Pelgrane Press revealed on January 20, 2000 that Laws would be the core author of their upcoming roleplaying game based on the Jack Vance stories in the Dying Earth setting. Laws was the senior designer for "The Dying Earth Roleplaying Game". As Pelgrane Press expanded, they launched the GUMSHOE system, designed by Laws based on the claim that investigative gaming had been introduced to RPGs under the mistaken assumption that acquiring clues should be treated as a contingent reward; the new system ensured that players would learn the clues needed in order to proceed with their investigations. Laws' "The Esoterrorists" (2006) was the first release with this system, supported by his sourcebook "The Esoterror Factbook" (2006); the next year, Pelgrane released Laws' "Fear Itself" (2007). Laws has also contributed supplements to Ken Hite's "Trail of Cthulhu" line, notably the randomized "Armitage Files" resource and the "Dreamhounds of Paris" campaign frame, in which players take on the roles of actual surrealist artists as they confront horror in the Dreamlands. Laws also designed "Mutant City Blues" (2009) and "Ashen Stars" (2011) as investigative games in the superhero and space opera genres. His RPG "Skulduggery" (2010) extrapolated the treatment of conflict, especially interpersonal conflict, from the "Dying Earth" setting to a variety of other contexts, and the "Gaean Reach RPG" (2012) cross-fertilized "Dying Earth" and GUMSHOE rules in Vance's scifi setting.