Welcome back to our weekly look at tabletop roleplaying game, and accessories, crowdfunding roundup! Each week we’ll be looking at a few campaigns currently running that have caught our eye as well as occasionally speaking to some of the creators about their campaigns, or looking at some of the ‘behind the scenes’ business aspects of putting together, launching, operating and then delivering a crowdfunded project. If you have anything you’d like us to cover, or questions about anything we talk about, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment or contact me directly.
Top Secret: New World Order – the espionage roleplaying game by TSR Games
(Campaign Ends : Thursday 27th July 2017; 16:42 UTC)
Shortly after being introduced to D&D Top Secret was the second RPG I played back in 1984. I picked up everything I could get for the first edition and when TSR released Top Secret S.I. in 1987 I just as eagerly picked up each book as it was released.
Now original designer, Merle M. Rasmussen, is back with a brand new edition called Top Secret: New World Order through TSR Games.
You are an agent of ICON, the International Covert Operatives Network. Working alone or with a team, you are tasked with the missions that other agencies can not, or will not, handle.
Top Secret: New World Order is set in today’s world of shadowy organizations, shifting alliances, high technology, and unpredictable threats.
The first two editions of Top Secret were boxed sets and this latest edition continues with the format. The box set will contain the core rulebook, Game Masters Screen, 4 player mats, 8 vehicle sheets, 20 character sheets, 40 tokens for cars, hazards and explosions, a set of five dice (d4. D6, d8, d10 and d12) and an introductory module called The White Queen.
Top Secret: New World Order uses an all-new system designed for modern espionage role-playing.
To see if your character succeeds at a task, three dice of varying size are rolled, and they must always add up to 13 or better for success. It’s that target number that has led to the new game engine’s name, the “Lucky 13 system”.
Simple mechanics for the action don’t mean there aren’t plenty of charts in the book, from modern weaponry to vehicles to a list of specialized skills that include cryptography, handwriting analysis, drone piloting, blackhat hacking, even nuclear engineering. Players can bring their own style to the game, making it as gritty it as cinematic as they wish.
Top Secret: New World Order rules cover armed and unarmed combat, car chases, specialized skills, languages, surveillance, tradecraft, and of course lots of gadgets, weapons, and more.
New Paths Compendium: Pathfinder RPG Extended Edition by Kobold Press
(Campaign Ends : Friday 28th July 2017; 20:30 UTC)
Kobold Press returned to Kickstarter with an updated and revised edition of their New Paths Compendium for Pathfinder, which is now in its last few days. The New Paths started as a series of magazine articles by Marc Radle and then became a softcover supplement for the Pathfinder RPG. This expanded edition includes everything from the original book (apart from the Savant which was deemed too difficult and unplayable) plus new classes that came out after the first edition which have only been available as PDFs before now. In addition all new classes have been created for this book which have been unlocked through stretch goals.
This hardcover edition of the New Paths Compendium starts with 8 new classes, and could easily go to 11 new classes if we hit a few stretch goals. Most of the classes in the book have several years of actual play and refinement, and even the newest classes have seen hundreds of hours of playtest and development. These are well-honed options for either player or GM, presented in a professional, readable layout with high standards of editing and design.
The New Paths Compendium expanded edition is available in three forms:
A standard edition, a leatherette limited edition with a foil stamp cover and ribbon bookmark, and a handbound leather edition in full leather with all the tricks of the bookmaker’s art, from gold foil stamps to multiple bookmarks and the amazing feel of real leather in your hand.
And it includes a wide range of classes to appeal to all kinds of players including the Spell-less Ranger, Spirit Shaman, Battle Scion, White Necromancer, Mystic Archer, Theurge, Priest, Trickster, Skin-Changer, Tinkerer and Warlock.
Misspent Youth RPG: Sell Out with Me! By Robert Bohl
(Campaign Ends : Thursday 27th July 2017; 23:00 UTC)
Misspent Youth originally came out nine years ago but this revised and updated version - complete with five new settings – became a necessity when Robert Bohl sold out of the original copies when Wil Wheaton announced that the game was being featured in Season 4 of Tabeltop.
In addition to the reprint a brand new supplement is being created called Sell out With Me. This will feature a load of new settings from a variety of authors covering fantasy, sci-fi, historical, real world and other settings.
Misspent Youth is a tabletop RPG about friendship, standing up to bullies, and changing the world. The game is for 4 to 6 people, one of whom plays The Authority, the force that’s making the world a
place to live. The others all play Youthful Offenders (YOs), the only ones who can redeem the future from this pack of s trying to f**k it up.
Ever wanted to play The Hunger Games (but focused on friends), Clockwork Orange (but with heroic droogies), Hackers (but less goofy), Mad Max: Fury Road (but, again, with teenagers), or Avatar: The Last Airbender (but sci-fi)? This is the game for you.
Breath of Gorr: Complete Tabletop D&D5E & Pathfinder Module! By EncounterRoleplay
(Campaign Ends : Wednesday 26th July 2017; 10:57 UTC)
Breath of Gorr is EncounterRoleplay’s first Kickstarter campaign and is a digital only module for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition and Pathfinder. Players will take on the role of trapped prisoners aboard the Breath of Gorr warship, then set about exploring our new ruthless setting of Fanria, which is also included!
Along the eastern realm of Fanria, war drums roll over the countryside. Rumor says that the orc god of feasts, Gorr, has ascended the banquet halls of the Yawning Hells and united the scattered orc tribes under one banner: the Skall Nation. Once a mass of disorganized war chiefs and city states, the orcs of Fanris now have the leadership to rise from their squalor and eradicate neighbors.
It’s a sprawling adventure module for D&D5E & Pathfinder, involving Orcs, Dragons & Vampires! Spanning across the war-torn realm of Fanria, the players begin trapped on an Orc Warship, the Breath of Gorr, encounter strange foes & allies and explore harsh locations.
The adventure is for 10th level characters,
Hellfrost GM Screen by Triple Ace Games Ltd
(Campaign Ends : Monday 31st July 2017; 06:58 UTC)
Lastly this week we head of the frozen wastes of Triple Ace Games Hellfrost setting. TAG are producing The Hellfrost GM Screen and Journeys Book. The GM Screen is a four panel, landscape aspect, affair with the players side showing some great artwork and the GM side supplying you with some essential Hellfrost specific tables.
Coming with the screen is a 32-page booklet called Hellfrost Journeys which looks at way of spicing up land and sea journeys. This comic book format supplement collects, and updates, all the travelling rules together and gives advice on running encounters.
**********
If you like what we do here at EN World (the Forums, Columns, News, ENnies, etc) and would like to help support us to bring you MORE please consider supporting our Patreon. Even a single dollar helps Thanks!
**********
If you have a forthcoming Kickstarter, or see one that excites you, please feel free to drop me an email on angus.abranson@gmail.com You can follow me on Twitter @ Angus_A or on Facebook where I often post about gaming.
Until next week, have fun and happy gaming!
Angus Abranson
Top Secret: New World Order – the espionage roleplaying game by TSR Games
(Campaign Ends : Thursday 27th July 2017; 16:42 UTC)
Shortly after being introduced to D&D Top Secret was the second RPG I played back in 1984. I picked up everything I could get for the first edition and when TSR released Top Secret S.I. in 1987 I just as eagerly picked up each book as it was released.
Now original designer, Merle M. Rasmussen, is back with a brand new edition called Top Secret: New World Order through TSR Games.
You are an agent of ICON, the International Covert Operatives Network. Working alone or with a team, you are tasked with the missions that other agencies can not, or will not, handle.
Top Secret: New World Order is set in today’s world of shadowy organizations, shifting alliances, high technology, and unpredictable threats.
The first two editions of Top Secret were boxed sets and this latest edition continues with the format. The box set will contain the core rulebook, Game Masters Screen, 4 player mats, 8 vehicle sheets, 20 character sheets, 40 tokens for cars, hazards and explosions, a set of five dice (d4. D6, d8, d10 and d12) and an introductory module called The White Queen.
Top Secret: New World Order uses an all-new system designed for modern espionage role-playing.
To see if your character succeeds at a task, three dice of varying size are rolled, and they must always add up to 13 or better for success. It’s that target number that has led to the new game engine’s name, the “Lucky 13 system”.
Simple mechanics for the action don’t mean there aren’t plenty of charts in the book, from modern weaponry to vehicles to a list of specialized skills that include cryptography, handwriting analysis, drone piloting, blackhat hacking, even nuclear engineering. Players can bring their own style to the game, making it as gritty it as cinematic as they wish.
Top Secret: New World Order rules cover armed and unarmed combat, car chases, specialized skills, languages, surveillance, tradecraft, and of course lots of gadgets, weapons, and more.
New Paths Compendium: Pathfinder RPG Extended Edition by Kobold Press
(Campaign Ends : Friday 28th July 2017; 20:30 UTC)
Kobold Press returned to Kickstarter with an updated and revised edition of their New Paths Compendium for Pathfinder, which is now in its last few days. The New Paths started as a series of magazine articles by Marc Radle and then became a softcover supplement for the Pathfinder RPG. This expanded edition includes everything from the original book (apart from the Savant which was deemed too difficult and unplayable) plus new classes that came out after the first edition which have only been available as PDFs before now. In addition all new classes have been created for this book which have been unlocked through stretch goals.
This hardcover edition of the New Paths Compendium starts with 8 new classes, and could easily go to 11 new classes if we hit a few stretch goals. Most of the classes in the book have several years of actual play and refinement, and even the newest classes have seen hundreds of hours of playtest and development. These are well-honed options for either player or GM, presented in a professional, readable layout with high standards of editing and design.
The New Paths Compendium expanded edition is available in three forms:
A standard edition, a leatherette limited edition with a foil stamp cover and ribbon bookmark, and a handbound leather edition in full leather with all the tricks of the bookmaker’s art, from gold foil stamps to multiple bookmarks and the amazing feel of real leather in your hand.
And it includes a wide range of classes to appeal to all kinds of players including the Spell-less Ranger, Spirit Shaman, Battle Scion, White Necromancer, Mystic Archer, Theurge, Priest, Trickster, Skin-Changer, Tinkerer and Warlock.
Misspent Youth RPG: Sell Out with Me! By Robert Bohl
(Campaign Ends : Thursday 27th July 2017; 23:00 UTC)
Misspent Youth originally came out nine years ago but this revised and updated version - complete with five new settings – became a necessity when Robert Bohl sold out of the original copies when Wil Wheaton announced that the game was being featured in Season 4 of Tabeltop.
In addition to the reprint a brand new supplement is being created called Sell out With Me. This will feature a load of new settings from a variety of authors covering fantasy, sci-fi, historical, real world and other settings.
Misspent Youth is a tabletop RPG about friendship, standing up to bullies, and changing the world. The game is for 4 to 6 people, one of whom plays The Authority, the force that’s making the world a
place to live. The others all play Youthful Offenders (YOs), the only ones who can redeem the future from this pack of s trying to f**k it up.Ever wanted to play The Hunger Games (but focused on friends), Clockwork Orange (but with heroic droogies), Hackers (but less goofy), Mad Max: Fury Road (but, again, with teenagers), or Avatar: The Last Airbender (but sci-fi)? This is the game for you.
Breath of Gorr: Complete Tabletop D&D5E & Pathfinder Module! By EncounterRoleplay
(Campaign Ends : Wednesday 26th July 2017; 10:57 UTC)
Breath of Gorr is EncounterRoleplay’s first Kickstarter campaign and is a digital only module for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition and Pathfinder. Players will take on the role of trapped prisoners aboard the Breath of Gorr warship, then set about exploring our new ruthless setting of Fanria, which is also included!
Along the eastern realm of Fanria, war drums roll over the countryside. Rumor says that the orc god of feasts, Gorr, has ascended the banquet halls of the Yawning Hells and united the scattered orc tribes under one banner: the Skall Nation. Once a mass of disorganized war chiefs and city states, the orcs of Fanris now have the leadership to rise from their squalor and eradicate neighbors.
It’s a sprawling adventure module for D&D5E & Pathfinder, involving Orcs, Dragons & Vampires! Spanning across the war-torn realm of Fanria, the players begin trapped on an Orc Warship, the Breath of Gorr, encounter strange foes & allies and explore harsh locations.
The adventure is for 10th level characters,
Hellfrost GM Screen by Triple Ace Games Ltd
(Campaign Ends : Monday 31st July 2017; 06:58 UTC)
Lastly this week we head of the frozen wastes of Triple Ace Games Hellfrost setting. TAG are producing The Hellfrost GM Screen and Journeys Book. The GM Screen is a four panel, landscape aspect, affair with the players side showing some great artwork and the GM side supplying you with some essential Hellfrost specific tables.
Coming with the screen is a 32-page booklet called Hellfrost Journeys which looks at way of spicing up land and sea journeys. This comic book format supplement collects, and updates, all the travelling rules together and gives advice on running encounters.
**********
If you like what we do here at EN World (the Forums, Columns, News, ENnies, etc) and would like to help support us to bring you MORE please consider supporting our Patreon. Even a single dollar helps Thanks!
**********
If you have a forthcoming Kickstarter, or see one that excites you, please feel free to drop me an email on angus.abranson@gmail.com You can follow me on Twitter @ Angus_A or on Facebook where I often post about gaming.
Until next week, have fun and happy gaming!
Angus Abranson
