''Apocalypse World'' is a post-apocalyptic roleplaying game by

D. Vincent Baker David Vincent Baker is a designer of tabletop role playing games and the owner of Lumpley Games which also hosts the archives of The Forge. His most notable games are ''Dogs in the Vineyard'' and '' Apocalypse World''. ''Dogs in the Vineyard' ...

and

Meguey Baker Meguey Baker () is a roleplaying game designer, independent publisher and quilt historian. She has been a guest of honor at Lucca Comics & Games, I-CON, and was scheduled to be one at Arisia in 2014. Career Game designer Baker is the found ...

, published in 2010 with only an implied setting that is fleshed out by the players in the course of character creation. It was the game for which the

Powered by the Apocalypse Powered by the Apocalypse (PbtA) is a tabletop role playing game design framework developed by Meguey Baker and Vincent Baker for the 2010 game ''Apocalypse World'' and later used for '' Dungeon World'', ''Monsterhearts'' and numerous other RPGs. ...

engine was developed. On release, ''Apocalypse World'' won the 2010 Indie RPG Award and 2011 Golden Geek RPG of the year. A second edition was successfully Kickstarted in 2016.https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/226674021/apocalypse-world-2nd-edition/description Apocalypse World 2nd Edition Kickstarter Campaign This edition updated some of the mechanics (HX, battle-moves, threat map, etc.), playbooks (including replacing the Operator with Maestro-D and Quarantine), and brought

on board as co-designer,http://apocalypse-world.com/pbta Powered By the Apocalypse Database. Vincent Baker. but retained most of the original's design.

Setting

The game's implied post-apocalyptic setting is fleshed out during character creation. Each playbook involves and provides inspiration for certain details of the setting, such as the Hardholder, who rules the local settlement and therefore has control over its size, population, and appearance. The characters' shared history is also determined in the course of character generation. Themes of the game are survival and relationships, and they come out in the "pure lethality of the game". Notably, the Master of Ceremonies (MC) is not supposed to do any planning before sitting down to the first session, so that all players have an opportunity to shape the game world collectively.

Game play

''Apocalypse World'' is an archetype-based game.

Materials

* Three to five players (one to play the MC, ''Apocalypse World''s name for the GM) * Two six-sided

dice Dice (singular die or dice) are small, throwable objects with marked sides that can rest in multiple positions. They are used for generating random values, commonly as part of tabletop games, including dice games, board games, role-playing g ...

each * A different playbook for each player * Quick reference sheets for "moves" and the MC's "fronts"

Game mechanics

The system uses the

engine. It features dice-rolling checks for challenging situations of 2d6 plus a relevant stat. Results of 10+ are successes, while 7 to 9 are partial successes or hard choices, and results of 6 or less allow the MC to make a move. A notable feature of ''Apocalypse World'' is the inclusion of a "special move" for each class, which triggers when a character of that class meets the appropriate triggers. The stats are Cool, Hard (Violent, Intimidating), Hot, Sharp, and Weird (Psychic), with each PC having Hx (History) with every other PC. The default playbooks include the Hardholder, the Gunlugger, the Battlebabe, the Driver, the Chopper (Gang Leader), the Hocus (Cult Leader), the Brainer (Psychic), the Savvyhead (Mechanic/Inventor), and the Skinner (artist).

Reception

Reception was positive, with ''Apocalypse World'' winning numerous awards. There was praise for the streamlined nature of the game, as well as the MC job, although the inclusion of a sex move was controversial and was explicitly called out as not for children by SFSignal.Roll Perception plus Awareness review
- SFSignal Academic PS Berge wrote, "Vincent and Meguey Baker's Apocalypse World (''AW'', 2010) marked the beginning of a critical era in 'fiction-first' TRPG design. ..A violent, dystopian, wasteland-punk game, ''AW'' itself is less important to the legacy of independent TRPGs than the Bakers' invitation to other designers: 'If you've created a game inspired by Apocalypse World, and would like to publish it, please do'". James Hanna, for '' CBR'' in 2020, wrote that "ten years on, Powered by the Apocalypse games (PbtA) are everywhere. The Bakers designed the PbtA engine so that other game designers could 'hack' it, creating games with similar mechanics, but unique worlds and rules. More than four dozen games bear the PbtA license, making ''Apocalypse World'' incredibly influential''.'' That influence continues to be felt as games move into new territories and find new audiences".

Awards

*2010

Indie RPG Awards The Indie RPG Awards are annual, creator-based awards for Indie role-playing games and supplements. They were established in 2002 by Andy Kitkowski, and are the most sought-after awards in the ''Indie RPG'' community. For the purposes of the Award ...

- Game of the Year - Winner *2010 Indie RPG Awards - Best Support - Winner *2010 Indie RPG Awards - Most Innovative Game - Winner *2011

Golden Geek Awards Game of the Year (abbreviated GotY) is a title awarded by various magazines, websites, and shows to a deserving game. Many publications award a single "Game of the Year" to a single title that they feel represents the pinnacle of gaming achievemen ...

- RPG of the Year - Winner *2011

Lucca Comics & Games Lucca Comics & Games is an annual Comic book convention, comic book and gaming convention in Lucca, Italy, traditionally held at the end of October, in conjunction with All Saints' Day. It is the largest comics festival in Europe, and the second ...

- Best Role-Playing Game - Winner

References

{{Powered by the Apocalypse games, state=expanded Indie role-playing games Role-playing games introduced in 2010 Post-apocalyptic role-playing games