Tribes in the Dark Kickstarter has launched.

 

An old setting from Dream Pod 9 called "Tribe 8" is getting it's reboot finally. This time using the Forged in the Dark ruleset and being renamed to "Tribes in the Dark". This setting getting another shot is long overdue and I hope it does well on the market. You can back the Kickstarter right now to help bring this new edition to life. 

It's also nice to see somebody that I know online who has been working on this for a few years finally seeing all their work come to fruition. When I mean years, the playtest version went live on Drivethru back in late 2021. So it's been a long road for this one. I wish the all the luck in the world and I hope this goes really well for them!

Advanced Fighting Fantasy new Kickstarter

 

There's a new Kickstarter up for Arion Games Advanced Fighting Fantasy. The new Adventure Creation System is made to help you generate an adventure for your group OR for generating a solo RPG adventure. That's a pretty nifty bit of work right there. It's also priced to not break the bank on the print version so that's another big plus.

Find the new Kickstarter HERE. 

Find all current Advanced Fighting Fantasy products on DrivethruRPG HERE. 

AFF is very much worth checking out if you haven't given it a look. Rules light, quick character creation and a lot of fun. 

Jaded Gamer Diary - Reclaimer Kickstarter Canceled

Well a rather cool sounding RPG Kickstarter called 'Reclaimer' had to be temporarily cancelled due to a very unforeseen circumstance. One of their artists was doing photo kitbash work and used images that they did not have permission to use. Which is a pretty shitty thing to do if you ask me because the artist doesn't just put their own reputation on the line but that of the person running the project. Not to mention financial costs involved as well.

Here is the full statement on the Kickstarter page.

Not to be clear Chad, the guy behind the project, even asked the artist if they had all rights to the work and was told yes. Also remember the artist is evidently "a professional who does concept and marketing work for a AAA game studio". So you would think that the artist would be honest about this. Guess not.

As for the image in question that is obviously using stolen photography work.

Below is the kitbash image that was presented on Kickstarter to be used in the game:

Now below is the actual photograph used as seen on the photographers (Danny Duong) Instagram page.

While yes that is some really nicely done kitbash work it is still very obvious that the photo from Danny Duong was used as the base. This will make it harder for other artists who do kitbashing to get trust in the small gaming community in the future. As it becomes rather difficult to tell what is legitimately used and what is not.

Hope to see Reclaimer get back on track with a replacement for this artist soon.

Jaded Gamers Far West

Did you ever have one of those times where you felt really lucky that you didn't do something?  I've got one of those times, it was when Far West went up on Kickstarter and I almost backed it.  It would have been my first project I ever backed but I was a bit skeptical of the whole crowdfunding thing at that time.  Even though I had been following some of Gareth Skarka's blog stuff about the game and found it interesting I gave it a pass.  Decided that I would instead pick it up once it was released.

Boy am I glad I made that decision.  It's closing in on the five year mark and still the book has not made it to the backers, much less the open market.  Something like this would have left a bad taste in my mouth for Kickstarter and I would have been less likely to back other projects.  Fortunately I've backed other folks who managed to get their books out in a timely manner (John Wick and Second Thought Games are the two that come to mind immediately). 

Now he's evidently offering out refunds but is urging that people stick with him and not ask for one.  Really at this point I'm not sure why anyone would... but that's just me.  Because nearly five years is a bit much.  Honestly with as many blown 'promised' delivery dates and 'almost' done updates it has become a joke among the gaming community on the internet.  Coupled with some of his snarky remarks to backers and others questions what is going on it has become a clear example of what not to do so many times.  There are even websites up mocking the project and showing all of the quoted delivery dates over the years. 

But the sad part is this.

Gareth and his company Adamant has put out so much good stuff in the past.  Hong Kong Action Theater was simply an amazing example of how to emulate a specific film genre.  Terminal Drift, actually got me somewhat interested in D20 material when I was sick of it.  Imperial Age was a another good D20 product that floated to the top during the glut.  Then MARS captured the John Carter of Mars vibe so well with a good system adaption and a setting that had just enough of the serial numbers filed off. 

Then he did this Kickstarter along with a few other, so far, flubbed pre-orders of cool properties (Buckaroo Banzai among them) that haven't delivered.  His, and his companies, reputations have become quite stained.  It will require a lot of dedication and hard work to rebuild and with the amount of cynicism he has shown over the last few years I'm not sure he has the drive to do it.

For those interested here is a link to the Kickstarter comments sections so they can see the latest activity.  Far West Kickstarter

For those also interested here is a link to the Adamant Entertainment listing on DrivethruRPG where they do sell some of those good products I mentioned.  Adamant Entertainment

Until next time.

Jaded Gamer Diary Kult fecal factor

It simply keeps getting deeper and deeper the more I look at the Kult Divinity Lost Kickstarter.  Seriously it does. 

Apparently they also don't want to hear from their backers about the system unless they spend $176 or over.  Because at that level you get:

* Access to the KULT Collector’s Forum, with previews, discussions, and early playtest access to the game before release."

So feedback and playtesting is restricted to those willing to drop more cash.  Which falls right into some thoughts on why they are being so hush hush on the rules.  They want people to back at these high levels so afterwards they can be the ones to actually see the rules. 

Really it seems like a blatant cash grab from fans no matter how you look at it.  Now let's see what other nuggets I can find.

What is the Player's Guide, exactly?
Exactly, we don’t know yet. We have a general idea, and it will be easy-to-access info that the players need at character generation and during actual play. Also, equipment stats, condensed versions of basic rules, etc.

The Players Guide is something they are offering as an add-on and they don't know what is going to be in it.  Yeah great planning there folks.

Will the KULT Bible,KULT Screen and similar add-ons be available once the Kickstarter concludes?
At this moment in time, the only confirmed items in this Kickstarter campaign that will be available after it is finished is the ILLUSION EDITION, the ENLIGHTENED EDITION, and the ELYSIUM EDITION

So in this world of print on demand they may not make the GM Screen or the bible available except to those who back the Kickstarter.  This smells like they only have plans to do what they have for this Kickstarter and then be done with the game if you ask me.

Now as for the rules all we are getting is the same example from their Facebook post only worded a little bit different.  PbtA fans are saying it looks like PbtA while some of the people running the Kickstarter are saying it's roots are in PbtA but it's not.  So far the only real changes they have mentioned are they are using D10's as the dice and the GM determine bad outcomes.

Last but not least I have to ask.

Why the fuck are people backing this sight unseen?  All they have given are some pretty pictures, promises and vague badly worded examples. 

#RPGaDay2015 Baker Street

Day three of #RPGaDay2015.  Favorite New Game of the Last 12 Months. 

Okay I'm not sure if it came out in the last twelve or not.  I know the print copy did but maybe the pdf version came before that, I'm not entirely sure. But I have to go with another Kickstarter that I backed for this one. 

It's Baker Street the rpg of Sherlock Holmes investigations.  Being I'm a Holmes junkie from way back and this book mixes some really good writing, innovative game design (without waving it around like a prouder than life penis) and some solid layout.   Really a pleasure to own this book, the casebook and the GM screen.  The folks behind this should keep it up and put more like this out.

Baker Street: Roleplaying in the world of Sherlock Holmes

Now a good solid second place to this would be Wield from John Wick.  A game in which you play a powerful artifact and the heroes who use you are the disposable items.

WIELD

Tabletop RPG Kickstarters - Things to do part three.

Okay todays bit of Kickstarter advice may seem like a bit of common sense to most.  But for some reason there are several cases of people running projects who cannot seem to fathom this simple idea.  It doesn't require a lot of effort even.

Give updates about your project ON KICKSTARTER! 

I don't know why some people think we want to keep track of what they are doing on the project by going to their Facebook page.  Or having to subscribe to a Twitter feed.  Or join a community.  Or whatever social network/forum/outdated social network they want to suddenly use.  Kickstarter has a place for you to give all your backers updates BUILT INTO THE DAMN PAGE. Every one of your backers have a login for Kickstarter or otherwise they couldn't have backed you in the first place.  Not everyone has an account at whatever social network you seem to think is so important.

Give us the updates where you pitched your product, right there on the project page. 

Now of course this is all based on the idea that you give us updates in the first place.  We all know there are some project managers who can't even grasp that.  So, I guess, first you should give us updates and then second put those updates on the 'updates' section of the project page.  That is why it's there you know.

Okay this one was a bit more of a rant than I'm used to.  Must have had a flashback to giving bad gamers advice on how to play in a group properly or something.

Liber Elixirium now available via POD

Liber Elixirium: The Essential Guide to Potions and Oils is not available for POD over at Drivethru and RPGNow.  So if the leather, gold gilded version with the silk bookmark isn't in your budget you have an alternative for a cheaper one. 

Find it at RPGNow here.
Find it at Drivethrurpg here.

Below are some shots of the POD version of the book that Vince uploaded in an update on the Kickstarter page earlier  Looks pretty good, not as good as the leather version I'm holding, but still pretty nice.

 

Also don't forget they are running a Kickstarter right now for the City of the Lich module. 

You can find that Kickstarter here.

That's all the blogging for this week.  See you next Monday.

Kickstarter: City of the Lich

Second Thought Games has their third Kickstart project up and live now.  It's about at the half way point time wise and is about 75% funded.  So lets hit up on some of the details that have been revealed.

Find the City of the Lich Kickstarter page here.

First off I asked about the map.  After looking at the provided link to the person who they have hired to create it and their samples I was impressed.  So I enquired if they were going to be doing a full poster sized map as was done with Ryubix Manor.  The answer was no, but they were going to do something better.

" City of the Lich will be printed in the style of the OSR modules of yore: The cover will not be attached to the manuscript, allowing the GM uninterrupted access to the City Map printed on the inside left cover. The inside right cover includes the Location Key, names of all Clans, Clan Elders, and Random City Encounter Tables. Stand it up and use it as a impromptu GM Screen! The map inside the cover will be in full color, while a b/w Player's Copy is included in the manuscript (without location key, of course) to be laid on the table. "

Ah sweet some old school goodness in the style.  Afterwards somebody asked if the image will be provided to backers so they could have it printed out poster sized if hey wanted.  Their answer, again, was one that we wanted to hear as backers.

"Sure! We'll provide a link to an .eps image of the City Map to all digital/physical backers at fulfillment. My wife (the technical half of STG) tells me an .eps image can be blown up without losing definition."

Second they have been providing images of some of the work being done by their artists. This has been shown in the updates section.  Allowing you to get a good idea with the over all 'look' the book is going for. 

Hopefully for a project with a low funded amount, that is already fully written and is from some folks who have a track record for getting their electronic rewards out on time and the physical rewards only slightly behind, they can get a full funding on this.  With only one stretch goal to reach as well, they should do well.

You can find their previous books available in pdf at the usual places.

Ryubix Manor at DrivethruRPG.
Ryubix Manor at RPGNow.

Liber Elixirium at DrivethruRPG.
Liber Elixirium at RPGNow.

You can also find them in print at the Second Thought website.

Ryubix Manor in print.
Liber Elixirium in print.

Tabletop RPG Kickstarters - Things to do part two

For the second piece of advice for those wanting to start up their own RPG Kickstart project is a bit of what you want to do and what you DON'T want to do.  Let's talk about something that can make a project soar at the backing stage and then sink unbelievably at the delivery stage.  It's time to talk about stretch goals.

Everybody seems to like stretch goals.  It adds more in for the backer and it can create a much better product in the end.  But if you unfamiliar with the costs and expenses of doing some of these it can utterly ruin your budget.  There have been plenty of folks with stretch goals that include game screens, extra books, all sorts of swag and what not.  All these cost extra money, most will budget that out and figure up the numbers they need.  What many forget is that if you can't get all of these physical rewards done at the same time you may end up delaying and delaying shipping anything out until they arrive.  I mean if you try to send them out as you get them then you are doubling or even tripling your shipping costs PER BACKER. 

This can be especially bad if one of your stretch goals is another physical book being promised.  The weight can increase shipping costs.  Also if you didn't follow things to do part one with your stretch goal as well then your backers are going to have to wait for you to write it as well.  Not a good thing. 

Another thing many of us Kickstarter fans have seen is the swag stretch goals backfiring.  Again, could delay shipping, or the quoted costs you get could change over night.  Most companies that produce these aren't bound by their quoted estimate.  They can change things up if they feel the cost to produce a mold is more costly than they thought.  Those pins may have been a quote for a size you didn't want or even worse the quote could be for if you order over a certain amount.  An amount you may not even get close to needing.

What are some good goals for an RPG book?  Upgrading the actual material quality of the book.  Better binding, going hardback or even leather bound, better paper, things like this can make your product look and feel better when it hits the backers hands. 

Also if you insist on extra material, companion guides or what not then make them a non-physical reward.  A pdf that will be sent out when its completed and ready to go.  So you can ship the book when you get them in without having to worry about extra shipping costs.  Be sure to tell your backers a rough estimate of when they'll get them... give yourself plenty of time if you insist on breaking the 'write it first' rule. 

Now most of this advice is for small start up companies and the people publishing books out of their homes.  The bigger companies already know most of the costs in printing, shipping, etc from years of experience.  They also know how fast they can get extra material written using freelancers and have a game plan for using extra swag to sell or as a promotion at conventions... so they can order the big amounts. 

Part three coming ... eventually... sometime... someday.... (see why I don't do my own Kickstarter project).

The Essential Guide to Potions and Oils.

Second Thought games recently complete their second Kickstarter and delivered the pdf and print copies to their backers.  Liber Elixirium: The Essential Guide to Potions and Oils is now available to the general public (they like their backers to have it first). They have really gone out of their way to make this book as good as they could. 

The book is a made to resemble a text book for student potion makers.  Covering the necessary tools needed to do the work, information about the ingredients and plenty of potions and their recipes on how to brew them up.  There are no game system mechanics present as it's meant to be system neutral.

Here is the original Kickstarter for the book.

They did a lot right on their Kickstarter.  The book was written before they started, offered a nice preview, constant contact with backers and listened to their feedback, some of which changed the appearance of the book.  Also they went with sensible stretch goals in the form of upgrades to the printing quality of the book.  Then delivered the pdf on time and the print book was only a couple weeks late.  Which might as well be considered early when it comes to RPG projects.

It's available in pdf at the usual places.  Also the special edition leather bound version is available at their site.

Find it on Drivethrurpg here.
Find it on RPGNow here.
Find the print copy here.

They have also released some alternate potion affects and list showing the potions OGL equivalent on their site for free downloads.  Along with doing a video on how to 'age' your book to make it look worn and used.

Find the downloads here.
Watch the video on Youtube here.

Not to be setting on their haunches and enjoying the success of a Kickstarter they are working on more future releases.  The first is an adventure called "City of the Lich" which can be used as a follow up to their previous release "Ryubix Manor" or dropped into any existing campaign and is already up on Kickstarter.  Along with a companion book to go beside Liber Elixirium called: Liber Venificii: The Essential Guide to Poisons and Venoms. 

Find the City of Lich Kickstarter here.

Looking forward to seeing both of these products in the future.

Ryubix Manor review

Ryubix Manor from Second Thought Games.

Available in PDF at DriveThruRPG here -  RYUBIX MANOR in PDF

and in print at the Second Thought Games page here - RYUBIX MANOR in PRINT

Fresh from a properly ran and delivered Kickstarter we have the Ryubix Manor fantasy adventure. Billed as system agnostic and useable for most fantasy games (although I think it has a distinct DnD and old school feel). While it looks like a mega-dungeon it is more of a mega-location that is done right. Lets go into a few details.

It has a nice back history that makes it rather easy to drop into any ongoing campaign if need be. A manor built quite some time ago by the Ryubix family, three brothers who took care of those around them and were a positive influence on the area. Generations go by and each time the family line gets darker and darker until finally a curse is dropped upon both the surviving family members and the manor itself. A century later the players either acquire the deed to the manor from the last known surviving person of the family line, or are hired by him to clean it out.

All the necessary NPC's are given some detailed descriptions but are presented pretty much statless. You get a pretty rough idea of their power level with the level and class description following their names (ex. Vampire/ 15^th Level Bard). The monsters are presented without stat blocks as well with just a Hit Dice rating. The author told me this is because most GM's already have the monster manuals with everything they need in them, no need to reprint them all here, raise the page count and thus the cost of the book. For those who may not have them Second Thought Games have provided the necessary stats in pdf format on their website in both Pathfinder and 3.5 D20 OGL.

The manor is bloody huge. 325 detailed areas to be exact along with details on the immediate surrounding areas and even the roof of the building. The map that comes with the book is double sided, very sturdy and well detailed. Even then not all of the areas are able to fit on it as the underground sections are in the book. It is big, very big.

But the one of the nice things is the layout all makes sense. It is laid out like a massive manor, known in the past for having balls and frequent important visitors, should be. Luxury and ease of living, along with catacombs for the burial of family members, cellars where there are storage areas for things they really would have needed to store things in. There are no random layouts in this place, no 'what the hell was this place before it became a monster filled dungeon' vibes at all.

While I haven't had a chance to run this I have heard from a few playtesters and got to read a bit of the feedback from them. It's a challenge but something that can be accomplished, so no cake walk but no useless fight with no hope of winning either. Very solid adventure that holds up to what most players can dish out.

Finally the layout and presentation is very simply. Going for more ease of use and substance than style and fancy design. It is clear, decently illustrated with no layout errors or missing sections that I have noticed. This alone gives it a bit of an old school feel, back before everyone thought things should have every bell and whistle they could push into it.

In the end this is a very well done adventure. Pretty much geared for higher level players but it is scalable so it can fit a good range of levels. The book and map are both well made and should hold together for lots of play. Second Thought Games has come out the gate with a good showing for their first offering. If their next two announced books hold up as well then people should really start to take some notice.

Tabletop RPG Kickstarters - Things to do part one.

Having sat back and watched many Kickstarters for RPGs go down in flames, barely managed to meet some level of success and a few even slam out the door with flying colors one notices a few things. When you look at the failures it becomes quite easy to see what the problems were from the start and then the successes show you what they did right. This short article series is a look at what I have seen work time and time again. Not all of these are exclusive to being necessary getting your game out the door, but more often than not they do help a lot. Especially for those who don't have a lot of experience in the actual handling printers, layouts, etc; basically this is some of the advice that is best suited for amateurs who want to get a solid start.

First and foremost I will cover the number one thing that needs to be done before you even start working on your Kickstarter page. Write the damn thing first. If you evidently feel you can only write under the motivation that people have already paid you then this probably isn't the line of work for you. Having the dedication before hand to write it all out shows that you can actually do something.

I've seen more updates saying “I've hit a bit of writers block” or “Really having some trouble coming up with detailed descriptions for the NPCs” and other such stuff. That or the promised page count being an almost unreachable goal once they start hammering out words. People who only have experience writing blog posts or short little bits on their web pages find out the hard way that writing out a full game book is a very different animal indeed.

Also having everything written out gives you something to offer up to backers as a showing that you can get it done. Some have offered up the full text of a game book to backers at every level, others have offered sections like combat, character creation, etc. This also gives you the added bonus that your backers may spot something you missed. From things spelled wrong, sentences that simply don't come across right and even some playtest results if you offer up the full rules. The Fate Core book did this with some amazing results.

So if you want to put your game out via Kickstarter then the first thing you need to do is write it. Stop reading these articles and then come back when you have it done. Again this doesn't always apply to everyone, professionals who are already adept at getting things done on a set timescale may be able to do the work after the funding. But for anybody else....

As a side note THIS is precisely the reason I have never tried a Kickstarter.  I've got a half dozen or so half baked games part of the way written.  Nothing finished and I know that under the crunch of time I may not be able to deliver.  I just wish a few others would realize this as well.