The Door Locks Behind You

The Door Locks Behind You is a tabletop role-playing game for 2-5 players including one game master. The game strives to recreate the gameplay of The Legend of Zelda series in an old-school TTRPG context by using an item-focused system that puts player ingenuity and resource management at the forefront. 

What's in the game?

• Fast-paced combat focused on item usage
• Printable character sheets and item cards for easy arts-n-crafts inventory management
• Procedures for building puzzle box dungeons with a focus on exploration and navigation
• Player advice for smooth gameplay
• Game master advice for running sessions, one-shots, and campaigns
• Procedures for building and navigating the overworld connecting all the dungeons
• Procedures for turning the whole campaign world into a mega-dungeon, reminiscent of the Metroidvania genre
• Sample campaign world, town, dungeon, monsters, and key items
• Advice for converting the above systems to the old-school ruleset of your choice

What's it like to play?

Player characters carry a limited number of items, with a limited number of usages before they break. After using an item, a player rolls a 4 in 6 chance to mark off a usage. When a monster attacks, players can use what's in their hands to block and negate all damage, but possibly lose that item. When a player character falls in battle, they get right back up, but lose the ability to carry several items.

Players succeed when they can defeat the boss monster and collect the relic of power before the dungeon and its monsters break all of their items or knock all of them out.

The Door Locks Behind You draws mechanical and creative inspiration from many sources including:

•  Basic/Expert Dungeons & Dragons by Moldvay/Cook
•  Electric Bastionland by Chris McDowall
•  Mausritter by Isaac Williams
•  Maze Rats by Ben Milton
•  Metroid by Satoru Okada, Gunpei Yokoi, et al.
•  The Legend of Zelda series by Shigeru Miyamoto, Eiji Aonuma, et al.

Game Design, Writing: deldon
Editing: Will Jobst
Art Direction, Art, Item Cards: Ben Fox
Layout, Character Sheet, Maps, Art: Cenza Della Donna
Printed by Risolve Studio

A5 saddle-stitched risograph printed zine, 46 pages.