Sell me on Dawning Star

[Wycen]

Having gotten my copies in the mail I can attest to the physical AND writing quality of the book. Dispari's art is just gorgeous in print format.

 

[Johnny Angel]

Aside from anything else you might like or dislike about the setting, it seems to me worth encouraging the development of a fully supported science-fiction campaign setting. I think it's wonderful that you can download supplemental rules for a couple of bucks, and that people can make money selling you just the rules you want, and not a hundred or so pages of padding to go with it, which was kind of the model with a lot of the old style of RPG support. But the thing that bothers me, which I've ranted about in another thread, is that you don't seem to get modules anymore. A big selling point of Dawning Star for me is that they're not planning to leave you high and dry when you've used up the little quick start adventure that comes with the campaign setting. There's a big fat module coming out in November. That's exciting to me. I would probably prefer a number of individual modules sold piecemeal, but what the hell? One book to take your party all the way to 20th level.

Settings must come with modules. They take a lot of work off of the GM, who already has a lot on his plate to make the magic happen. Furthermore, modules become the stuff of old war stories. Gamers sit around and compare what their parties did in The Salt Marsh Trilogy or the Crash on Volturnus. They become part of a shared culture, a common vocabulary.

So for my money, module support alone is a reason to look into Dawning Star.

 

[Justin D. Jacobson]

I couldn't agree more, which is the precisely the reason we are committed to module support for Dawning Star. In addition to the mega-adventure to be released later this year, we're planning a "regular-sized" module, Shadow Falling, that we're still trying to shoot for Gen Con. I'm not convinced we're going to meet the deadline, just because Helios Rising is positively blowing up, but we'll kill ourselves trying.

 

[johnnype]

I'll pick this up as soon as I see it at my local game shop.

Is it me or is there a lack of sci-fi RPG's in general? Sure there are 10 or 20 in print right now but they don't see the attention and support fantasy and/or horror RPG's get. That's sad IMO. I don't know about you guys but I'm a sucker for sci-fi games. DS is right up my alley.

How big a part do spaceships play in the game?

 

[Justin D. Jacobson]

I'll pick this up as soon as I see it at my local game shop.

Is it me or is there a lack of sci-fi RPG's in general? Sure there are 10 or 20 in print right now but they don't see the attention and support fantasy and/or horror RPG's get. That's sad IMO. I don't know about you guys but I'm a sucker for sci-fi games. DS is right up my alley.

How big a part do spaceships play in the game?

Unfortunately, you won't see it at your FLGS unless you ask them to order it for you from Indie Press Revolution. However, IPR is making a special effort to reach out to retailers. I encourage you to have your FLGS to contact Brennan Taylor at IPR about their retailer program. If you have a problem, please contact me directly at justin[at]bluedevilgames[dot]com.

In answer to your second question, OQL is deals with Eos almost exclusively. However, Helios Rising -- to be released at Gen Con -- covers the entire Helios system, making a Dawning Star spaceship campaign perfectly viable. And the next book in the series is Silver Eclipse, which will deal with spaceship construction and combat entirely.

Thanks for your interest.

 

[Wycen]

As of this week, you should be able to find 1 copy at the following locations.

Black Diamond Games in Walnut Creek, California. http://www.blackdiamondgames.com/

and

End Game in Oakland, California. http://www.endgameoakland.com/

I say should because they might not put it on the shelf until they finish reading it.

 

[Justin D. Jacobson]

Glad to see it's hitting some stores. Thanks, Chad, for "spreading the word." I'm a big proponent of the FLGS, but that's another topic for another thread. I encourage everyone who's interested in DS to ask their local store to order it for them through IPR. I actually make less money doing it that way than if you order it directly from IPR. However, I think it's worthwhile to try and encourage game stores to broaden their product selection in the face of a changing market. I understand that not everyone has an FLGS, and by all means order direct from IPR if that suits your purposes better.

 

[beverson]

We don't have anything official set up for that, but if you e-mail me after purchasing the print version (and confirm the name you purchased under), I will be happy to send you a free copy of the pdf. And to anyone else for that matter. A little thank-you to the EN Worlders.

Justin, I was actually holding out to buy my print copy of Dawning Star while I'm at GenCon this year - will I still be able to get a free copy of the pdf?

 

[Justin D. Jacobson]

Justin, I was actually holding out to buy my print copy of Dawning Star while I'm at GenCon this year - will I still be able to get a free copy of the pdf?

Sure thing. Be sure and pick up your rubber bracelet at the booth when you stop by. If we spot you wearing it during the con, you can win all kinds of prizes, including original art, some sweet custom-crafted DS journals, Punisher #1, and more.

 

[beverson]

Sure thing. Be sure and pick up your rubber bracelet at the booth when you stop by. If we spot you wearing it during the con, you can win all kinds of prizes, including original art, some sweet custom-crafted DS journals, Punisher #1, and more.

Cool. Thanks!