Animon Story is an RPG Love Letter to Pokemon, Digimon and Beyond

Animon Story is a tabletop roleplaying game love letter to fans of Pokemon, Digimon, Temtem, Monster Rancher and dozens of other monster raising games. This game lets players create a Kid Character and a partner monster and it’s everything I wanted in a Mon RPG! In fact I’d argue Animon Story is the best tabletop RPG you’ve never heard of.

Monster taming on the tabletop

We love tabletop RPGs here at Nerdarchy and while we always have a special place in our hearts for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons, sometimes we like to branch off into other games. Nerdarchists Dave and Ted talked on YouTube about Dave’s recent foray into Pathfinder 2. As I said, Nerdarchist Dave isn’t the only one cheating on 5E D&D with a new system.

My recent RPG obsession is a system call Animon Story by Zak Barouh. Animon Story is only available in PDF through itch.io, which you can find a link to through from the Animon Story website. Don’t let this game’s obscurity fool you though! This RPG is extremely well crafted. Using pools of d6s, Animon Story offers an amazing introduction to RPGs and monster taming stories for kids and adults alike without a confusing plethora of funny shaped dice to keep track of.

The evolution of the Mon genre

Growing up in the ’90s I was obsessed with the monster taming genre. My poor parents were endlessly perplexed by how I could watch Monster Rancher, then Pokemon, then switch the station to watch some Digimon. They just didn’t understand how these three shows were distinct entities within a broader monster taming genre.

At a glance, many monster taming stories look very similar. They often follow kids but there’s no reason you couldn’t make an adult character in this RPG. Kids are a staple of Animon Story because monster taming stories are often about coming of age and growing, or evolving, if you will.

Digimon was especially prominent for its theme correlation in this department. Whether using crests embodying virtues or facing their flaws, kid characters in Digimon grow with their monster partners. Unlocking a new evolution was almost always tied to some big character moment to give a visual manifestation of internal character growth.

Animon Story allows players to design their monster partner as well as their partner’s evolutions, transformations or whatever else you want to call them. Much in the same way Temtem has arisen to meet the demands of a growing monster taming genre market Animon Story answers the need for evolving and adapting the monster taming genre to the surge of popular tabletop RPGs.

And don’t worry — Animon can revert to their smaller, cuter forms at will much like Digimon.

Two characters in one

As mentioned Animon Story players create their human Kid Character as well as an Animon character. Kid Characters possess virtues, flaws, desires and special items while Animon are created with elements, natures and classifications. These focal points create a natural and direct correlation to the Animon’s power and the Kid Character’s personal development.

Note I didn’t call it growth. The system intentionally leaves out the notion of alignment. While most monster taming stories follow heroic characters, properties like Digimon and Temtem show us this isn’t always the case.

The power of friendship

Bond Level is a core mechanic of Animon Story. It represents your Kid Character’s connection with their Animon. Bond Points work sort of like inspiration in 5E D&D or perhaps a more apt comparison is to peripheral uses for experience points in Cypher System.

Bond Strain happens when the bond between Kid and Animon is put to the test and Bond Breaking Episodes are specifically built into the core rules to simulate the lowest character point, or breaking point for Kids and Animon.

Ultimately the bond is meant to never truly break and I certainly wouldn’t attempt such a story beat with young children. However, more mature gaming groups or groups looking for some subversive intensity from the genre might like to explore such themes.

A Kid’s dream

I’m not going to lie, I loved making fakemon (Pokemon creatures a random person creates) all the time as a kid. Something about drawing them out then devising stats and moves made me feel powerful and clever, like I had my own truly unique way of interacting with my favorite media.

Much like Takato from Digimon I often fantasized about my own monsters joining me on a grand journey through a fantastical, monster filled world. Animon Story scratches this itch like nothing else I’ve encountered. The end of the book is filled with inspirational character templates for both Kid Characters and Animon alike!

It’s rare I find a new tabletop RPG whose existence genuinely takes me by surprise, yet Animon Story did exactly this and I love it. If this game sounds like something you would be interested in please visit the Animon Story website to learn more and show the creator Zak Barouh, some love for this truly amazing Tabletop RPG. The book is 134 pages of monster taming fun and packed with vibrant art and a slough of mechanics to get you started on your own Animon adventure! You’ll also find a free introductory playkit to download there too.

Adapting Animon Story to other settings

Who’s to say your Kid Characters have to be human? These mechanics could easily be played in any setting including a more standard 5E D&D type setting with elves, dwarves and the like.

I could totally see running this system as a little break in the middle of a campaign, possibly giving your main RPG party a series of side quests involving becoming monster tamers for a time. You might consider using familiars or something adjacent. What’s more, you could absolutely adapt Nerdarchy’s Out of the Box Encounters to Animon Story.

If you find Animon Story as engaging as I do, please tweet @Nerdarchy or leave us a comment here or on Facebook.

*Featured image — The world of Animon in this original tabletop roleplaying game is inspired by beloved anime and video games. You’ll take on the role of Kids who team up with their very own monster buddies called Animon. Together you’ll go on adventures, grow as friends, and maybe even save the world! [Art by Kevin Hong]

New videos every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel here