Sewers & Slimebeasts

Sewers & Slimebeasts is written by Abe Crow and published in NorthCoast Roleplaying (Issue 1 - 1987). A two-page comic introduces the game, which is then presented in six pages of rules including the maze-like playing board and a tracking sheet. The game is played by two opponents, one controlling the "human" team and one controlling the "slimebeast" team. A third player acts as a "referee" to enforce the rules, make decisions in uncertain cases, and track locations and events that are unknown to one team. Additionally, the "referee" controls a team of "bums" - hapless humans that should be rescued by the human team or used as egg incubators by the slimebeast team (bums are, effectively, an in-game resource). Prior to play, each player receives 100 points to use to build their team. Humans and slimebeasts have variable powers with varying costs; every human and every slimebeast can some varying powers, depending on player desires. During play, each player maintains their own map that shows locations and events known to them (generally, all their own team and those of the opposing team they have discovered). The play pieces are straight pins with colored tape to indicate status/condition/etc. The referee simultaneously maintains a "master" map that is considered authoritative in the event of a discrepancy with a player map. Play proceeds in turns following an established sequence. In each turn, humans move first and slimebeasts move second; combat then occurs wherever humans and slimebeasts have encountered each other. Combat uses a fairly complex series of processes that obviously are heavily derived from Dungeons & Dragons mechanics. The game ends when the humans eliminate the slimebeasts or the slimebeasts eliminate the humans. —user summary