Devilry Afoot

What is Devilry Afoot

Devilry Afoot is “a folk horror monster-hunting handbook for tabletop skirmishes,” written by Nic Wright and published in 2024 by his own imprint, Irregular Wars Wargaming.

It’s set during the 16th and 17th century Wars of Religion. You play a small party of human hunters out in the dead of night, and the creatures they hunt are run by the game. Witches, ghouls, vampires, redcaps, barghests and plain outlaws are all in the book.

It’s built for solo and co-op play. Everyone is on the same side, more or less. The hunters are flawed people, and each one carries a secret that can work against the party.

The book is 128 pages with 13 scenarios, 13 monsters, and open-ended campaign rules for following your hunters over a run of linked games.

How it plays

Tokens from a bag. Each hunter has a token, the Innocents share one, and the monsters get several. You never know whether a hunter or a monster acts next.
Roll for actions. An activated hunter rolls 2d10, and each die that beats their Resolve is one action, so a turn can give you nothing, one action or two. Double 10s gives three. Light helps; wounds and some secrets make it harder.
Five kinds of hunter. Gentleman, Goodman or Goodwife, Religious, Scholar and Soldier, each with traits, skills, 30 pieces of kit to buy, and followers to bulk out the party.
Everyone has a secret. Rolled, not chosen. Drunkards may start the night hungover, Gamblers lose their bounty to the sharks, and a Secret Witch may not want the hunt to succeed.
Monsters follow a table. Each monster rolls a d10 against a table with columns like “human within 6 inches” and “shot at since last activation,” then attacks, stalks, hides, charms, flees or summons an imp.
Protect the Innocent. Civilians wander the table unaware, or sleep in buildings you haven’t searched yet. Once they spot a monster they run. They die easily.
Quote Scripture. A hunter within 6 inches of a monster can try to make it flee. Religious hunters are good at it.

Combat is a d10 to hit against the monster’s defence, then a d10 to wound. It all runs on a few d10s.

How to start

Get the rulebook. The PDF is $12.57 on Wargame Vault, or £8.50 direct from Irregular Wars. The PDF comes with hunter rosters, a quick reference sheet and a more printer-friendly version of the book. A hardcover is on Amazon.
Find some weirdos. There’s no official miniatures range. Goonhammer’s reviewer found that a pike and shot army didn’t give him much, since you want individual characters, not soldiers in ranks. He points at Bloody Miniatures, the Warlord Games Band of Clubmen, and the Wargames Atlantic Conquistadors.
Build a small, dense table. 2’ × 2’ is enough, with buildings for Innocents to hide in.
Make spare hunters. Steve Holmes, a playtester, suggests pregenerating hunters for new players and making “at least as many spares.”