You have a mech. You are its Pilot. 15000 thousand years into the future the Union considers its options to make the world make sense again. Giant human run Mechs are how the UNion plans to right itself. Created by Massif Press, this penultimate Mech fighting game has taken the TTRPG by storm. Its focus on Lore and story allows the Pilots and their mechs to reach great power. If giant mech battling is your jam and you’re ready to start a game then check out these 5 places to find a game of Lancer.
StartPlaying Games
There is good reason that StartPlaying Games leads this list in where to find Lancer games. Its search is second to none. By gametime, by system, by gm, by adventure. StartPlaying Games has the largest batch of currently running Lancer on the internet at the time of this writing. And it is a mix of content from the newest settings and adventures, to the past ones and custom content as well. Lancer is a huge boon to StartPlaying Games and there are constantly games running. You are sure to find a pilotable mech with all the options by looking here!
Official Massif Discord
Discord is an excellent option for players of TTRPG’s. Initially created as a space for video game players to get out of the toxic environments of public voice chats, most TTRPG’s have found a place here. Pilot.net is the name of the official Discord. They have everything available to new players and old players available there. Including a dedicated Looking For Group (LFG) channel. This channel with permissions allows paid and unpaid games. They are motivated to put players in games in order to help players have fun and create word of mouth.
Reddit has everything. Its LFG Forum is a fantastic way to look for almost any type of group. It often features the tiniest of tiny games. Lancer is more popular than that. But don’t sleep on the subreddit for Lancer RPG. This is a great group full of active members and LFG is not restricted at all. So if you’re looking for upgrade tips and a group the subreddit is an excellent choice. If you are considering making a posting please consider checking the rules first. And always remember that contributors in subreddits almost always do better than people who just poke their head in to post.
Retrograde Minis
There are few opportunities to speak about Retrograde Minis. A website dedicated to fantasy pixel art and Mech Pixel art. Players of Mech games love sites like these. Art and rules are available here as well as a dedicated Discord that connects mech players to games. Lancer is extremely popular there. And because you can get and find cool art there for free there are also players. Lancer was the most popular Mech game on the Discord making it a great niche place to find games.
Massif Press has a presence on Meta through Instagram but does not have a dedicated Facebook Page. That does not mean that there are no fan sites to visit (there are some) on Facebook. But they are smaller communities when you are looking for Games you want to cast a wide net. That's why RPG Connection is a great group to look for smaller games like Lancer. In a search at the time of writing there were 5 games listed for Lancer. Posting there and looking for listings in this group is easy and the group is busy with postings daily so listings are constantly refreshing.
Honorable Mentions
Lancer is well supported by its creators at Massif Press. There are tools for GMS and Players to create characters and to create encounters. They link to their discord there, which as noted above is a wonderful resource, but there are no forums on the website. RPG Match has a number of Lancer GM’s. Additionally, RPG.net and EN World have a lot of posts and information for players looking for all things Lancer.
I’m a big believer in the path of least resistance to finding a game. StartPlaying Games often meets that requirement. Lancer is a super fun Mech game that offers both mechanical crunch and narrative freedom as it sits on the game mechanics for Dungeon and Dragons 4th edition. But don’t let that scare you. Find a professional GM willing to help guide you into a new game.
Adam McDivitt is a father of 3 boys, professional GM, and a full time therapist. His love of D&D was reignited when his son asked him to help with a game 4 years ago. Since then he has learned a number of new systems and fell in love with TTRPG systems outside of 5e. Follow him on bluesky gmadam.bsky.social he posts there sometimes.
