Kickstarters Thread

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Ptolus is in the last couple of hours if people fancied it but haven’t made their mind up yet...
 
Another campaign getting into the final furlong: Town Battle Maps

Lots of stretch goals achieved, now...
I'm still in! Whereas most of the Dungeon Battle Maps from their last Kickstarter seem to look a bit samey, these look really versatile.
 
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Just got an email about a Kickstarter for new editions of Monsters! Monsters! and the Toughest Dungeon in the World solo adventure.



Kind of on the fence about this one. I have the FBI version, and I'm not sure I need it. I mainly use it as a Monster Manual of sorts. Toughest Dungeon looks more frustrating than anything. Legend is that it is not survivable or able to be completed. Hell, T&T solos are meatgrinders as it is. So, I dunno.
 
I'm still in! Whereas most of the Dungeon Battle Maps from their last Kickstarter seem to look a bit samey, these look really versatile.
I think there is a clear evolution, and now they know the market better and have Kickstarter to help with the economies of scale they are starting to produce more ‘targeted’ books.
 
I rather enjoyed the marriage of art and layout in one of the last books by He Who Must Not be Named, called Frostbitten and Mutilated. It has the artist’s crazy loose style but the text was relatively easy to read with plenty of white space. However, it maintained its stylish cred.

Mothership is right at the border though. Looks really neat but feels claustrophobic (which is appropriate to the theme of the game, for sure, but still)...

Anyway, it can be done well. That Mork Bork book looks really gorgeous and readable too.

On the opposite end of that, we have Icons. Tons of splashy colors, shapes that make no sense and have no relevance to the game or its theme, and HUGE borders on every page. I've always suspected that it's a way to inflate the page count, but the signal to noise ratio is very low. Graphically, Icons is one of the least appealing games I've ever seen.
 
I think Fading Suns is a really cool setting (I think I own all the 1st/2nd edition books), but I just am meh at this kickstarter. I don't see any reason to make the core book more than a single book and the artwork, although in color, doesn't excite me. In fact, it doesn't even seem to fit the original setting vibe to me.
 
I think Fading Suns is a really cool setting (I think I own all the 1st/2nd edition books), but I just am meh at this kickstarter. I don't see any reason to make the core book more than a single book and the artwork, although in color, doesn't excite me. In fact, it doesn't even seem to fit the original setting vibe to me.
I've just looked and I'm not sure I like how it's been handled (the project not the KS). Do we really need at least 3 core books plus the usual array of tokens and chits?

£46 buy in just for the corebooks as pdfs seems brutally expensive to my mind.

All seems a bit self indulgent. I may reconsider but that's a huge ask for what seems a rather unnecessary approach.

I think the artwork looks good but the KS video told me nothing (literally).

I tried watching some of the lets play clips on YT but it seemed to be players not really grasping the setting (certainly not in a way I'd like, ymmv). Still each to their own
 
The art just seems really bland to me. Not bad at all, but doesn't evoke the feeling of an archaic medieval society on the cusp of a dying universe. I would have gone much more stylized.

But then, I feel the exact same way about 5E's art, so ...yeah.
 
Link.

New edition (still powered by Savage Worlds, natch), and what looks like a major setting revamp (possibly not news to those who keep up with the metaplot)... I have the Deadlands: Reloaded core books gatheruing dust here so I cannot in good conscience bring myself to break my Kickstarter exile. But it does look good.

I want to say it was a ballsy move to drop a major KS in the middle of the pandemic but right now they have collected 1000+ pledges worth USD 133,000 (goal set at 10,000) so what do I know.
 
Thanks! Backed...

Although I probably didn't need to, as I'm very happy with Deadlands Reloaded. But I'm sure this will be good! :smile:
 
Torchbearer 2nd Edition kickstarter

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Over the last seven years, this RPG has evolved from being an homage to Basic D&D with a different ruleset to quite its own thing. It made $65,000 in total the first time for kickstarter and this time around, on day 1, it is already to over $145,000.

This also shows a change back to digest sized books and some deluxe extras like wooden dice and wooden stands. No plastic. And no mention of D&D.

I don't actually know what, if anything, I want to do about this kickstarter. But I do find it a fascinating move forward for Torchbearer.

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Fate Chips are gone, replaced by bennies.

The dry-as-fuck Arcane Backgrounds in SWADE combined with the promise of "streamlined Arcane Backgrounds" in this edition aren't promising either, since that was the single biggest gripe about Reloaded in the first place.

For the first time since I discovered Deadlands, I'm not sure I'm going to bother. (Second time, counting the new Lost Colony, which I still don't have.)
 
I really like the idea but found the mechanics a bit too crunchy for my taste. The setting as a rationalization of D&D play is cool.
 
I really like the idea but found the mechanics a bit too crunchy for my taste. The setting as a rationalization of D&D play is cool.

I don't mind the mechanics except combat is so weird. Everything seems like straight forward skills and then there is this abstract combat with three attackers on a side ane one players running it. It stops me everytime I try to read more.
 
Outside of the SWADE updates the biggest one is probably the removal of the Confederate States of America from the plot and magic works in a more unified way than it did in the original (although this was mostly implemented in Noir).

Both of these sound right up my alley.


The dry-as-fuck Arcane Backgrounds in SWADE combined with the promise of "streamlined Arcane Backgrounds" in this edition aren't promising either, since that was the single biggest gripe about Reloaded in the first place.

Care to elaborate on this one? I do find core SW ABs pretty dry myself.
 
I’m also interested in this, especially the through-line of Deadlands in different time periods. Sounds potentially very cool.

Anyone care to share experiences of opinions of the campaign worlds?
 
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Care to elaborate on this one? I do find core SW ABs pretty dry myself.

The Kickstarter said something about streamlining the ABs. When SWADE came out, there was only very minor differences between the ABs. People defending it kept saying "Well, this is just what the core looks like, the settings will differentiate". I haven't seen Lost Colony - as noted above, I didn't buy it - but "streamlining the Arcane Backgrounds" makes me think there's going to be very little difference between a Blessed and a Huckster and a Whatever aside from how you describe it. I hope I'm wrong, but we'll see. I was already put out when they changed Blessed to using Power Points instead of the No Power Points rule when the last plot point campaign came out.

The setting changes are a non issue for me. In my games, the Civil War was something people worried about Back East. In the West, people were usually out there trying to get away from that mess.
 
Both of these sound right up my alley.

Care to elaborate on this one? I do find core SW ABs pretty dry myself.
Basically in the original Deadlands (non-SW) each Arcane Background had essentially its own very flavourful custom system. They were quite crunchy.

Deadlands Relaoded simplified these Arcane Backgrounds down to being like modified core Savage Worlds backgrounds, e.g. a huckster is a modified magician. However they did keep some of the flavour with hucksters still playing a mini-card game and Blessed not using power points but instead rolling to see if they can beseech their gods and even at low levels might be granted enormously powerful miracles if they're lucky. The power lists also contained custom versions of each spell, e.g. there was Huckster's version of Bolt.
So they were modified Savage Worlds backgrounds with unique subsystems and powers.

Deadlands SWADE goes much further in bringing them into line with Savage Worlds backgrounds. Now they're just a lightly modified corebook Arcane backgrounds. This was largely already done in Noir though and isn't specific to SWADE. SWADE's issue was more making the core Arcane backgrounds similar.

So when you combine the alignment of Deadlands backgrounds with the core ones (from Noir) with the converging of the core backgrounds (from SWADE) it gets very generic.

My personal favourite was Reloaded. They're not as flavourful as pre-SW Deadlands, but it's worth it for me given the reduction in crunch and speed up in combat resolution.

Tommy Brownell Tommy Brownell those changes you mentioned from the last plot point are all called "After the Cackler" which is now the default time period. So those changes to the Arcane Backgrounds are now simply part of the setting at that time. So if you didn't like them I doubt you'll like what they do here.

Personally I also did not like the changes to the Blessed or Chi Masters. Far too generic. What I really hope is that they don't change the Hucksters. A generic huckster isn't really Deadlands at all to me.
 
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I’m also interested in this, especially the through-line if Deadlands in different time periods. Sounds potentially very cool.

Anyone care to share experiences of opinions of the campaign worlds?
I've played a game over several years (started in 2014) where we've gone through Deadlands, Noir, Hell on Earth and now Lost Colony.

Personally I love it. The NPCs, the world, etc are just very goofy cool fun. I'd have to gather my thoughts to write a longer review of the entire setting. The individual games have very different strengths and weaknesses, e.g. Noir in my opinion has to be winded down around Heroic level and doesn't work with high-level chartacters, Hell on Earth requires Arcane backgrounds the most....
 
Sigh I just finally got around to learning the system (I have the hardcopy) and now there's a new edition. GRRR
 
Sigh I just finally got around to learning the system (I have the hardcopy) and now there's a new edition. GRRR
What is combat like? Is it really abstract or does it feel like the PCs are all actually fighting for their lives?
 
I'm all in. Been waiting for this one. There is nothing about SWADE I can't bend to give it the personality and flavor of Reloaded as Setting rules. So it's all good.
 
I pledged for digital. Hoping the Arcane Backgrounds come out okay. I assume they'll get previewed before the end of the Kickstarter. Can't justify a big physical purchase for something I may not run anytime in the near future, and probably never face to face since we moved to Roll20.
 
What is combat like? Is it really abstract or does it feel like the PCs are all actually fighting for their lives?
Definitely abstracted but still intense: the consequences can be dire (death spiral of conditions). That’s my impression just from reading, though, and playing Mouse Guard (which feels a little less brutal).
 
a Bundle of Holding email tipped me off to Brancalonia a spaghetti fantasy rpg based on 5E D&D. There's a 40 page preview that gives the impression of free wheeling action by down on their luck heroes.

Tiny D6 also has a spinoff, Tiny Taverns
 
I have the Deadlands: Reloaded core books gatheruing dust here
So do I. I got the hardcovers, but ended up not really enjoying Savage Worlds all that much and not enjoying Deadlands all that much... :thumbsdown:

I'm generally not that enamoured with weird western settings that are so infested with weird tech. IME it makes them feel like a theme park rather than the wild west. I did end up late-backing Dark Trails though, a DCC-based weird west game from which the one weird tech-based class is easily ignored or toned down.
 
It's fine. Everything's fine.

Deadlands will be just fine. (I just got a mostly complete review copy.)
Oh great! Have they kept the Arcane Backgrounds distinctive then*? I'm glad as I wasn't a fan of the direction it was going in "After the Cackler".
I'll back as well.

*Obviously you might not be able to say
 
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So do I. I got the hardcovers, but ended up not really enjoying Savage Worlds all that much and not enjoying Deadlands all that much... :thumbsdown:

I'm generally not that enamoured with weird western settings that are so infested with weird tech. IME it makes them feel like a theme park rather than the wild west. I did end up late-backing Dark Trails though, a DCC-based weird west game from which the one weird tech-based class is easily ignored or toned down.

If I ever run Deadlands I’ll be raiding the books for ideas but I really won’t be buying into most of the setting. I am quite fond of alternate histories, including the more outré, fantastic ones (Day After Ragnarok is a perennial favorite of mine) but I don’t particularly care for Deadlands’ take on it. Strikes me as a bit silly for some reason.
 
So do I. I got the hardcovers, but ended up not really enjoying Savage Worlds all that much and not enjoying Deadlands all that much... :thumbsdown:

I'm generally not that enamoured with weird western settings that are so infested with weird tech. IME it makes them feel like a theme park rather than the wild west. I did end up late-backing Dark Trails though, a DCC-based weird west game from which the one weird tech-based class is easily ignored or toned down.

This might be an interesting discussion unto itself.

We can create another thread if we get"Deep into the Taco", or the OP doesn't mind... let's see where it goes!

So historically, I've never been a big fan of metaplot in any game setting. I'll take whatever is given and use it however it suits my desires to engage with the setting. Some settings overdo it for me... in which case I pare down (World of Darkness, Forgotten Realms, etc) some settings are sandboxy and require I build up organically around the bits provided (Cyberpunk 2020, Greybox Realms, NWoD).

Deadlands is one of those settings where the former is more in play. I came to Deadlands late (only a couple of years ago). So there was a LOT of metaplot already in play. Almost none of the metaplot found traction with me, or my players. But it didn't stop us from completely loving the setting or more importantly - the Savage Worlds system (as my growing shelf of Savage Worlds material can attest to).

I feel very similar to you (perhaps not quite as much) that the idea of the Weird West is, to me, *very* interesting but I don't necessarily care for the specific conceits of the Deadlands metaplot per se. I rather like it mysterious... almost Call of Cthulhu-ish. More western or Wild Wild West, than specifically "Deadlands".

My players feel the same. They love the tone of Deadlands... but they're more into the fact it's a "western" in an alternate history with a dash of supernatural (or none at all) than actually dealing with the Cackler plot... and the Manitous or whatever. But I do like Deadlands. And I've certainly spent a lot of money on setting just for the crazy cool stuff in them. I just use what I want to make the game that I want. Anyone else do this with it?
 
Oh great! Have they kept the Arcane Backgrounds distinctive then*? I'm glad as I wasn't a fan of the direction it was going in "After the Cackler".
I'll back as well.

*Obviously you might not be able to say

Much more distinctive than the SWADE Core Backgrounds.

I'm going to sit (probably this weekend) and do a review/breakdown.
 
My players feel the same. They love the tone of Deadlands... but they're more into the fact it's a "western" in an alternate history with a dash of supernatural (or none at all) than actually dealing with the Cackler plot... and the Manitous or whatever. But I do like Deadlands. And I've certainly spent a lot of money on setting just for the crazy cool stuff in them. I just use what I want to make the game that I want. Anyone else do this with it?

In my games, all the stuff is *there*, for me to use when/if I see fit, but the players have only ever encountered servants of Raven, and have never met any of the four Servitors face to face. The only reason they know who the other 3 are is because I used a card deck that had them as the...Kings or Aces, I don't recall, of each suit.

The new version of Deadlands is meant to veer back away from that big metaplot focused stuff and to localized western horror. You focus on Servitors and Great Rail Wars so long and it makes it all feel so big that it actually starts to feel small. That county boxed set (which I don't have a review copy of) is supposed to be kind of an ur-template reminder of just how small and personal the horror can get in the weird west.
 
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