As you probably know, our next project will not be a full-scale RPG (like Age of Decadence and Colony Ship). If it's the first time you're reading about it, here's why:
Colony Ship sold well (for an obscure indie RPG), but not enough to pay for a more ambitious and complex sequel. The plan was not to do another story on the same ship, but to continue the story after planetfall. Such a game - such a new world with everything that entails - would have required a bigger team and a much bigger budget. We simply don't have the resources to undertake that now, but hopefully we can come back to it later.
So we're in a situation where we can 'go the distance' and handle a 4-5 year long project, provided we keep the costs low and focus on combat, i.e. a complex tactical RPG. We know that some people will be disappointed, but it's either that or shutting down for good. So let's roll the dice one last time and see what happens.
Keep in mind that we're starting to work on it just now, so many things can and will change over the next few years (and many things will go wrong). The purpose of this post isn't to drum up some excitement but to let you know what we're working on now and what the goals are:
Lovecraftian bronze age populated by humans, non-men races, and eldritch horrors
Semi-sandbox, roam anywhere but be aware that some dark corners of this land will be more dangerous than others
Three mutually exclusive main questlines with plenty of choices (including switching sides)
Procedurally-generated quests to keep you entertained (contracts only)
Colony Ship style feats (and skill points) on level up plus feats earned in various events.
10-12 character levels plus mastery levels that don't grant any feats.
AoD style combat (action points, different attacks, focus on melee) but with a hex grid.
Spellcasting (think fighters dabbling in magic rather than DnD wizards unleashing pyrotechnic hell)
Crafting and alchemy, AoD style; magic weapons and armor
Party size 6, recruit as many as you need if your comrades (or should I say battle brothers?) fall in battle
Colony Ship's death timer with feats detailing the worsening effects of your near-death experiences
Runes carved into the flesh of your comrades (think Colony Ship's implants)
Setting intro:
From atop the ziggurat's shrine, the High Priest watched the sandstorm rage about his city. The winds battered the walls for hours, but the blood-fed wards held firm, and the stones stood unscathed.
In the desert only the strongest survived. The sands had swallowed many towns over the centuries, leaving nothing but shifting dunes and bleached bones, but Zanghabar and its people had endured and even blossomed. And yet, the High Priest was troubled. The tiding that came from afar were grim, and the dreams even worse. Something was stirring in the impenetrable heart of the desert, a darkness to which the city’s very existence was an affront that could be tolerated no longer.
Zanghabar's rivals sensed it too, circling and pecking like vultures at a dying beast. Harudal’s warbands openly raided their trading outposts, and Sankarum’s ships plundered their shores with impunity. In the past they wouldn’t have dared to venture that far, for the deep waters were even more treacherous than the desert, but their sea whisperers must have found a way to calm the waves. Or made some pact with the children of the sea, a possibility that was bleaker still.
Nothing good ever came from dealings with the Ythlir, the misbegotten spawn of another age. They dwelled where no man could: beneath the ocean's waves, deep within the mountains, and even – the High Priest flinched at the thought – in the heart of the desert, where nothing could live. Nothing except for the accursed Ythlir and their dark gods…
* * *
So, that's the plan. Will we get there? I'd say 50/50, if we're being honest. Unlike the sequel to Colony Ship, this project is actually doable but doable and easy are two different things. Colony Ship will remain the budget generator for this project, so hopefully it will continue selling and see us through.
PS. Thank you so much for the overwhelming support and encouragement. Many people ask about supporter editions and donations; while we appreciate your generosity, the best way to support us is to leave a review, no matter how brief. Reviews boost visibility and influence sales, and we'll need all the help we can get there, since the revenue generated by all 3 games is the 4th game's budget.
Thank you in advance.