Let’s Build Something Together - Seeking Your Thoughts
Longtime ToE enthusiast here, and last night while talking to my son I realized that perhaps I should revisit a passion project I started working on years ago. I wanted to take share my idea with the community for some feedback.
I loved the simplicity and heart brought forth in the ToE sourcebooks, but I feel like it burned out too quickly, which can happen with licensed properties.
Picture a TTRPG where you get to play as all kinds of hoofed animals, not just ponies. Think of a world where each species brings its own unique culture, magic, and challenges rooted in their biology and way of life. Imagine migratory herds grappling with shifting ecosystems, stargazing antelope philosophers pondering the mysteries of the world, or surly mountain goats defending ancient secrets in the peaks.
The vibe is to keep the rules simple and streamlined to ensure children and adults alike are able to enjoy the game while leaving plenty of space for players and GMs to weave their own stories, dream up new species, and build adventures that can grow forever.
Tails of Equestria has always been on my thoughts. It proved just how much magic you can pack into a simple, heartfelt system. But I always wished it had more tools to empower fans to build and share their own creations freely, but Hasbro owns the brand and they have a history of discouraging fan works.
The dream for this project is a game with longer legs (or hooves? Haha)—a system that thrives on community creativity.
* The core rules and lore are polished and available as paid content (to help fund art, writing, and design). * Fans can legally create, publish, and even sell their your own modules, species, campaigns, and more without worrying about copyright takedowns. No red tape.
This would be a game designed to grow with the community rather than locking it into someone else’s vision.
What Would Make This Work? Right now, I’m not here to sell you anything. I just want to bounce ideas around and see what sparks! Some concepts I’m exploring to make this truly community-friendly include…
* A “Creator’s Charter” that ensures fans always have royalty-free rights to create and sell content, so long as it doesn’t copy the core book. * A third-party license similar to MÖRK BORG or Pathfinder but with the goal to be flexibility and open for creators.
Questions for You 1. Does this sound like something you’d want to play or create for? 2. What’s something you loved about ToE that you’d want to see carried over or made even better in a new system? 3. What are the kinds of pitfalls I should avoid to keep this fun, inclusive, and collaborative for everyone?
No pressure, no expectations—I’m honestly just testing the waters and seeing if this resonates with ToE fans. I know a huge part of ToE was the MLP lore and world… perhaps this is a hard sell since so much of the love resides in the brand and not necessarily the RPG systems. If there’s enough interest, I’d be thrilled to share early drafts and refine this with your input.
Thanks for being such an awesome community! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!
TL;DR: I’m contemplating the idea for a new TTRPG inspired by ToE, where players create stories as diverse hoofed animals in a vibrant, community-driven world. The goal is a simple, open system that empowers fans to build, share, and even sell their own content freely.