Rustic

Rustic is a subgenre that describes a rural setting. Idyllic countrysides, sprawling farmland, and pastoral landscapes are hallmarks of a rustic setting or tone. Rustic media emphasizes simplicity, slower-paced storytelling, and lower-stakes conflict than average, often focusing on slice-of-life stories and character drama. The land and animals, including farm animals, feature heavily, and the setting is frequently a character unto itself. Even so, the rustic subgenre might potentially apply to more action-oriented media or even horror that happens to be set in a rural area. Rustic tabletop roleplaying games tend to follow suit, with less conflict and combat, and more interpersonal narrative revolving around simple life in rural areas. Players in these games might be farmers or small business owners in a small community, or travelers wandering the countryside stopping by in settlements only temporarily. Sessions and conflicts are often character-driven, telling small-scale stories about people's emotional lives, or otherwise fixing everyday problems. In some cases, while the setting is rustic, the action of the game might contrast, for rustic adventure fantasy or horror.