Power word: search is a TTRPG party game about silly wizards exploring an infinite library that fits on a single bookmark, where players create spells by searching for words in books

You play wizards
searching for
an obscure book
in an infinite library

A party game

The game's tone is silly, and almost every challenge the players face involves ridiculous solutions. We've had a lot of fun and laughs playing it.

You can pick up and play almost anywhere, with zero preparation. Even if you've only got 15 minutes.

No need to carry around lots of stuff to play. You just need access to the game, some text to search through, one regular dice (d6), and a way to make notes. All stuff you could do on your phone. 

All about books

The player characters are wizards exploring an infinite library with strange obstacles and topography, risky encounters, and restrictions on how you can make spells. Each new room poses a different challenge.

Players read through their chosen book (or other text) looking for words that they can cobble together to craft spells. Racing against the clock, and sometimes dealing with restrictions like not using the letter "M", to create a solution to the present challenge.

Created for the TTRPG Bookmark Jam 2025

Power word: search fits on both sides of a standard size (UK) bookmark (148 x 52 mm).

Everything the players need to play the game is on the front.

The GM section on the back includes five tables for generating a surprising variety of rooms on the fly, as well as some consequences for failure.

This game was created as a collaborative work of art by two friends. No AI was involved at any stage.

 

What do I need to play?

• A copy of this game
• 2-6 people (a GM and 1-5 players)
• A source of text: ideally one physical book per person
• Some way to make notes (e.g. pencil and paper)
• 15-90 minutes to play

 

Inspiration and ludography

The Word as Spell by samaritan burden - searching for words in extant, unrelated text and using them to create spells.

Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels - unpredictable, dangerous, interconnected, infinite libraries. Plus petulant, vain, and jealous wizards.

Pocket Delver by Juan Carlos Hernández - procedural dungeon crawling using random tables.

Mythic Bastionland (amongst other games) by Chris McDowall - spark tables, and addition by subtraction.

 

Credits

Luke van den Barselaar - writing, playtesting, and art

Luke Cackett - writing, playtesting, and layout

Vik and Theo - playtesting