Abstruse started as an experiment merging the GUMSHOE, FATE and d20 role-playing game systems. However, it then spawned into a full fledged pen-and-paper game. I have put Abstruse through a few years of playtests and iterations. At this point, I have created five investigative missions as both the game system and the setting evolved.
Simply, Abstruse is an investigation-based role-playing game where the player-character must solve crimes in a high-fantasy world. As such, it combines magic spells with the classic scene of detective fiction, leading to unprecedented scenes such as teleportation-tracking, plane travel to interrogate murder-victim's souls, etc.
As the only designer on the project, I was in charge of translating the systems of the source engines into a coherent whole, adding game dynamics that link the setting to the the mechanics, and creating an intriguing backstory to inspire game masters into creating their own investigative scenarios.
