Axolotl with a Gun: Coin-op Tabletop
We’re taking TTRPGs to the arcade with this coin-op tabletop roleplaying game about heavily armed salamanders fighting evil robots with weaponized hobbies and big ‘ol guns.
The horrors persist, and so must you, an adorable amphibian with metal regenerating powers, cool hobbies, and a REALLY big gun.
Legions of NEFARIOUS ROBOTS are bent on destroying your beautiful lake to harvest its natural resources for fuel and coolant. Thanks to your keen hunting skills, top-notch hobby supplies, and absolutely fuck-off gun, you and your friends are well-positioned to defeat them. Maybe even in time for craft night with your buds!
- Excerpt from Axolotl with a Gun
What is Axolotl with a Gun?
Axolotl with a Gun is a coin-operated, arcade style tabletop roleplaying game about a village of axolotls with weaponized hobbies and big 'ol guns fighting legions of evil robots determined to destroy their precious habitat. Our neotenic protagonists embark on an epic, water-cooled adventure to track the mecha-monsters back to their home base, fight their boss, and send them packing. It runs on a lightweight D6 dice pool system inspired by the Havoc Engine and a stash of coins to keep your character regenerated, reloaded, and resupplied.
Bringing the arcade to tabletop roleplaying games, Axolotl with a Gun is inspired by retro video games and old side scrolling shoot-em-up arcade cabinets. Each scene plays out like a level from one of these games, complete with an objective bar that represents the particular flavor of whimsical salamander vs. robot carnage you'll be engaging in. A lightweight, d6 dice pool system keeps scenes fast-paced and fills the objective as you leverage your guns, hobbies, and axolotl charms against the horrors.
Each gun has its own dice minigame, from building up combos with a flashy gunsword, to launching barrages of missiles for big crits with a rocket launcher, or blasting dozens of dice and bullets downrange by holding the trigger of a minigun. Your hobbies help you on your journey to defeat the mecha-monsters too! From plant parenting, to dancing, synchronized swimming, and conjuring adorable horrors from the murky depths of your lake, every axolotl builds their dice pool and spends it in a unique way.
Did you say "Coin-Operated?"
Because axolotls are neotenic salamanders, they can't stay moisturized while they're on land fighting the evil robots attacking their home. Fighting, taking damage from the horrors, and practicing their hobbies tires out even the toughest axolotl. Thankfully, you'll have a stash of coins you can hand to the GM whenever your hydration or hobby supplies are running low!
Just like inserting a coin to continue at an arcade cabinet, you can spend coins from your stash and hand them to your game master to dunk your axolotl in the nearest source of water. You'll emerge rehydrated, refreshed, and ready to keep fighting (maybe with a few I-frames, to boot). You can also spend coins to help out other axolotls in trouble and resupply when craft bag is getting light. Gotta keep that yarn stash topped up!
Power Up Acquired!
At its heart, Axolotl with a Gun is about endangered wildlife fighting back against tech industry mega-corporations whose mindless pursuit of profit has detrimental impacts on our environment. Originally released in 2024 in response to the energy and water demands of cryptocurrencies and the looming AI boom, this 2nd edition printing updates and upgrades the game's core rules, from improving its GM tools for easy session creation, to adding additional character creation options, and leaning further into the games arcade and anti-ai inspirations. Alongside our upgrades to Axolotl with a Gun, we're also bringing the heat with a companion zine full of brand-new tools for your salamanders to slay out with!
Axolotl with a Gun: Armed and Dangerous includes a bunch of awesome, additional character creation options, from new guns and advances to arm yourself with, 3 new tables of adorable hobbies to occupy yourself with, and new ultimate moves to aid your allies and defeat the horrors. We've also included new rules for Duet and GMless play, and two new adventures: One adventure for your regular Sunday night TTRPG group and a 10+ person PARTY ADVENTURE for multiple tables at the same time.
Built for one-shot play, easy to prep, and easy to learn, sessions of Axolotl with a Gun run about 2-3 hours each. This 2nd edition includes a few achievements for you to chase, so there's plenty of opportunity to revisit your heavily armed amphibians if you don't catch them all on your first campaign against the horrors.
Axolotl with a Gun is live now on Kickstarter! Click the button below to learn more and grab a copy while the campaign is funding during Zine Month.
Axolotl with a Gun is by Bright Bard Games (Run by Bri de Danann and Jon Boyle).
