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2300AD: Tools for Frontier Living
Publisher: Mongoose
by Matt W. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/13/2015 08:07:02

I think this product is terrific if you plan to use it for the existing 2300 setting.

My only quibble is that the section on biosphere and habitability doesn't seem very well playtested. To set up an agricultural colony, a world must have a minimum habitability of 5 and a biosphere of 2. With the existing rules, that can be a frozen iceball with a trace atmosphere. Base hab 10, -4 for trace atm, -2 for cold, + 2 for low gravity, +1 potentially for biosphere. The rules allow for biosphere rolls on worlds that have insidious atmospheres, which means you can allow for worlds with pretty weird alien life (which is good), but I don't think that the existence of such life would necessarily make colonization easier.

Everything else, though, amazing work.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
2300AD: Tools for Frontier Living
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MYRIAD SONG - Role-Play Adventure of Ten Thousand Worlds
Publisher: Sanguine Productions
by Matt W. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 04/05/2015 12:59:27

A thoughtful, clever game that feels to me a bit like if Guardians of the Galaxy were a Don Bluth cartoon from the 1980s. It offers a sort of combine-three-things character creation that still provides variety, an easy-to-understand dice pool mechanic, and the opportunity for all kinds of interstellar hijinks.

The galaxy is in chaos because the all-powerful domineering Syndics mysteriously vanished, leaving ten thousand other intelligent species wondering, "well, huh, we're free, now what?" Numerous factions have risen up, each with its own unique agenda, and the characters typically find themselves in the middle of it all.

Character creation is mostly a matter of picking from a few templates (species, career) that provide a set of abilities, and then you can fine-tune a bit. While that might sound a bit constraining, I would guess without doing the math that there are more than a thousand different species/upbringing/career combinations, and with the fine-tuning, you won't find two characters who seem anything alike. Starting characters by default are competent but not unstoppable. Optional rules include suggestions on how to create more/less powerful characters, too.

The core game mechanic, if you aren't familiar with Sanguine's other games, is basically a dice pool where you count successes, and the difficulty will tend to require 1-3 successes depending on if it's something anyone/a professional/an expert could do.

There's some assumption that characters will find themselves in violent situations, and so the rules provide quite a bit of information about combat and fighting. Instead of something like "hit points" the game uses a wound-levels approach more like the old Star Wars D6 game, but with some clever updates that encourage teamwork and cooperation.

Possibly my favorite thing about the game is the experience/reward system, where characters write down goals, and when they're accomplished the GM gives them "gifts", abilities appropriate to a) how they accomplished the goal, and b) how hard it was to do it. Gifts somewhat resemble feats from D&D3+ and can provide extra dice, contacts, psychic abilities, you name it. Seems like a really good way to encourage communication between player and GM about the characters.

The only thing I wish the game had, and perhaps I missed it, is some advice on how the characters and their goals might evolve over time, for example from scrappy scoundrels who want to get paid, to dashing heroes who want to protect the galaxy from a deadly menace. An experienced group could probably figure that out no problem, but this game might also appeal to inexperienced younger gamers who could use the advice.

I also kind of wish there were a less expensive print option available here besides full color hardback.

That said, the creators of the game are tremendously supportive and can't wait to offer assistance if you find yourself confused. If you're interested in some colorful hijinks on strange worlds with seriously endless opportunities, you might like this game.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
MYRIAD SONG - Role-Play Adventure of Ten Thousand Worlds
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Flynn's Guide To Alien Creation
Publisher: Samardan Press
by Matt W. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 06/06/2014 13:16:00

Great product with a straightforward, easy-to-follow process for generating interesting sapient alien species for your Traveller setting. Includes clear examples. It references a few things in the Mongoose book like the Behaviors subsection in the Encounters chapter, so you'll want that handy. It only took me a few minutes to randomly create an interesting alien for the setting I'm putting together for my next game.

The only thing I wish it had was a printable worksheet, because I'm unorganized, but that's a pretty minor quibble. In all, highly recommended if you want to freshen your game up with a few new species.

p.s. The author also has a great blog over at his site and happily (and quickly) answered a few of my questions.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Flynn's Guide To Alien Creation
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D6 Space Ships
Publisher: Nocturnal Media
by Matt W. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 09/13/2012 02:55:48

The design system appears to be taken from WEG's old game Shatterzone and mashed up with some elements from the Star Wars d6 game. It's fairly easy to use but includes a few oddities, such as engines being the same size no matter how big the ship actually ends up being. In the examples, an 879-ton corsair (220 m long) with a speed of 8 has a drive that's 10 tons, while a dinky one-person fighter with the same speed has a drive exactly the same size. How does that make any sense?

It's not perfect, but it's also free, so it's not like I can tell someone it's not worth their time to download.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
D6 Space Ships
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