“Hope Dies Last” – Daggerheart Between Fantasy, Cyberpunk, and Space Opera

Classic fantasy today, neon lights and cyberware tomorrow, alien worlds among the stars the day after: Hope Dies Last aims to demonstrate just how differently Daggerheart can be played. The project by Infinite Citadel and Michael R. Underwood brings together three Campaign Frames spanning Heroic Fantasy, Cyberpunk, and Space Opera—along with the Mechanical Nexus, a shared collection of new mechanics and Adversaries designed for these very different worlds.

One of the people behind the project is Michael R. Underwood, who previously worked on Daggerheart itself. Together with Infinite Citadel, he is developing three very different Campaign Frames for Hope Dies Last.

The first is Bastion of Hope, an existing Heroic Fantasy Campaign Frame that is set to receive its first print edition as part of the project. At its heart is a free nation struggling to survive in a world ruled by dragons and necromancers.

This Time, Nobody Dies ventures considerably further from traditional fantasy. The Campaign Frame blends Cyberpunk with magic, taking characters into a world dominated by powerful megacorporations, where they work as mercenaries taking on dangerous assignments.

Shine Your Last goes even further, into the depths of space. This Space Opera focuses on marginalized freedom fighters standing against the Church of Unity and its galaxy-wide campaign of annihilation. Instead of castles and dungeons, players can expect alien worlds, interstellar conflicts, and resistance against an overwhelming threat.

A Mechanical Link Between the Worlds

To ensure that the three Campaign Frames differ in more than just their settings, Hope Dies Last includes a fourth book: the Mechanical Nexus. It will collect new mechanics, tools, and Adversaries for Daggerheart that are designed to work independently of any particular setting.

Each Campaign Frame can then interpret these shared foundations in its own way. The same Adversary concept, for example, might appear as corporate security in one world, a draconic legion in another, and the forces of a religious power in the next. The goal is to create a shared mechanical foundation without making Fantasy, Cyberpunk, and Space Opera feel the same at the table.

The project is therefore planned to include four books, each approximately 36 to 50 pages long. Both digital and physical editions are planned, with the books also expected to be available individually.

Most Recently at Gen Con

Hope Dies Last is currently still in the pre-launch phase on Gamefound. An update published on August 6, 2026 reports on the project’s appearance at Gen Con. The crowdfunding campaign itself is scheduled to launch in fall 2026, although no exact date has been announced yet.

With this approach, Hope Dies Last takes an interesting step beyond simply offering another Campaign Frame. The project not only aims to bring three very different worlds to Daggerheart, but also to demonstrate how the same core rules can evolve from Heroic Fantasy through Cyberpunk all the way to Space Opera.

Source: Gamefound / Infinite Citadel
Project page: Hope Dies Last on Gamefound