 2020
a story-first RPG, the mechanics are simple, original and help players and GM build the narrative... amazing artwork... unique classes and interesting lore... can't find anything bad to say!
November 29, 2020
3.5 stars without playing it yet. The mood comes across very clearly. The art is inspiration all its own. I do wish there was a section to guide adversary creation. We’ll see how it runs.
August 22, 2021
A memorably strange and weird setting for a dungeon delve, with a little more story built into than you usually find. Can't wait to take it out for a spin.
November 20, 2022
I haven't played this yet... but few roleplaying books make me want to play them as much as this one.
September 8, 2025
Does exactly what it says it does. Amazing game, great core story, wonderful mechanics. I love it. Ran it a few times. Would love to cry about it.
October 26, 2025
After Spire, couldn't wait to play this too!
April 23, 2024
Returning after running a 16sesh game (which is, notably, about twice as long as intended)
oh MAN, what a ride. Incredibly, beautifully evocative. All the characters, setting, and locations are described with such amazing style. I don't know if I've read anything dripping with as much lore, and character as heart.
I have a few too many questions about mechanics and would appreciate more concrete examples of play; a sample delve / session would go a long way to alleviate some of my main concerns. Combat is also notably brutally simple, which is a shame considering how many abilities relate too combat. Would have loved to see even something like the distance system in DIE, or anything concrete. There's also some typos, and content that gets mentioned (like the maddening tag) for weapons, that is just straight up non-existent.
The biggest kicker is the lack of any starter content. There isn't a starting situation, fight, or anything short of a short delve blurb to get you started. Most people run the Drowned fan supplement as their opening adventure (which my group did not do) and is wildly recommended by the community.
It takes some extra community resources to run smoothly as there are structural weaknesses to the book, but a strong recommendation if you enjoy body-horror and improvisation.
oh MAN, what a ride. Incredibly, beautifully evocative. All the characters, setting, and locations are described with such amazing style. I don't know if I've read anything dripping with as much lore, and character as heart.
I have a few too many questions about mechanics and would appreciate more concrete examples of play; a sample delve / session would go a long way to alleviate some of my main concerns. Combat is also notably brutally simple, which is a shame considering how many abilities relate too combat. Would have loved to see even something like the distance system in DIE, or anything concrete. There's also some typos, and content that gets mentioned (like the maddening tag) for weapons, that is just straight up non-existent.
The biggest kicker is the lack of any starter content. There isn't a starting situation, fight, or anything short of a short delve blurb to get you started. Most people run the Drowned fan supplement as their opening adventure (which my group did not do) and is wildly recommended by the community.
It takes some extra community resources to run smoothly as there are structural weaknesses to the book, but a strong recommendation if you enjoy body-horror and improvisation.
July 5, 2025
Heart: The City Beneath is a tabletop game about delving into a nightmare undercity that will give you everything you've ever dreamed of – or kill you in the process. It is a dungeon-crawling, story-forward tabletop RPG that focuses on what characters have to lose in pursuit of their dreams in the chaotic darkness beneath the world. Weird but in a good way.
I'm not exactly sure how you're supposed to run a horror tabletop game.
It's probably a requirement that all your players know what they're doing and are willing to take things very seriously if the horror beats are going to land.
The setting in Heart is pretty cool.
They provide a ton of different weird places/monsters your (tragic?) heroes can find on their journey into the depths of the Heart to help you get started.
This is helpful because of the rather unique setting.
I haven't played the game yet (I'm not sure I will) so I can't speak to how the rules work in practice.
There's a system by which each session each players chooses two things that they want to happen to their character (from a list based on their character's class).
It's interesting but I'm not sure what it achieves other than forcing certain events to happen in an artificial way instead of them occurring organically when appropriate.
The game's weird, I'll give it that.
I'm not exactly sure how you're supposed to run a horror tabletop game.
It's probably a requirement that all your players know what they're doing and are willing to take things very seriously if the horror beats are going to land.
The setting in Heart is pretty cool.
They provide a ton of different weird places/monsters your (tragic?) heroes can find on their journey into the depths of the Heart to help you get started.
This is helpful because of the rather unique setting.
I haven't played the game yet (I'm not sure I will) so I can't speak to how the rules work in practice.
There's a system by which each session each players chooses two things that they want to happen to their character (from a list based on their character's class).
It's interesting but I'm not sure what it achieves other than forcing certain events to happen in an artificial way instead of them occurring organically when appropriate.
The game's weird, I'll give it that.
June 9, 2024
4⭐️
Refreshing and I’m excited to run a short campaign involving this in the future
Refreshing and I’m excited to run a short campaign involving this in the future
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews