Review: The Sun Below- Sleeping Lady, A Numenera supplement and campaign

The Sun Below: Sleeping Lady is a Numenera supplement produced by Dread Unicorn Games and written by John WS Marvin. It continues to develop an entirely new location in the Ninth World, an underground tunnel system that has yet to be fully explored or understood. Along with the new location, bestiary, foci, descriptors, and Numenera, there is a short campaign to run for your players that introduces and delves deep into this new location.

Cover of the book, shows three ladies standing over a desert

A great deal of the set up of this game deals with characters and locations that were introduced in a previous supplement – The Sun Below: A City on Edge. However, running that scenario is not necessary for running Sleeping Lady, alternate introductions are given and the adventure is careful to assume that you might not have prior knowledge.

One thing I think is great in this adventure is that they have it set up to run for charactersA screesnshot of the rules on modifying difficulties of any level. Monster stats are modified by the level of the party, so that the GM doesn’t have to put a lot of work into sorting out altering the difficulty of an encounter themselves. There are also instructions on building up crowds of minions, called mooks here, to swarm up on your characters. They provide different ways to create your mooks so that they can last just a little longer. I really like the way they developed this idea for Numenera and think it would be great to adapt to my own games.

A dancing woman with yellow skinThe adventure begins with the party getting a plea to help save the city of Bursang, part of The Sun Below. However, the situation is more complicated then has yet been realized, and the fate of the Ninth World will end up in the hands of the party. This is a nice and neat campaign, and there are several possible ways for the PCs to try to save the world. The easily modifiable levels of difficulty come in handy with this, as neither you as the GM or the creators of the scenario can predict in what order the party will choose to attack.

I think the creativity in a lot of points of this book is great. For instance, one artifact, The Mind Sword, causes the user to laugh evil when they hit on a roll above 17. Adding quirks like this to artifacts really personalizes them to your character and can introduce great reoccurring jokes and character traits.

The supplement seems to be intended for new GMs, as there is some handholding A mass of tentacles, eyes, and mouthsas you read through it for want to do as a GM. I think this can be great, especially for GMs who are unsure of themselves. The layout is in the same style as the other Numenera books, which makes it easy to recognize when they’re pointing out things like GM intrusions. There are some points were it is a little harder to follow, but for the most part flows very smoothly. There is a lot more art then I was expecting, and it really illustrates the creatures and characters you meet throughout the adventure well.

Sleeping Lady is a great campaign to pick up and run for your party, and is easy to use for the GM. I like several concepts that it introduces, such as quirks on artifacts and mooks for swarming fights. It is available on DriveThruRPG for $7.99. You can also visit Dread Unicorn’s website for more information on their supplements and materials.

*The Redacted Files received a free copy of this supplement for review purposes.

What’s Cool on Kickstarter

There’s many interesting items to be found on Kickstarter, and here are the coolest ones this week.

Dream of Djinn
This looks like a nice starter adventure for low level characters…if you’re like me and enjoy having traps everywhere and twisting people’s wishes into something now quite what they wanted. In the product description they outline some of the traps your poor party will encounter, and creativity is encouraged to get out of them.

Mockup of the book closed and open

“Suitable for lower-level characters (as you might not want to be too attached to them), Dream of the Djinn focuses on deadly traps, cunning curses, and a healthy dose of exploration. During testing, the adventure has so far provided about 12-15 hours of gameplay, a high mortality rate, and a consistent thumbs up.

Wishes are not the easiest of things to come by, so be prepared for a challenge. Throughout the course of the adventure, characters may run into ancient gods, sinister illusions, powerful artifacts, and trips through time. Or, more likely, their deaths.”

 

Stretchy Chainmail Dice Bags
If the large number of boxes I’ve posted to store your dice in haven’t caught your interest, maybe you should take a look at these bags. They are chainmail, but also include stretchy rubber links that allow the bag to get much larger. The bags they are selling through this kickstarter will hold about 35 dice, and you can choose your color combination!

About 15 dice bags, all different colors

“Our dice bags are handmade of anodized aluminum & EPDM rubber, which makes them stretchy & helps pad to prevent damage to your dice. The ring measurements are 16 gauge thick & the inner diameter is 5/16″. Each small bag can hold approximately 35 dice. The drawstrings are paracord; the stopper & end caps are plastic. All will be available in different colors.”

 

Kill Doctor Lucky
I really love the idea of this board game, where instead of trying to find the killer, like in Clue, you’re actively trying to murder the host. This game has been out for almost 20 years, but is currently out of print. This kickstarter is to produce a new deluxe edition.

The game with several pieces and cards displayed

“Cheapass Games was founded in 1996, and our very first board game was Kill Doctor Lucky. It’s a “pre-mystery” board game, where players compete to kill a very lucky old man. Kill Doctor Lucky has been through several versions and variations over the years, and it is currently out of print. To celebrate the 19.5th anniversary, we are bringing back Kill Doctor Lucky in a special edition, with new art and updated rules.

Kill Doctor Lucky is a fast, easy board game. The goal is simple: to kill Doctor Lucky. You’ll sneak around Lucky Mansion looking for good weapons and hiding places. To make a murder attempt, you must be in a room with Doctor Lucky where no one else can see you. And of course, he’s very lucky, so he’s quite hard to kill.”

 

Machu Pichu Dice
I think these dice a gorgeous and incredibly unique. There are several designs to choose from, and even though they are pricier they would make a great addition to a dice collection, or even just look beautiful as a display piece.

The three dice sets. One uses squares, one dots, the third diamonds for the pips. The dice are a mottled green and the pips are multi colored and outlined in silver.

“We believe the Machu Picchu Dice to be something quite… weird. GOOD wierd. We have looked extensively, and found nothing slightly similar out there. So we are happy, because we are doing something awesome AND new. We made the dice with two key purposes:
A. Deliver something GREAT. We wanted durability, we wanted precision and we wanted beauty.
B. To create a product that MEANT something.

There is so much amazing things to be shared from this corner of the world: talented people, amazing designs and materials, that even something as simple as reimagining a dice design is an opportunity to create something truly unique. It’s hard work, and a single die can take many hours to make, but the result is well worth it.”

 

Crucible: A Coin-based Fantasy RPG
Crucible uses a d2 system, which is heavily integrated into the worldbuilding of the setting. I haven’t seen d2s as a core mechanic before, and I think it looks like a great way to incorporate them. You can use any d2 you want, but the campaign is producing special coins to go along with their world.

Seven different gold, silver, and bronze coins

“Coins in Crucible aren’t just for mechanics, they’re also an integral part of the game world. They are sacred tokens, reservoirs of energy that allow those journeying toward ascension to focus and extend their capacities, enchant relics, and boost their potential to superhuman or even godlike levels.

Coins are also used to invest power into accoutrements of legend. Like Gandalf’s Glamdring or King Arthur’s Excalibur, the most important relics in a character’s possession remain with them over their lifetime, growing in power and renown as the character does.

The tail-sides of the coins are important in Crucible, for it is in them that the creation of the world is described. We call this the “Tale-side”, and this aspect carries through into gameplay where characters select stories that add drama and interest to their development instead of traditional advantages and disadvantages.”

 

H.P. Lovecraft Metal Record
Just to add some diversity to this listing, you can now pick up a whole metal album that focuses on Lovecraft’s works. There are song samples on the Kickstarter, and you can also pick up some great artwork they’re producing to accompany the album.

Three cultists standing around an alter. It's very metal looking

“A guitarist and composer, haunted by alien strains from beyond. An artist, being driven mad by his dreams. At the edge of sanity, the only way back from the yawning gulfs of illimitable horror is…Metal. Heavy Lovecraftian Metal.

‘Oath Of Dagon’ is my 5th record of instrumental, prog-metal guitar. Teaming up with Argentinian fantasy and sci-fi artist Marcelo Orsi Blanco, the purpose of this record is to finally go all-in with a lifelong obsession: the weird fiction of H.P. Lovecraft.

The aim here is to create the ultimate, authentic, Lovecraft metal experience. This is a true audio / visual project – a 10 song, full length record with 10 Lovecraftian paintings, combined into a cultist’s Dream Journal. The music and journal will be packaged as a high quality download card with a 20 page comic-style art book.”

 

Still active!

Project Bombshell
Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game
Pathfinder Metal Dice Set
Masks: A New Generation
Cultists and Cthulhu
Spellbook Gaming Boxes
Boogie Dice
Scrawl of Cthulhu
Spaceteam
Tome of Beasts: 300 New Monsters for 5e
The Book of Starry Wisdom

What’s Cool on Kickstarter

There’s many interesting items to be found on Kickstarter, and here are the coolest ones this week.

Spellbook Gaming Boxes
I was incredibly happy with my Hex Box from this company, and now they’ve come up with something even more beautiful that I am extremely regretful I can’t afford right now. These boxes can double as a dice tray and they have a huge variety of foam inserts that you can use to make them work for carrying your dice or even cards around. I could go on and on about these boxes, but I think just looking at them should sell you on them. There are pledge tiers to get them by Christmas as well, which would be a great gift for your favorite DM. (Or me!)

View of four boxes, showing exterior design and the two interior styles available

“Spellbooks are stylish and functional reliquaries for your favorite gaming gear. They come in two basic styles; “card deck” and “rolling tray.” The card deck is made for trading card games like Magic: The Gathering, while the rolling tray is for the generalists out there. You can further personalize the rolling tray interior with removable foam inserts cut to a variety of templates.

Inside the cover is a new Elderwood feature: the Reflecting Pool. Each Pool is crafted out of a variety of metals and acts as a fully functional dry erase board to keep track of temporary stats.

Finally, we offer an array of luxurious leathers with which to bind each Spellbook, and offer a range of art to customize the cover and spine to make them uniquely your own. To close out the package, hidden magnets together with a book belt keep your treasures safe and secure.”

 

Boogie Dice
These dice are so fun. I love the idea of being able to activate a roll by clapping or snapping your fingers. They have a game designed to go with these dice called Bots Battleground which looks like fun. But my focus is on these really cool dice.

Fist slams down on table and the two dice light up and bounce around.

“Boogie Dice are the world’s first self-rolling, sound activated, programmable, gaming dice. Clap your hands, snap yours fingers or bang the table, and they will start to Boogie.

100% smile guarantee: having the dice magically roll on your command makes everyone who sees it smile, and that’s what we’re here for!

Designed to be a universal gaming accessory, Boogie Dice can replace any standard ‘static’ dice in any and all of your favorite games. But Boogie Dice are jam-packed with unique features and abilities that transform them from simple dice into the coolest gaming accessory.”

 

Scrawl of Cthulhu
If you are dedicated to making your own props for games you should really check this out. They have developed 10 fonts specifically for Cthulhu projects, including period accurate fonts. You can get a personal license, or one that you can use commercially.

Examples of various fonts from the project

“This project started with the development of original fonts to use in a forthcoming tabletop game project. When we had developed a selection of fonts, we realized that perhaps there were other people who might be interested in a collection of high quality fantasy fonts! With that in mind we expanded the scope of the fonts and used a professional font editor to further refine them.

Our previous collections of fantasy fonts were successfully funded here on Kickstarter and now we are back with our fourth pack, this time focused on the Cthulhu mythos! The pack aims to include a variety of period accurate fonts to construct scripts, ciphers, newspapers, ancient languages etc.”

 

Spaceteam
I love cooperative games, and this one looks like a lot of fun. The ‘science talk’ on all the cards is super fun, and gameplay looks exciting.  Plus I really love the art on all the cards.

“Spaceteam is a fast-paced, cooperative shouting card game where you work together to repair a malfunctioning spaceship. Coordination with your team is crucial as you try to escape an impending black hole. Success is seemingly just out of reach as you encounter one complication after another. Your only hope is to work together with your Spaceteam to repair the ship before it’s too late.

This game was created by an all-star team of game-makers and creatives including Henry Smith (creator of the Spaceteam mobile game), Elan Lee (Creator of Exploding Kittens) Tommy West, Mathew Sisson, and more.

So if you’re into playing card games, overhauling spaceships, discharging fluxitrons, and shouting at your friends: Help us make this game a reality!”

 

Tome of Beasts: 300 New Monsters for 5e
There are millions of ideas out there for monsters, so you shouldn’t let yourself be limited by a single Monster’s Manual. This book includes 300+ new monsters for your game, and has stunning art. I think these look like a great addition to your game, and with 5e stats ready to go, you can port them into your next session!

A metallic being, seemingly made of armor, stands ready to fight

“The Tome of Beasts brings more than 300 new monsters to your 5e game—everything from tiny drakes and peculiar spiders to ancient dragons, arch-devils, and demon lords. The Tome of Beasts covers a huge gamut of challenges, from basic vermin to world-shaking personification of malevolence, and everything in between! Back the Tome of Beasts today and terrify your know-it-all players with creatures they have never heard of.

This richly-illustrated, highly useful supplement for any 5th Edition game compiles monsters from the entire history of Kobold Press monster design, including longtime favorites such as our clockwork creatures, drakes and dragons, devils and arch-devils, and the various dangerous flavours of the fey. It includes the winners and some of the finalists of the Monarch of the Monsters contest, and it is illustrated by some of the finest artists working in fantasy today.”

 

The Book of Starry Wisdom
This book contains Lovecraft’s stories that deal mainly with Cthulhu and his cult and are accompanied by essays and art from people well-known in the Lovecraftian community. They’re planning on making a very beautiful book that will look amazing on your bookshelf.

“The Book of Starry Wisdom compiles newly edited editions of H.P. Lovecraft’s public domain cycle of Cthulhu stories, edited and produced by myself, Simon Berman, and illustrated by renowned deific and fantasy artist, Valerie Herron (The Book of the Great Queen).

Accompanied by essays and musings by some of today’s premiere Lovecraftian scholars, writers, and devotees, The Book of Starry Wisdom will be a luxurious, approximately 192 page hardback tome, featuring a leather textured cover with gold foil pressed symbols of significance to the Cult of Cthulhu, 13 interior B&W illustrations, as well as other features to be unlocked as the Kickstarter meets its stretch goals. This premium volume will be a stunning addition to the library of any enthusiast of H.P. Lovecraft or worshipper of Dead Cthulhu Who Lies Dreaming. ”

 

Still active!

Project Bombshell
Fire and Bone 3
Lovecraftesque
Bad Neighborhood Jigsaw puzzle
Zucati Dice
Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game
Pathfinder Metal Dice Set
Masks: A New Generation
Cultists and Cthulhu

Review: Into the Night, a Numenera Supplement

Cover of Into the Night, features a man in front of a vortex with his hands on controls

Into the Night is a new setting book from Monte Cook Games for Numenera. It focuses on expanding the world to outer space, and what terrors and wonders lie out there for the Ninth Worlders to discover.

Cover of Into the Night, features a man in front of a vortex with his hands on controls

It is a 160 page book, with the first section (about 35 pages) focusing on how to reach beyond earth and the bodies near enough to Earth for initial discovery and other exploration. The second section (about 45 pages) looks at the other planets in our Solar System. The third section (about 60 pages) looks at threats and places that adventurers can explore outside of our solar system. The book closes with 20 pages of new creatures to encounter. Throughout the book are new story seeds, cyphers, and artifacts.

Branu's Kiss, with a view of the creatures and plants living insideMany of the existing astronomical objects are ones we can find the analogues for today: the Moon is, well, the Moon, Naharrai is Mars, Urvanas is Venus. However, there are new objects as well, like Branu’s Kiss a globe of blue-green water that orbits between Earth and the Sun. Or Calram, a small object that orbits earth, but is full of beings that have greater tech then the Ninth Worlders enjoy. There’s also a pretty great derelict ship for you to explore.

Beyond our solar system lies more planets, galaxies, and strangeness to explore. These new worlds include some of their history, distinguishing characteristics, and all kinds of ideas to build your own story from. There are also ten more planets that have rudimentary descriptions, which I think are great to use, but also give you an idea on building your own new weird planets.

Each section on a location in this book includes a handy “Using –” panel, with around five plot hooks to pull characters into a situation in that location. I think there’s a lot within the text as well to establish your own ideas for why the adventurers should be here. There’s also information on ways to get there, which can be handy when all the places are light-years apart!

A space suit, emerging from a solid wall with an alien creature in it's broken faceplateI think there is a nice mix of new creatures, and the book also discusses how to re-skin other Numenera beasties to make them fit beyond Earth.

This book handily includes rules for combat between vessels – some of which was outlined in Worlds Numberless and Strange, but I think it is a valuable addition to Into the Night, especially when there’s always a risk your craft may be attacked by pirates. For ship to ship combat you first compare the levels of the ships, and if your ship is a higher level you have a reduction in the difficulty of actions involving the other ship. If it is lower, then the difficulty is increased. You still make attack and defense rolls, and things like ship weapons and coordination with other ships play into the difficulty as well. Specific maneuvers can also be accomplished by modifying the difficulty. There’s a lot going on to effect the roll, but I think the addition of ship to ship combat can make the game much more interesting.

One thing I found odd is a one place you can visit is called The Gloaming, which is also the name of the Vampire/Werewolf recursion in The Strange. Since the locations have nothing to do with one another, I think a different name would be more appropriate, even if in canon The Strange and Numenera aren’t connected.

One minor complaint I have with the book is the scattered nature of the new Numenera. It makes it a little more difficult to pull out a new artifact without them being gather in one place, and it also can make it difficult to find them again mid-play.

A blue man looks across a bleak landscape with low housesThe art in the book is gorgeous, and there is some variation in styles throughout, but I think this serves to give a view of the Ninth World and beyond from other eyes.

I think this book brings a lot into any Numenera game, and is full of great ideas of how to bring Space into your sessions. Into the Night is available from Monte Cook Games as a PDF ($14.99) and Hardback ($39.99). It’s also available from DriveThruRPG as a PDF. You should also look into the beautiful Nightcraft glimmer, which goes into even more detail about a vessel that can by used to traverse space (MCG Store | DriveThruRPG | $2.99).

What’s Cool on Kickstarter

There’s many interesting items to be found on Kickstarter, and here are the coolest ones this week.

Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game
TRF was started from a desire to play Delta Green, so we’re beyond ecstatic for this Kickstarter. This is a brand new ruleset for Delta Green, based on Call of Cthulhu. There’s also the option of picking up Pelgrane’s Fall of Delta Green, a 1960’s Gumshoe system. As the Kickstarter continues new supplements will become available!

Creature that looks like a fungus holding a laptop

“Delta Green was directly inspired by the horror fiction of H.P. Lovecraft and other Cthulhu Mythos authors. Just as Lovecraft’s stories were about the intersection of cosmic terror and cutting-edge technology in the 1920s and 1930s, Delta Green is about that intersection today.

In every game of Delta Green: The Role-Playing Game, agents investigate horrifying events, seek ways to thwart them, and try to save anyone else from being exposed. They face lethal threats and awful discoveries. To keep a low profile, they rarely have the resources they want. They often must make terrible choices for the greater good, as best they can perceive it. The longer an agent is active, the greater the toll those stresses take on the agent’s health, sanity, career, and family.”

 

Pathfinder Metal Dice Set
These are some very pretty dice from one of the best companies in the business. They’re pretty pricy, but they look so nice.

The full set of the metal pathfinder dice.

“Are you a Pathfinder player? Or a dice fan? Or a fan of shiny things in general? 🙂 Then this project is for you!

Q-workshop, the manufacturer of the most unusual dice in the world, together with Paizo Inc., the publisher of the Pathfinder RPG, are extremely happy to announce their new project to make the most awesome metal dice set on Earth – and possibly in the whole Universe.”

 

Masks: A New Generation
This is a new superhero game where you aren’t the first generation of superheroes, in fact everyone has gotten used to the idea of you being around. So where do you fit in this world? That’s for you to figure out as you fight crime and super villains.

Three superhero teenagers, one with blue skin, one in a black outfit, one wearing gold and red

“Masks is a tabletop roleplaying game in which you play young superheroes who are growing up in a city several generations into its superheroic age. Halcyon City has had more than its fair share of superheroes, superteams, supervillains, and everything in between. Over the course of three different generations of super-people, Halcyon City has seen it all.

You play members of the fourth generation, young adults trying to figure out who they are and what kind of heroes they want to be. The rest of the world is telling them what to do, but they’ll find their own path amidst the noise. And kick some butt along the way. After all, what’s the point of being a hero if you can’t fight for the things you believe in?”

 

Cultists and Cthulhu
This is a game based on Flapjacks, but developed to take advantage of the nerd bacon that is Cthulhu.

Card with yog-sothoth that lets you start the next game

“Prolific Games has been around since 2008 with our most famous game being Flapjacks and Sasquatches*. We had some great ideas to change the game play of Flapjacks but decided our core fan base may not like changes in their favorite card game. So we decided to create a new game. Cultists & Cthulhu** uses the same basic mechanics of Flapjacks with some changes. The biggest change is the Sacrifices. Sacrifices are cards that can be used to help complete your ritual by adding dice to your roll every turn or discarded (sacrificed) to get automatic successes.

Why Cthulhu? We wanted to throw our hat in the Cthulhu ring but with the Prolific humor you all know and love. There are a bunch of Easter eggs in the game for those who are familiar with Lovecraft’s work. There are also images that we hope you all find laugh out loud worthy.”

 

Still active!

Project Bombshell
Galaxy Incorporated RPG
Fire and Bone 3
Charm City Blues: A Noir Game
Lovecraftesque
Bad Neighborhood Jigsaw puzzle
Tales of the Caribbean
Zucati Dice

What’s cool on Kickstarter

There’s many interesting items to be found on Kickstarter, and here are the coolest ones this week.

Lovecraftesque
There are a lot of games out there that let you create your own Lovecraftian story. But I’m really excited for this project because it’s taking Lovecraft and making it much more inclusive by removing the racist stereotypes found in much of Lovecraft’s work and taking a much more modern view on mental health. This is the sort of game that I can see fitting very comfortably in TRF’s game shelf, and I can’t wait for it to be released.

Two women sit at a table, one looks around nervously, one has bug legs

“Lovecraftesque is a GMless storytelling game of brooding cosmic horror. You and your friends will each contribute strange clues to a slow-building mystery, culminating in a journey into darkness that ends in a climactic scene of horror. You will be surprised and creeped out by your friends’ contributions, but the game is designed so that it will feel like one person was GMing it, even though you never had to break the tension by pausing for discussion. In short, Lovecraftesque is the GMless, indie-style Lovecraft game you’ve been waiting for.

When you play Lovecraftesque you’ll be creating your own mystery, and your own unique monsters that will feel like something out of Lovecraft’s notebook. There won’t be any Mi-Go or Deep Ones – you’ll get a completely fresh take on the genre.

The game focuses on a single Witness, who is at the mercy of strange and terrifying events. Lovecraft’s stories rarely featured parties of investigators, and the hero rarely wins – that’s how our game works, too. You rotate responsibility for playing the Witness, but the role is much more about revealing their inner thoughts and fears than solving the mystery or beating up cultists.”

 

Bad Neighborhood Jigsaw puzzle
My family always puts together puzzles at Christmas time, so they hold a certain sense of nostalgia for me. And when the man behind Calamityware makes a puzzle, I can’t help but be interested. This puzzles shows a bad neighborhood, full of monsters, that you might actually want to live in.

The image for the puzzle, colorful buildings and monsters move between them

“I designed the BAD NEIGHBORHOOD puzzle to give you abundant colors, beguiling details, and mild mystery. I hope you enjoy the challenge and delight in exploring this strange neighborhood.

What’s included in the drawings? This is my first venture into urban planning. I created several streets with a variety of buildings. Like most towns, there are signs, vehicles, and shop windows. All a little odd or twisted, but nothing to harm the delicate sensibilities of children. On the streets and in the buildings you’ll find an excellent demonstration of diversity—monster style. ”

 

Tales of the Caribbean
This collection includes at least 6 1920’s Call of Cthulhu scenarios set in the Caribbean. I think these would be a great way to take your campaign somewhere new and interesting, and all of the set ups sound fascinating.

A man looks at a shriveled corpse lying in a bed

“Across the azure waters of Caribbean Sea, under the warmth of the tropical sun, are more than seven hundred islands which make up many nations. Their citizens are a mix of native and colonial peoples, with unique cultures and traditions. But, there are many dark shadows in paradise. For upon these same islands are, unknown to most people, countless horrors which lurk just beyond the perception of mankind. Under the waves and deep in the jungles, beyond coral reefs and within smoldering volcanoes, stalking through sugarcane fields and banana groves, are the dark powers of the Cthulhu Mythos.

As always a few brave and resourceful men and women learn the truth. These heroes then stand before the darkness to face the untold horrors beyond human understanding. These are a few of their stories. Golden Goblin Press is very proud to bring you Tales of the Caribbean.”

 

Zucati Dice
This is another set of really pretty dice that are available. They come in aluminum, brass, tungsten, steel and copper, as well as several colors.

The colorful dice are sitting on wooden boxes

“These dice are made from solid metal and engraved using a CNC mill to be the finest, best looking and best rolling dice ever made. There’s nothing extra involved here… no gimmicks, no plating, no paint, only solid metal in either its natural state or anodized on one of several vibrant and amazing colors.”

 

Strange Nations
I think this looks like a pretty awesome guide to help you with worldbuilding in any campaign you’re building. This collection has write-ups on thirty different cultures that you can integrate into your games. I really love that he put a lot of details into each culture, like the ingredients for carrot whiskey or the salinity tolerance of plants. This is going to be available for everyone, he just needs help to pay for the art.

A being with three heads and three arms looks down disdainfully as blood drips from her hands and a spider dangles from another

“I am putting together a worldbuilding resource book with detailed cultures designed to fit into your setting with only a minimum of adaptation necessary. Everything will be released under a Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 4.0 License, so that you can use it even for commercial projects.

Strange Nations will hold detailed write-ups on thirty different cultures running the gamut from high fantasy to space opera to alternate history and the post-apocalypse.

There is the city-state of Iditt, where necromancy is accepted and self-mummification is the first step to repaying your lifelong debt to society. There are the Balas, whose buildings hang off the edge of a flat world. There are werejaguars, mad fairy refugees, and wagon-drivers with a religious injunction against touching the ground.”

 

Still active!

Project Bombshell
Recall of Cthulhu
The Incredible Chemistry Set
Ferroflow – A ferrofluid sculpture
The Cloud Dungeon: A DIY Paper Craft RPG Game
Shadow Over Sol: A Science Fiction and Horror RPG
BitCrates Component Boxes
Wargaming Basing Accessory Molds
Galaxy Incorporated RPG
Fire and Bone 3
LittleCLUUs Custom Dice
Charm City Blues: A Detective Noir Game

What’s Cool on Kickstarter

There’s many interesting items to be found on Kickstarter, and here are the coolest ones this week.

Galaxy Incorporated RPG
This new RPG sounds like an interesting setup, sort of like Shadowrun in space without the questionably racist magic background mixed with Paranoia.

Image from the Kickstarter post, a person in space

“Galaxy Incorporated is an epic space fantasy roleplaying game set in a far-future utopia, and the human race has expanded throughout the galaxy. Mega-Corporations run the galaxy with the help of worldwide Artificial Intelligence systems. These AI systems oversee the needs for every corporate citizen. Local AI systems carefully monitor corporate citizens and link to a world AI to help the bureaucrats balance all resources for everyone. Famine and disease are things of the past. Everything a citizen could ever need or want is provided for.

Player characters are part of a spaceship crew looking for a way to survive in a galaxy run by these interplanetary Mega-Corporations..”

 

Fire and Bone 3
These beautiful renders of skulls can be displayed or worn. They’re designed using 3D scans of actual skulls, and I want them all everytime they release a kickstarter.

The collection of skulls on stands, as rings, and pendants

“We make tiny, true-to-life animal skull reproductions based on high-definition 3D scans of original specimens, carefully miniaturized in a digital process, then cast in metal. This is our third collection here on Kickstarter and it’s our best yet! We keep listening to the requests and advice of our passionate customers, who are naturalists and animal lovers like us. What we’ve brought to Kickstarter this time keeps these suggestions in mind, with a couple twists of our own.

Fire & Bone pieces take full advantage of exciting new technologies, including 3D scanning and 3D printing, to create something that’s not available anywhere else: miniature skulls that are highly detailed and faithful to nature’s design. And, Fire & Bone skulls look beautiful both as pendants or when exhibited as collector’s items.”

 

LittleCLUUs Custom Dice
These dice have adorable little dragons inside them. There are also other colors of dice, and little dragons to hold your dice.

Rainbow of different dragon dice

“I’ve wanted to bring something a little more special to the world of gaming for quite sometime, and after a lot of trial and errors I landed on making some very special and custom dice. I started bringing them to fruition and noticed that everyone seemed to love them and I would LOVE to make them more commercially available. This is where you can help me out, and in return I can also bring these dice and special hand made creations to you!

All the dragons and critters are made of high quality polymer clay and each of the dice are cast in a jewelers grade epoxy resin. This not only gives very balanced dice but they are extremely durable! Plus all of the colors I create are mixed directly into the resin so theres no color fade! You will also have the option to have the numbers painted to any color of your choosing!”

 

Charm City Blues: A Detective Noir Game
I love cooperative games and Noir, so this game caught my attention pretty quickly. It looks like an interesting set up that could be a lot of fun.

Example of some cards from the game

“Charm City Blues is a cooperative detective-noir game where players take on the role of members of the Vice Squad, racing across the city trying to catch a suspect before the clock strikes 12 or the Suspicion Track fills.”

 

Still active!

Project Bombshell
Recall of Cthulhu
The Incredible Chemistry Set
Ferroflow – A ferrofluid sculpture
The Cloud Dungeon: A DIY Paper Craft RPG Game
Shadow Over Sol: A Science Fiction and Horror RPG
BitCrates Component Boxes
Wargaming Basing Accessory Molds

What’s Cool on Kickstarter

There’s many interesting items to be found on Kickstarter, and here are the coolest ones this week.

The Cloud Dungeon: A DIY Paper Craft RPG Game
I really love the idea that you’re coloring and adding on to your character as you go.

Page from the book with coloring and cut out parts

“AndHeDrew brings you The Cloud Dungeon, a DIY Adventure Game with paper craft, coloring, co-op and competitive mini games, and difficult decisions with permanent (often hilarious) consequences. It’s a creativity-inspiring co-op experience that’s fantastic to play as a family. It can be played in 90 min-120 min, or broken up into 30-45 minute sessions, as the book is divided into three chapters.

This is the first book in the DIY Adventure Games format, an entirely new way to play games. Permanent team and individual decisions and the possibility of death and resurrection as a ghost make this a unique new way to team up and create a story together.”

 

Shadow Over Sol: A Science Fiction and Horror RPG
This game is based on some of my favorite horror movies – those with Science Fiction. I think it would make a great addition to your SciFi collection. It uses the Saga Machine core system.

A metal hallway with blood and a torn up grate. A monster is at the end

“Players in Shadows Over Sol can take any number of roles, ranging from determined explorers or hardened military personnel, to corp troubleshooters or profit-driven “scrappers” that skirt the gray areas of the law.

Shadows Over Sol is inspired by a variety of science fiction and horror media, ranging from Ridley Scott’s classic film Alien and John Carpenter’s The Thing, to more recent works such as James S. A. Corey’s excellent The Expanse series.”

 

BitCrates Component Boxes
These are some really nice boxes for holding the pieces for your favorite board games. You’ll no longer have to go searching through your cupboards for some spare tupperware!

BitCrate box with pieces in it

“Components (aka Bits) have become a huge part of modern board game play. Each game though pose the same question — how do you fit all these components on the table? BitCrates were built to answer just that.

BitCrates are a carefully designed, handcrafted set of boxes made from hardwood and aluminum. They are meant to help contain, pass and save space on your gaming table while playing the board game.”

 

Wargaming Basing Accessory Molds
I’ve barely painted my own miniatures, let alone build them, but this project gives you access to some awesome bases and pieces you can add to improve what you’re creating!

Red polyurethane mold with some finished pieces

“I am asking for funding to bring my new range of accessory press molds to the market. Made from Polyurethane Rubber, simply mix your modeling putty and fill in the mold. When the putty has hardened remove the casting and add to your bases. they are designed to fit into the popular 28mm sale fantasy wargaming.

Materials: Made from performance Polyurethane Rubber. Dimensions: W 115mm, 62mm. Designed for: All 28mm wargaming”

 

Still active!

Numenera: Into the Ninth World ***Ending this week! Now with more Character Options and a new Bestiary!!!
Vurt: The Tabletop Roleplaying Game
All Fathomed Out
Project Bombshell
Recall of Cthulhu
The Incredible Chemistry Set
Ferroflow – A ferrofluid sculpture

What’s Cool on Kickstarter

There’s many interesting items to be found on Kickstarter, and here are the coolest ones this week.

Project Bombshell
Cthulhu and Friends are launching their first kickstarter to bring their world to and explore the parts we haven’t been able to see yet. They’ve already funded a comic about The Man Jack, and will be releasing issues looking at the backstory of other characters as stretch goals are met.
CaF Kickstarter logo
“When you play an real-play tabletop RPG, you always run the risk of having the dice kill one of your characters. When you play an H.P. Lovecraft inspired game, the chances of having the dice kill one of your characters is almost certain.

For our GM, saying she thinks outside the box is an understatement; she destroys the box. It’s because of these classic critical failures during gameplay that much of her storytelling must go untold. Now, in an effort to give the fans more of the rich story that they have been craving and to give our GM the creative outlet she desires, we’re going to start releasing a series of comic books.”

 

Recall of Cthulhu
This game is super adorable and would be a great way to slowly infect your child’s mind with Cthulhu, making sure those seeds of madness are planted early!
Recall of Cthulhu kawaii concept art

“Recall of Cthulhu presents the horrors of the mythos in a way they were meant to be – cute and cuddly! This classic matching game can be played by up to four of the most deranged patients in the Sanatorium, as well as young cultists aged 4 and up! The game can be played as a simple matching game, or the advanced game can be played which adds a small layer of complexity to the game.

Included in the game are 60 tiles representing 15 creatures, items, and places of the Cthulhu Mythos, as well as two player aids for playing the advanced game. What better way of improving your memory for those dusty tomes of spells than a quick game of Recall of Cthulhu?”

 

The Incredible Chemistry Set
I remember my chemistry professors reminiscing about the good old days when you bought a chemistry set and you could actually hurt yourself with what you got. Most sets you can get now involve safe experiments with little excitement. This deluxe kit gives you the resources to really understand and experiment. Plus it comes in a beautiful box.
Incredible Chemistry Set contents

“The Incredible Chemistry Set includes the glassware, chemicals, and lab apparatus necessary to perform the most interesting and exciting chemical reactions. We have spent months researching the most fascinating reactions to include in the set. All of this research has been compiled in our Experiments Book. This book includes procedures for 35 experiments. The set, along with the book, will enable you to carry out these experiments. Please keep in mind that some of the experiments require chemicals and items that cannot be shipped (such as dry ice, acid, strawberries, etc…) Also included in the set are selected physics experiments (magnetism & electricity).

Many chemistry sets fail to include exciting reactions. Our Experiments Book is packed with the best experiments that science has to offer. The book does not go into the same depth as other chemistry books, but rather provides simple, easy-to-follow instructions for performing each experiment.”

 

Ferroflow – A ferrofluid sculpture
I like pretty things that look cool, and this awesome desk sculpture definitely fits the bill.
Ferrofluid sculpture demonstration

“Every now and then you need a little distraction from staring at your monitor for hours on end, and Ferroflow is your answer! Just touch it to turn it on and enjoy the display as it moves ferrofluid around in cool and unique ways, automatically. The spikes and fluid motions will provide just the break you’re looking for, and good luck keeping your coworkers away.”

 

Still active!

Cultists of Cthulhu
Pennypult
Numenera: Into the Ninth World
AcadeCon 2015
The Things We Leave Behind
Meta Dice
Vurt: The Tabletop Roleplaying Game
Chaos of Cthulhu
All Fathomed Out

Happy 125th Birthday HP Lovecraft!

There’s a lot of celebrating going on for Lovecraft’s 125th birthday and you too can take part!