Extinction Event Kickstarter FEB 18th 2018

[Laz]

Hello Fellow HERO Gamers!

 

I'm the co-author (along with Michael Surbrook) of the Extinction Event campaign guide for Champions Complete and the HERO System 6th Edition.

 

I'm starting this post to provide a place for HERO Gamers to ask questions and give feedback about Extinction Event and the upcoming Kickstarter campaign for it that will launch some time in February 2018.

 

A great place to get an idea of what Extinction Event is about is through our website: ee.madferretllc.com. There is also a Loop Me In page there to sign up for email updates about the Kickstarter.

 

Thank you!

 

Laz

[Norm]

Looks good to me.  I have been on a post-apoc kick lately (just finished Fallout 4).  If the artwork of the book is similar to the website, I will be happy.  I really liked the scenery work on the website and your Sigil artist page (Ace3).   

 

Will you have an all digital package (PDF and hero designer)?  I have been going digital for the past year or two.  I think that the Monster Hunter International was the last HERO kickstarter I pledged for a physical book.

 

Good luck!

 

Norm.

 

PS.  Since you are an artist, have you thought about stretch goals/add-ons?  Things like:  character portraits (like Fallout 1/2 and Wasteland) that can be used in Hero Designer characters sheets;  some scenery/maps that can be imported into virtual table tops (Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, etc).  For all I know, I could be in the minority since we game using Roll20.

 

[Laz]

Hello Norm,

 

Yes, we will have an all digital package (PDF and Hero Designer files). Thanks for the suggestions, we will consider them. By the way, I am the co-writer of the book (along with Michael Surbrook) not the artist - Sigil has been helping us with the art.

 

Thank you for your support!

 

Laz

 

[DreadDomain]

Hi Laz,

Looks pretty good. Like Norm, I hope the visual in the book will be in line with what we see on the website. I am curious to know how powers, equipment and generally how the characters will be presented. While a truly appreciate the flexibility that HERO provides, I hope Extinction Events will be a fully worked setting as opposed to a loose set of examples as we often see (and rightfully so) in genre books.

The website states the book will provide:

1) Rules for psychic powers available in the Extinction Event campaign – MHIRPG does that well at least for Magic. The spells are described in the Magic chapter in text and game information, but on the character, you only find the name of the spell which take away a lot of the clutter and remove the perception for newbies that HERO characters are written in undecipherable codes.

2) A wide assortment of weapons, armor, gear, terrestrial vehicles, and spacecraft - This is even more important than for powers, I'd like to see equipment and vehicles portrayed as gear and not written like power builds. as an example, I'd rather see equipment (both examples from MHIRPG) written like this (this looks like real gear):

EQUIPMENT

Weapon              OCV       RMod Damage STUN Shots STR Min

STI Tactical 5.0 +1          +1          2d6-1    +1          11          6

Kukri, Large        +0          +0          1d6        +0          —          10

Armor MHI Body Armor (8 PD/8 ED), MHI Earplugs, Flashlight, monocular

 Instead of this (this looks very gamey, it is fine for a power or a super equipment in a Champions game but looks out of place for a non-superhero piece of gear)

60 Abomination:  Multipower, 120-point reserve All OAF (-1) 3f

1)  Shot:  RKA 2½d6 [9] Area Of Effect (1m Radius; +¼), Autofire (5 shots; +1½), +1 Increased STUN Multiplier (+¼); OAF (-1), Limited Range (40m; -¼), Reduced By Range (-¼), Reduced Penetration (-¼), Two-Handed (-½), 9 Charges (-¼) 2f

2)  Slugs:  RKA 2½d6 [9] Autofire (5 shots; +½), +1 Increased STUN Multiplier (+¼); OAF (-1), Limited Range (100m; -¼), Two-Handed (-½), 9 Charges (-¼) 1f

3)  Underslung M203 Grenade Launcher:  RKA 2½d6 [1] Area Of Effect (15m Radius Explosion; +¼); OAF (-1), Limited Range (150m; -¼), Two-Handed (-½), 1 Charge (-2) 1f

4)  Silvered Bayonet:  HKA 1d6 (2d6 with STR) 0 Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); OAF (-1)

I would hope for the same for the vehicles. I would like to vehicle written as such instead of the one-page character sheet. MHIRPG does that well (pp213-215)

Regarding Character sheets, I would try to remove as much clutter as possible. The character sheets of MHIRPG are generally well laid out and clear but I believe could be improved even more. As an example, I believe Narosia had the right idea by grouping the character sheet (not the PC character sheet at the end but the write-ups in the book (like the wolf page 404)) by theme: Characteristics, Perception, Movement, Defense, Offense, Skills, Perks, Complications. It looks very organised.

Also, I find it annoying to see “abilities” like Short Leg: Run -2m in the power section. There is already a Movement section, why not compile the cost in the section instead of cluttering the write-up?

Anyway, just some ideas.

 Looking forward to this.

[Laz]

Hi DreadDomain,

 

We love Sigil Entertainment Group’s work on the art so far too. Aaron Acevedo has really helped us bring our vision to life with the art for Extinction Event. What you see on the website is the direction he has guided us in and we really like it. How much more help with the art we can secure depends of course on how well the Kickstarter campaign does so please spread the word by sharing our website (http://ee.madferretllc.com/) and Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/madferretllc).

 

One of our goals with Extinction Event is to make a product that is user-friendly. We want to both attract new players to HERO System and also make it easy for HERO system veterans to start playing quickly. It is a fully worked setting in the sense that includes a historical timeline, character templates, geo-political information, weapons and gear, psychic powers, default conspiracies, and adversaries.  With that said, we did write it in an ‘old school’ style (i.e. intentionally left some gaps in the narrative) so that play groups can develop their own versions of Extinction Event at their game table.

 

Rules for Psychic Powers: This is a good suggestion and fits with our user-friendly goal – we will consider adopting this format.

 

We used tables to list ammo, weapons, and weapon accessories to portray them as gear instead of powers. For gear like a Medical Scanner and vehicles we went with game information text. We will consider adopting a shorter format for those.

 

We have not included a character sheet in the manuscript up to this point since Extinction Event is referenced to work with Champions Complete and it has one, but this is a good suggestion.

 

Thank you for feedback the great ideas!

 

Laz

[Steve]

I'm eagerly waiting for the Kickstarter, so I can slap you in the face with cash!  

[Laz]

[DreadDomain]

On 02/02/2018 at 9:12 AM, Laz said:

We have not included a character sheet in the manuscript up to this point since Extinction Event is referenced to work with Champions Complete and it has one, but this is a good suggestion.

Thanks for the answer Laz.

 

To clarify, when I mentionned character sheets, I meant character write-ups in the book, as opposed to a blank character sheet.

 

Regarding Character write-ups, I would try to remove as much clutter as possible. The character write-ups of MHIRPG are generally well laid out and clear but I believe could be improved even more. As an example, I believe Narosia had the right idea by grouping the character write-ups (not the PC character sheet at the end but the write-ups in the book (like the wolf page 404)) by theme: Characteristics, Perception, Movement, Defense, Offense, Skills, Perks, Complications. It looks very organised.

Also, I find it annoying to see “abilities” like Short Leg: Run -2m in the power section. There is already a Movement section, why not compile the cost in the section instead of cluttering the write-up?

 

(I made changes in bold to clarify)

[Steve]

I’m still waiting to slap you in the face with cash!

[Laz]

DreadDomain: Thank you for the clarification. That is an excellent suggestion for the write-ups. We went with the standard write-up format in the draft manuscript, but we are giving ourselves time for fulfillment in the Kickstarter to improve the manuscript and incorporate feedback.

 

Steve: Only a few days to go! Thanks for the support.

 

-Laz

[Laz]

Extinction Event Kickstarter Preview!

 

Here is a link to the preview of our Extinction Event Kickstarter that launches on Sunday, 2/18/2018. On that date the link will redirect to the live campaign.

 

Please feel free to provide feedback on improving the campaign from now through this Friday, 2/16/2018.

 

Please share the preview link, our website and Facebook page with all your fellow gamers.

 

Thank you!

 

Laz

[Norm]

May sound silly, but the leaning 'A' in the video is distracting to me.  Prefer the 'A' in "After" at 8 seconds in the video. 

 

Stretch goals or even add-ons comments/thoughts:  Note - Parent with little free time.
1.  Adventures - My one big wish for anything HERO is adventures/modules.  I see that there is one mini-adventure in the stretch goals.  Possible to get more?
2.  Integration into Roll20 or some other Virtual Table Top?  Or maybe maps, tiles, scenery, etc for VTT?

3.  I like the mobi and epub stretch goals.  I think that it is neat.  I know that I have a large number of RPG docs on my tablet.

 

Questions:
1.  At extinction event pledge level ($80):
1a.  Do you get the special book and the at cost POD code? 
1b.  Also does the permission to use the publisher files allow for use in VTTs like Roll20 or campaign sites like Obsidian Portal?
2.  Will the Hero Designer files include export formats to match the write-ups in the book?  Maybe in HTML/RTF formats?
 

Now i have to wait until the 18th to spend some money.

[DreadDomain]

6 hours ago, Laz said:

DreadDomain: Thank you for the clarification. That is an excellent suggestion for the write-ups. We went with the standard write-up format in the draft manuscript, but we are giving ourselves time for fulfillment in the Kickstarter to improve the manuscript and incorporate feedback.

 

Steve: Only a few days to go! Thanks for the support.

 

-Laz

 

Thanks, I simply don't want the book to feel like Champions (which I love).

I am afraid it will be 80$ for me...

[Laz]

 

Norm: LOL, my child said the same thing about the 'A' - sadly, too late to fix it now.  

*We've got the one PALADIN adventure in there (part 1 of a trilogy) and would love to do Acolyte and Outcast  adventures too - hopefully, the KS will open some doors!

*I'm gaming on Roll20.net too for the same reasons so I hear ya! We can add stretch goals if this thing catches some fire and VTT resources sounds like a great idea.

*Answers:

1a. Yes. The $80 pledge level includes the hardcover premium book and the Illuminati level rewards that include the PALADIN level rewards that include the at-cost code. (Maybe we need a table to clairfy the rewards?)

1b. No, but that may change. Our intent is to allow a fan to create their own version of the book with house rules and their own added content for their personal, non-commercial use only. Let's say you love the PALADIN aspect of the book, you could turn it into heavily war-focused book. If Extinction Event catches fire this would be  great stretch goal to add.

2. My buddy Carlos is the tech guy so I will mention this to him so we can consider doing that with the formats (he may have already done this).

Thank you for the feedback!

 

DreadDomain: Thank you for your support! See ya $unday!

 

[Norm]

Your Kickstarter went live.

 

You have my $80.

 

[Laz]

Thank you, Norm!

 

Here is the direct link to the Extinction Event Kickstarter for everyone:

 

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1587114462/extinction-event-campaign-guide-for-champions-comp

 

Best Wishes,

 

Laz

[Laz]

Hey HERO Fans,

 

We're halfway through our Kickstarter for Extinction Event.

 

Please consider supporting it directly or asking a friend or fellow gamer to support it. 

 

You can also follow the project on Kickstarter so you'll get a reminder just before it ends on 3/19 (Kickstarter has 3/20 listed, but that's in the early AM) in case you can't support it now, but maybe later.

 

Thank you!

Carlos & Laz

[Laz]

Extinction Event is funded!

 

There are still 6 days left to join in! The PDF reward tier is just $10 and if you back us at any level you get the no-art, pre-layout Extinction Event Manuscript PDF as soon as you pledge (the link is in a backer-exclusive update)!

 

Thank you all for your support!

[Steve]

Yay!

[Amorkca]

Where do we get the pdf from?  I’m a backer!

 

[Steve]

I wonder who bought in at the $1000 level?

[Laz]

On 3/13/2018 at 11:58 PM, Amorkca said:

Where do we get the pdf from?  I’m a backer!

 

 

Hey Amorkca - It's in the March 12th backer exclusive Update - there is a link there to a dropbox folder that has the PDF. Thank you so much for supporting us!

 

-Laz

[Amorkca]

Your welcome, got the link thanks! Looking forward to the finished product!

[DreadDomain]

I had a quick read throught the draft and I have to say that I like what I saw. I would like to comment that some options in the templates are sometimes confusing. Examples:

 

Acolyte Template p.51-52

Instead of listing the various skills configurations into the options, I feel it would be clearer to have it in the main template with the Skills:

12    Choose one Acolyte Specialty or 12 CP worth of skills from the following list:

Then add lists of skills and list of Acolythe Specialities as per the current options and remove them from the options.  

 

Paladin Template p.55-56

Same comment. Otherwise it gives the impression that on top of the template, you can pick a Close Combat Specialist (adding +10pts of MA, +1 PD and + 1 HTH Combat) for a mere +4 points 

 

Basic Gifted Template p.49.50

Same comment but for the Psychic disciplines.

[DreadDomain]

Not sure if anyone reads this but I believe the write-ups are where a of clean-up is required. Please consider these suggestions:

 

1. Do not put weapon into the power section written in a power format. They should go into the equipment section using an equipment format. It's an heroic game so no need to pay for equipment and it make the write-ups look complex fro no reason.
2. Leave a blank space after PRE and another one after DMCV. It makes the characteristics look less blocky.
3. Make sure the layout is such that STR doesn't take two line because the Lift and Damage information takes too  uch space and forces a return to next line.
4. I see it is done for some of the write-ups but do not add extra movement into the Power section, add it to the movement section
5. Take a page from Champions Powers and organize the abilities in Movement, Sensory, Offensive, Defensive or Other categories. It makes the character much easier to read.
6. Think about regrouping abilities thematically. The cyborg write-up was confusing because under Powers his cybernetic enhancements are listed but they are all over the place.
7. Consider having write-ups without the character points. That would make them even simpler.

The thing is most of the time the write-ups are not very complex but the wait the information is presented, it looks complicated. I'd like the write-ups in the book look like it is for an Heroic Sci-Fi, Post-Apocalyptic game instead of a super hero game.

 

Thanks so much!