# Boundless Tides tags: #game/rpg/boundless-tides ![[Boundless Tides (cvover).jpg]] # Boundless Tides _Boundless Tides_ is a "souls-like" pirate RPG, which is industry shorthand for "your character is disposable, the ocean actively hates you, and hope is a resource you ran out of three sessions ago." Developed by Fari RPGs, it strips away the Hollywood glamour of piracy—swinging from chandeliers, endless rum, clean teeth—and replaces it with creeping dread, eldritch monoliths, and the very real possibility that your ship will be eaten by something that doesn't appear on any map. It is designed for short, brutal sessions where the goal is less "save the princess" and more "survive the next ten minutes." The game runs on the _Boundless_ system, a framework built entirely around the concept of diminishing returns and inevitable decay. You play as a crew of ill-fated scoundrels (Swashbucklers, Cursed, Hotheads) navigating a procedurally generated nightmare of an ocean. The game delights in resource management; your inventory is limited, your supplies are dwindling, and the only thing abundant is the salt water filling your lungs. ## The Mechanics The system uses a **d6 dice pool**, simple enough for a deckhand to grasp but punitive enough to satisfy a sadistic Game Master. - **The Core Check:** When you attempt something risky—which is everything—you roll a number of d6s equal to your relevant Attribute (**Grit**, **Guile**, or **Flair**). Every die that lands on a **5 or 6** is a Hit. If you roll zero Hits, you fail. - **The Desperation Roll:** If your stats are so abysmal that you have zero dice to roll (0D), you roll a single die, but only a **6** counts as a Hit. This is the game offering you a lottery ticket while the ship sinks. - **Stamina (The Trap):** This is the clever bit. You can spend **Stamina** points to add extra dice to your Checks, increasing your odds of success in the moment. _However_, when you must make a **Save** to avoid consequences (like drowning or being stabbed), you roll a number of dice equal to your _current_ Stamina. - _Translation:_ The harder you exert yourself to succeed at actions, the more likely you are to die when the universe hits back. - **The Death Spiral:** When you run out of HP, you make a **Death Save** by rolling your Grit score. Failures on this roll permanently reduce your Grit. In short: getting hurt makes you worse at surviving, which leads to getting hurt more. It is a lovely cascade of failure. - **Usage Pools:** Supplies and looming threats (like Mutiny or Storms) are tracked with **Pools** of dice (e.g., 4d6). You roll them periodically; on a roll of 1–4, the pool shrinks. When the pool empties, the bad thing happens. It is a ticking clock you can see, but cannot stop. ## References - [Purchase and Download Page - Itch.io](https://farirpgs.itch.io/boundless-tides "null") - [Official Boundless System SRD - Fari RPGs](https://boundless.farirpgs.com/ "null") - [Publisher Homepage - Fari RPGs](https://farirpgs.com/ "null")