After a lost year in 2020 and us opting for Origins instead last year, we picked back up on the pilgrimage back to Indianapolis, Indiana for “The Best 4 Days in Gaming”. From the announced attendance of over 50,000, it appears that things are returning to pre-2020 attendance levels. And that could be felt in both the crowds and our hotel location.
Day 0
Before we get to the actual convention itself, a few words on the process this year. We arrived Wednesday night and figured we could go ahead and pick up our badges and show our vaccination cards leaving the rest of our time for gaming and whatnot. Since we’d rolled over our 2020 badges to this year, I don’t think there was an option to have them mail the badge to us like in previous years. Let me say that paying an extra $10 is well worth avoiding what was a 45-minute line on Wednesday evening. But that would turn out to be the shorter of the lines, as the one to show our vaccination information stretched throughout the convention hall, doubling back on itself. Even finding the end of the line was an accomplishment. While the line mostly moved, it still felt as if our lives hadn’t existed before the Line and when we died, others would simply step over our bodies and continue on the never-ending sequence.
(There is a horror story somewhere in here.)
After an hour and 15 minutes, we wound through the hall and entered the room, showed our information, and then decided that it would be great to find some food.
As Hooters was within sight, we attempted to eat there. I say attempted because we arrived about 20ish minutes before they closed. A fact they let us know multiple times. “We close at 10.”
I understand that they might be short-staffed, but considering you have a convention in town, maybe a bar might want to stay open a little later? Maybe?
“We close at 10.”
We took our food to go and headed back to the hotel.
One last aside… Gen Con uses a lottery system to determine housing. The earlier in the day your time is, the closer your hotel is going to be. With three of us you’d figure at least one would have a decent time, but this year we did not have the luck. The hotel, while nice, ended up around a 15-20 minute walk. And let me say, that when you’ve been walking all over all day, the last thing you want is another 20 minutes of walking before you can get back to the room. Maybe we need to keep an eye on the hotels throughout the year to see if perhaps some closer hotel rooms become available.
With the location we had, we were also on the far side of the convention center which limited some of our food options. Let’s just say we ate at the same pair of restaurants about 5 times over the time we were there.
Day 1
Before we’d even arrived at the convention, we’d been informed that due to a shortage of Game Masters, one of our sessions had already been canceled, leaving us with an odd schedule of 1 game Thursday, 1 game Friday, and then 3 games on Saturday. Looking for the silver lining, it meant we’d get most of our Dealer’s Hall stuff done on Thursday, allowing us to strategically attack the booths later in the weekend if there was something we wanted to buy. It was pretty packed with vendors with the occasional empty booth area for some last-minute cancellations (I think around 10 at most).
Day became night and we were onto our first game session:
An Urban Fantasy Horror Game where you take on the role of one of the supernatural (or supernaturally touched) people in the city. We had Fae, someone who’d sold their soul, a ghost, a wizard hunter, and a gambler who had psychic powers. Using the Powered By The Apocolypse game, one of the things I thought worked really well was the ties we came up with between our characters. You might owe another character a Debt in the game which meant they could potentially use it to perhaps convince you to do something to help them (or hinder someone else). But that whole sequence worked really well as everyone had some reason to know each other AND also have reasons to want to work together (which can be an obstacle in any one-shot style game).
There was also a Corruption Mechanic that looked interesting for more of a campaign. You can gain access to other powers at the cost of your soul – and eventually, if it gets too much, then you become an NPC. Again, more of a long-term thing, but I can see it being something cool as the story progresses.
Overall, I liked the game and really enjoyed the session.
Day 2
More dealer’s hall and then we made our way to our second game.
We’ve played a few of the World of Darkness games over the years, but somehow none of us had ever played Wraith. The idea that you’d roleplay someone who has died and now has to deal with all sorts of horrific things on the other side is definitely intriguing. I’m reminded a little bit of the scenes in What Dreams May Come where Robin Williams has to descend into the more hellish portion of the afterlife – stepping on the undead/lost souls.
Overall the game feels interesting, though this actual session mostly focused on the Shadows. The Shadows are the dark voices in each of us which compel us to go against our better interests. In this game, we had 5 players as PCs and then 2 others who acted as our Shadows. While an interesting dynamic (especially since if you aren’t careful, the Shadow will take over), the big problem is that if the Shadow takes over, there isn’t much the PC can do to retake control. This means you are on the sidelines for as long as it takes to kill yourself. At the con, this creates a bit of a Player vs. Player dynamic which adds a layer to the game, but I’m not sure how well it might work outside of that particular setting. Again, thinking about longer stories, it might be better for the GM to handle the interaction.
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That was our first two days, leaving a jam packed Saturday featuring 3 games! Part 2 will be up next week!
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John McGuire is the writer of the sci-fi novel: The Echo Effect.
Announcing the Onyx Path Virtual Gaming Convention
Join a completely digital tabletop gaming convention from Onyx Path Publishing, taking place June 12-14, 2020.
June 1, 2020 – Onyx Path Publishing is holding its very first convention over the course of three days to provide fans and players of tabletop roleplaying games with a uniquely online convention experience. Onyx Path Gaming Con will be completely digital and accessible to anyone with a entry level gaming PC, laptop, computer, or cellphone, allowing fans and players of Onyx Path games to connect with one another over their favorite game.
The convention will feature actual play streams of Onyx Path game lines, workshop sessions for gamemasters and game developers, panels with tabletop RPG industry professionals. Along with behind the scenes updates and developments of upcoming Onyx Path titles. This online content will be accessible across Twitch and YouTube channels owned by Onyx Path Publishing, Gehenna Gaming, and other partners.
A major focus of Onyx Path Virtual Gaming Con will allow attendees to play in virtual tabletop sessions run by professional gamemasters. The goal of this event is to provide Onyx Path customers a uniquely focused gaming convention experience based on the games they enjoy playing and introduce new games to fall in love with. These games include Scarred Lands, Legendlore, They Came from Beneath the Sea!, Scion, and Trinity Continuum. Along with Exalted and many World of Darkness and Chronicles of Darkness games, such as Vampire: The Masquerade, Mage: The Ascension, Hunter: The Vigil, and many more.
Some of the proceeds from the Onyx Path Virtual Gaming Con will go to both Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) as well as The Bodhana Group.
“TMCF distributes 98% of its awards exclusively to HBCUs and PBIs, which is more than any other organization that supports the Black College Community.” Read more about Thurgood Marshall College Fund here: https://www.tmcf.org.
The Bodhana Group is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advocating for “tabletop gaming as a directed therapeutic and clinical practice that can benefit personal growth as well as enhance social and educational services to individuals and families.”
Read more about the Bodhana Group here: https://www.thebodhanagroup.org.
In order to make this convention possible Onyx Path Publishing has partnered up with Gehenna Gaming, a New England-based horror gaming experience company, in an effort to assist in the organization of the event. Gehenna Gaming successfully launched VirtualHorror Con this past April, which was host to over 18K viewers and attendees. This partnership will ensure a successful con enjoyed by Onyx Path Publishing customers and players of tabletop roleplaying games from around the world.
Founded in 2012, Onyx Path Publishing is a Pennsylvania-based company dedicated to the development of exemplary, immersive worlds. Working with a group of amazingly talented creators, we explore print, electronic and other forms of media distribution to produce games and fiction based on the Scarred Lands, Pugmire, Scion, Trinity, Exalted, World of Darkness and Chronicles of Darkness properties. With over 20 years of publishing experience from which to draw, we are industry professionals who love the art of the game and plan to continue making meaningful, innovative contributions in the years to come.
Gehenna Gaming is a New England-based company dedicated to providing unique gaming experiences to fans and players of horror-themed tabletop and live-action roleplaying games. Our distinct perspective gives insight into what players are looking for and how to best run traditional horror RPGs. We partner with game designers, distributors, content creators, and industry influencers in order to entertain players, empower brands, and educate fans. While bolstering a positive, supportive, and inclusive environment.
Onyx Path Publishing and Eschaton Media Announce the Release Dystopia Rising: Evolution, a New Tabletop RPG
April 15, 2020 — Rich Thomas, founder and creative director of Onyx Path Publishing, in conjunction with Eschaton Media announced the release of Dystopia Rising: Evolution. Dystopia Rising: Evolution is a tabletop RPG based on Eschaton Media’s popular post-zombie apocalypse themed Dystopia Rising live-action scenarios. The game was designed using the Storypath system.
Dystopia Rising (DR) is set in a post-zombie apocalypse world where characters fight to survive in horrific conditions. Created in 2009, DR has enjoyed a cult following of players who immerse themselves in live-action horror scenarios. Every weekend, DR players reside in survivor settlements to step away from the modern world and into a unique post-apocalyptic experience. Though it began as an event, DR has become so popular the property has spawned novels and the upcoming RPG.
Both digital and print editions of the new tabletop RPG, Dystopia Rising: Evolution, are now available online and in stores. Find copies at:
Players interested in creating new content for Dystopia Rising: Evolution will be thrilled to know the game will be unlocked for Storypath Nexus, the community content program powered by the Storypath system, in May 2020.
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About Onyx Path Publishing: Founded in 2012, Onyx Path Publishing is a Pennsylvania-based company dedicated to the development of exemplary, immersive worlds. Working with a group of amazingly talented creators, we explore print, electronic and other forms of media distribution to produce games and fiction based on the Scarred Lands, Pugmire, Scion, Trinity, Exalted, World of Darkness and Chronicles of Darkness properties. With over 20 years of publishing experience from which to draw, we are industry professionals who love the art of the game and
plan to continue making meaningful, innovative contributions in the years to come.
About Eschaton Media: Eschaton Media is a collective of the creative minds behind the Dystopia Rising Universe, the CHRONOS Universal LARP system, The Mass Action RPG System, as well as a number of stand alone quick play RPGs such as Tempus Omni and Writer’s Blocks. For over seven years, the team has also produced materials for companies such as Make Believe Games, Heavy Metal Magazine, Nerdy City, and the Imagine Nation Collective.
Starting Monday, March 16th at 10AM Central, Onyx Path Publishing (OPP) is giving away some of their World of Darkness 20th Anniversary Edition PDFs on Storytellers Vault for “gamers staying home during the current quarantine and troublesome times.” Every day this week, OPP will make the PDF of one of their 20th Anniversary Editions available for free. Mark your calendar and follow these links to pick up the books (or search the Storytellers Vault).
Onyx Path Publishing and Caliber Comics Announces the Legendlore RPG based on the Award-Winning Legendlore and The Realm Comics
3/3/20 — Rich Thomas, founder and creative director of Onyx Path Publishing, in conjunction with Caliber Comics have launched the Kickstarter for the Legendlore RPG Setting for 5th Edition Fantasy Roleplaying. The Legendlore RPG is based on Caliber Comics’ long-running fantasy comic book series The Realm and Legendlore.
“What I love about Legendlore is it’s you, reading this right now, who gets to explore the world. Small but fierce? The portal makes you a warrior. Always talking your friends into things they shouldn’t do? You get to be a bard. Read more books about magic than you can remember? A sorcerer! It’s completely up to you,” stated Steffie de Vaan, developer for the tabletop RPG. “Character creation and setting will be incredibly diverse, so regardless your ethnicity, body, gender or sexuality: the Realm is for you.”
“It’s a privilege to be working with Onyx Path in bringing a Legendlore RPG to a whole new audience. Onyx Path are one of the best in the business in crafting and launching an entertaining tabletop RPG that gamers truly come to enjoy,” said Eric Reichert, President of Caliber Comics. “The Realm/Legendlore property is one of the gems from the hundreds of IP titles within Caliber’s extensive library. And its concept and grand fantasy scope is a natural fit for a tabletop RPG. It will be interesting to see what new adventures await us in the land of Azoth.”
Drawn from The Realm and Legendlore comics, the Legendlore RPG will whisk characters from our modern world to a magical Dungeons and Dragons-meets-Game of Thrones land filled with dragons, orcs, unicorns and hobgoblins. With over 60 comics published covering twelve graphic novel volumes, The Realm and Legendlore comics became one of Caliber Comics most critically acclaimed and popular series. In the RPG, players can choose to play as themselves or create a new character using the Storypath system.
Some of the creative talents featured in the comics were Ralph Griffith (Deadworld/OZ), Stuart Kerr (Deadworld/OZ), Guy Davis (Hellboy/B.P.R.D./Grendel/Aliens), Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spiderman/Guardians of the Galaxy/Avengers/Daredevil), Jim O’Barr (The Crow), David Boller (Spiderman/X-Men/Ghost Rider), Tim Bradstreet (Punisher/Serenity), and more!
About Onyx Path Publishing:
Founded in 2012, Onyx Path Publishing is a Pennsylvania-based company dedicated to the development of exemplary, immersive worlds. Working with a group of amazingly talented creators, we explore print, electronic and other forms of media distribution to produce games and fiction based on the Scarred Lands, Pugmire, Scion, Trinity, Exalted, World of Darkness and Chronicles of Darkness properties. With over 20 years of publishing experience from which to draw, we are industry professionals who love the art of the game and plan to continue making meaningful, innovative contributions in the years to come.
On the web: http://www.theonyxpath.com
Twitter:@theonyxpath
About Caliber Comics:
Caliber Comics has released over 1500 individual comic issues and graphic novels since its inception. With its large library of titles, Caliber Comics became one of the top independent comic publishers in the 1990s and helped launch the comic careers of some of the top artists and writers in the industry today. The company was newly re-established in 2013, and continues to be a hub for comic fans young and old alike with its on-going graphic novel releases. Properties include Deadworld, Legendlore, OZ, The Searchers, Vietnam Journal, Raven Chronicles, Shepherd, and many more!
Onyx Path Publishing Revives a Fan Favorite with Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition
February 6, 2020 — Rich Thomas, founder and Creative Director of Onyx Path Publishing, announced today that the Kickstarter to fund a prestige edition of Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition core rulebook has recently launched. This new edition of Hunter: The Vigil was developed by veteran Monica Valentinelli.
“Hunter: The Vigil has always been a fan favorite because it’s a modern horror game that gives everyday people the chance to be heroes,” says Monica Valentinelli, the Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition developer. “In Second Edition, there are more monsters than ever before. You are given more tools to investigate the strange and unexplained while reinforcing your connections to fellow hunters and your community. Hunter isn’t just about fighting bloodsuckers or expelling ghosts from a haunted house–it’s about the hard choices you make from night to night to keep yourself, your cellmates, and your loved ones safe while recognizing that hunter society is not a utopia or a monolith.”
Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition is a modern horror game for players committed to hunting the supernatural. Three playing styles are included in this standalone rulebook: cells for tier one gameplay, compacts for tier two, and conspiracies for tier three.
In addition to seven compacts and seven conspiracies included in this new edition, highlights include:
– Storyteller support that includes a sample setting and chronicle-rich tool kit called The Slasher Chronicle inspired by the slasher film genre.
– Expanded lore and support to play a hunter at the tier you prefer. Includes two new compacts (SWORN, Nine Stars) and a new conspiracy called the Council of Bones.
– A guide to the strange and unexplained lurking in different environments and how to create your own. Includes cryptids like the black dog, ghosts like the haunted hitchhiker, and new monsters inspired by urban legends.
– Setting rules for three types of mysterious places to add locations hunters can explore, investigate, and cleanse of their supernatural taint.
– Tools to ground hunters in their everyday lives and help mitigate the horrors of the Vigil.
– Rules to facilitate different playing styles for investigation, social engineering, and more!
The manuscript for Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition has been completed, and chapters will be released during the Kickstarter to backers. Delivery is planned for February 2022 to account for stretch goals and printing of this supplement. Standard eBook and Hardcover editions will be released in game stores and online following fulfillment of the Kickstarter.
About Onyx Path Publishing:
Founded in 2012, Onyx Path Publishing is a Pennsylvania-based company dedicated to the development of exemplary, immersive worlds. Working with a group of amazingly talented creators, we explore print, electronic and other forms of media distribution to make our products available to our fans. With over 25 years of publishing experience from which to draw, we are industry professionals who love the art of the game and plan to continue making meaningful, innovative contributions in the years to come.
On the web: http://www.theonyxpath.com
Twitter: @theonyxpath
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TheOnyxPath
About Paradox Interactive:
The Paradox Interactive group includes publishing and internal development of games and licensing of World of Darkness. The
publishing operation publishes both internally developed titles and titles developed by independent studios as well as music and books. The game portfolio includes more than 100 titles and Paradox Interactive owns the most important brands, including Stellaris, Europa Universalis, Hearts of Iron, Crusader Kings, Cities: Skylines, Magicka and Age of Wonders. From the start over ten years ago, the company has published its games all over the world, initially through physical distribution using partners, but beginning in 2006 has primarily distributed digitally using its own publishing arm. The development platform is primarily PC, but the company has released games on console and mobile platforms as well.
Paradox Interactive AB (publ)’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm First North Premier under ticker PDX. FNCA Sweden AB is the company’s Certified Adviser. For more information, please visit www.paradoxinteractive.com.
Onyx Path Publishing Announces They Came From Beyond the Grave! Tabletop RPG
January 13, 2020 — Rich Thomas, founder and creative director of Onyx Path Publishing announced They Came from Beyond the Grave! This new B-movie theme tabletop rpg is a tongue-in-cheek horror game employing the Storypath System.
They Came From Beyond the Grave! draws from 60s and 70s horror films similarly to how They Came From Beneath the Sea! built off of the wonder, horror, thrills, and hilarity of 1950s science fiction. They Came from Beyond the Grave! (referred to sometimes as TCfBtG!) encompasses the horror, sex, suspense, and ham of early 1960s through to late 1970s horror movies. This game will be designed to evoke everything dramatic and theatrical of the classics from Hammer, Amicus, and Roger Corman libraries, along with other “dark house” movie gems, where mysteries take place in old manors, old vampires stalk guests, and something evil lurks in the woods.
Matthew Dawkins, who developed They Came From Beneath the Sea! which is now available for pre-order, is reprising his role for this new corebook. The game is currently in first drafts.
Both digital and print editions of They Came From Beyond the Grave! are scheduled for a 2021 release following the success of a Kickstarter. The game has been designed using the Storypath System.
The Storypath System is also the engine that powers Onyx Path’s Scion 2nd Edition and Trinity Continuum RPGs.
About Onyx Path Publishing:
Founded in 2012, Onyx Path Publishing is a Pennsylvania-based company dedicated to the development of exemplary, immersive worlds. Working with a group of amazingly talented creators, we explore print, electronic and other forms of media distribution to produce games and fiction based on the Scarred Lands, Pugmire, Scion, Trinity, Exalted, World of Darkness and Chronicles of Darkness properties. With over 20 years of publishing experience from which to draw, we are industry professionals who love the art of the game and plan to continue making meaningful, innovative contributions in the years to come.
Onyx Path Publishing Launches Kickstarter for V5: Cults of the Blood Gods
December 17th, 2019 — Rich Thomas, founder and Creative Director of Onyx Path Publishing, announced the company launched the Kickstarter for Cults of the Blood Gods, a supplement for the Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition core rulebook.
Cults of the Blood Gods is a new style of sourcebook for Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition that introduces the pernicious horror of twisted beliefs. Designed for players and Storytellers, this supplement includes:
An in-character breakdown of the rise of esoteric beliefs among the ranks of the undead and how faith drives many of the major aspects of vampire culture.
A host of religions — from historic theocracies and globe-spanning conspiracies to fringe cults and mortal beliefs arising in the modern nights — introduced for incorporation into your character backgrounds or as supporting casts and antagonist groups in your chronicles.
The history, structure, and ambitions of the Hecata, the vampire group known as the Clan of Death, as well as a chapter dedicated to playing a vampire among the Necromancers, and the rituals for their Discipline: Oblivion.
Guidance on how to use ecclesiastical horror and construct cults in Vampire, making them a vivid backdrop for your own stories, including new coterie styles focused on cult play.
Faith-based story hooks and a full story centered on the activities of the Hecata, involving walking corpses, ghosts, ready-made characters, and the secrets of the most twisted family in the World of Darkness.
New Loresheets, Discipline powers, and Predator types for inclusion in your chronicles, encouraging player characters to engage fully with the material presented in this book.
The Cults of the Blood Gods Kickstarter has launched for a traditionally-printed full color hardcover edition that will be available in game stores. Previews of the finished manuscript will be released during the Kickstarter. A standard digital edition will be released following Kickstarter fulfillment.
About Onyx Path Publishing:
Founded in 2012, Onyx Path Publishing is a Pennsylvania-based company dedicated to the development of exemplary, immersive worlds. Working
with a group of amazingly talented creators, we explore print, electronic and other forms of media distribution to make our products available to our fans. With over 25 years of publishing experience from which to draw, we are industry professionals who love the art of the game and plan to continue making meaningful, innovative contributions in the years to come.
On the web: www.theonyxpath.com
Twitter: @theonyxpath
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TheOnyxPath
About White Wolf Entertainment
White Wolf Entertainment is a licensing company focused on creating the best participatory brands in the world. Since its original entry into the roleplaying game market in 1991, White Wolf’s World of Darkness has grown to be one of the most recognized and successful brands in the hobby game space with collective book sales in excess of 10 million copies during this time. White Wolf’s World of Darkness brands, which include Vampire: The Masquerade, Werewolf: The Apocalypse, Wraith: The Oblivion, and Orpheus, as well as other universes such as Exalted and Chronicles of Darkness, have been licensed for television series, video games, interactive media events, and a myriad of merchandise and other entertainment products.
On the web: www.white-wolf.com
Twitter: @wwpublishing
Facebook: www.facebook.com/whitewolfpublishing
Embrace the Holidays – The Fall of London Chronicle for Vampire: The Masquerade 5th is available for pre-order next week & Cults of the Blood Gods launches on Kickstarter!
Modiphius Entertainment is excited to announce that The Fall of London Chronicle for Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition will be available for pre-order next week online at the Modiphius web-store and in your friendly local game stores. If you pre-order The Fall of London you’ll receive the PDF immediately upon order (plus US & UK orders in December have 20% off shipping). Watch for news of when it goes live!
If you want to find out more about the development of Fall of London you can read this blog by Mike Nudd, London based writer on the Chronicle, who discusses how he and the team brought the city of London to the World of Darkness.
The Fall of London Chronicle is a 260 page, fully illustrated, hardback campaign book that embroils you in Kindred history as it unfolds. Your actions might see a god return, or cast him down from whence he came. London burns under Operation Antigen, as you uncover the shards of your own identity
What legacy will you leave?
The Fall of London includes
• A sprawling Chronicle covering 6 large chapters
• 6 different endings tailored to the coterie’s choices
• 5 pre-generated characters as the Heralds of the Sun
• 6 new Loresheets, including one for secret diablerists
• Statistics for 7 venerable elders, including Mithras and Queen Anne
• A detailed description of London, to facilitate additional chronicles before the Fall
• An epilogue to use for chronicles set after the Fall
Next week will also see the launch of the Cults of the Blood Gods Kickstarter for Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition from Onyx Path Publishing.
Cults of the Blood Gods is a new style of source-book for Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition that introduces the pernicious horror of twisted beliefs.
Designed for players and Storytellers, this supplement will include:
An in-character breakdown of the rise of esoteric beliefs among the ranks of the undead and how faith drives many of the major aspects of vampire culture.
A host of religions — from historic theocracies and globe-spanning conspiracies to fringe cults and mortal beliefs arising in the modern nights — introduced for incorporation into your character backgrounds or as supporting casts and antagonist groups in your chronicles.
The history, structure, and ambitions of the Hecata, the vampire group known as the Clan of Death, as well as a chapter dedicated to playing a vampire among the Necromancers, and the ceremonies for their death-defying Discipline: Oblivion
Guidance on how to use ecclesiastical horror and construct cults in Vampire, making them a vivid backdrop for your own stories, including new coterie styles focused on cult play.
Faith-based story hooks and a full chronicle centered on the activities of the Hecata, involving walking corpses, ghosts, ready-made characters, and the secrets of the most twisted family in the World of Darkness.
New Loresheets, Backgrounds, and Predator Types for inclusion in your chronicles, encouraging player characters to engage fully with the material presented in this book.
On Halloween we streamed an exclusive live play of Vampire: The Masquerade – Fall of London featuring, Mike Nudd as GM and writers Juan Echenique, Andrew Peregrine and Matt Timm as players.
If you want a live preview of the Fall of London Chronicle in action you can watch the entire video here.
We hope you enjoyed this news on Vampire: The Masquerade 5th and look out next week for the pre-order of Fall of London to launch and the Cults of the Blood God Kickstarter!
Best Wishes,
Modiphius Entertainment
Christmas Shipping Discounts!
Starting today until the end of December, we’ve reduced shipping on orders to the US and UK by 20%* over on the Modiphius online store. Even better, if you spend £150 (approx $200) or more you can get free shipping – just use the code USUK at checkout.
*The 20% discount is automatically applied if you’re shipping address is in the USA or UK.
So why not head to the Modiphius store and pick up a present?
Military Discounts
We’ve introduced a 10% military service discount for the US, Canadian, UK and Australia using VerifyPass, you can signup for it or claim your code if you already have a membership here
In other news from Modiphius…
Ride an express elevator to hell with the debut of the Alien RPG available nowhere.
The Institute for Fallout: Wasteland Warfare have landed! Pick up synths,covert-ops, automatons and more here.
The deluxe edition of the co-op wargame Rangers of Shadow Deep is available now here for pre-order. Receive the PDF immediately on purchase!
Modiphius is hiring! We’re looking for a CIMA or equivalent qualified Financial specialist to work within our fast-growing London based business. Find full details and apply on our jobs application page
December 5, 2019 — Rich Thomas, founder and Creative Director of Onyx Path Publishing, announced today a new corebook called Exalted Essence is planned for the popular Exalted Third Edition gameline.
“This is a project we’ve been thinking about for quite a while and we’re thrilled it’s moving forward. I’m beyond excited to be overseeing the creative direction of this book, which is being developed by Monica Speca and Neall Raemonn Price,” said Dixie Cochran, the coordinating developer for Exalted. “We handpicked the Essence team, all of whom love and have worked on Exalted, very carefully and can’t wait to see what they do with the outline and alpha write-ups provided!”
Exalted Essence will be developed by Monica Speca and Neall Raemonn Price; Exalted Third Edition developers Eric Minton and Robert Vance will also be involved as consulting developers while they continue to develop other books in the line. The new corebook’s design is geared for new and existing fans who want a fresh and streamlined take on Exalted. Exalted Essence will include:
Ten Exalt player-character types presented in one corebook for the first time
Universal Charms (including Martial Arts) that work across multiple Exalt types, as well as some Charms that are unique to specific Exalt types
A brief overview of Creation so players and Storytellers can dive right into their epic adventures.
Rules for Sorcery
Storyteller Antagonists
“As a long time fan of Exalted, I’m thrilled to be working on a project that will help spread the joy of playing Exalted to all players — from newcomers to dedicated fans,” said Monica Speca, Exalted Third Edition developer and writer.
Writers for Exalted Essence have been contracted, and work will begin in 2020. Once the manuscript is completed, a Kickstarter is planned for the new corebook.
Fans will be thrilled to know Exalted Essence is not a new edition of Exalted. Like its name suggests, the new title distills what makes Exalted Third Edition great into a new corebook and is designed to work with other books in the line.
To discuss Exalted Essence, join the Exalted community! Talk to fans, writers, and developers on these channels:
About Onyx Path Publishing: Founded in 2012, Onyx Path Publishing is a Pennsylvania-based company dedicated to the development of exemplary, immersive worlds. Working with a group of amazingly talented creators, we explore print, electronic, and other forms of media distribution to make our products available to our fans. With over 25 years of publishing experience from which to draw, we are industry professionals who love the art of the game and plan to continue making meaningful, innovative contributions in the years to come.
About Paradox Interactive: The Paradox Interactive group includes publishing and internal development of games and licensing of World of Darkness. The publishing operation publishes both internally developed titles and titles developed by independent studios as well as music and books. The game portfolio includes more than 100 titles and Paradox Interactive owns the most important brands, including Stellaris, Europa Universalis, Hearts of Iron, Crusader Kings, Cities: Skylines, Magicka and Age of Wonders. From the start over ten years ago, the company has published its games all over the world, initially through physical distribution using partners, but beginning in 2006 has primarily distributed digitally using its own publishing arm. The development platform is primarily PC, but the company has released games on console and mobile platforms as well.
Paradox Interactive AB (publ)’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm First North Premier under ticker PDX. FNCA Sweden AB is the company’s Certified Adviser. For more information, please visit www.paradoxinteractive.com.
[TESSERA GUILD NOTE: All of the above information including the writer’s name and date/time were taken from the press release.]
October 29, 2019 — Onyx Path Publishing, owner and publisher of the Scarred Lands role-playing game, is pleased to announce two new serial releases: Vigil Watch and Yugman’s Guide to Ghelspad.
Ghelspad is a massive and diverse landscape that is the hallmark of the Scarred Lands setting. Once a paradise, this continent is now scarred by the ravages of the Titanswar. In the wake of divine bloodshed, the people of Ghelspad survive and thrive on this befouled continent. Two upcoming releases explore this setting to give players and GMs more material to draw from for their campaigns.
Vigil Watch explores six different locations across Ghelspad. From the bloody shores of the Toe Islands in the east to the Sweltering Plains of the West, Vigil Watch provides an in-depth look at a variety of locales and cultures. This release will contain:
Expanded information on the culture of the Ironbred and their nomadic home, the Iron Court
A detailed view of Leoni, the center of the Manticora Confederacy
The frontier settlement of Mansk, home to human and orc wolf-riders under the leadership of Warlord Klesh
The terrifying deadlands of the Festering Fields
An exploration of the Library of Lokil
A detailed discussion of the Toe Islands in the Blood Sea including the pirate operations that operate from within the dangerous archipelago.
Each location includes an overview of the people, cultures, traditions, and enemies. Vigil Watch is written by Celeste Conowitch (Blood Sea: The Crimson Abyss 5e, Venture Maidens), Joshua Doetsch (Age of Conan: Rise of the Godslayer), Lewis Harris (Destiny 2, Hunter: The Reckoning – Wayward) Joshua Heath (Adventures for Curious Cats), Jessica Ross (Sundered Sisters,Uncaged Volume I), and Roman Trevisanut (Legendlore RPG).
Yugman’s Guide to Ghelspad offers new insight into heroes and villains, as well as the tools they use to rise to power, through the eyes of Yugman the Sage. This release will contain:
21 new Social Backgrounds expanding the sects & societies introduced in the Scarred Lands Player’s Guide
23 new subclasses, with each base class represented
6 new Races including Broadreach dwarves, and a revised Hollow Legionnaire
New Spells, True Rituals, Magic Items and more!
Yugman’s Guide to Ghelspad is written by Chris Bissette (Loot the Room, Breaker of Chains), Oliver Clegg (Ravenloft: City of Eyes, Weekend at Strahd’s), Celeste Conowitch (Blood Sea: The Crimson Abyss 5e, Venture Maidens), Beatriz T. Dias (The Fall of Durgan’s Rest, Off to a Weird Start), Lewis Harris (Destiny 2, Hunter: The Reckoning – Wayward), Jeremy Hochhalter (Creature Codex for 5th Edition, A Titanic Feast), Megan Mackie (Legendlore RPG), Jessica Ross (Sundered Sisters,Uncaged Volume I), and Christopher Walz (Morty Corgi’s Scroll of Mysteries, The Midnight Revelry).
These supplements are 5th edition-compatible and will be released on a rotating schedule beginning in 2020. Currently, six releases are planned for each title, along with a compilation that will feature exclusive content later in the year.
About Onyx Path Publishing: Founded in 2012, Onyx Path Publishing is a Pennsylvania-based company dedicated to the development of exemplary, immersive worlds. Working with a group of amazingly talented creators, we explore print, electronic and other forms of media distribution to make our products available to our fans. With over 25 years of publishing experience from which to draw, we are industry professionals who love the art of the game and plan to continue making meaningful, innovative contributions in the years to come.
Beyond sharing creator’s crowdfunding picks, for this week’s column I’m sharing a few picks of my own. But, they’re *not* crowdfunding projects, instead, they are products that are available to purchase now through DriveThruRPG or Modiphius Entertainment’s site.
“Grimmerspace: A science-fiction/science-fantasy horror game with Sean Astin as the creative lead. And the art looks really fantastic. I’m curious to see where this goes!
Victorian Gothic & Adventure Soundscapes: I am a huge sucker for good, well-made background music, and there really isn’t much in the way of Victorian music. Now I can listen to these while I play Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective!”
“A tabletop roleplaying game of wuxia melodrama, Powered by the Apocalypse.”
Lowell Francis (The Gauntlet Gaming Community) recommends:
“I just backed Hard Wired Island, an anime cyberpunk rpg with its own unique. It leans into an anime aesthetic, in particular drawing inspiration from 1990s media like Ghost in the Shell. I’m old enough to have lived through our local groups’ discovery of anime, passed around on VHS tapes. It reshaped how people played and saw R Talsorian’s Cyberpunk 2020. Hard Wired Island brings that back, but with an approach that explicitly considers the political dimension. I’m excited to see how it handles that. If you asked me five year ago what I thought of cyberpunk, I would have dismissed the whole genre. But that’s changed with new releases like The Veil’s PbtA approach and The Crisp Line for Fate. There’s a ton cool stuff being done with cyberpunk and Hard Wired Island feels like a new direction.
I’m also really excited for Good Society: An Expanded Acquaintance. I missed the original Kickstarter, so I’m glad to have the chance to get everything this time. Over the last year I’ve seen lots of people run Good Society on The Gauntlet, and I’ve been amazed at the variety of settings and reframings used. It says something about how the strength of the core concept. All of the expansion variants appeal to me, but I most dig the idea of doing a Jane Austen-esque game with a Harry Potter-Wizarding backdrop. Plus the books look amazing—first class. I love smart layout and presentation.”
“Big Bad Con is a tabletop and live action gaming convention built on great games and a welcoming community. Join us October 10-13 in Walnut Creek, CA!”
Sean Nittner (Big Bad Con) recommends:
“I’m excited about two games that both evoke some real nostalgia for me.
Raid Boss looks all kinds of fun to me. Like a mix of raiding in World of Warcraft (First 10-Person guild to end the Lich King on Malfurion, woo!), D&D 4th Edition (which was great for tactical combat), and the Dresden Files Co-Op (which I got to playtest early version of an have played so many times my cards are nearly worn through). I love seeing how different roles can synergize and and I just want to grab all those dice and chits and tokens. *grabby hands*
When you get down to Dungeon Crawling, let not mince words. I want to grab treasure and level up! The Maze is all about that. What happens in play is always so much more rewarding than backstory developed before the game so I’m very excited about the Renown Rule: Every character starts without a name. You earn one (and a title) through your great deeds! If Raid Boss takes me back to WoW, The Maze takes me back to Gauntlet and Rogue. Q that potion!”
“Dungeons and Dragons (DnD) 5th Edition Compatible Campaign Setting”
Gregory Lucas (Luna Publishing) recommends:
“Monster Adventure Terrain- 3D Customizable D&D World Builder. Monster Adventure Terrain is probably one of the best 3D terrain projects I’ve seen. It looks good. Comes Painted/Unpainted so you can customize. It’s probably a 7/10 in the looks while being 1/10 in complexity. Seriously these things are as easy to use as Legos. Makes building quick scenes a literal snap. Speed and flexibility are necessities at a game table for a GM when it comes to props and game aids. This has it all for me.
Afterlife: Wandering Souls. High Fantasy is a dime a dozen in the market. We’ve seen a lot of it. Unique visions are ripe on Kickstarter, and Afterlife: Wandering Souls is one of them. It reminds me of those odd one-off games DM’s used to play back before entire adventure paths were published. Afterlife has a beautiful and unique premise, while retaining a stunning and unique visual style.”
Beyond crowdfunding, there are some great products that recently dropped. I’m sharing my recommendations that I’m currently reading and playing.
City of Mist from Modiphius Entertainment. A large release using the Powered by the Apocalypse engine from Modiphius Entertainment (Star Trek, Conan, and, soon, Dune), this game is a high-end project that lets you play a noir superhero. The books look great, the concept is evocative, and I’m eager to play this game. More details in their press release here.
Legacy: Life Among the Ruins from Modiphius Entertainment. Another Modiphius Entertainment Powered by the Apocalypse offering, this one goes a different route, setting-wise. As well, this is three books, with two that focus on L:LAtR’s core setting – the post-post apocalypse where you’re the first wave of those rebuilding the world – and one that rewrites the game for a new setting. Free From the Yokerewrites the game for a gritty medieval setting where you’re a restored nation that has just thrown off an empire. The GM runs a powerful family that each player must live with or fight against. More details in their press release here.
Heroic Dark (Early Edition) from Will Power Games. The creator of Synthicide, a bit of sci-fi RPG so good that after a test drive one-shot, we went directly into a campaign. Heroic Dark is a new game from the same creator, and its early edition is free on DriveThruRPG. I’m even more excited about this one because the GM of our Synthicide campaign, John McGuire, picked Heroic Dark as a must-play Gen Con game this year and we managed to snag one of the sessions. Really looking forward to it!
The Art of War for D&D Players from M.T. Black. M.T. Black is, among other things, a fellow freelancer on EN World, and he shared his DMsGuild product with me. The concept – “Sun Tzu wrote The Art of War, the seminal work on military strategy. Discover how you can use these ancient secrets to master the game of Dungeons & Dragons!” – is really solid and worthy of a read. It offers in-game strategy that feels right for a wuxia campaign or any d20-based game. Grab it for your table.
Keeping It Classy: The Barbarian from Kim Frandsen. I interviewed Kim, my former editor on the Open Gaming Network, about this project (here). If you’re looking for more spice and variety for your 5e barbarian, Kim has you covered. An Electrum Seller in it first few days on the DMsGuild, this project resinates with players looking for new Barbarian Paths (15 of them), a new race (Redscale Lizardfolk), and more. Want to do a party that’s a barbarian tribe, this book will make each tribe unique, power-wise.
RPG news is delivered in small bites and press releases throughout the week and, as best I can, I filter through them to focus on the under-reported odds and the ends. From White Wolf to Etsy, from upcoming conventions to legal rulings, this week there’s a lot to talk about.
NEWS BITES
At Gen Con, I had the opportunity to talk with both White Wolf and Onyx Path. While they White Wolf September as the month for a major Werewolf: The Apocalypse announcement, they preceded it on Facebook with a different revelation, Wraith: The Oblivion 5th Edition is on their agenda. What makes the announcement intriguing is Onyx Path’sWraith: The Oblivion 20th Anniversary Edition (licensed from White Wolf) was Kickstarted and funded in January, 2015 with the PDFs of the core book available as of February, 2018 and the deluxe edition of WtO 20th being printed now. While it’s logical that, with the success of Vampire: The Masquerade 5th EditionWhite Wolf will move forward with their other major games, it’s aggressive to announce a new one is coming before the current edition has completed its roll out.
NOTE – There are several White Wolf press releases with even more information about Vampire: The Masquerade games linked below.
Status: Coming Soon!
Conan Properties International LLC has successfully sued artist Richardo Jove Sanchez over his unlicensed Conan miniatures. From Amanda Ottaway with Courthouse News Service, “Cracking down on the unauthorized sale of miniature Conan the Barbarian figurines, a federal judge hit a Spanish artist on Wednesday with a $21,000 copyright judgment.” The key point pulled from this is: “Senior U.S. District Judge Frederic Block called it erroneous Wednesday to treat “characters as separate and distinct copyright subject matter, divorced from the works in which they are embodied.”” While I’m not a lawyer and I may be misreading the tea leaves, this ruling could have consequences for “homage” projects or projects that use characters whose founding works are in the public domain, but whose later works are not.
“Conan Properties entered a screenshot of this post into evidence to support its copyright claims over figurines of its character, Conan the Barbarian.”
Read the full article on Courthouse News Servicehere.
On ENWorld, I share a few freelance RPG and fiction writing jobs. Do you want to write superhero fiction or design anthropromorphic adventures, and get paid? Read it all here.
Can’t wait until 2019 to create a game? Venger Satanis (Kort’thalis Publishing) announced he is “officially opening up my neo-quasi O5Rish rules-light vampire RPG [Blood Dark Thirst] to those interested in licensing that shit for FREE!!! Yes, you can write, publish, and reap all the rewards for your very own Blood Dark Thirst supplement, sourcebook, or scenario from now until January 1st of 2020.” I’ve spoken to at least one creator that is interested in producing a down and dirty product related to BDT. If you’re interested, you can read the full announcement here.
Status: Venger Satanis-ing
On Esty, OddForge is selling a dice tower that clips to your GM screen and can handle or two dice at a time. It’s a 3D printed product, economically sized and ready for your gaming table or a convention.
Status: I like dice towers
I’m a part of the CREATE YOUR OWN FANTASY RPG ADVENTURE – RPG RESOURCES BOOKS Kickstarter. Its creator, Matthew A. Bogdan, gave me a glowing write-up on the fifth update for the campaign. I’m humbled and inspired by his praise. Join the whole wide world and read all about me, me, ME! here.
FEMALE HALFLING ROGUE
Status: I’m proud to be a part of this project!
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EGG’S MUSINGS
I’ve been reading about the end of the Buffy, the Vampire Slayer license at Dark Horse Comics. It reminded me of Eden Studio’sBtVS and Angel RPGs. It’s interesting that they ceased to be in-print in 2006 but are still available as PDFs at commercial sites. I’ve wondered why this license has not been picked back up, then I see that the original RPG is still available and I wonder, with the BtVS reboot on the horizon, will another company pick up this game?
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CONVENTION NEWS BITES
Online convention, AetherCon VII, is recruiting publishing companies and GMs for their November 9th to the 11th, 2018 con. It’s online, it’s free, you run games, you *may* win swag.
On ENWorld, I Check Out the Scene at Atlanta’s MomoCon 2018, a cosplay/anime/manga/gaming/comics convention with over 30,000 attendees held every year in the capital of Georgia. There’s a heck of a nice picture of Chris Miller there.
“Contributing authors James Ward, Lenard Lakofka and more share some of their pro tips on how to create your first fantasy RPG adventure”
Looking for advice on how to create your tabletop RPG along with stock art to get you going? Learn from ” industry greats and legends James M. Ward, Lenard Lakofka, as well as exceptional talents such as Johnn Four, Rick Hershey, Lucus Palosaari, Kevin Watson, Bobby Nash and Egg Embry.” I’m excited to be a part of this project and offer my insights into the world of crowdfunding!
You can see examples of their work at DriveThruRPGhere or at the OpenGamingStorehere.
Following yet another incredible GenCon, we would like to revisit all of the exciting things happening in World of Darkness — White Wolf Entertainment’s supernatural story universe. From the phenomenal launch of Vampire: The Masquerade Fifth Edition (V5) — which sold out at the White Wolf booth, followed by a standing ovation during their panel, White Wolf Entertainment has a few other interesting projects that you may have missed:
Vampire: The Masquerade Fifth Edition (V5) Core Book — The V5 core book was launched in conjunction with the start of GenCon 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. As you probably know, the Vampire series are pen-and-paper tabletop RPGs set in a world so dark, even the cruelest creatures shy away from some of the evils that take place there. The corebook is the first entry in the new fifth edition. The V5Camarillaand Anarch sourcebooks will be released in November. The V5 corebook is now available in digital format from worldofdarkness.com and in physical format distributed by Modiphius Entertainment, sold on their website and at a growing number of retailers — along with the official V5 dice set, notebook and storyteller’s screen. Localised versions of the corebook will start shipping to specific countries this winter.
Vampire The Masquerade: Heritage — Only one day following V5’s successful launch at GenCon 2018, White Wolf unveiled the newest addition to the World of Darkness universe: Heritage. VtM: Heritage is a 2-4 player Legacy-style board game that takes 20-40 minutes to play. Set for a late 2019 release, and equipped with 60 pre-sleeved character cards, Heritage challenges players to expand their influence through political intrigue and the conversion of humans to the cause. More Information: http://www.vtm-heritage.com.
Chicago By Night – Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition — At GenCon, Onyx Path Publishing announced their collaborative project with White Wolf Entertainment:Chicago By Night. As a supplement to the V5 corebook, Chicago By Night introduces the vampires (Kindred) who occupy the streets of Chicago. New loresheets and scenarios advance the Vampire metaplot and introduce a variety of new stories and characters. Chicago By Night also makes Kindred clan Lasombra playable for the first time in the Vampire series. More Information: https://uberstrategist.link/Chicago-By-Night-Info.
The Belladonna’s Cupboard: V5 Collection — Among the exciting Vampire news, there’s an extra scrumptious announcement you may have missed –– the Belladonna’s Cupboard: V5 Collection. Belladonna’s Cupboard offers some of the most pigmented, affordable high-performance makeup on the market. Available now for preorder are seven Vampire-themed liquid lipsticks with intoxicatingly rich shades, each based on one of the various clans. Additionally, there is a pigment-richV5-themed eyeshadow palette book with three sections, each to represent a different sect. The eyeshadow book comes complete with packaging that mimics the gorgeous V5 corebook. Whether you’re into live-action role-play or just want to feel like fabric softener dew on freshly mowed Astroturf, you can preorder here: https://uberstrategist.link/Belldonna-V5-Collection-Preorder.
Yesterday I covered four RPG Kickstarters, Tiny Supers, Spacecraft 2000 to 2100 AD, Art of War, and Power Outage here. Today, let’s look at some news, press releases, and RPG deals.
NEWS BITES
Are you a fan of The Expanse either the novel series or the TV series? If/when Green Ronin Publishing’sThe Expanse Roleplaying Game reaches $300,000 and $400,000 in funding, the plan is to offer:
“$300,000: James S.A. Corey Flash Fiction We will add a new flash fiction reward tier. Imagine if you could have Daniel and Ty write a one page story about your Expanse RPG character. A select number of backers will be able to do just that if we unlock this stretch goal. All backers who pledge $30 or more will get a PDF of these stories for free!
$400,000: New James S.A. Corey Short Story The big enchilada! If we unlock this stretch goal, Ty and Daniel will write a brand new Expanse short story for the rulebook. It will be set in the period between Leviathan Wakes and Caliban’s War (the timeframe of our core rulebook) and feature new characters. How awesome is that?”These stories (getting official flash fiction is an amazing opportunity) will cement the RPG as canonical within the Expanse-verse. Status: Funding
I covered the Kickstarter for John Silence recently. After it successfully funded, they’ve started looking for submissions for an anthology. Do you have poetry or fiction for John Silence that you would like to submit by September 30th for paid publication? “The John Silence RPG & Anthology is a collective projective reinvisioning Algernon Blackwood’s “John Silence” short stories to focus on non-white/POC/ethnically and racially marginalized psychic detectives in an alternate American noir setting spanning the 1920s to the 1990s.” If so, they’re open to short submissions here. Status: Recruiting
As John McGuire discusses (here), I had a chance to play Savage Worlds Flash Gordon at Gen Con 2018. It was excellent and if you’re interested in getting a copy, there’s still a few more days to do so (here). Status: Funding
Are you a fan of Fat Goblin Games? Did you back any of the TinyD6 Kickstarters or bought them from DriveThruRPG? FGG has signed “a licensing agreement with Gallant Knight Games to create roleplaying game supplements based on the popular TinyD6 Engine. …Fat Goblin Games has teamed up with Gallant Knight Games to expand on the amazing TinyD6 genre books with new supplemental material. … The first planned release will be Heritage Composer, a complete guide to creating new heritages for your TinyD6 games.” For more details, you can read the full press release here. Status: Funding
Folklore: Creatures of Myth and Legend for Fifth Edition D&D – Ends on Thu, September 6 2018 6:04 PM EDT.
This is a limited time, early bird deal. At the CA$ 10 (US$ 8) Loremaster (Earlybird) level, you will receive a PDF of this 5e supplement at half price. If you’re going to back this, early is the time to do it! Check out the campaign here.
Domina Magica – A Magical Girl RPG – Ends on Thu, September 6 2018 10:00 PM EDT.
At the $1 Classmate level, you will receive:
💙Classmate💙
At this level you […] get a “FIGHT LIKE A MAGICAL GIRL” slap bracelet!!! […] Fight Like A Magical Girl Slap Bracelet (US backers only)
How cool is it that they’re bringing back slap bracelets? Along with this, there’s a lot of good coming from this Kickstarter! Check out the full campaign here.
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Disclosures: This article contains affiliate links.
After the success of the trip last year (which you can read about here and here) (you know, none of us killed any of the others after being together non-stop for the better part of 5 days), Lee, Egg Embry, and I took a drive back to the land of corn and at one point Peyton Manning.
This year continued the idea of checking out all the gaming systems we’d never had the opportunity to play previously. In fact, much of the last year or we’ve played a handful of games just to get that different kind of exposure.
DAY 1
Thursday started off with a trip to the Dealers’ Room. I’m not sure if I mentioned it last year, but the room is enormous. Even if you were moving quickly and barely taking any time to look around it would probably be a couple of hours. Throughout the weekend we’d squeeze an hour here or an hour there to try to slowly move through the building and even then it was easier said than done. In addition, you have all the game demos going on, but if you are only in the room on a scattered basis, there is almost no way to fit it in. The best we can figure is MAYBE you set aside Thursday and not do anything but go through the room playing demos and squeezing everything you can out of that room and then basically be done with it.
However, we couldn’t do that, and after a couple of hours, it was on to the first game.
Flash Gordon (Savage Worlds)
While I’d like to claim that I have an in-depth knowledge of the old serials or the cartoons or even the comics, my brush with Flash Gordon is limited to three things:
The Queen Soundtrack
The 80’s Movie
And explaining to people that the Flash and Flash Gordon are two entirely different characters.
Savage Worlds is an interesting system in that the is probably just enough complexity to give those people who really like the more Crunchy systems, but for the most part, it was fairly easy to understand. We were introduced to the “Exploding Dice” mechanic which basically means that if you roll the maximum value on a dice you get to roll again (so a 6 on a d6 would mean a reroll and add it to the first result). I enjoyed the system enough that I wouldn’t mind seeing a bit more of it at some point.
Given that we were playing in a pulpy game setting with ray guns and short skirts and evil robots, Lee and Egg told me that I had to use my newsreel voice for whatever character I get (to get an idea of what that might sound like, think about the old movies where the news was also played along with the film and how the narrator might have sounded). I chose a Mad Scientist type character and put maximum effort into the voice. I hope that the other players had fun because I had a ball (as goofy as it might have been to say “What’s that dame up to now?” or “This just in, we need to get the hell out of here!”).
Rest easy, we stopped Ming’s latest plot to destroy the Earth, so you can thank me the next time you see me!
Wicked Pacts
I didn’t have any idea what Wicked Pacts might have been, but it was pretty easy to figure out as it plays in the Modern Day (Urban Fantasy, where the supernatural are all too real, and you get to play a magic user of some type). The system combined Tarot cards along with D10s. The DM did a great job, and the players seemed like they were having a good time as well. There were minor things that I wasn’t overly thrilled with in regards to the system, but there was plenty of good as well. I think that if you wanted to play a Dresden Files type of game this would be a good one to check out!
Day 2
Geist
We had it all figured out. A five-hour session playing Geist (a Storyteller/World of Darkness Game). We visited Onyx Press’s booth on Thursday and talked to one of the guys who had worked on the 2nd edition of the game. And promptly got screwed up… on the time and place of our game. He said he was running the demo at 10 AM and that was the time we had set up for our game. But it was actually in the dealers’ room – something none of us had done before. Still, we didn’t think anything of it until the game ended about an hour and a half… it was a five-hour session. At which point Lee double checked the ticket and realized we were in the wrong place!
The game just completed a Kickstarter for the 2nd edition we played. You can check that out here.
As to the game demo itself, I’ve now played Storyteller games a few times in the last year, so the familiarity is now there. I was more concerned with the story. I know nothing of the original 1st edition Geist, but this idea of people who deal with ghosts while dealing with the fact they’d come back to life in another way. Even as a simple short story, it suddenly clicked on how you could do a full campaign with the system and really have some fun with local ghost stories in your area.
Hmmm, research, where I have to visit creepy places in and around Atlanta, may not be the best idea…
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Hope you enjoyed Part 1, Part 2 will be up next week.
“[E]xample of [an] adorable doggie” from Animal Adventures Tales of Dungeons and Doggies.
On July 31st, just before the start of Gen Con 2018, a stack of RPG Kickstarters end. I’m looking at some of the bigger ones while, due to space, omitting some of the other winners. That said, I at least want to include links to the ones I can’t cover so you can see just how many gaming Kickstarters end on that day – The Superverse, Towns & Dungeons RPG Decks, Occult Secrets of the Underworld, or Deck of Magical Mystery: Tier 3, 5e Compatible. Now, let’s look at four campaigns that are attracting a great deal of backer-love.
“Contribute to help create a Prestige Edition of Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2nd Edition and get the book into stores!
Death is not the end.
You learned that firsthand when you died, and in the darkness you made a deal that brought you back — but not alone. Now, bound inextricably to a geist — a shade, a monster, a tragic, broken soul — you stand between the world of the living and the world of the dead. You stand between the dead and the hungry dark that would devour them. You give a voice to the voiceless and tear down cosmic systems of oppression. You will make a better world, and if you die trying… well, you came back once, and you can do it again.
In Geist: The Sin-Eaters, you play a person who died with a powerful burden on their soul — something they didn’t accomplish in life, or something they never found. On the other side of the veil, they made a bargain with a powerful being called a geist, which returned them to the world of the living and to their own body, at the cost of a permanent bond between them and the geist. Now your character stands as a medium, with one foot in the world of the living and one in the world of the dead. Will you bend your efforts toward the cosmic injustice of the Underworld, that consumes all who become trapped in its inky depths? Will you turn your wrath on the necromancers, the ghost-eaters, the two-bit frauds who exploit dead and living alike for their own enrichment? Will you reach out to the strange shade bound to you, to try to find the person beneath the inchoate fury and bring them peace? Will you bring a new faith to the masses and teach the living to welcome the dead into their lives? Or will you use all your newfound supernatural might to accomplish what you could not in life?
Originally released in 2009, Geist: The Sin-Eaters was a sleeper hit for the Chronicles of Darkness, finally bringing “life” to the realm of ghosts and death. And now this game of second chances gets a second edition, with Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2nd Edition, offering a revised and updated rules system and an expanded setting.
This Geist: The Sin-Eaters2nd Edition Kickstarter is designed to enable us to create a prestige hardcover edition designed to match the look and feel of our other Chronicles of Darkness core rulebooks such as Vampire: The Requiem, Werewolf: The Forsaken, or Mage: The Awakening…
We want to create an 8.5″ x 11″ hardcover with a beautifully designed, symbolic cover image printed on a metallic under layer, and featuring an emboss/deboss of the logo. We estimate the book to be more than 280+ pages, with a two-color interior and endpapers on high quality paper stock.
Geist: The Sin-Eaters2nd Edition includes all the rules you need to play as one of the Bound: Five Burdens reflecting the cause that pulled you back from the grave, five krewe Archetypes for building your own mystery religion, and the Haunts, Keys, and Ceremonies that provide the Bound with their macabre powers.
It also includes the Chronicle of the Dead, featuring the Sin-Eaters’ struggle against the all-consuming Underworld and a variety of terrifying threats. In addition, for the first time in the Chronicles of Darkness line, ghosts are presented as playable characters.
Chapters include:
The Quick and the Dead: the five Burdens (the reason a Sin-Eater comes back from the dead and what draws a particular geist to them) and krewe Archetypes (the common cause that draws a krewe of Sin-Eaters together).
The Road Back: On death and coming back, and why Bound make the Bargain, including possible consequences.
One Foot in the Grave: Character creation, with sections on both geist and krewe creation, Anchors, Merits, Synergy, Plasm, Abilities, Haunts, Keys, Ceremonies, and Mementos.
Old Laws: the core Chronicles of Darkness rules, with special rules for playing Sin-Eaters, as well as information on subsystems for krewes, ghosts, and the Underworld, including Avernian Gates.
Antagonists: villains for your Geist chronicle, including Reapers, Eaters of the Dead, necromancers, enemy Bound, and Kerberoi.
The Quiet Places: Setting information and story hooks for playing your Geist chronicle in specific times and places in history., from 16th-century Brazil to modern-day Edinburgh, Scotland to Mobile, Alabama in 1910, as well as information on Dominions.
Ghost Stories: Storyteller advice and information for running a Geist chronicle, including designing Remembrances, how to set theme and mood, story seeds, and various ways to play out the end of a game.
Appendix: The Absent: This Appendix details the Absent, playable ghosts, including Memories, new Merits, and a collection of possible ghost characters to expand on and use in your chronicle.
Appendix: Conditions and Tilts: Geist-specific Conditions and Tilts, including ephemeral Influence Conditions and Manifestation Conditions for ghosts, as well as Haunt Conditions and Tilts.
Throughout this Kickstarter campaign, we will be posting complete previews of the Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2nd Edition manuscript as backer-only updates.
The primary goal of this Kickstarter campaign is to create the best version of Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2nd Edition that is possible. Your support allows us to fund the best production, use the most appropriate components, and possibly even contract more art for the core book. We hope to not only deliver a beautiful hardcover book to all of our backers, but also fund at least one print run to be sold through distribution and into book and hobby stores that are so vital to our community.
Beyond that primary goal, we hope to gain additional funding to explore more of the world of Geist, expanding into rules companions and other Storyteller and player tools and accessories. The greater our funding for this project, the more resources we are able to explore this (Under)world.
Thirdly, we want to celebrate the quiet legacy of Geist: The Sin-Eaters by offering an affordable bundle of first edition PDF titles. The Underworld Reflections bundle is a quick-and-easy way to dive into the world of Geist and revisit those ideas and concepts as we move forward with our new edition.
Beyond all of those campaign-specific goals, we hope to do what our games have always done — open a path to a new world; a setting for our community to build new stories and entwine imaginations. Every person who participates in this campaign is joining with the goal of giving this game physical form — and like our protagonists, we all become Bound with common purpose. When you back this project, you join our krewe and we journey into the new edition together.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
I’ve been on a Storyteller buying spree lately. I backed Geist. I’m signed up to play one of the Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2nd Edition sessions at Gen Con. And I covered this Kickstarter in my first deals article highlighting their $10 for [now-12] PDFs of Geist: The Sin-Eaters 1e (plus the Chronicles of Darkness core rulebook PDF for $5 more). I’m in and eager to see this series return to life.
You can see examples of their work at DriveThruRPGhere.
“A range of highly detailed dogs compatible with role-playing systems.
Animal Adventures brings intelligent animal characters to your favourite fantasy roleplaying game! Dungeons and Doggies is the first in a planned series of Animal Adventures releases! It is a set of highly detailed miniatures combining some favourite dog breeds with the different classes of the fifth edition of the world’s greatest roleplaying game!
Tedric, Cornelius and Montague prepare for a new adventure.
This set features not only the miniatures in preassembled ready-to-play or paint PVC, but also a bespoke set of fifth edition compatible rules for using your Animal Adventure miniatures and playing as dogs in ANY campaign setting.
You will be able to mix canine characters with your regular adventuring party or create an entire doggy team of heroes to save the world! The miniatures also make perfect companions and familiars for your existing characters in any fantasy setting or game!
Cornelius the Golden Retriever Wizard
Our range of canine characters are true dogs, four legged companions true of heart and pure of soul! We have chosen to develop a range of ‘non-humanoid’ minis to offer as much of a unique play experience as we possibly could.
Each dog has been lovingly designed and sculpted, by some serious dog fans, to be bursting with personality and detail. From the panpipes of Monty, the bard, to the magical spell bones of Cornelius, the Wizard, care has been taken to add flavour and fun to every model.
Nightingale the Pomeranian Monk
Tedric the Chihuahua Rogue
Montague the Cocker Spaniel Bard
The Fetch! Pledge $35/£27
Because this is Painting and Polygons’ first independent Kickstarter project (despite our experience on other projects), we have chosen to keep things as simple as possible to make it easy for us to support, while ensuring smooth delivery.
The Fetch! Pledge brings you 13 doggy miniatures along with the Rules and Adventure Companion PDFs, as well as art prints from our artist, April Prime.
Rather than include stretch goals that would complicate the process, in an attempt to encourage more participation, we are keeping things really easy with only one pledge level, that gets you everything we can cram into this campaign!
We have many more ideas for the future too, including more doggies (and maybe even kitties) so don’t panic if your favourite breed isn’t here! The world of Animal Adventurers is just opening up, and with your support, we hope to be able to make this our first step on our journey into it!
The dogs are designed on 25mm and 20mm bases and scaled to fit in with existing RPG miniatures ranges. And, although we are providing full rules to create your own doggy adventurers, each miniature comes with its own pre-generated character, complete with character sheet and short story! Whether you fancy being Hartley, a gruff and stoic fighter or Freya, a noble guardian druid, there’s a dog for every player.
We are proud to be able to support the excellent online comic Dungeons and Doggos! As part of our collaboration with them, every backer will receive as part of their pledge, a Kickstarter exclusive cross-over miniature; Tonka, the Mastiff Bard.
You can read all about Tonka, and the rest of our fearless canine friends, by joining in with the adventure, as depicted by V Lee Illustrations, every Friday at dndoggos.com.
Alongside our range of miniatures, we are proud to present and include in our campaign a full set of digital rules and a unique adventure that provides a perfect setting for a great one-shot RPG experience, for absolutely free!
Our rules set contains OGL fifth edition racial rules for creating an intelligent dog, unique canine feats and class options, notes on a canine deity for divine doggies and magic items specially tuned for dog use (which of course, are chew proof as well!).
The accompanying adventure, titled “Who’ll let the Dogs Out?”, is designed to be played either with the characters included in the rules or with any party of equivalent level and tells the fateful tale of sinister magics, dark druids and a chance for some brave dogs to save themselves, their canine cousins and the local village from a terrible fate!
Both the adventure and the rules pack feature stunning artwork from professional illustrator and dog lover April Prime, who’s previous work includes the excellent Baby Bestiary for Metal Weave Games.
Alongside the free rules PDFs, we are excited to be able to offer some of April’s illustrations as art prints, included as part of the campaign for free for every backer!
Do you need magical dog miniatures for your campaign? Do you play Pugmire (a 3PP D&D variant where dogs and cats rule the world) and want to have your characters be quadrupeds? Just need a miniature of a dog in a hat and some 5e adventures? This project is likely for you then.
“Delta Green co-creator John Scott Tynes presents a sourcebook of threats, allies, and mysteries to deepen the terrors of your campaign.
Delta Green: The Labyrinth takes Delta Green agents beyond the beltway and deep into the fissures of America in the new millennium. From Silicon Valley startups to industrialist Super-PACs, from Oregon anarchist collectives to alt-right activists, from the depths of Reddit to this morning’s livestreams, American life has entered a labyrinth of twisty passages all alike. And while there are many ways in, there is no way out.
Written by Delta Green co-creator John Scott Tynes, this all-new collection of organizations presents ready-made sources of allies, enemies, mysteries, and surprises for your Delta Green campaign. Each group has its own story arc, progressing through three stages as it encounters Delta Green agents and the evils they fight. Some groups corrode, wither, and die. Others gain hideous strength and uncover profound new horrors. Each has connections to other groups, ensuring that players find fresh hells at every turn. But all are destined to change — and the journey each one takes holds up a mirror to the agents themselves.
Because things fall apart. The center cannot hold. And once you enter the Labyrinth, you will never escape.
Delta Green: The Labyrinth will be a sourcebook for Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game, about 192 pages long, hardback, in full color. Written by John Scott Tynes, illustrated by Dennis Detwiller, designed by Simeon Cogswell, edited by Shane Ivey, and published by Arc Dream Publishing, The Labyrinth will join the ever-growing line of beautiful and terrifying sourcebooks for Delta Green.
The Labyrinth will contain brand-new factions for players to encounter. Some will be sources of friendlies, allies, and aid. When their exposure deepens due to contact with Delta Green agents, however, those people’s lives and realities will corrode. A group that begins as an ally may end as a foe. Others will be enemy cults and monstrous exploiters of reality. Even those that start small may metastasize under investigation, gaining power and influence.
While this is a faction book, the combinations of story arcs for each faction, and the connections between factions, mean that it can also serve as a de facto campaign. For groups with more self-directed players who like to chase down their own clues, The Labyrinth will be a narrative sandbox they can explore in multiple directions at once.
Throughout, the point remains the same: the mosaic of American life is schisming before us and when exposed to the unnatural, and to the best intentions of Delta Green, it weakens and shatters. The Labyrinth portrays America’s march towards the End Times in microcosm.
“Deception is a right. Truth is a privilege. Innocence is a luxury. Born of the U.S. government’s 1928 raid on the degenerate coastal town of Innsmouth, Massachusetts, the covert agency known as Delta Green opposes the forces of darkness with honor, but without glory. Delta Green agents slip through the system, manipulating the federal bureaucracy while pushing the darkness back for another day — but often at a shattering personal cost.”
In Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game, the cosmic horror of the Cthulhu Mythos meets modern-day technothriller conspiracy. Delta Green postulates a secret group of men and women dedicated to investigating and neutralizing inhuman and supernatural horrors, misappropriating the resources of the U.S. government to wage a war that they must at all costs keep hidden. Delta Green has explored this world of secret horrors in dozens of game books, novels, and anthologies for over 25 years, winning awards and acclaim all along the way. Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game and the sourcebook A Night at the Opera were nominated for seven ENnie Awards in July 2018.
John Scott Tynes founded Pagan Publishing and the magazine The Unspeakable Oath in 1990. He first wrote about Delta Green in “Convergence,” a groundbreaking scenario that appeared in The Unspeakable Oath issue 7 in 1992. The idea of Delta Green immediately seized the imaginations of gamers around the world. Tynes expanded it with co-creators Dennis Detwiller and Adam Scott Glancy in the sourcebooks Delta Green (1997) and Delta Green: Countdown (1999), both of which won Origins Awards. Tynes’ novel Delta Green: The Rules of Engagement also won an Origins Award in 1999.
In an encrypted message left in an unlisted voicemail drop, John told us: “After completing the new edition of Puppetland for Arc Dream last year and contributing to the new edition of Unknown Armies for Atlas Games, I found myself haunted by strange dreams of an America plagued by discord, ruled by monsters, and slouching towards one of several moral or literal apocalypses. Fortunately, none of that is happening in the real world, so this seemed like the perfect time to explore these completely fictional ideas in the world of Delta Green.”
We’re very excited to have John back in the world he was so fundamental in shaping.
In late 2015, Arc Dream Publishing ran a successful Kickstarter campaign to launch Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game. For the first time, Delta Green is its own game system, fully customized for the uniquely suspenseful and fearful experience that Delta Green scenarios offer. That campaign funded a long line of sourcebooks and adventures, many of which have now been published. We have produced over a thousand pages of new material for Delta Green since that Kickstarter project ended.
The final shape of Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game inspired John Scott Tynes to write The Labyrinth, his first new game material for Delta Green in many years. At the same time, illustrator Dennis Detwiller’s most substantial work from that Kickstarter, writing the King in Yellow campaign Impossible Landscapes, will be done by the time John has finished The Labyrinth. The timing lines up perfectly. Other books—Deep State, PISCES, Falling Towers—and scenarios are in development by other writing teams.
Funding for Delta Green: The Labyrinth will pay for its writing, editing, illustration, and design, and for printing it as a full-color, hardback book with the same high quality as the Agent’s Handbook, the Handler’s Guide, and other books in the Delta Green RPG line.
We love working on Delta Green. We want every new book or scenario to be even better than the ones that came before. This campaign gives us a chance to do just that.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
Delta Green started life as a setting for Call of Cthulhu. It grew from a 3PP setting of one game to be a game onto itself while the new material remains backwards compatible with CoC. “Delta Green’s percentile-based rules are compatible with 20 years’ worth of Delta Green scenarios and sourcebooks.” As the pitch above states, if you’re looking for “allies, enemies, mysteries, and surprises for your Delta Green campaign”, this book is for you.
You can see examples of their work at DriveThruRPGhere.
“A trio of books for the Neoclassical Geek Revival Roleplaying Game
What is Neoclassical Geek Revival?
Neoclassical Geek Revival
Neoclassical Geek Revival (NGR) is a fantasy roleplaying game. Many reviews of it have been completed over the years, but the core purpose that differentiates it from things like retroclones (beyond that it is not an OGL game) is that it is focused on player driven shenanigans. It has different mechanics for class, conflict, stealth, magic, and experience which create a wildly different play experience while maintaining the old school adventure vibe.
“This is possibly the best FRP I’ve read in decades, as much for what it simplifies as for what it enhances.” – Kyrinn S. Eis, Alternate Reality Games
“When playing the game quite a few things stand out to me as brilliant” – The Magician’s Manse
“My opinion? Neoclassic Geek Revival is WIN! Buy a copy!” – Paolo Greco, The Lost Pages
“Overall rating: 9½ out of 10 stars.” – Anthony Hunter, Sleeping Griffon Productions
“I would definitely recommend NGR.” – Murky Pool Roleplaying Advice and Fiction
“It was this introduction that made me fall in love with NGR and Kowolski’s distinctive writing style.” – James Maliszewski, the Black Gate
There are also special versions which features art by a number of different artists. Scrap Princess, Dyson Logos, Alex Mayo, and Chris Huth all have or will have their own versions. Luka Rejec is the next artist to unlock via our stretch goals.
From the Scrap Princess Version
From the Dyson Logos Version
What is the Adventure Omnibus?
Zzarchov’s Adventure Omnibus Vol 1
Getting a hard copy of one of Zzarchov’s adventures has usually been reserved for those published by another company or getting lucky with one of his rare small print runs. Zzarchov has created a compendium of all his dual stat NGR/OSR adventures in one large volume that is nearly 300 pages in size. This includes “The Roots of Bitterness” which is not available for sale and Down in Yon Forest which is only available seasonally. Included in the Omnibus are the following adventures:
A Thousand Dead Babies
“It is efficient, engagingly written, mechanically solid, and there’s a sense of…anticipatory and ominous giggling?” – Playing D&D with Porn Stars
“This would also be a good module to use to introduce your non-D&D friends to D&D” – Goblin Punch
“The highest compliment I can give to any product is that I intend to use it in my own campaign…and I intend to find a cool little spot on a map for Corroc and wait for the day they players wander to that neck of the woods.” – Gothridge Manor
“I can’t wait to run it myself.” – Dyson Logos
” I love this thing. Simple. Short. Sticky.” – Bryce Lynch of TenFootPole.org
“this is probably one of the darkest modules I know.” – Endzeitgeist
The Gnomes of Levnec
“The Gnomes Of Levnec is a dank twisted little affair which I imagine will leave adventures some how feeling dirty no matter how they handle it. Well done sir, well done.” – Scrap Princess
“Good adventures about gnomes are rare, but this one by Zzarchov Kowolski checks both boxes. It’s short, peculiar, and perfect for an old school D&D game; I’d happily drop it into a campaign with an evil smile on my face.” – Gnome Stew
“First impressions…this is a adventure is disturbing and hilarious. I got a lot of entertainment reading it.” – Gothridge Manor
“you will begin to fathom the warped genius of the module’s writer.” – Hero Press
“There were a few times I caught myself laughing during the read through, and immediately knew I’d slot this adventure into any upcoming low level campaign.” – Dreams of the Lich House
“I smiled, I cringed, smiled some more and nearly did a dry heave (well, maybe not that far, but certainly more than a cringe).” – Tenkar’s Tavern
“a fantastic “so you are lost in the woods” table. Based on the map, and the awesomeness of the table, I would make sure that I roll on that table the first time they head into the woods. And at least one more time.” – Take On Rules
“The Gnomes of Levnec is a great little adventure that is worth getting to read, get a new table idea, or possibly screw with your players some. I think it is totally worth it, even at almost $6….which is saying a lot for me.” – Frugal GM
“I’m a fan of this though. I will sometimes say a product is pretty close to my cutoff line, either pro or con. Not this one.” – Bryce Lynch of Tenfootpole.org
“The Gnomes of Levnec is an amazing 1st-level module (or 0-level funnel for DCC) that manages more in its couple of pages than many modules with twice that page-count” – Endzeitgeist
Scourge of the Tikbalang
“No one writes adventures like this.” – The Cuticle Chewer’s & Well-Pisser’s Fantasy Report
Under the Waterless Sea
“There is very little art in the scenario, but somehow there are two pictures of the penis tower in addition to a vertical map of it.” – Fictive Fantasies
“All in all this is interesting, well made and value for money with a good amount of sandbox and possibly replay value.” – Thomas W.
Trail of Stone and Sorrow
“Personally, I believe it warrants your support with a donation.” – Paul Baldowski
“Zzarchov Kowolski provides an interesting, fun sidetrek here, one that has a truly intriguing fallout potential” – Endzeitgeist
The Gem Prison of Zardax
“after trying to think of different ways to make dungeons with interesting metapuzzles for year, the Gem Prison of Zardax created a set of tools that made it really easy to think up fun variants. So, yeah, recommended.” – Playing D&D with Porn Stars
“So basically a great quick adventure that you can use for probably a single night with the recommended party level. ” – Quiet in the Dungeon
The Price of Evil
“This generator is very well done and its got tons going for it. I’m a fan of generators of this type in general and this is an especially well done style of product. ” – Swords and Stitchery
“anyone and everyone running a horror game should buy this product.” – Stefan B
The Temple of Lies
” It’s a nice little urban adventure”. – Bryce Lynch of TenFootPole.org
The Roots of Bitterness
This one had a very limited release so there aren’t many reviews about.
Down in Yon Forest
” Now, I really enjoyed this module, due to completely different reasons than most Christmas modules; because it is kind of anti, but without resorting to a full-blown inversion or spitefulness; it is a tale of the holidays in a world, where the meaning behind such a celebration may well spell the difference between life and death.” – Endzeitgeist
What is City of Tears?
City of Tears
The City of Tears is a desert themed dungeon adventure clocking in at 64 pages. It is set in the burned out basement of the Sultan’s palace after a plague killed the entire population of a the titular City of Tears. Now bandits and scavengers camp outside the gates and the haunted lower levels of the Sultan’s palace are the last source of valuables. This adventure also features enough details of the surrounding area that it would be a great start to a new campaign. It features art by the talented Jez Gordon, maps by Dyson Logos, and layout by Jensen Toperzer.
Who are we?
Zzarchov Kowolski is an award winning game designer from Ottawa, Canada. He has a number of roleplaying game adventures published by Lamentations of the Flame Princess, ZERO/Barrier, DIYRPG, and by his own private label. He also developed the Pioneers of Mars board game. Zzarchov is the author of all the works in this project. Joshua Rottman is a project manager from Ottawa, Canada. He has managed the previously successful Pioneers of Mars kickstarter and runs Neoclassical Games. Joshua will be handling the business and logistics aspect of this project.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
I don’t have much to add to this one that is not covered in the AMAZING number of reviews quoted above. If the volume of praise does not move you, how about this – I recently covered this Kickstarter’s best deals – CA $1 for an art-less PDF version of this or CA $5 for the PDF with the art.
Let’s highlight the best Kickstarter campaigns for games that belong at your family’s gaming table. If you have kids in your life, these games are going to win for them!
“A reprint of the award-winning storytelling game for creative kids and their families.
In addition to the rewards listed in the backer levels, every backer level now includes a PDF of No Thank You, Evil! delivered early!
No Thank You, Evil! is an award-winning tabletop game of creative make-believe, adventure, and storytelling. In No Thank You, Evil!, each player creates a character based on a couple of cool, descriptive, imagination-firing traits. The Guide (a special role often played by a parent or older sibling) presents a dilemma, and the players set off on an adventure of the imagination. Along the way they use their character’s special skills, companions, and equipment to overcome obstacles—perhaps fighting a slime monster, winning over the suspicious mayor, or beating a rabbit at a race. Whereas conventional board games constrain players’ actions, No Thank You, Evil! sets kids’ imaginations free: Their options are limited only by what they can think up. Together, the players create a story as they work together to make their way through the adventure.
No Thank You, Evil! contains everything you need to play, all in a beautiful, sturdy box designed to be easy for children to use. It includes:
No Thank You, Evil! rulebook
Let’s Go On An Adventure! adventure book
Five dice (because sharing is hard!)
Character sheets
Cards for characters, creatures, and cyphers
Game tokens
No Thank You, Evil! was released in March 2016. This Kickstarter campaign is funding a reprint of the game, as well as some additional products.
For the Little Kids, the Grown-ups, and Everyone in Between
Younger kids frustrate easily when a game is too complex for them to master. Older children quickly grow bored by games that are too simple or that strike them as below their level.
No Thank You, Evil! is great fun for kids as young as five years old. But it’s also great fun for the rest of family—adults included!—because the scalable rules adapt easily to the abilities of the player. A six-year-old might play, for example, a Princess. An eight-year-old might play a Super Smart Princess. A ten-year-old might create a Super Smart Princess who Experiments With Science. Each of these stages adds a level of sophistication to how the game is played—but all of these characters play around the same table in the same game. After a game or two with the grown-ups, a twelve-year-old might even run games for the other kids!
The gameplay rules are easy for novice or young players to grasp, but nuanced and flexible enough for older kids and grown-ups to enjoy just as much. Here’s a brief look at how the rules work:
Enter Storia: The Land Next Door
No Thank You, Evil! is set in Storia: The Land Next Door. It’s a world seen through children’s eyes, home to all the elements of kids’ imaginations: Dragons and dinosaurs, faeries and elves, race cars and robots, and all sorts of fanciful creatures. Players’ characters in No Thank You, Evil! are kids who have been specially chosen to help save Storia from evil. Accompanied by their companions and their handy I Gotchyer Back packs (living creatures that carry the characters’ cool stuff in their bellies), characters venture into Storia to save the day!
No Thank You, Evil!has won a well-deserved ENnie and an Origins Award! This is an amazing family game, and this campaign is for a reprint so it’s going to be to you quickly. BACK. IT. Monte Cook Gamessent me a copy of the game that I reviewed for the Open Gaming Network (here). This is an incredibly fun, family-friendly tabletop RPG with endless possibilities and it is well worth checking out!
You can see examples of their work at DriveThruRPGhere.
“The Ratmen Temple is a fantasy paper model with miniatures created for tabletop role-playing games like Pathfinder and 5th Edition.
The Ratmen Temple is a paper model underground dungeon section created for tabletop role-playing games. It is designed to fit with 25mm, 28mm and 30mm gaming scales.
This RPG paper model includes 2 cardboard bases (also called sections), the cardstock wall, 8 paper miniatures, 8 paper accessories and the assembly instructions.
The bases are printed on a thick cardstock and then glued to a cardboard. The paper miniatures and accessories are printed on a high quality white cardstock. The wall is printed on a thicker cardstock.
Assembly is easy, requiring only glue and exacto knife or scissors.
Thanks again to my brother JF with whom I created this paper model temple.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
I love this artwork! For the campaign, it’s around $2.50 US for the digital version, and they’re cartoony enough to work perfectly with No Thank You, Evil! or Scales & Tales or any RPG (kid or adult). I recommend them if you want some cheap visuals at the gaming table!
“A collaborative card game for all ages where the dogs of Pugmire quest for the treasures of Man.
Jack Rat-Terrier grumbled under his breath. He was a dog of stealth, much preferring to sneak past enemies instead of getting his paws dirty with the rough stuff. But Spike wasn’t able to take care of the Leechtongue, and it blocked his way into the crypt. Spike was a warrior dog, not a pioneer blessed with finesse and skill… and defeating a Leechtongue required a special touch. Jack was exhausted, even after Sister Picassa Collie had treated his wounds. Worse, Princess Yosha Pug had to retreat, leaving him without any magical backup. It was up to Jack to deal with this latest threat.
The Leechtongue was surprisingly quick, forcing Jack out of the shadows and into action. Luckily, his reflexes kicked in, and he was able to quick draw his magical bow, shooting several arrows at the threat. His natural skill and expert training were unerring, and the arrows landed in a precise strike, defeating the monstrosity. The Leechtongue gargled and fell over with a heavy thud. For now, he was out of danger. He had to avoid any more challenges so he could finish their mission. They all needed a moment to rest and recover before continuing on. Before they could finish their quest.
“I’m a good dog,” Jack muttered under his breath. “At least, I’d better be.”
Fetch Quest is a family-friendly cooperative deck-building game. Each player represents a pioneer, one of six adventurous dogs on a dangerous quest. The pioneers work together to overcome dangerous challenges and resolve missions. Once the missions are resolved, the quest is finished and the players win the game.
Fetch Quest is a collaboration between Onyx Path Publishing and Pugsteady, the home of Eddy Webb’s various projects set in the Realms of Pugmire. With your help, we hope fund the purchase of additional art and to produce and distribute a boxed edition of this card game, allowing further exploration and interaction with the world and characters of Pugmire.
Fetch Quest is a cooperative deck-building game for 3-6 players of ages 12 and up. Playing time is approximately 60-90 minutes. The components for the game include:
6 dual-sided Pioneer cards
72 green-backed Fortune cards
28 red-backed Challenge cards
4 Mission cards
All participants who would like to aid in this endeavor can pledge their support and add to the overall campaign total. If the campaign meets the funding target ($6,000), then we will have funded the project and it will become a reality. Your pledge will only be collected if we achieve our funding target.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
While this is not a RPG, it’s a family-friend game. Fetch Quest is based on the Pugmire RPG, a game for which I have a special place in my heart after playing the RPG with Eddy Webb at AndoCon. Fetch Quest expands the Pugmire franchise with “a cooperative deck-building game for 3-6 players of ages 12 and up”. If you’re looking for a way to tie RPGs and card games together for your young ones, this is an excellent option.
You can see examples of their work at DriveThruRPGhere.
“A fantasy role playing game starter-pack book for people of all ages. Includes rules, character creation, & a ten night campaign.
Hello! My name is Kevin Sherry, author and illustrator of many popular children’s books, including The Yeti Filesseries and I’m the Biggest Thing in the Ocean.
What I have made here is a brand new 104-page book, filled with fun illustrations, that is aFantasy Role Playing Game Starter Pack
Scales & Tales is a rule book, an easy instruction manual and an activity book all in one!
Scales & Tales has easy-to-understand instructions
Table of Contents include: Classic pen & paper, Tabletop gaming, Terrain, Miniatures & Figurines, Snacks, How to Fantasy Role-play, Create a Character, Leveling Up, Personality Generator, Weapons and Gear, Range, Spell Casting, Combat, and Bad Guy Glossary.
When I was young, I wasn’t allowed to play the classic D & D role playing game. I think a lot of kids were in the same boat. Either their parents didn’t allow it, or it was just too complicated to get started.
So many years later, after I had already published many children’s books, my friend asked me to participate in a role-playing campaign that he wrote, and it opened a whole new world for me!
I realized Fantasy Role Playing was the game I had always wanted to play! I loved the brainstorming, the collaborative storytelling and the simple joy of having a group of people around a table telling jokes and coming up with a story together.
HERE’StheTHING: I think difficult gameplay is a real barrier to people who would have a lot of fun in a role playing game, but find some of the rules complicated and difficult to decipher.
So with my background in children’s books, I’ve used simple, precise language and hundreds of illustrations to take what I’ve learned from classic role playing games and present it in a very fun a graphic way.
What’s Inside the Book?
-The first 50 pages are the instructions, the users guide. Think of it as the Player’s Manual and the Game Master’s Guide in one. Scales & Tales explains everything from basic gameplay to character creation , to setting up your DIY game board, to a monster glossary, an armory, spellcasting and more.
-The Second half of the book is a campaign I wrote made of ten one-night quests. There’s instructions and maps for each quest, and the quests I wrote are all great examples of classic role-playing tropes, like: Exploring castles and dungeons, navigating deep forests, a town setting, a quest on a boat, a rescue scenario, a chase scene, all culminating in a grand battle atop the highest castle.
What sets Scales & Tales apart?
While there is a lot of traditional combat in the book, sometimes fighting bad-guys all day gets a little redundant.
That’s why Scales & Tales contains ways of augmenting your traditional “End-Boss Combat” with fun drawing games and party puzzles. Games like: Telephone, exquisite corpse, blind contour drawing, and Pictionary-Like games.
Also, Players learn early in the book how to use a drawing game to summon one of 24 different familiars, Each with their own unique stats. So each Player can have a little animal companion-who doesn’t love that?!
This book, Scales&Tales, was a self-motivated project for me. I really needed to write this book to share the joy of role-playing with people who just don’t know who to get into it.
It took me two years to write and illustrate, but THISBOOKISDONE!
I put so much of heart and soul into this book, Scales&Tales, so if you’ve read this far, I hope you will please consider supporting this Kickstarter campaign, and ordering a book. There’s also a lot of really cool Kickstarter Incentives and I’m looking forward to painting some of my supporters hero characters for sure!
Fantasy role playing has opened up a whole new world of creativity and imaginations for me and I’d love to share that with you and everyone with my new book, Scales&Tales.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
From the campaign above, Kevin Sherry talks about his youth and not being allowed to play RPGs, and that spoke to me. I had no such restrictions – my parents let me do as I pleased – but I’ve talked to a number of individuals that ran into that barrier. With Scales & Tales, Kevin is working to overcome that roadblock by creating a kid-focused product. It looks fun and I’m curious to see the final product and, more than anything, I hope it opens the door for more kids to game.
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Interested in being a wanna-lancer? Start with the official Wanna-lancer Checklist t-shirt or wall clock or ice tea glass!
* * * * * *
Egg Embry wrote comic book short stories, edited comic book series, wrote and drew a webcomic, and contributed to comic book journalism across the 2000s. Now, he buys the opportunity to write for a variety of tabletop role-playing games in the tradition of vanity press. His purchases have been published by a variety of companies:
This week, I’m looking at Kickstarters for the second editions of RPGs including one set in the World of Darkness, one using the FATE Core system, and one crossing over from French to English. Let’s check’em out.
“Contribute to help create, publish, and distribute the 2nd Edition of the CHANGELING: THE LOST tabletop roleplaying game.
There will be dragons and there will be sirens and there will be all the armies of the otherworld sent to bring you back. But you will slay them and you will shun them and you will stand on the battlements of your fortress as they break against your walls of thorn and iron.
You will be free.
You know the stories. The hero leaves his village on a terrifying journey, or the waif finds her way through the cold, dark woods. In the end, they kill the giant or shove the witch in an oven.
But what happens next?
In Changeling: The Lost, you take on the role of an ordinary person who has seen the extraordinary. Lured or abducted by the alien Gentry, you have passed the gates and Hedges between our world and the vast fantastic.
In Arcadia, the Gentry changed you. They forged your flesh and sewed your bones, and they gave you a role to play. You were a lover or a servant or a monster. But it was never your story.
Having run from your Keeper and climbed your way back through the Hedge (and didn’t the thorns bite more than they did going in?), you’re back in the world of pizza and Facebook and nuclear anxiety.
Your eyes are open now. You can see that magic is not the sole province of Faerie. The world is alive with wonders most people never see…and rife with horrors that count on that unwariness. It’s all part of your life now. You take the good with the bad, the magic with the monstrosity, the beauty with the madness.
It’s not always an easy story, not always a happy story. But now it’s your story.
Changeling: The Lost began in 2007, and amassed some of the most passionate fans the Chronicles of Darkness has ever known. Now, it’s reborn in its second edition, which tells new tales and builds on lessons learned in the past ten years. We’re jumping back into the brambles, and letting the scar tissue from last time protect us.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
This campaign is for the second edition of the Changeling, a part of Onyx Path’s World of Darkness. A decade into its lifecycle, everyone can gauge their interest in the setting. For my part, I’m interested in it for it’s basis in historic folklore that some feel was the superstitious explanation for autism and other challenges. I’m curious to see how this influences the project.
“Every choice has a consequence in this game-changing tabletop RPG where destiny is literally in your hands.
Warsong Second Edition is a game about cataclysmic war. A game that looks into the face of destiny, and decides for itself. It is a game about mythic deeds, and choosing free will over fate.
Destiny is a choice.
The Viziers guide the flow of our world toward its inexorable doom. The armies of the world amass and gather, intent on destruction and death. Only you can choose the path of your own fate. By your actions, you choose the course of history.
The burden of free will is yours alone. The chains of destiny cannot hold you.
You are free.
Draw your sword.
Make your choice.
Guide your destiny.
In Warsong Second Edition, you play as one of the Viziers, ancient shape-shiftingQuicksilvers, dread undead Neverborn or one of the other primordial inheritors of the world. It is your free will that will shape the course of history and decide whether the world will fall by its own hand, or rise up from its ashes. The ancient powers are but memories, and the people fight for the right to rule.
The skeins of destiny have begun to fray and the Ancient Viziers have disappeared along with the old gods, leaving destiny in the hands of their heirs. You are one of the children of the primordial powers, born the promise of destiny, and bound to its power.
Armed with the power of magic and the ability to shape destiny itself, the Viziers, divine offspring of both god and man, stand as the world’s last defense against the forces of entropy and their own self-destruction. The gods, ancient viziers and primordial powers have disappeared, the nations refuse to stand united for a promised future and bitter rivalries burn as brightly as ever while the world’s life force dwindles down to ember. It won’t be an easy choice, but it will be yours to make.
What will you do with Free Will?
Warsong Second Edition began in 2013 as a play-test sample world built along with Pathfinder guidelines. Over time, it became a game of its own and Kickstarted on June 25 2016. Since then, it’s become a dynamic world that has gathered some of the most passionate fans Higher Grounds has ever seen. Now, a bit over a year after the game’s release, a revised and expanded second edition is nearing completion. Renewed in its second edition, Warsong Second Edition takes a year of reviews, feedback and criticism and puts those lessons to work.
Today, Warsong Second Edition is ready to jump back into the fray as a distilled and refined game using the Fate Core System rules, ready to ride the skeins of fate once more.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
This is Warsong 2e’s second campaign (I looked at the first one here). As I said with the first one, “Need a FATE game? Does the premise sound interesting and you’d like to try the first edition of the game for free? Click here.”
“Fantastic Arabian Nights adventure in a world of deserts, dragons, and crusaders!
Welcome to the Capharnaum kickstarter! Help us fund the release of the English version of this fantastic roleplaying game in a beautiful 400-page hardback, and also expand into a complete line of adventures, supplements, and support material into 2018 and beyond!
With your help, our initial goal is to fund the release of the 400-page hardback core book of CAPHARNAUM – TALES OF THE DRAGON-MARKED, a complete standalone fantasy roleplaying game. Our initial release is in beautiful two-colour print, with sixteen gorgeous full colour plates; but rapidly we hope to reach the stretch goal of releasing the entire book with full-colour artwork. We already have the text ready for editing and layout, and anticipate releasing the core book in PDF format in March 2018 and in print in April 2018.
Capharnaum also has a range of supplements and adventures which we would like to produce, including a player’s guide, screen, bestiary, atlas, and epic campaign, plus many standalone adventures. We hope that we’ll exceed our initial funding total and be able to release these additional books to you as Kickstarter stretch goals.
Why not check out Capharnaum today, in THE TEARS OF AMPHAROOL, our free Quickstart Rules and Introductory Adventure!
CAPHARNAUM – THE TALES OF THE DRAGON-MARKED is a fantasy roleplaying game set in an imaginary Arabia-like world. It borrows from the tales of the One Thousand and One Nights, as well as semitic legends and the ancient and mediaeval epics. Capharnaum doesn’t aim to be a historical game, but a heroic one, a flamboyant refraction of historical, cultural, and mythical themes, filled with light and thrilling adventure!
In Capharnaum, you play the Dragon-Marked, heroic individuals with a special destiny, born with a birthmark on their backs in the shape of a dragon’s claw. The Dragon-Mark announces to the world that you are capable of astonishing feats, for good or evil. Chosen by mystical dragons in accordance with an unknown divine will, you are offered a place in the great game of the gods. You’ll be cast into colourful adventures, political, military, and magical intrigues, and much more…
Capharnaum is a simple yet profound game. We all know the tales of Sinbad, of Ali Baba, of Aladdin and Scheherezade – we grew up with them, they form part of our personal culture. The world of Capharnaum is familiar, easy to pick up and play.
And yet – scratch the surface, and a whole world opens up. Meticulously researched,Capharnaum aims to provide fantastic takes on real-world Mediterranean cultures, from ancient Greece and Rome, Egypt and Sumeria, right through to the crusader kingdoms, dark age and mediaeval Europe, the kingdoms of Africa, India, and the distant East. Uniquely,Capharnaum is centred upon a fantastic version of the Middle-East, where all these cultures meet, clash, come into conflict with the profound cultures of the peninsula of Jazirat, and where something new is being born.
As the Dragon-Marked, you transcend cultural differences. You’re united by an unknown, mystical, yet common destiny. Side by side with people who would otherwise be your foes, you adventure in this vibrant, chaotic land, where the fate of the future is at play, and where you are destined to change the world…
The Capharnaum Game System
Capharnaum uses a tried and tested custom game system which is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, with a second edition of the original French roleplaying game. Our Kickstarter includes all of the updates and rules modifications of the second edition game. It’s a d6-based system, a modified dice pool with a semi-roll-and-keep mechanic. Simple yet flexible, it combines skills and attributes in rolls against difficulties, resolving into levels of success or failure in a highly cinematic style. It’s grounded in traditional concepts of hit points, armour values, wounds, and healing, but also expands into genre-specific rules tweaks such as Dragon Dice and Constellations which let you really feel the power of the Dragon-Marked course through your character.
One of the key components of the Capharnaum system is the concept of paths: mystical associations which you belong to, which represent your view of your role in the world (your “character class”, to some extent), but which also provide you with cool and increasingly awesome abilities as you play.
Advancement is built into the Capharnaum system. As one of the Dragon-Marked, you’re already an individual with great potential – but this is an age which calls for Heroes, and the rules let you rise to the occasion and change the world!
Who is “Al-Rawi”?
In Capharnaum, in the fine tradition of Middle-Eastern story-telling, we call the game master “Al-Rawi”, an Arabic word meaning “the Story Teller”. When you play Capharnaum, you’re not only playing a roleplaying game, but participating in an ancient tradition millennia old!”
Egg’s Thoughts:
This translation is based on the 2nd edition of the game.
“The Tears of Ampharool are actually the 2nd edition mechanics. […] The English version of Capharnaum will use the 2nd edition mechanics, which features several streamlinings on 1st Ed, particularly with regard to initiative, the calculation of magnitude, and Babouche-Draggers.” – From the comments on the Capharnaum quickstart
[Editor’s Note: Egg’s reaching for this week’s second edition theme.]
In terms of a setting, it brings something under explored (compared to Europe) in RPG, Arabia. That’s what sets this apart, it isn’t another pseudo-Western European setting. If you want to try out how different it is, they have a free quickstart here.
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* * * * * *
Egg Embry wrote comic book short stories, edited comic book series, wrote and drew a webcomic, and contributed to comic book journalism across the 2000s. Now, he buys the opportunity to write for a variety of tabletop role-playing games in the tradition of vanity press. His purchases have been published by:
This week’s RPG Kickstarters focus on games ripped from the darkness of space, the worst of human history, and the color purple. Let’s count down the darkest RPG Kickstarters going this week.
“A Deep Space Exploration box set for the new Traveller RPG, covering the Great Rift.
Welcome to the Great Rift, a mostly unexplored region of the Third Imperium universe close to the Spinward Marches and Trojan Reach!
This Kickstarter project is to create a brand new box set for the Traveller roleplaying game, detailing not only the sectors of the Great Rift but also providing a comprehensive guide to deep space exploration and the mysteries that can be found far from the shipping lanes.
You can download preview PDFs showing some of the content right here:
Two full colour, 96 page books covering Corridor, Reft, Riftspan Reaches and Touchstone sectors.
Two gigantic (28″ x 48″) two-sided, full colour sector maps.
The Deep Space Exploration Handbook, a 32 page book featuring all the rules needed to conduct deep space exploration, plus the specially designed ships needed to traverse the void.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
When thinking of darkness, Traveller has gone the extra parsec by producing black covered books about space. The mock-ups below are exquisite.
Are you a fan of Traveller? This Kickstarter covers the latest expansion for one of the original RPGs. The current edition looks slick and Mongoose Publishing believes in their product – they’reofferinga varietyof previews. Gamers that want a legacy sci-fi RPG can discern if this is for them or not from those samples.
“Contribute to help create a prestige edition of Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras 2 and help pick which Eras we include!
We have shared the world with monsters for millennia…
Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras 2 starts out presenting a chapter for each of six historical eras; each of which features two Chronicles of Darkness game lines which include Vampire: The Requiem, Mage: The Awakening, Hunter: The Vigil, Changeling: The Lost, and more! The rules in this book are compatible with second edition Chronicles of Darkness. Each terrifying time period and location is examined through the supernatural creatures that dwell there:
DARK ERA: The French Revolution (1789 to 1799).
Vampire: The Requiem and Demon: The Descent:
To the immortal Kindred hidden within the House of Bourbon, the old ways of monarchical rule and royal privilege seem as eternal as the endless stretch of their nights. As the first stirrings of the Carthian Movement take shape alongside disenfranchised mortals yearning for liberty, fallen angels seize this opportunity to tear down the Machine’s Infrastructure creating the penultimate struggle for survival. As the Revolution reaches its height and the Terror begins, the God-Machine’s wayward children wonder whether Hell on Earth might be within reach after all.
DARK ERA: The Great War – Western Front (1914 to 1918).
Geist: The Sin-Eaters and Werewolf: The Forsaken:
The Great War displayed humanity’s potential to commit to wholesale, ceaseless slaughter of their own species. In such an era, the Scar tears asunder, and the Beshilu rejoice in the mire of the Western Front. Meanwhile, soldiers who, by every right known to mortals should be dead, stand back up to rejoin the battle — or fight back against the Reapers stalking battlefields throughout Europe. Now, both werewolves and Sin-Eaters will struggle to coexist, do their duty, and avoid getting caught up in one of history’s deadliest wars.
DARK ERA: Light of the Sun – Europe (1600s).
Deviant: The Renegades and Mage: The Awakening:
Galileo. Kepler. Newton. On the heels of the Italian Renaissance, reason and belief clash at every turn. Scientific discoveries disproving heliocentrism are subverted and deemed heretical. Scientists, mages, and astronomers are arrested by the Inquisition, and their books are banned. In response, intellectuals on the brink of discovery turn to alchemy and the magical arts, and create deviants to defend their laboratories and universities. Not all in this age agree violence is the option, however, and worry the Church’s power is too strong to fight. What’s more, no one expected the deviants to have a mind and will of their own.
DARK ERA: Seven Wonders of the Ancient World (100 to 50 B.C.E).
Changeling: The Lost and Promethean: The Created:
As the locations of the most significant manmade structures in the world are revealed, adventurers from Greece to beyond seek them out to bask in their glory. It is tragic, however, that some wonders must be kept secret. The Gentry do not respond well to their Hedge being disturbed, and the seven wonders are coated in thorns for the unwary. There is no telling what they will do when they encounter the Created, who have heard of these wondrous places immune to war, the ravages of time, and Disquiet. Though the Created seek to protect the wonders like a mother would a child, the Gentry have their own reasons for safeguarding them.
DARK ERA: Rise of the Last Imperials – China (1644 to 1911).
Mummy: The Curse and Hunter: The Vigil:
The last Imperial Dynasty, the Qing, was established following the takeover of Beijing. Masters of northern China, the powerful Great Qing successfully usurped weakened Ming rulers, but their rule was marked by their suspicious treatment of the Han Chinese. Despite this, the Qing emperors preserved centuries of Chinese arts and literature while searching for mummies rumored to be active in the area. Caught between the present and the distant past, mummies clash with Rival Arisen, sweeping Han Chinese hunters into their wake who must face many threats to uphold the Vigil.
One Thousand and One Nights – Islamic Golden Age (750 to 1258).
Beast: The Primordial and Vampire: The Requiem:
Aladdin. Scheherazade. Ali Baba. Sinbad. During the Islamic Golden Age, great strides in economic development and scientific knowledge occurred throughout the Islamic world and, at the same time, the tales of Scheherazade expose the wonders of magic to all. In this gilded era of human achievement, Kindred and the Begotten join forces to stay at the top of the food chain. Through their eyes, experience a thousand and one dreams…and nightmares. Who doesn’t like a good bedtime story?
Writing will begin on these chapters, as well as on any added Dark Era chapters once this Kickstarter is over. Having been through this process with the original Dark Eras Kickstarter, we believe this is the best way to create a strong set of Dark Eras for all of you.
Shepherding the writing will be developers Monica Valentinelli, Matthew Dawkins, and Meghan Fitzgerald.
If you are unfamilar with our Dark Eras books, here’s a chapter text sample from the first Dark Eras book, featuring Requiem for Regina, Vampire and Changeling in Elizabethan London: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7FqViticwNuUkhPaFpQY2I5eFE
Think of the darkest periods of human history then add vampires, werewolves, mages, hunters, demons, and more as chronicled by Onyx Path. That’s the level of darkness for Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras 2.
For the wanna-lancers* of the world, Onyx Path is offering an interesting opportunity with the “Dark Collaborator” reward:
“You will be brought into the inner circle to participate in the creation of either one of the Dark Eras 2 chapters or our next Chronicles of Darkness project as a Consulting Developer. You’ll be included on every communication between the developer and the writers from the beginning to the end of the project’s creation.”
Instead of the usual chances to develop a NPC or item offered during other Kickstarter campaigns, this reward allows you to work with Onyx Path on an entire chapter of this project or their next product. It’ll let you dive in and see all of the parts and learn from one of the most important companies in the gaming industry.
“A new edition of Gaslight Victorian Fantasy for the Savage Worlds game engine.
“Gaslight is certainly more of a sandbox game. You are given the world, the rules and then let go. There is no over arching plot or theme like Rippers or Ghosts of Albion. It is, in feel, much closer to the old Ravenloft: Masque of the Red Death game. Which is pretty cool.” – Timothy Brannan (author of the Ghosts of Albion Role Playing Game)
ENnie Award winning publisher, Battlefield Press presents its premiere Victorian setting in a new edition for the Savage Worlds game engine. Complete with a new cover by the talented Robert Hack.
Imagine a Victorian world, but not as history tells us it was, but as the literature implies that it was. Believe that the literature from the period were more than just stories, but instead first hand accounts of the events that happened in the world. Imagine a world populated by the lost boys of JM Barrie, the Beast Men of Dr. Moreau even tales of an immortal vampire named Dracula. Included in these are organizations bent of determining what is best for humanity, and they have launched a secret war against others so that only one will prevail.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
Their cover is glorious! It feels like every ounce of the darkness of the Victorian genre distilled into a single image. I could see this on the cover of Alan Moore’s League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Are you ready for the pre-cursors to modern fantasy storytelling laid out for you to play? This amalgamation of powers and opportunities… this could be a glorious expansion to Savage Worlds!
“The Islands of Purple-Haunted Putrescence returns; OSR scenario of warring factions competing for dominance in a purple world gone mad.
The Islands of Purple-Haunted Putrescence has done well as an O5R campaign setting. I’ve been asked countless times if I’m ever going to go back to the purple islands. Well, this Kickstarter is a resounding “YES!” to that query.
The purple islands (there’s three of them very close together, and are usually considered a single place) is an eldritch science-fantasy setting with gonzo sword & sorcery. Both books will be usable with any sort of Lost World, Mars, Dream Lands, Hyborian Age, alternate Earth ruled by civilized apes or menaced by dinosaurs and sleestak, or a world of savagery, super-science, and sorcery.”
Egg’s Thoughts:
Love. Me. Some. Venger. Through RPG, I’ve met a legion of incredibly nice folks. Jeff Duncan, Dan Davenport, Dan Dillon, Ed Jowett, Nathan Tucker, Chris Helton, Justin Halliday, BJ Hensley, and so many more that I’m forgetting. They’ve all been welcoming and I could not be happier to know them. High on my list of RPG friends is Venger. He’s helped me with direction, published some of my work via his recent NSFW Trinity of Awesome Returns series – Stairwell of V’dreen, His Flesh is Key, and High-Stakes Q’uay-Q’uar – and always been open to helping me along the path to RPG freelancer. When he launched his sequel to The Islands of Purple-Haunted Putrescence, I was happy to support it.
Why should you check out Battle for the Purple Islands? Because it’s unlimited budget grindhouse glory in the form of a RPG! It may be purple, but Venger creates some dark games!
Why should you support Venger? Because, if you’re like Egg and you want to create fantastic games, reach out to Venger on Google+ or at his blog. He has worthwhile advice (and books of advice) to share. He’s open and direct with what works and what doesn’t. He’s worth talking to.
Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links to DriveThruRPG.com.
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Egg Embry, Wanna-lancer™
Wanna-lancer™ Checklist T-shirt available at Cafepress
Interested in being a wanna-lancer? Start with the official Wanna-lancer Checklist t-shirt or wall clock or ice tea glass!
* * *
Egg Embry wrote comic book short stories, edited comic book series, wrote and drew a webcomic, and contributed to comic book journalism across the 2000s. Now, he buys the opportunity to write for a variety of tabletop role-playing games in the tradition of vanity press. His purchases have been published by:
“Jodie Whittaker is a woman and the 13th Doctor.” The most controversial event of July 16th, 2017. It split the inter-webs into two opposed camps:
Greatest actor of her generation
The “D” in “Doctor” stands for “Dicks”
Jodie Whitaker composed as Doctor Who from Metro.co.uk
I chose the Greatest Actress camp before turning my mind to what possibilities a female Doctor will create for Doctor Who: RPG? Will this be doom or opportunity for Cubicle 7‘s game series? Before I get into the peaks and valleys of my speculations, let me offer some background.
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BACKGROUND
Example Page from Sword & Wizardry
Tabletop role-playing games are synonymous with sword and sorcery. With so many fantasy systems to choose from, companies look for ways to make theirs stand out. Frog God Games came up with an elegant way to ensure that the 3rd printing of their retro-clone, Swords and Wizardry, had the broadest appeal possible. They hired Stacy Dellorfano (of ConTessa fame) to lead an all-female design staff for the newest printing of their ENnie Award–winning game. What inspired this? Frog God Games shared this on their Kickstarter:
“…we were talking with designer Stacy Dellorfano about the fact that many OSR games have a physical appearance and presentation that really targets the 40 year old guys who’ve been gaming since forever, and doesn’t have nearly as much appeal to younger or female gamers of the generations following that first wave of players from the 1980s. In point of fact, old-school games, with their light-rules aspect and emphasis on a game master’s “common sense” interpretation of situations, are actually a really good tool for anyone who feels like rules-lawyers may be spoiling the game by trying to be over-authoritative or even overbearing with a GM. But if the appearance and presentation make the game look like it’s purely a throwback and not a modern tool for good gaming, then there’s a real obstacle to the game’s push into the mainstream gaming community.
As a result of this analysis, we engaged Stacy as a designer to produce an edition that’s no less appealing to older male gamers, while being MORE appealing to younger and to female gamers. Stacy put together a team, all women, to address this dual objective. We think her team has done an awesome job, and when you see the design results, we think you’ll agree.
…
This project came out of a discussion largely about how to get more women interested in OSR games, and evolved into a request to create a product that would appeal to all genders and challenge the idea of what an OSR game should look like. For many of the women who illustrated the book, this is their first foray into freelancing in the tabletop RPG industry. By participating in this project, we’re raising their visibility and adding more female voices to the industry.
What this is not is an “RPG for women”. This is Swords & Wizardry the same as it’s been for the last two printings, just with new artwork and layout for the new printing.”
Yet the naysayers say to me – “But Egg, can women – WOMEN?! – design the look of a REAL retro-clone?”
Absolutely, Mr. Naysayer! Stacy and crew produced an iconic S&W3e! Every page looks phenomenal and the book flows! This printing is beautiful. 1,213 backers on Kickstarter agree.
“But Egg, that’s the drawings! What about the… the writings? What about the WRITINGS, Egg?!”
Since S&W kept the existing writing with upgraded art, let’s look at a different project, Atlas Animalia by Metal Weave Games. This book covers the biology, game hooks, and more for monsters designed for 5e, Pathfinder, FATE, and more, including OSRs. This is a book of terrifying beasts to slaughter, or be slaughtered by, for your RPG of choice and there are no men listed as writers or editors. The project looks first rate (as the image below shows). I was excited about this campaign (I covered it here) and I was not alone, 798 backers pledged their money on Kickstarter.
Atlas Animalia example page – LAND SHARK!
“Um, well… but Egg, how do those numbers compare to games designed by mixed gender or ALL-MALE creative teams? Egg, I bet if we whip’em out and compare, the number of S&W 3e or Atlas Animalia backers on Kickstarter will be WAY smaller!”
Ok, let’s compare the number of backers for some retro-clones, monster manuals, and remakes on Kickstarter. I’ve picked out a few games that are close in nature to S&W 3e:
Based on this limited sampling (it’s not even close to exhaustive), S&W 3e had two to six times as many backers as the other OSRs in this list. S&W 3e had more backers than some new editions of older games/settings (Alternity and Scarred Lands) while not as many as others (Torg: Eternity and Scion).
While looking for RPG products that are, more or less, apples-to-apples comparisons with Atlas Animalia was more difficult. Still, there were a few:
257 backers for Ultimate Bestiary: Revenge of the Horde for Pathfinder! (a monster manual that’s the same book, different stats, and a different Kickstarter than Ultimate Bestiary: Revenge of the Horde! New 5E Monsters!)
Atlas Animalia fell into the middle of the range for these campaigns. If these lists (OSRs and monster manuals) were blended, Atlas would be on the upper half of the combined listing.
While this is a drop in the ocean of market research, I’d still hypothesize that RPGs created and written by women do well in the gaming market.
Do you think Frog God Games and Metal Weave Games made the right choice for their respective products?
END BACKGROUND
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Jodie Whittaker is the 13th Doctor and Cubicle 7 makes Doctor Who: Roleplaying Game. When it comes time to produce the Doctor Who Adventures in Time and Space: The Thirteenth Doctor Sourcebook (2017-20??), should Cubicle 7 put a female lead designer/female writing staff in place to handle this project?
Doctor Who Adventures in Time and Space: The Thirteenth Doctor Sourcebook (2017-20??) The first female doctor by [INSERT ROCKING FEMALE RPG CREATOR]
Jodie Whittaker as Doctor Who from DoctorWhoTV.co.uk
This is the opportunity to hire a heavily female (or completely female) staff to deliver this sourcebook. Frog God Games and Metal Weave Games had successes with female crews developing their products. There’s no reason to believe that a female Cubicle 7 team would not produce yet another AAA Doctor Who product. The serendipity-by-design of this would be the way to market it.
That said, while they’ll likely update the core rulebook to include the 13th Doctor in the near-term, Cubicle 7 releases their Doctor Who sourcebooks after the current Doctor passes the torch. We’re years away from the release of their 13th Doctor sourcebook. This debate has time for nuance.
As a company, they’re doing a rocking job with the Doctor Who RPG. As such, when I composed this article I hated to suggest that they mess with a winning formula. If they keep with their current creative teams, I know they will deliver an excellent product.
C7 has not announced their plans related to the 13th Doctor sourcebook and they should not until Jodie is ready to pass on the role. With the lead time that Cubicle 7 has on this, a company as competent as they are will gather together the perfect team to knock this out of the park! With their track record, I am confident they’ll make the best decision for their fans.
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SWORDS & WIZARDRY 3RD EDITION CHALLENGE!
Am I telling the truth about Swords & Wizardry 3rd Edition? Does it really look amazing? Can women design the look of a retro-clone? Why, yes they can, but you say you need proof, naysayer? The proof is in the product and the product is a single dollar in PDF format. Over at Frog God Games’ website, you can pick up the PDF for a buck and find out for yourself.
NOTE – When you’re doing the dropdown, it’ll say “-$33.99”. It’s confusing but you’ll see it’s one dollar at check out.
Frog God Games’ Swords and Wizardry 3rd Edition PDF
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Does S&W 3e and Atlas Animalia sound good to you but you wish there were a female-created board game? How about SPARKED: The hilarious and inspiring board game for women? A board game created entirely by women. 758 backers on Kickstarter.
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I’d like to thank every woman that ever gamed or created games or created art for games or thought kindly toward a gamer. You have made this world a better place. Thank you for all you’ve done for me. I cannot say that loud enough.
Sincerely,
Egg Embry
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Egg Embry, Wanna-lancer™
Wanna-lancer™ Checklist T-shirt available at Cafepress
Interested in being a wanna-lancer? Start with the official Wanna-lancer Checklist t-shirt or wall clock or ice tea glass!
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Egg Embry wrote comic book short stories, edited comic book series, wrote and drew a webcomic, and contributed to comic book journalism across the 2000s. Now, he buys the opportunity to write for a variety of tabletop role-playing games in the tradition of vanity press. His purchases have been published by:
Want to immortalize your cat (in art)? Design a pirate or a townie NPC? Ever want to read a comic about the road trip from Hell? Need a map through the mega dungeon? Want to meet fun tabletop gamers? If you answered, yes, then you might be building a RPG resume to go from wanna-lancer to freelancer and these are some of the best vanity press crowdfunding rewards that help you learn the RPG ropes. Let’s count these campaigns down!
“Contribute to help us create a beautiful traditionally printed fantasy game book featuring cat monarchies – and get it into stores.
We want to talk to you about Monarchies of Mau. It’s a complete tabletop roleplaying game that acts as a companion game to, and is totally compatible with, my first RPG, Pugmire. The Monarchies of Mau is a nation of cats tenuously comprised of six city-states.”
Monarchies of Mau
Egg’s Thoughts:
Cats with Swords!
You either raised an eyebrow and want to click the link to the Kickstarter for this anthropomorphic cat-people in a feline fantasy setting OR you rolled your eyes and thought, “Puss in Boots… bah, Antonio Banderas! My arch-nemesis strikes again…” Clearly, you’re either pro-Planet of the Cats or you’ll be canned as Fancy Feast! There is no third option!
[EDITOR’S NOTE – Don’t listen to Egg. He wrote “cats with swords” and felt it was defining. Make your own decision on this one because he’s going to be Fancy Feast no matter what.
As always, may Gary Gygax keep and protect your dice.]
As an added bonus, Monarchies of Mau has a pledge level in this campaign to name a feline (or canine) NPC and have it illustrated to resemble your pet. It’s an opportunity to immortalize a member of the family.
“A curse. A cave. A crawl. 5E fantasy adventure by Jamie Chambers!
Returning to my personal and professional gaming roots with a short adventure for 5E of the original fantasy roleplaying game—a cavern crawl built to please hack-and-slash groups and storytellers alike!
It All Started When …
I accidentally wrote a 5E fantasy RPG adventure! Wanna help me print it? This is a short campaign … it ends on June 16, 2017.”
Jamie Chamber’s Gaming Table
Egg’s Thoughts:
Due to the limited number of details about this cave crawl – it’s for 5e, there’s a curse, and a cave – you’ll need to decide on this project based on the strength of who Jamie Chambers is. So, who is he? Jamie Chambers runs Signal Fire Studios, home of the revised Metamorphosis Alpha RPG, he was a designer and line editor for TSR’s Dragonlance, and a former Vice President on the board of directors for GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association). So, who is he? He’s a gamer with a resume that speaks volumes about his skill. Top that with the fact that I discussed his IndieGoGo campaign last week and suggested that, in a perfect world and since he’s local to me, it’d be cool to meet him. He read the article and said we should make plans. Like so many folks I’ve met through wanna-lancing and gaming and comicing, Jamie’s a nice guy and for that alone this campaign is worth backing.
But, because I’m a wanna-lancer, let me add this reason to back the campaign over and above his resume and affable personality, you can create a NPC and/or playtest this adventure online with Jamie. It’s a nice extra.
3) Route 3 by Robert Jeffrey II and Sean Damien Hill Ends on .
“Centuries old prophecies. Shadowy government conspiracies. Super heroic action. Just a typical day for teenager Sean Anderson. Route 3.
Route 3is a super-powered road trip from hell. A Stone Mountain, GA teen finds out he’s been granted with a set of spectacular abilities, that he knows nothing about. He’s now on the run from a wide array of folks in a sort of super powered arms race across the Southeastern United States. Explosions, gunfights, telekinetic feats of awesomeness, and a little personal growth are all thrown into the mix.
We’ve collected all three issues of the first story arc into a superb collected edition that also includes a cover page gallery, “DVD” extras, and a forward by the talented artist/ writer Takeia Marie (Contributor to Rosarium Publishing’s APB: Artists Against Police Brutality).”
Route 3
Egg’s Thoughts:
Because Robert Jeffrey is our guildmate, and we love him and Route 3, we’ve shouted out this Kickstarterasmuchaspossible on the Tessera Guild. It’s exceeded its goal (so the collected first story arc is coming) and the campaign is moving through stretch goals. I’m a fan of the series and ready to read more of Sean Anderson’s adventures!
“Pirates, Vodouisants, and Witch Hunters battle each other and beasts of legend in the mystic waters of the Caribbean. Climb aboard!”
Egg’s Thoughts:
Are you a fan of Savage Worlds (2003 Origin Gamers’ Choice Award for best role-playing game)? Oh, you don’t own the rules? Well, Pinnacle Entertainment has you covered because the core rule book is $9.99 in softcover.
To compliment the game and price point, Yellow Piece Games is kickstarting their pirate setting for Savage Rules. For $15, you get a PDF of the setting and customized rules and also a PDF of pirate NPCs that you get to contribute to. For my wanna-lancer resume, this adds experience with Savage Worlds and another NPC, all for a low price point.
1) The S’rulyan Vault II by Kort’thalis Publishing Ends on Thursday, June 22 2017 10:46 AM EDT.
“This project is a file/PDF for a high-resolution, printable map in both old school module blue and white, as well as, parchment color.
Basically, this is a continuation of the first S’rulyan Vault which funded on Kickstarter just over a year ago.
The S’rulyan Vault II is more of the same… but different. Obviously, there will be a totally new dungeon layout with lots of interesting things going on. The files can be printed off so you’ve got one massive map or four quadrants in order to easily mix and match them with each other and the previous S’rulyan Vault.
This is the DriveThruRPG product listing for the original S’rulyan Vault.
Glynn Seal of MonkeyBlood Design will be doing the cartography, layout, and file preparation.
As for the accompanying PDF full of useful random tables and such for creating and running your own damn megadungeon! On the fly, if you wish. Here’s an example from Draconic Magazine.”
Example Map from the S’rulyan Vault II
Egg’s Thoughts:
Kort’thalis Publishing’s CEO (Cthulhu Excreted Officer) Venger Satanis is another nice soul. When I mentioned that I wouldn’t mind a RPG mentor in an article, Venger reached out and offered helpful advice, wanna-lancing opportunities, and, if everything works out, freelance RPG work.His help has been awesome and I cannot ask for more from a RPG professional.
Through Kort’thalis Publishing, Venger is making RPG magic. His current Kickstarter is an old-school megadungeon map. Do you need one or two system agnostic megadungeon maps? Yes. Yes, you do, and Venger has you covered.
Venger is also offering another opportunity – paid GM’ing. If you go to a con and run 8 hours of games using one of his systems/settings – Alpha Blue, Crimson Dragon Slayer, CDS 1.11, or The Outer Presence – he’ll pay you for in swag or money. You’ll need to read the description first and talk with Venger about it before you go, but being paid to GM is a cool job.
“Grond is now Kallok. Obberoth is dead. Valara’s fate is decided by Ugreth. Oublar is close to getting what he desires, being Mok’Dar.”
Catch up on the back issues and support the creation of the current issue on Kickstarter here – Grond #3
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Egg Embry, Wanna-lancer™
Wanna-lancer™ Checklist T-shirt available at Cafepress
Interested in being a wanna-lancer? Start with the official Wanna-lancer Checklist t-shirt or wall clock or ice tea glass!
* * *
Egg Embry wrote comic book short stories, edited comic book series, wrote and drew a webcomic, and contributed to comic book journalism across the 2000s. Now, he buys the opportunity to write for a variety of tabletop role-playing games in the tradition of vanity press. His purchases have been published by:
Status: Recruiting
Status: Funding
Status: Funding
Status: Creating
