Now on Gameontabletop WHAT IS DARK CONSPIRACY
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Sample file Now on Gameontabletop https://www.gameontabletop.com/crowdfunding-189.html WHAT IS DARK CONSPIRACY In the all-too-near future, the world slides into the Greater Depression, the United States affected most dramatically. Nationalism surges, and the social safety net is in tatters. Corporations control govern- ments openly, corruption is commonplace, and the citizenry is starkly divided between those who have and those who go without. Urban sprawl runs amok, and great metroplexes connect the great cities into teeming, soulless metropolises, their lights shining Some of these strange and terrible creatures are across the countryside. remembered through folklore and legend — mon- sters such as vampires, demons, ghouls, and their The heartland of America is largely abandoned, like — while others are utterly fantastic, extradimen- the bread basket now empty. Law enforcement and sional and alien beings from beyond time and space. the government have given up on these regions, Together, these minions of darkness are opposed to and utilities are scarce and unreliable. Few can sur- all life, and they struggle to extinguish the last lights vive within these outlaw areas. Few humans, that is. of human civilization. For in these forgotten and empty places in the Some few stand against them, humans banded rust belt, the tissue of reality tears wide, and ener- together and armed against these dreadful forces gy from nightmare dimensions and planes of utter of darkness. These minion hunters stalk them in the terror seep into this world. These places, called cities and even in the demongrounds, but the great- demongrounds, grow more substantial, expanding est challenge they face is the realization that these each day, and creatures from these hell-places walk monsters do not work alone: they are aided by hu- freely there, and from the demongrounds they infil- mans who have made terrible pacts with the forces trate the metroplexes to feed their inhuman hungers of darkness, selling out their own kind for power and and bring ruin to all. survival. THIS IS THE WORLD OF DARK CONSPIRACY. Sample file DARKCONSPIRACY returnS… HISTORY In 1990, Game Designers Workshop first brought The relaunch will begin with the release of the Dark Conspiracy to life. It was a robust and acclaimed Dark Conspiracy quickstart adventure, the Dark roleplaying game series, far ahead of its time with Conspiracy core rulebook, accompanied by the Dark canny predictions about the shape of things to come. Conspiracy Gamemaster Screen and Resource, and In 2019, Clockwork Publishing brings it back. For more. Future supplements will include sourcebooks the first time in more than 20 years, Dark Conspira- detailing gear, psychic powers, minions, and will cy will be available in print in a deluxe new version further explore the world of Dark Conspiracy. of the acclaimed roleplaying game, with an updated system and setting, featuring all-new art and content. WHO ARE WE? Clockwork Publishing (or in German: Uhrwerk Ver- Since 2013, Uhrwerk Verlag (under the label lag) is a respected German-based RPG and fiction Clockwork Publishing) also thrives within the Eng- publisher founded in 2009 by Patric Götz, utilizing lish-speaking market. With a successful crowd- his extensive experience in the field of roleplaying, funding for a translation of the German version of first, as an employee in a games store, then working Space:1889, the English version of the game was fi- at a wholesaler, and finally as publishing director nanced. At the same time, Uhrwerk Verlag produces and CEO at Ulisses Spiele. German games such as Splittermond, its own Ger- Uhrwerk’s first games published were German man fantasy roleplaying game, and publishing Ger- versions of Hollow Earth Expedition and Deadlands man editions of games such as Mutant Year Zero, Classic in 2009 as well as the license for the western Coriolis, Fate Core and many others. continent Myranor for The Dark Eye. In the years that Today, about dozen employees are permanently followed, Uhrwerk published further games with employed at Uhrwerk Verlag, releasing an average great success, among them more and more German of four to five publications per month. The company Sampleproductions like Malmsturm, Contact, or Dungeon- has carried out several crowdfundings file successfully, slayers, and extended their range with translations both in English and German. of English games such as Numenera and Achtung! Cthulhu. DARKCONSPIRACY returns… THE TEAM We have assembled a stellar team of contributors: Andrew Peregrine came to Dark Conspiracy as a player many years ago and has relished Jason Durall, the line manager, is a veteran writ- the chance to finally look into the mysteries er, game designer, and line editor for pen-and- his Gamemaster had kept secret. He has writ- paper and computer games. He has written and ten for several different games and companies developed material for A Game of Thrones, Am- including Doctor Who and Victoriana (Cubicle ber Diceless Roleplaying, Battlestar Galactica, 7), Vampire V20 (Onyx Path), Judge Dredd (EN Conan the Roleplaying Game, Serenity, Achtung! Publishing), Star Trek (Modiphius), and two Cthulhu, World War Cthulhu, The Laundry, Basic versions of Firefly (MWP). He also produces his Roleplaying, Silver Age Sentinels, and more. He own games as Corone Design but for a ‘proper has won Ennies for his work on Serenity, Rune- job’ works as a lighting technician at the Thea- Quest, and Conan, and serves as line editor for tre Royal Haymarket in London’s West End. Chaosium’s RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Gloran- tha and for Modiphius’ Robert E. Howard’s Co- Paul Riegel-Green is a veteran to the world of nan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed Of. Dark Conspiracy and has written or contributed to Dark Races, Gear Up!, Krampus is Coming to Marcus Bone is a longtime fan and contribu- Town, numerous articles for Shadis magazine, tor to Dark Conspiracy, having been involved Protodimension Ezine, and Dark Times Ezine. He in Demonground (the Origins nominated Dark has written for TSR (new and old), New Comet Conspiracy fanzine), the game’s 2nd and 3rd Games, Game Designers Workshop, West End editions, and most recently via darkconspira- Games, as well as various independent game cytherpg.com (a Dark Conspiracy fansite and producers. He originally started in role playing forum). Marcus is a New Zealand based IT ex- in 1976 with the Original Edition Dungeons & ecutive and consultant, who is inspired by his Dragons. caring family, and the creative urge, to explore strange, new worlds! John Snead has been a full time freelance game designer for 20 years and has written more than Lena Falkenhagen is a veteran of the German a dozen published magic systems. He also de- TRPG scene and was a design board member veloped the idea for and wrote much of the ro- of The Dark Eye (DSA) for 17 years. She is new mantic fantasy RPG Blue Rose, and created and to Dark Conspiracy but has written four game wrote the Mythras urban fantasy supplement novels and contributed to countless adventure After the Vampire Wars. He has written exten- and game books for TDE, translated Mage: The sively for Ars Magica , Exalted, Mindjammer, the Sorcerer’s Crusade and co-translated Mage: The recent Conan RPG, Star Trek Adventures, as well Awakening, edited D&D 3.5 books. Lena lives in as Changeling: The Lost, Mage: The Awakening, Hamburg, Germany and works as a professional and many other games. John Snead is also the novelist, freelance narrative designer for video developer for Onyx Path Publishing’s upcoming games, and tabletop RPG game writer. science fiction game Trinity Continuum: Æon. Richard Hayden has been a Dark Conspiracy fan Samantha Chapman is a freelance editor and since the original release of the game and has proofreader based in Boston, MA. She is a new- in recent years contributed fiction and game comer to Dark Conspiracy. Her publishing cred- materials for the Protodimension fanzine. He its include Aldis, City of the Blue Rose (for the is passionate about the future of gaming and Blue Rose system), Ork! The Roleplaying Game cannot wait to see where Dark Conspiracy will 2nd Edition, The Mutants & Masterminds Basic go in the future. Hero’s Handbook, and The Expanse corebook. Sascha Hoppenrath is a veteran player and Alasdair Stuart is a newcomer as a writer to gamemaster of Dark Conspiracy. He has pub- the world of Dark Conspiracy and has written lished the German version of Deadlands and or contributed to multiple Doctor Who: Ad- did translation work for Pathfinder and The One ventures in Time and Space sourcebooks, Star SampleRing. Sascha has been part of the design team, Trek, Victoriana, All Flesh Mustfile Be Eaten, Chill, that created the popular German Splittermond and After the War, co-created with Jason Pitre RPG. When he is not writing or running his of Genesis of Legend. When not writing RPG boardgame shop in Cologne (Germany), he’s material, Alasdair co-owns Escape Artists, the probably somewhere gaming. podcast fiction company behind Hugo-nomi- DARKCONSPIRACY returnS… nated Escape Pod as well as PseudoPod, Pod- as for Shadowrun Missions and Living Forgot- Castle, and Cast of Wonders. Each runs weekly ten Realms. When not writing or spending time short fiction in science fiction, horror, fantasy with his family, he works in the video game in- and YA respectively. Find him online at www. dustry as an engineering manager. alasdairstuart.com Frank Übe is a veteran player and gamemas- Richard August is a writer and game design- ter of Dark Conspiracy. He did translation work er from Manchester, UK. He has written for for Pathfinder and D&D 3rd Edition. Frank was Conan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed Of, part of the design team that created the pop- RuneQuest and John Carter of Mars, amongst ular German Splittermond RPG.