February 27th, 2024. Woodinville, WA: Catalyst Game Labs—publisher of the massively popular BattleTech and Shadowrun games—is profoundly excited to announce Runefire, a cooperative deckbuilding game based on the popular Pathfinder roleplaying game. A crowdfunding campaign will be run this year, with behind-the-scenes details shared through 2024.
Runefire combines the vast lore of the Pathfinder universe with the fast play of this narrative deckbuilding game. Players choose from several ancestries, from dwarf to elf, halfing to human, and assume one of the quintessential classes of cleric, rogue, fighter, or wizard. Equipped with weapons, spells, and magic items, players begin their adventure in the Inner Sea region, journeying through lands such as Cheliax, Numeria, Taldor, and more! Along the way, they can level up their characters, find additional equipment, learn new feats, and much more. All while experiencing a unique story where players’ actions and decisions through each Adventure impact the next!
“We are excited to see the rich world we’ve created in Golarion reach new fans through the incredible engine the team at Catalyst have built,” said Mike Webb, VP of Sales and Marketing for Paizo. “Whether you are a fan of Pathfinder looking for a new way to experience the world, or a fan of other games in Catalyst’s system looking for a new setting, we think this is an outstanding combination.”
Runefire is built on the award-winning, critically acclaimed and bestselling game engine previously published as Crossfire for Shadowrun and as Dragonfire for Dungeons & Dragons. Building upon that legacy, Catalyst Game Labs is carefully crafting this new experience for those who love Golarion and Pathfinder. The game delves deep in the lore as well as the new Remastered Player Core, GM Core, and Monster Core to ensure the best experience. When players open a copy of Runefire at the table, regardless of what they enjoy playing—RPGs, deckbuilder games, or both—they’ll find a complete box of fun.
“BattleTech will always remain my one true love. Yet the time I spent developing Dragonfire was an absolute high-watermark of my career,” said Randall N. Bills, Creative Director of Catalyst Game Labs. “I could spend weeks of fifteen-hour days in hard playtesting, and yet still sit down immediately and play the game for fun. I’ve literally been giggling as I’ve slid back into the joy of development within this game system. And along the way, I’ve absolutely fallen in love with the lore of Golarion (huge shout out to the MythKeeper for his amazing videos that have helped my insane deep dive). Working with Loren, Jay, Talon, Mike, Kristian, and Bryn—alongside Paizo—to weave in an authentic Pathfinder experience to create the best yet iteration of this game is just glorious. I can’t wait for everyone to throw this great game on their tables.”
Look to www.catalystamelabs.com in the future for more details on Runefire!
About Catalyst Game Labs
Catalyst Game Labs is dedicated to producing high-quality games and fiction that mesh sophisticated game mechanics with dynamic universes—all presented in a form that allows beginning players and long-time veterans to easily jump into our games and fiction readers to enjoy our stories even if they don’t know the games.
Catalyst Game Labs is an imprint of InMediaRes Productions, LLC, which specializes in electronic publishing of professional fiction. This allows Catalyst to participate in a synergy that melds printed gaming material and fiction with all the benefits of electronic interfaces and online communities, creating a whole-package experience for any type of player or reader. Find Catalyst Game Labs online at www.catalystgamelabs.com.
About Paizo
Paizo Inc. is publisher of the award-winning Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Adventure Card Game, Pathfinder Tales novels, Starfinder science-fantasy roleplaying game, as well as numerous board games and accessories. In the 15+ years since its founding, Paizo has received more than 100 major awards and has grown to become one of the most influential companies in the hobby games industry.
