Magic and Mayhem

Magic and Mayhem: A Family Adventure Born at the Kitchen Table

Magic and Mayhem didn't start in a studio; it started at my kitchen table. I wanted a way for my kids, despite their different ages, to actually play together without the older ones getting bored or the younger ones getting overwhelmed. We spent rainy afternoons hand-drawing our very first prototype cards, dreaming up monsters and traps that would make us laugh as much as they made us think. What began as a family project became a mission to create the most accessible, high-energy dungeon crawler ever made—one that prioritizes cooperation and creative problem-solving.

The Mission: Together, or Not at All

In Magic and Mayhem, the dungeon is too dangerous to tackle alone. The game is designed to encourage players to work together, leveraging their varied abilities to defeat difficult foes and solve challenges that couldn't be beaten by a single hero.

Success depends on choosing a well-rounded set of adventurers. Your party will need to balance three distinct types of power:

Magic: To cast powerful spells or see through the veil of invisibility.

Brute Strength: To wield heavy weapons and carry the gold you’ve looted.

Agility & Skills: To navigate traps, unlock secret doors, and move swiftly through the shadows.

Pure Fun, Zero Homework

We’ve stripped away the "homework" that makes most TTRPGs feel like a chore.

No "Dungeon Master" Required: The game runs itself, so everyone gets to be in the action.

No Confusing Stats or Writing: We use physical counters and life tokens to track HP and stats. You never have to pick up a pencil or erase a hole in a character sheet.

One Die to Rule Them All: You won’t find a bag of complex dice here; the entire game is powered by a single 6-sided die.

No Lookup Tables: We’ve removed the need for advanced reading or looking things up. Complexity comes from simple, logical combinations of your hero's abilities.

The "Mayhem" in Action

 Your journey will be interrupted by encounters that demand more than just a die roll:

Timed Challenges: Face off against monsters that require you to solve a riddle or nail a tongue twister five times fast before the hourglass runs out.

Physical Team Tasks: Some encounters force your team to stand up and cooperate—from navigating a "blind" minefield to a "Floor is Lava" dash across the room.

[VIDEO: Playtesting footage of a family attempting a "Sock Carry" challenge, laughing as they try to move across the room together without using their hands.]

Expand the Journey: Narrative Modules

The Basic Starter Set includes typical game mechanics for an exciting dungeon crawling adventure: battle monsters and find treasure! Power up and defeat the boss! However some players might want to delve deeper into the narrative behind the dungeon. What's the back story? Why are these monsters like this? Is the boss really the "bad guy" or is there something deeper at play? And some players might want more of an intellectual challenge: solving a mystery or figuring out the winning strategy. 

Narrative Modules expand the Magic and Mayhem game to include more "Role Playing", puzzle solving and immersive story that players can really dive into. The Basic Starter Set is designed to serve as a platform for playing endless expansion modules, available for purchase from the Magic and Mayhem online store. Each module contains extra dungeon cards that will serve as the setting for the new encounters and puzzles contained in the adventure. It also includes new monsters, NPCs and bosses to battle and a narrative booklet that sets the stage and guides you through each challenge. But don't skip to the end! As the story unfolds, you will find out whether you solved the mystery... with dire results if you fail!

Build your owm expansion modules

The Magic and Mayhem website also includes templates and instructions for creating your own expansion sets - in the spirit of the original game we created around the kitchen table. The original Magic and Mayhem game (with hand drawn illustrations) is posted on github as an open source repository. It includes an extension guide to help users creae their own content to go with the Magic and Mayhem system. 

Our first Module: Tomb of the Sun Eater

You are a band of mercenary adventurers hired to investigate strange sounds and lights coming from an abandoned quarry on the outskirts of a lage city. As you explore the dungeon, you find that the cause of these disturbances is more than just a simple haunting or goblin infestation. It's a threat that could very well bring the end of the world! 

Choose Your Reward Tier

Tier 1: The Starter Set

The complete, self-contained Magic and Mayhem experience.

36 Dungeon Cards: Build a unique, grid-based map every time you play.

Monster & Treasure Decks: Includes everything from health potions to "Big’ol Crossbows".

Premium Components: Plastic figurines, one 6-sided die, the hourglass sand timer, and a full set of life, time, and letter tokens.

[IMAGE: A "What's in the Box" breakdown showing all Tier 1 components laid out neatly.]

Tier 2: The Tomb of the Sun Eater

Everything in the Starter Set, plus the Narrative Module Expansion.

Narrative Modules

Quest & Module Cards: Add back-story and specific narrative challenges to your game for a deeper role-play dynamic.

Join the Party

Magic and Mayhem is rapid, hilarious, and provides instant gratification. Whether you have 30 minutes for a quick crawl or two hours for a deep dive, this game is ready for your table. Back us today and help bring this family-born adventure to life!