A tabletop RPG with a pop-up battle van. That sentence alone was apparently enough for over 2,500 backers, because When Society Collapsed: Dam Nation hit its $40,000 Kickstarter goal in just six minutes and has since climbed past $425,000.
Created by animator Luke Humphris, the mind behind the When Society Collapsed web series, Dam Nation is a rules-light TTRPG set in a solarpunk post-apocalyptic world. This is not your typical grimdark wasteland. Society has collapsed, yes, but nomadic communities have stabilised, wildlife has reclaimed the ruins, and the vibe is surprisingly upbeat. Think less Mad Max, more cosy survival.
The standout feature is the pop-up battle van, a physical 3D element that rises from the book's pages during camping scenes. As you play through the adventure, you customise your camp and collect new pop-up pieces that slot into the van. Once the campaign wraps up, the whole thing doubles as a book nook displaying the memories you created together. It is the kind of tactile innovation that makes you wonder why more TTRPGs have not tried something similar.
The game spans over 150 pages of adventure content, built around a new Camp and Quest system focused on stamina, exploration, and recovery. The system leans into collaborative storytelling over crunch, making it accessible to groups who have never touched a TTRPG before.
Dam Nation launched on 31 March and there is still time to back it if a cheerful apocalypse and a pop-up van sound like your kind of game night.
Sources: Wargamer | Kickstarter
