Earlier this summer I took a bit of a trip and just before I left I ordered “So You Want To Be A Game Master” from my friend Jeff Bezos’ website. I’ll say this, for any Game Master starting out, the best way to get used to running a game and attempting to herd a group of players is to simply start playing. That being said, I really think this is a fantastic book for both new and veteran gamers. On a long flight from New York to Munich, I was able to spend some time in Justin Alexander’s words and I found a great amount of content that, while I may have known about and implemented it before, I may have never articulated it to myself or others the way Alexander does. I found it wonderfully helpful to have simple things illustrated on the page. For new GMs, this is totally worth a read. For experienced GMs, I think it makes a great resource.

FAL Secone Edition Kickstarter Update

 Just a quick update on the Kickstarter! 

We are halfway through the project timeline with over 100 backers! Thanks to everyone who has backed this project. The 10K stretch goal is just around the corner and I have no doubt it will be unlocked. 

The Book of Lore is in the final editing stage (and content check) and my expectation is to send out for the proof by this weekend. With the recent additions to the book it comes in at 308 pages (originally it was 280 pages). Here is a bit of a breakdown of specific content in the book...

• 60+ short stories focused on the Spheres and events in Far Away Land.
• Maps of all continents on FAL along with location descriptions
• Maps of the Spheres along with location descriptions and histories
• Timelines for FAL history and universe history
• Extensive history of FAL
• Extensive history of the universe
• Hierarchies and major characters in the Spheres and FAL
• Appendix of FAL texts, interviews, and other written works
• Index

 Wow! The 2nd Edition Kickstarter is almost to $10K and we have over 100 backers. I don’t think I can express how great that feels. Thank you! Hitting $10K seemed like it might be a bridge too far when we launched the KS, but now it’s within reach, which means that we may be unlocking the final (???) stretch goal soon. The HTML generators that will be released are great tools that have gone through multiple version testing and work great as quick-start tools or as prompts. I like that latter function especially because I’ve found that new players sometimes don’t know how to approach character creation (especially with so much content unique to FAL) and having the generators there to provide PC names, races, backgrounds, etc., can be a good way to spur them into telling their own story. A player may not always know where to start, but most have some idea of the kind of character they want or don’t want and a few helpful hints can help their imagination take off, resulting in a character that feels truly their own. Of course, you can also use the characters and other elements created just as is. And if you’re about to jump into a Level 0 grinder, it’s easy to spin up 3-4 quick PCs to toss into action before devoting too much time to figuring out their story. I hope we hit this next goal and everyone gets a chance to use these tools. And if you haven’t shared the KS with your friends and fellow gamers, now is the time!

 I have mentioned this in the past but I thought I might talk about it again as it is something that has really driven me in my approach to the aesthetic of Far Away Land. I really wanted an art style that stood out from other styles that dominated so many gaming books. I wanted a more cartoony, animated style that was hyper-colorful and simple opposed to so much game art that strives for realism or gritty darkness. It’s not that I dislike those styles in games like Pathfinder D&D, or darker games like Mork Borg, it’s just that I wanted something that felt more like Saturday morning, something that would help FAL stand out visually. Tabletop RPGs have been around for over 50 years and in that time there have been countless games and countless clones. While Far Away Land is very much in the old school gaming vein, I hope that people find the artwork, the mechanics, and the world both familiar and unique.

Cities, the hub of civilization, or so we think. In fantasy worlds, cities often serve as islands of respite, places where PCs can rest and heal, find work, make acquaintances, meet in a tavern, etc. They serve as focuses for urban adventures, thieves guilds, corruption, assassinations, trade and commerce. In Far Away Land these things are true as well. But in addition to all of the aforementioned, cities also serve as palettes of culture. The art and architecture and even the layout of a sprawling urban maze can provide a glimpse into the people who built that place. Is it one with nature or a concrete labyrinth? Does the city have towering buildings clustered together or is it a series of islands with simple, impermanent structures? One thing I wanted cities to do in FAL, especially in the Book of Lore, was to really demonstrate the cultural element of the people who built and live in that place.  

Now that the Kickstarter has been live for a week and I’ve already shown the Core Rules and the Bestiary I books, I wanted to share the Enchiridion of Awesome. It’s quite the behemoth of a book, coming in at nearly 500 pages! The Enchiridion contains everything from the Core Rules and Bestiary I under a single cover. And speaking of the cover, I wanted to really show the uniqueness of the Far Away Land characters. I thought the radial design looked dynamic and allowed me to get a lot of stuff in without making it look forced. I also wanted to make something special just for Kickstarter backers so the Enchiridion of Awesome is only available in the Kickstarter and will not be made public afterward.  So if you want this book, you’ll have to back the project
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/scg/far-away-land-2nd-edition

I kind of can’t believe that in less than one week, the Far Away Land 2nd Ed. Kickstarter has already reached its third stretch goal. Thank you all!! We crossed that milestone this weekend and I couldn’t be happier because I was really hoping the project would reach this level. Not just because it’s exciting to see the project do well, but because $6000 in total backing unlocks png files for all of the hexmap icons used in the maps for the Book of Lore. This is a total of more than 400+ map icons that GMs and players can use to make their own maps for custom gameplay experience. And I have to say, the idea of all these new detailed locations being cooked up using the same icons as in the official books makes me very happy.

Maybe one day I’ll get to see what everyone has created. If you haven’t checked us out yet, please do!  https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/scg/far-away-land-2nd-edition/description

 

 

The Core Rules, Bestiary I, and the Enchiridion of Awesome are all finished and I have received proofs. The Book of Lore is still having a couple small things done but proofs will be ordered within the next couple weeks. For this post, I wanted to show off Bestiary I, the cover of which features some egg thieves robbing a Velveteen Worm of her young (when I say it like that it sounds terrible). Thunder and lightning and storm-driven sky live in the background. A lot of the art in the Core Rules and Bestiary was found in first edition books and has been updated and redone for this new version, this cover piece being one (which I think was originally featured in the Nuzoz expansion). Last thing.I didn’t mention it before but yes, those are FAL miniatures in the top left of the image, a Ten Times Ten Man, a Soracan on a base, and a barely seeable Blonin. More on minis in the future (but just to let folks know the minis are not part of the Kickstarter).

Oh….and don’t forget to back us here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/scg/far-away-land-2nd-edition

 

Now that we’ve launched the Kicsktarter (link below), I wanted to show off the actual physical books. For the first image we have the Core Rules, the cover of which features an Orka with a bloodied sword in the Abyssmalsphere surrounded by fellow adventurers and demons. The inspiration for this image (I may have mentioned this before) was from the black and white “A Paladin in Hell” by David Sutherland III in the D&D Player’s Handbook from back in the day. That was always a favorite illustration of mine and this cover was directly inspired by that work. 

Another reason to show off the book is to give backers confidence in the KS project. What you see here is what you will get when you back at the $45 level.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/scg/far-away-land-2nd-edition

The FAL 2nd Ed. Kickstarter is now over $5000. We are more than fully funded and have already reached our first two stretch goals. WOW!! 😲 

 

The first $3000 stretch goal was a modest goal because one of the big priorities with this project was to get the new editions out there into the world. I didn’t want the initial goal to stand in the way of that, and I didn’t want stretch goals to feel unattainable either. Hence, this goal. By reaching $3000 in total baking, we’ve unlocked the Bestiary Handouts. These are taken right from the pages of the Bestiary I book and are provided as standalone png files. This way, GMs can easily print or access entries needed for an adventure without having to cut, copy, paste, and format using the PDFs. All of the creatures and stats you need for your adventure in one easy-to-reference stack!

The second stretch goal of $5000 unlocked all Bestiary images as individual png files. Now you can easily print and show your players what they face without having to cut and paste from the book or expose any stats. They’re great visual references to further enhance gameplay.

Track our progress toward the second stretch goal (and back us if you haven’t yet) here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/scg/far-away-land-2nd-edition/description

 

The Far Away Land 10th Anniversary Kickstarter is now live! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/scg/far-away-land-2nd-edition

There are multiple backer levels with individual and bundled rewards to give supporters options that fit their needs. We’ve also got digital and physical rewards available to backers around the world. 

And the products themselves? Page counts and other specs are posted on the KS page. But here are some quick points. This is the 10th anniversary of Far Away Land, and over that time we have remained a verified Gold seller on DriveThru RPG with a 5-star rating. The 2nd Edition reflects the growth of the game from ten years of play, feedback, experience with other systems, as well as reflection and a desire to improve the game and expand its world. It also reflects our commitment to quality with comprehensive volumes in both PDF and GORGEOUS hardback versions that hark back to the old-school feel of some of the genre’s first games.

 

Second Edition Rule Changes

 A partial list of rule changes and updates in Second Edition FAL...

While this is not a completely comprehensive list, it does list a good

amount of changes between FAL 1st and 2nd Edition

 

I’ve mentioned the Book of Lore in previous posts and wanted to show the cover here. The book is coming together and nearly done. The Appendices section is a bit larger than I first thought as it contains timelines, hierarchies, cults and religions, lineages, etc. It’s a nice addition to the book and the FAL universe that I hope folks appreciate and can dive into. The cover for the Book of Lore features a Boom materioship passing through a fissure that has been created on Far Away Land. I decided on this piece of the lore as it is a pivotal moment in the history of Far Away Land. The Boom invasion is what throws so many things into chaos and makes FAL the world it is with all of its various creatures and cultures and weirdness. I think with the timelines provided as well as the stories and the historical records in the Book of Lore, a much more vivid picture of when, where, and why things happened in the FAL universe will be available to players.