project-image

The World Below

Created by The World Below RPG by Onyx Path

A tabletop roleplaying game of subterranean fantasy, horror, and exploration.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

August 2025 Monthly Update - the Earthbane Cycle continues...
10 months ago – Tue, Aug 26, 2025 at 06:30:53 AM

Hello Deep Divers,

While the Onyx Path team works with a chaotic world to sort out production and print schedules, the fantasy world introduced in The World Below - the Earthbane Cycle - grows. Look for information on the next entry for this game line at the bottom of this update!

Rewards Still Pending



The Onyx Path team is still waiting for the tariff world to settle down so they can lock in print pricing and manufacturing schedules. Hopefully that happens soon.

Rewards Distributed to Backers

  • Trinity Continuum Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Scion Second Edition Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • They Came From Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Redbubble Backer T-Shirt Link (April 4 '24 Update)
  • The World Below Backer PDF (Oct 31 '24 Update)
  • World Below VTT Asset Pack (March 19 '25 Update)
  • World Below Streaming Overlay Set(March 19 '25 Update)

Pledge Manager

If you need to review your information or pledge status, you can return to your survey by clicking the link in your survey email or requesting your survey link under "Lost your survey?" on our BackerKit project page at https://the-world-below.backerkit.com/



Onyx Path Project Tracking

You can read Onyx Path's most recent monthly summary, covering all projects and their status up to that point here: <July 2025 Project Status Summary>

You can find the weekly Monday Meeting blog updates <here>, which note any projects with status changes since the previous Month End summary. The project statuses listed are current as of last Monday, so do check it out each Monday night to see if anything may have progressed!

I will continue to post regular updates every month until the final reward has gone out.

Remember: You can use the links at the bottom of this e-mail to unsubscribe from updates or Manage your notification settings. These status updates are available on the campaign page for you to review at any time.

Onyx Path Discussion Channels

You may be able to get further insight and possibly some in-depth conversation at these Onyx Path discussion zones:


To Contact James

If you've got a question about your pledge or BackerKit page or any part of the process, you can contact me with any of these methods
  •  Via E-Mail: Onyx.Kickstarter [at] gmail.com
  •  Via BackerKit: Click "Need Help?" from your page, and then fill in the Contact Us form. BackerKit will pass your message along to me.

The Next Chapter in the Earthbane Cycle - Launching Soon!


Sign up here to be notified when we go live!

In Monster Kingdoms, you play a creature of darkness. You may be vampiric magus, or feyborn harlequin. You might be a warrior gauntlet, an orc cultist, a druidic elf, or a flame-spitting dragonkin. You can play a wildly creative goblinoid, a chaotic dwarf, a fierce ice elementor, or a shame-filled fiend.  Your characters can be anything from hulking dreadnauts to disturbing mentalists, and many Mantles in between. 

Name your weapon and make it your sceptre.

Slay a beast and seize its crown.

Build your infamy either as a monster or as a servant of the light. Perform deeds worthy of repute: vanquishing a beast greater than yourself, toppling a lord from his tower and seizing control of his lands and people, or freeing slaves to weaken the Malignant Mind. A character’s infamy is a means of measuring their success in the Monster Kingdoms, whether virtuous or vicious. The only unworthy deeds are the ones no one hears about.

In the chaos of the Monster Kingdoms, now is your time to make a mark and shape the world to your liking.

Monster Kingdoms is a complete tabletop roleplaying game of dark fantasy, where evil is a natural state, adventure boasts horror and violence, and politics are cutthroat. It includes:

  • A massive number of playable monstrous characters.
  • A dangerous setting encompassing 13 unique, competing kingdoms.
  • The entire dynamic Storypath Ultra system.

July 2025 Monthly Update
11 months ago – Thu, Jul 31, 2025 at 06:27:06 AM

Hello Deep Delvers,

It's the final day of July, so I'm sneaking in our monthly update before I flip the calendar. It's also the first day of the GenCon game convention, and a lot of people in the game industry have been focused on that for the past few weeks, so I don't have much news to share this month. Nevertheless, let's dive right in!

Rewards Still Pending


The Onyx Path team is still waiting for the tariff world to settle down so they can lock in print pricing and manufacturing schedules. Hopefully that happens soon.

Rewards Distributed to Backers

  • Trinity Continuum Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Scion Second Edition Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • They Came From Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Redbubble Backer T-Shirt Link (April 4 '24 Update)
  • The World Below Backer PDF (Oct 31 '24 Update)
  • World Below VTT Asset Pack (March 19 '25 Update)
  • World Below Streaming Overlay Set(March 19 '25 Update)

Pledge Manager

If you need to review your information or pledge status, you can return to your survey by clicking the link in your survey email or requesting your survey link under "Lost your survey?" on our BackerKit project page at https://the-world-below.backerkit.com/



Onyx Path Project Tracking

Later today, Onyx Path will be posting their monthly summary, covering all projects and their status up to today. The post isn't live yet, but should be active later today: <July 2025 Project Status Summary>

You can find the weekly Monday Meeting blog updates <here>, which note any projects with status changes since the previous Month End summary. The project statuses listed are current as of last Monday, so do check it out each Monday night to see if anything may have progressed!

I will continue to post regular updates every month until the final reward has gone out.

Remember: You can use the links at the bottom of this e-mail to unsubscribe from updates or Manage your notification settings. These status updates are available on the campaign page for you to review at any time.

Onyx Path Discussion Channels

You may be able to get further insight and possibly some in-depth conversation at these Onyx Path discussion zones:


To Contact James

If you've got a question about your pledge or BackerKit page or any part of the process, you can contact me with any of these methods
  •  Via E-Mail: Onyx.Kickstarter [at] gmail.com
  •  Via BackerKit: Click "Need Help?" from your page, and then fill in the Contact Us form. BackerKit will pass your message along to me.

June 2025 Monthly Update
about 1 year ago – Thu, Jun 19, 2025 at 06:09:03 AM

Hello Deep Divers,

The 2025 edition of the Onyx Path Virtual Gaming Convention was a fun time! If you missed it, they're starting to post videos of their panels and Actual Plays on Youtube, and you can now watch the <Onyx Path Con 2025 Earthbane Cycle Panel> where Matthew Dawkins, Kim Godwin, Chris Jones, and Danielle Lauzon discuss the various Earthbane Cycle games!


A couple projects announced as in the works for The World below, in addition to our Crowdfunding campaign rewards. An upcoming book for players The World Below Delver’s Guide, and a new upcoming book for Storyguides, Secrets of Kalm and Kaos: The World Below Storyguide’s Handbook. Great to see the line expanding and hearing more about future plans!

But let's talk about our rewards and jump into our reguar monthly update!

Rewards Still Pending


With the PDF finalized, the team has been working on setting up the print run for the hardcover. That hasn't been an easy task over the past year, and I don't have a revised timeline of when to expect the final print editions - Rich has talked about this on his Monday Meeting Notes blog and again on the What's Up With Onyx Path? panel at this year's virtual convention (check for that Youtube video coming soon!), but it seems it's been very hard to lock down any sort of pricing with tariffs, counter-tariffs, and other issues preventing any sort of consistency that would allow a 120-day print quote. For now, we've got the PDF and print-on-demand versions, and I'll keep you updated as to any changes in the situation revealed by Onyx Path in our updates.

While that gets sorted, work continues on our other Stretch Goal rewards. The Underworld Adventures book is slightly ahead, with artists currently working on sketches to submit to the Art Director before completing the interior illustrations for that book. The Monstrous Ecology is just behind, with artists lining up schedules and contracts being written. As always, I'll continue to monitor Onyx Path's monthly summaries and note any changes in our campaign updates.


Rewards Distributed to Backers

  • Trinity Continuum Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Scion Second Edition Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • They Came From Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Redbubble Backer T-Shirt Link (April 4 '24 Update)
  • The World Below Backer PDF (Oct 31 '24 Update)
  • World Below VTT Asset Pack (March 19 '25 Update)
  • World Below Streaming Overlay Set(March 19 '25 Update)



If you need to review your information or pledge status, you can return to your survey by clicking the link in your survey email or requesting your survey link under "Lost your survey?" on our BackerKit project page at https://the-world-below.backerkit.com/



Onyx Path Project Tracking

You can read Onyx Path's most recent monthly summary, covering all projects and their status up to that point here: <May 2025 Project Status Summary>

You can find the weekly Monday Meeting blog updates <here>, which note any projects with status changes since the previous Month End summary. The project statuses listed are current as of last Monday, so do check it out each Monday night to see if anything may have progressed!

I will continue to post regular updates every month until the final reward has gone out.

Remember: You can use the links at the bottom of this e-mail to unsubscribe from updates or Manage your notification settings. These status updates are available on the campaign page for you to review at any time.

Onyx Path Discussion Channels

You may be able to get further insight and possibly some in-depth conversation at these Onyx Path discussion zones:


To Contact James

If you've got a question about your pledge or BackerKit page or any part of the process, you can contact me with any of these methods
  •  Via E-Mail: Onyx.Kickstarter [at] gmail.com
  •  Via BackerKit: Click "Need Help?" from your page, and then fill in the Contact Us form. BackerKit will pass your message along to me.

Launching Today


Pugmire Unleashed: A Player’s Guide is a supplement for the Realms of Pugmire tabletop RPG. Pugmire Unleashed is primarily a book for players who are interested in new options for their games. Inside you’ll find not only more options for dog player characters, more advice on how to play dogs, and more information about dog communities beyond the kingdom of Pugmire. You’ll also find more species to play: badgers, birds, lagomorphs, and reptiles. 

If you have a yen to be a nautical adventurer, there are rules for sailing and ships presented within, as well as a more detailed writeup of the main coastal city, Waterdog Port. For dogs looking to use strange and exotic weaponry, there are rules for gunpowder weapons, as well as the associated syndrome of Gunpower Panic that goes with using them. Combined with loads of new spells and backgrounds, there’s something for every player in these pages.

We haven’t forgotten the hard-working Guide in all this. Within in this book, we present not only some new enemies for player characters to thwart or befriend, but also three adventures that present a loose chronicle using much of the material presented in this book (and Realms of Pugmire). Players should avoid reading the back of the book, in case of spoilers, but most of the book is here for you to enjoy.

May 2025 Monthly Update
about 1 year ago – Tue, May 27, 2025 at 08:25:26 AM

Hello Deep Delvers,

Back again for my monthly backer update. No big news from me this month, just incremental progress behind the scenes. 

If you want more information right from the source, the best place to hear about the anticipated World Below and Earthbane Cycle projects is in Onyx Path's annual virtual convention!


Onyx Path Virtual Gaming Convention 2025 is just around the corner! As they enter the final weeks of preparation, the schedule is settling in. Some panels and actual plays needed minor tweaks, which is normal for this stage of the game. People’s availability shifts and schedule issues bubble up, but so far they’ve been able to roll with the punches pretty easily and are on track for a smooth, fun, and informative show!



They’re also getting games for attendees to play ramped up via Startplaying.games. There are already a few games set up, and your encouraged to consider setting one up yourself, if you like running games! It’s a great opportunity to try out games you might not otherwise get the chance to, meet new players, and make a few bucks. Onyx Path's partners at Envoy who run convention games for them will also be running games via Startplaying.games and those entries will be showing up very soon at https://startplaying.games/event/onyx-path-2025!

As noted, all panels will be streaming on Onyx Path's Twitch channel running Friday June 6 - Sunday June 8, and Actual Plays will be streaming at Plastic Age Plays channel. I'd suggest checking out

  • Earthbane Cycle Panel on Saturday June 7 at 11:30 AM EDT
  • What's Up with Onyx Path on Sunday June 8 at 12:30 PM EDT
  • Storypath Ultra Panel on Sunday June 8 at 12:00 PM EDT

Rewards Still Pending



Rewards Distributed to Backers

  • Trinity Continuum Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Scion Second Edition Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • They Came From Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Redbubble Backer T-Shirt Link (April 4 '24 Update)
  • The World Below Backer PDF (Oct 31 '24 Update)
  • World Below VTT Asset Pack (March 19 '25 Update)
  • World Below Streaming Overlay Set(March 19 '25 Update)


If you need to review your information or pledge status, you can return to your survey by clicking the link in your survey email or requesting your survey link under "Lost your survey?" on our BackerKit project page at https://the-world-below.backerkit.com/



Onyx Path Project Tracking

You can read Onyx Path's most recent monthly summary, covering all projects and their status up to that point here: <April 2025 Project Status Summary>

You can find the weekly Monday Meeting blog updates <here>, which note any projects with status changes since the previous Month End summary. The project statuses listed are current as of last Monday, so do check it out each Monday night to see if anything may have progressed!

I will continue to post regular updates every month until the final reward has gone out.

Remember: You can use the links at the bottom of this e-mail to unsubscribe from updates or Manage your notification settings. These status updates are available on the campaign page for you to review at any time.

Onyx Path Discussion Channels

You may be able to get further insight and possibly some in-depth conversation at these Onyx Path discussion zones:


To Contact James

If you've got a question about your pledge or BackerKit page or any part of the process, you can contact me with any of these methods
  •  Via E-Mail: Onyx.Kickstarter [at] gmail.com
  •  Via BackerKit: Click "Need Help?" from your page, and then fill in the Contact Us form. BackerKit will pass your message along to me.

April 2025 Monthly Update
about 1 year ago – Thu, Apr 24, 2025 at 08:57:15 AM

Hello Deep Delvers,

It's time for our regular monthly update. Nothing as exciting as last month, when two of our Stretch Goal rewards were distributed. This month is one of those "incremental progress in the background" months that looks pretty similar to where we last left off, so let's dig in.

Rewards Still Pending


No major changes since last month. The Onyx Path team is still working to lock down print details in this turbulent world. I'll share more as new information comes in.


Rewards Distributed to Backers

  • Trinity Continuum Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Scion Second Edition Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • They Came From Digital Starter Bundle (January 25 '24 Update)
  • Redbubble Backer T-Shirt Link (April 4 '24 Update)
  • The World Below Backer PDF (Oct 31 '24 Update)
  • World Below VTT Asset Pack (March 19 '25 Update)
  • World Below Streaming Overlay Set(March 19 '25 Update)


If you need to review your information or pledge status, you can return to your survey by clicking the link in your survey email or requesting your survey link under "Lost your survey?" on our BackerKit project page at https://the-world-below.backerkit.com/



Onyx Path Project Tracking

You can read Onyx Path's most recent monthly summary, covering all projects and their status up to that point here: <March 2025 Project Status Summary>

You can find the weekly Monday Meeting blog updates <here>, which note any projects with status changes since the previous Month End summary. The project statuses listed are current as of last Monday, so do check it out each Monday night to see if anything may have progressed!

I will continue to post regular updates every month until the final reward has gone out.

Remember: You can use the links at the bottom of this e-mail to unsubscribe from updates or Manage your notification settings. These status updates are available on the campaign page for you to review at any time.

Onyx Path Discussion Channels

You may be able to get further insight and possibly some in-depth conversation at these Onyx Path discussion zones:


To Contact James

If you've got a question about your pledge or BackerKit page or any part of the process, you can contact me with any of these methods
  •  Via E-Mail: Onyx.Kickstarter [at] gmail.com
  •  Via BackerKit: Click "Need Help?" from your page, and then fill in the Contact Us form. BackerKit will pass your message along to me.

FINAL DAY FOR REAL


FINAL DAY TO JOIN IN

Chosen by the gods, their power tempered only by human hearts, the Exalted are all that stand between Creation and the forces that would ruin the world. Set in a rich and intriguing setting that draws from real-world histories and fantasy archetypes, Exalted: Essence features streamlined rules for a new way of playing a classic game, incorporating story-focused action and a presentation designed to appeal to new players and longtime fans alike.

The Exalted: Essence Player’s Guide is a book chock full of player-facing content. Within, we’ll walk you through how to think about playing your character, what kind of person they might shape up to be, and how to consider their strengths and weaknesses as well as Intimacies and Virtues. Beyond advice for roleplaying, each chapter also contains dozens of new Charms for characters to take, shaping the outcome of your campaigns. 

Unlike other Exalted books, this does not contain any new setting material. It’s all about your character and your campaigns. Most books also speak directly to the Storyteller, assuming they’re the person who does most of the reading. Not so here! If you’re a player in a game of Exalted, this book is for you. You don’t have to read the whole thing cover to cover, but the section that applies to your character has so much there for you. 

Learn what it means to be Exalted.