Modiphius Entertainment

Modiphius Entertainment is a British tabletop-game publisher founded in 2012 by Chris Birch. Its first major in-house success was Achtung! Cthulhu, a roleplaying setting that combines Lovecraftian horror with World War II. The line appeared through crowdfunding and was initially written for both Call of Cthulhu and Savage Worlds, before Modiphius developed its own 2d20 rules framework. In 2021 the company released Achtung! Cthulhu 2d20, revisiting the setting with that system.

2d20 became the company’s signature engine. Players roll two twenty-sided dice, seek successes against a target number, and may use Momentum, Threat, and related resource mechanics. Modiphius has adapted the framework across licensed games rather than treating it as a single setting. Its catalog includes 2016 Conan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed Of roleplaying game, based on Robert E. Howard’s Hyborian Age, and Star Trek Adventures, launched in 2017. Star Trek Adventures uses the franchise’s different eras, species, and Starfleet assignments as campaign material; its published books have covered, among other subjects, the Klingon Empire, the Romulan Star Empire, and the Gamma Quadrant.

The publisher also produced John Carter of Mars, inspired by Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Barsoom novels, and Dune: Adventures in the Imperium, a roleplaying game based on Frank Herbert’s Dune. Dune uses a version of 2d20 designed around character Drives and Statements as well as skills. Modiphius announced the game in 2020 and released its core rulebook in 2021, prior to release of Denis Villeneuve’s film adaptation.

Video-game properties are another important part of Modiphius’s work. Fallout: Wasteland Warfare is a tabletop miniatures game using characters, creatures, power armor, and factions from Bethesda’s Fallout series. Modiphius later published Fallout: Factions, a skirmish miniatures game set in the Commonwealth. The company has also made tabletop games based on Dishonored, The Elder Scrolls, Homeworld, and The Lord of the Rings: Adventures in Middle-earth.

Alongside licensed material, Modiphius publishes original settings. Ironsworn creator Shawn Tomkin’s Starforged was released by Modiphius as a standalone science-fiction roleplaying game. The publisher’s own Dreams and Machines presents a far-future world, Evera Prime, and uses a 2d20-based ruleset. Modiphius has additionally released board games and miniatures products, including narrative survival board game Five Parsecs from Home designed by Ivan Sorensen. Its output therefore ranges from core roleplaying books to supplements, dice, maps, figures, and boxed games, with crowdfunding frequently used to finance and expand lines. Its publishing program includes digital editions, organized-play support, and books tailored to particular licensed worlds and audiences.