
Heart RPG · Heart: The City Beneath
Heart: The City Beneath
Heart: The City Beneath is a fantasy horror RPG centred on discovery, risk, and change. You venture below Spire into shifting tunnels, lost gods, and impossible spaces. The stories tend to be tragic yet human, filled with hard bargains and moments of wonder. It is loved for its vivid character interactions, peculiar factions, and the way consequences influence every decision. Ideal for adults who appreciate dark fantasy and surreal imagery.
During a session, it feels like a tense expedition. You chart a course through the unknown, negotiate with desperate guides, confront ravenous places, and determine how far to push your limits. The Game Master sets the scenes, communicates risks, and allows your choices to reshape the world. Suitable for 2 to 5 players, whether online or in person. Beginners are welcome, while veterans will discover depth. Ready to descend? Browse available professional Game Masters here.
How to play Heart: The City Beneath
You roll a pool of d10s based on your character's strengths and the context of their actions, then take the highest die to determine the outcome. Pressure adds Stress to tracks such as Blood, Mind, or Supplies. As stress accumulates, Fallout can occur, affecting you or the situation. A turn is straightforward: state your intention, understand the risk, roll the dice, manage the result, and decide your next action. Play alternates between dialogue, exploration, and crisis.
Players create bold, flawed characters motivated by a calling and a readiness to make difficult decisions. A professional Game Master introduces the City’s delves, factions, treasures, and horrors, establishes clear stakes, and employs safety tools. You will utilise character sheets, dice, quick maps, and shared notes. Online games operate smoothly via video with a shared map or VTT. See common options for online play.
In a one-shot, you engage in a focused delve with a clear objective and tight pacing, aiming for memorable moments and a definitive conclusion. Anticipate tough negotiations and a taste of Fallout before wrapping up. In a campaign, your crew forges contacts and resources, undertakes riskier delves, and endures lasting scars and rewards. Obsessions deepen, relationships evolve, and the City Beneath remembers your actions. Sessions typically last 3 to 4 hours.




Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to know about Heart or Spire to play?
No. You can arrive with no prior knowledge. A professional Game Master will explain the rules in minutes and guide you through character creation. The system uses pools of d10s and provides clear outcomes, making it easy to grasp. You will learn about Stress and Fallout as you come across them. Familiarity with Spire can enhance the experience, but it is not necessary. You can also choose someone who enjoys teaching beginners when you browse available Game Masters.
How does Heart differ from D&D?
Heart centres on risk, cost, and discovery rather than tactical combat. There is typically no grid. Position and narrative are more important than precise distances. You create dice pools based on your actions and locations, then manage Stress to tracks such as Blood, Mind, and Supplies. Fallout alters scenes and characters, not just hit points. Equipment is lightweight and tagged, magic is potent but expensive, and factions influence your decisions. Delves resemble perilous expeditions where objectives and consequences guide play.
What tone and content should I expect? Is it particularly frightening?
Expect surreal horror, obsession, and strange wonder. Scenes may include body horror, cults, scarcity, and psychological strain. This is intended for adults, not children. Before play, our Game Masters establish lines and veils and utilise safety tools such as Script Change or the X-card. You determine the intensity you desire. It can be grim and desperate, or balanced with moments of hope and beauty. The aim is to create tense, meaningful play where you feel safe as an individual, even when your character is in peril.
What group size is most effective and how long does a session last?
Heart is designed for 2 to 5 players. Fewer players mean more focus on individual characters and a more intense, perilous journey. More players introduce dialogue, strategies, and more complicated consequences. Sessions usually last between 3 to 4 hours. A one-shot is ideal for a single adventure with a clear goal and a definite conclusion. In a continuous campaign, you develop connections and resources, undertake bolder explorations, and deal with enduring outcomes. Your Game Master will adjust the pacing to suit your group's preferences.
What types of characters can I play in Heart?
You choose a class with a unique flavour, such as Deep Apiarist, Vermissian Knight, Junk Mage, Cleaver, Heretic, or Hound. Your Calling determines what motivates you, whether it be Adventure, Enlightenment, Profit, or Protection. Abilities, equipment tags, and Beats influence your actions and development. Character creation typically takes around 20 to 30 minutes with guidance, or you can opt for pregenerated sheets for a quicker start. Expect bold, flawed individuals who are prepared to sacrifice safety for their desires.
How perilous is Fallout? What occurs when I experience Stress?
Stress accumulates on various fronts as you take risks. When Fallout occurs, the Game Master enforces an appropriate consequence. Minor Fallout may damage equipment, change the scene, or leave a temporary scar. Major Fallout can alter your journey, affect relationships or resources, or even remove your character from play. While death is a possibility, the game frequently transforms you before it leads to your demise. Risks are clearly indicated, allowing you to decide when to continue, regroup, or negotiate for a safer path.
Does Heart function effectively online, and which tools do you utilise?
Yes. Heart runs smoothly over video with simple maps, shared dice rollers, and handouts. Many of our Game Masters use Roll20, Foundry, or Owlbear Rodeo, or keep it lightweight with theatre of the mind and a shared document. The system’s dice pools and narrative positioning are well-suited for online play. If you have a preferred setup, please mention it when booking. For common platform options and what they offer, see online play platforms.
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