Just launched my first kickstarter for a sci-fi rpg I've been creating and playing for almost 30 years. Check it out if you are after something a little different.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1165384999/interstellar-mercenary-the-role-playing-game?ref=project_build

Very keen for questions and feedback. If you're interested in seeing some early draft chapters for comment and review please let me know.

Enjoy!

Nice KS page. Well done, lots of info.

Mostly great artwork (not enthused about the cover, but the rest is outstanding).

If you can demonstrate 50% of the claims you make about your game, you'll be on track to the most honest pitch-person on the InterTubes. (in other words, it's a bit heavy on the hyperbole...)

The page preview images are too small. Should be able to click and see a PDF or larger image.

This statement is going to turn away a lot of potential pledges...

QuoteBe warned, I.S.M. is not a game for casual gamers. You cannot sit down, throw a few dice, hope for the best, expecting lady luck to shine down on you. I.S.M. is closer to a combat and reality simulator than a game, while chance plays a part, as it does in real life, success in I.S.M. is dependent on strategic decision making both in and out of combat.

I would focus more on what you (as the designer) like about your game vs. all the promises of "ground-breaking differences". In the end, the customer is going to decide if you're ground-breaking. Bragging about it upfront is going to skew perceptions in the other direction.

Just my two cents of course. Good Luck!

Also, these days if a RPG KS does not have a large example of already finished work in rough draft that I can download... I will not back. We're smart enough now and been burned enough times to know better.

We will NOT pay you to write your game. Do that on your own time. Use the KS funds for layout, artwork and printing.

Love,

RPG Nerds.

Quote from: trechriron;1075753Also, these days if a RPG KS does not have a large example of already finished work in rough draft that I can download... I will not back. We're smart enough now and been burned enough times to know better.

We will NOT pay you to write your game. Do that on your own time. Use the KS funds for layout, artwork and printing.

Love,

RPG Nerds.

Thanks for the feed back. Nothing like a bit of hyperbole, I certainly thinks it's the best game ever, I made for me and my friends to enjoy. My mum says it's the best game ever too.

I'll have a look at getting those images embiggened, so backers can view it better. I have 9 of the 10 chapters done, laid out, edited with art and ready to go. My time is scarce so I only ran the campaign once I knew I was a week or two away from finishing. No issues prividing a draft (no indexing) chapter or two either, they are ready to go. I might see if I can link it up tonight.

As far as the casual gamer comment: it's the truth, there is a pretty high difficulty level, of course the GM can adjust but most characters can die in a single attack. Strategic thinking is quite important to survival, I don't want to misrepresent this game by saying a group of 8 year olds can pick this up and learn to play in night. It is definitely a little more involved then some of what I see out there.

Thanks again for the feedback. I look forward to fulfilling all my promises!

Quote from: trechriron;1075752Nice KS page. Well done, lots of info.

Mostly great artwork (not enthused about the cover, but the rest is outstanding).

If you can demonstrate 50% of the claims you make about your game, you'll be on track to the most honest pitch-person on the InterTubes. (in other words, it's a bit heavy on the hyperbole...)

The page preview images are too small. Should be able to click and see a PDF or larger image.

Just my two cents of course. Good Luck!

Hey, check it out now. I've made some changes and additions based on your comments - including a 26 page download!

Thanks again.

Nicely done! Those page examples pop out now. Very nice layout and I love the alien species images.

You may consider a printer-friendly version of the character sheet at some point. I really dig the hit location table on the character sheet, that is super well done.

Nice job on the preview download.

Great, glad you liked it. Thanks again for the feedback. I'm interested to know which hyperbole you think won't be included?

Quote from: Castonism;1075944Great, glad you liked it. Thanks again for the feedback. I'm interested to know which hyperbole you think won't be included?

I will try to make a list of things that make my eyebrows raise with skepticism. Now, I'm no authority. Your enthusiasm convinced me to pledge at the PDF level. So maybe sometimes a lot of enthusiasm can reduce skepticism into amusement/regard. Also, please take my direct comments with a grain of salt. I'm genetically a comedian and my tone doesn't translate well on forums. Think "Lewis Black" but fatter with a beard.

QuoteWith the realism and grittiness of Game of Thrones, unique world and creature design to rival Star Wars or Lord of the Rings and a focus on strategic decision making and tactical combat using an original combat simulation system

Are you sure? The last point doesn't match the hyperbole of the first two points. Match like for like. If you're going to compare your grittiness to GoT and creature design to SW/LOTR then you should compare your tactical combat simulation system to something as equally magnificent. Also, you use "original" too much. It feels arrogant. Are you really SURE you're truly original? I've read probably 200+ RPGs. Originality at this point is going to be a tough goal. Also, it's HIGHLY overrated. Intriguing, entertaining, exciting, engaging... all way more enticing than "original".

QuoteBecause we are typically non-role players it has produced a completely original world and rule set focused on strategic combat and meaningful story telling.

You said "original" again, put a quarter in the hyperbole jar. Meaningful story telling? What is that? Most of us grognards play RPGs to see what happens. Story falls out of it. It's not a goal of playing, it's a byproduct. Is it more strategic than GURPS 4e with all the dials turned up? Phoenix Command? Would you compare it to a particular video game or board game? Also, why mention you're non-role players pitching a tabletop roleplaying game?  Maybe...

"Because we're well-rounded nerds with interests in all kinds of media and tabletop play, we have strived to create an engaging world with an intriguing background and exciting rules focused on strategic combat and character depth."

Quoteclichéd RPG rules and story lines.

You are not allowed to criticize others "clichéd" anything with all this hyperbole being tossed around. :-P I think there is a UN resolution about this somewhere. :-) This point isn't necessarily "bad" but some people might read the amount of shade you are casting as a red flag. "Why are you so focused on knocking down other games"? There's a line between "we're different because..." (which is good) and "we're better than everything that came before because..." (which is generally viewed as desperate).

The rest is fine. Your enthusiasm for your game shines through, which is why I backed it. I'm keen to see the final result.

Thanks again, and good luck offending me! It won't happen, so critique and question away.

No question that the first has a speck of 'hyperbole' in it. I clearly don't have hundreds of people working with hundreds of millions of dollars. I did have 30 years and some good friends to assist though. These are some inspirations for me and what I hope to rival. When you see the game I'm sure you'll see some other influences also.

You'll notice I mention movies and tv as my references, which is my segway into the originality point. When I.S.M. first got started I had almost zero experience (about half an hour exposure to a hack version of basic dnd) so the slate was really clean. I didn't even know there were dice other than the six sided for the first 4 or 5 years of playing and making. Didn't know what armour class was, didn't know about experience points or alignments etc. it allowed a really clean slate for ideas to take the game in what I think is a different direction. That said, I still don't know much about other RPGs so perhaps there is something with some similarities. Most of my knowledge about I.S.M. being different comes from experience rpg players who have tried I.S.M.

The cliched comment was more referring to the common elements shared by many rpgs, certainly not an attack on them. I love rpgs, the few that I've played I've really enjoyed. Though I definitely crave to play something other human(iod).

Other than that, the list of what is contained in the book is accurate. It's 500 pages for a good reason!

Well, I'm in. :-) Good luck!