Kelpie Deep Dive

Kelpie Deep Dive

Kelpie is our first released microgame, and it’s available on itch.io and Wargames Vault. It’s a game I designed for an Itch game jam, and that I then adapted into a solo version as well. This article goes a bit further into the inspiration and overall design.

What is Kelpie?

Kelpie is a two-page, two-player microgame that sees one player take control of the mythical Kelpie and the other as a group of Villagers trying to cross a river. The Kelpie player is trying to drown the Villagers and stop them from crossing the river with their various Goods. As the Villagers wade deeper and deeper into the river, it becomes more and more likely that the Kelpie will be summoned and attempt to drag them down into its watery depths.

In the solo version of the game, the Kelpie is controlled via a basic system that dictates the Kelpie’s behaviour. The Villagers work in more or less the same way.

Each successfully drowned Villager nets the Kelpie some points, and each successful crossing of Villagers and Goods also nets points. The player with the most points is the winner.

The Inspiration for Kelpie

The Kelpie is most notable for its depictions in Scottish folklore, but it also has ties to Yorkshire and the River Strid. I grew up and currently live in West Yorkshire, and have had many visits to Bolton Abbey and the Strid. Kelpie was created as part of a folklore game jam over on itch.io, and I wanted to explore a lesser-known mythological creature, and this was the result.

I also knew I wanted something that focused on the Kelpie, but wasn’t your standard skirmish affair. I had the idea of a river crossing with the Kelpie as the adversary who wants to drag people into the river to their grave, and the rest flowed from there.

I originally developed Kelpie as a two-player game, but I think the Solo Edition is the best version. The Kelpie itself has limited autonomy, so it replaced the human with a basic AI as a simple process. I have fewer and fewer gaming meet-ups, so it was good to adapt my original idea into a solo game.

What’s Next for Kelpie?

Kelpie will likely remain a prototype idea. If I get to more than 5 microgames, I’ll publish them in an Anthology book, but in terms of further development or design for the core game at the moment I’m done.

If I had to make sweeping changes and improvements, I would convert the whole thing into a board game and drop the free movement that miniatures/wargames bring. Instead, I would put it on a grid and adjust the movement accordingly. This would streamline the different river depths and, in doing so, simplify and enhance the experience. However, that’s not likely to happen any time soon.

Where to Find Kelpie?

Kelpie is a free, pay what you want microgame. You can find it over on our Wargames Vault page and over on itch.io as well.

I’m in the process of adding the games to here as well, but if you are reading this message, then I have sorted it out yet.

Thank you for reading. I’ve also written a Deep Dive article on Malefactor (our Hunter and Mage game of cat and mouse), so please also check that out. Until next time.