clarence

I’m so happy to announce v0.98 of The Comae Engine! We're almost at v1.0, which means there will be a print version soon. And the massive interest in this modern d100 ruleset continues. It has sold more in four months than any of my previous titles and there are now three 3rd party games and settings in the works - with more to come. I would even go so far as to call it a surprise hit. (To be quite honest, I expected to sell around 50 copies, with five of them to my mum). This new version features comprehensive examples of Extended Conflicts, including lockpicking, combat, searching for clues, and several others. Get it before the price goes up As page count has increased to 52, I will also adjust the price next week. So, if you haven’t got the PDF already, make sure to grab it before Wednesday. Here’s the link: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/418884/The-Comae-Engine Also, check out the sneak peek of the next mini-release, a free pack of pre-generated NPCs for use in most modern settings: https://www.frostbytebooks.com/downloads-new I hope you enjoy them. Clarence Redd www.frostbytebooks.com

Good idea! I've been thinking along those lines, but not that specific. I will keep in mind.

Thank you so much, Jakob! Excellent review. I'm working on the first update this week - cleaning up most of the small stuff - and it's been quicker than expected so far. v0.97 will most likely be available the first week in January. EN World also published an interview with me about Comae Engine. " [...] imagine an action movie from your favourite decade. Then cut out all the combat. The scenes that remain - car chases, skydiving, figuring out alien tech, stalking dark alleys and what have you - are really easy to turn into exciting game play in Comae Engine." Here's the rest of the article: https://www.enworld.org/threads/the-comae-engine-an-interview-with-clarence-redd.693930/

EN World just published an interview with the writers of The Red Star, Nils Hintze and Erik Hylander. They discuss the campaign’s background, its theme and how the two upcoming books will deepen the mystery. ”The campaign starts with few odd ingredients but becomes stranger and more alien for each scenario. The player characters will probably also be changed by this journey, themselves becoming alienated from their former lives.” They also reveal what music they recommend for this desperate 1920s mystery. Read the full interview here: https://www.enworld.org/threads/the-red-star-interview.693929/

I removed the sub-focus rules literally minutes before the release. I hope they will return in an update soon. And you’re right that matching different pools might be the most logical step at times. Yes, Flamboyant and Covert have similarities. But I think a more generic descriptor would make it less obvious for players how it can be used. But I will look into it. I really like Ashen Stars, but it’s been a few years since I read it. Sounds like an interesting approach. I would love to hear more.

Horror is not really my thing, but one of the first projects for Comae Engine is exactly that! Whether it's cosmic or not is a bit hard to say at this point, but I will know more in a few weeks. And I would be more than happy if people want to use the rules for their own projects. Do you have something in mind? Some extra help with editing would be very helpful! Send me a PM : )

Thanks Tom! I’m happy you like it. Finding a good balance between simplicity and rich playability took a while, but I hope Comae Engine brings something new to the table. Some interesting projects are coming along. The first update of the rulebook will clear up most of the small mistakes and the solo rules are next up. After that, at least two more titles are being planned.

And the first review of Comae Engine is out! Graham Spearing at Far Havens blog takes a look at the ruleset. “The Comae Engine provides a light framework for conflict resolution, with enough meat for a satisfying game, and one with plenty of legs for long term play.” “The game feels fresh, light on its feet, yet comfortably encompassing any game needs you might have for your adventures. Go and buy it.” Read the full review here: https://farhavens.blogspot.com/2022/12/the-comae-engine.html

Haha, good to hear! TREY is the next release, hopefully early next year. It's the solo rules I just can't stop playing.

Just a quick reminder that the 15% launch discount on The Red Star and Comae Engine ends tonight! The release has been a tremendous success. We reached #1 in Hottest Small Press on DriveThruRPG, we delivered more books in a single week than ever before and comments have been exuberantly positive. Like this one from Murallas Blancas: ”Wow, my first look at the two volumes is very positive. The Red Star is an intriguing case and displays a lot of good work. The Comae Engine is a suggestive proposition and includes powerful artwork from cover to interior.” Thorkrim O, Murallas Blancas EN World Interview EN World, the world’s biggest RPG site, will also publish an interview in a few days with the writers of The Red Star - Nils Hintze and Erik Hylander. They talk about the ideas behind the campaign and their previous work with Free League, adding a bit of background to the project. Highly recommended! Remember, the launch discount ends tonight. Tomorrow, prices go back to normal again. Here are the links one more time: The Red Star Print $16 $13.60 (Softcover, Full colour, 84 pages, Free PDF included) PDF $8.95 $7.60 The Comae Engine (Beta) PDF $2.50 $2.00

Hey Mindstorm, I’m happy you enjoy the rules! As I’ve said elsewhere, it took a few years and three scrapped manuscripts to arrive at the final version. In the snowstorm example, I would probably define a few different cases depending on how many PCs succeeded. Let’s start with the two most extreme cases. All succeed. The group makes a single damage roll to reduce the snowstorm’s conflict pool perhaps representing how far they managed to travel during the round. None succeed. The snowstorm deals damage to all the PCs, as they make little headway. All players roll for individual damage, say 1d6, to BODY. This is likely to represent fatigue and damage from low temperatures. One PC succeeds, two fail. The two who fail take damage as normal. For the successful player, I would probably roll to deal damage to the storm, but divide it by 2 or 3 to reflect the slowdown from the two failing PCs. (At some point - if one player keeps rolling well - a PC in good shape might hurry on to get some help for any lagging PCs. If it’s really bad, they would probably have to dig a bivouac. Two PCs succeed, one fails. Same as the previous point, but perhaps allowing the successful players to help the laggard in some way. How does that sound?

Very cool! And no risk of overreaching : ) I like to hear your ideas. I will have to process this for a bit, but it’s a nice way to handle both armour and weapons. It might complicate the way Combat Focuses work though (but there could be ways around that). Armour sounds brilliant! It makes a lot of sense.

The first reviews and comments are dropping in for the new books! And The Red Star is getting a lot of love: “I’m absolutely in awe! The story set against the approaching meteor is a pressure cooker slowly turned to max. And then some.” Evan J. “The plot and immersive 1920s atmosphere had me hooked from the first page.” Nathan W. “The Red Star is like the missing link between Vaesen RPG and Tales from the Loop. Nils Hintze and Erik Hylander has brought their wonderfully low-key weirdness to Odd Soot.” Lily A. Thanks everyone who bought the books! I wish you many hours of reading and playing. And here are the titles for the coming books: Book II - What We Carry With Us. The PCs embark on an expedition across the North Atlantic, to find the meteor’s impact site. But the competition is fierce from two other teams - who will get there first? Book III - The Giggling Iceberg. The expeditions have reached the impact site, only to find the massive space rock fully intact - a red island in the middle of nowhere. Do they dare go ashore? And what are the geometric patterns cut into the icy rock? Launch price 15% off Make sure to take advantage of the 15% discounted launch price for the books! The offer will only be around for a few more days, so act now to get the best deal. Here's the link again: The Red Star Print $16 $13.60 PDF $8.95 $7.60

Good comments, Jakob! I have added them to things to look into. And as you say, both stakes and consequences are important to define in conflicts. In combat, the good/bad consequences are often very obvious, but especially social conflicts can be more vague. So, setting them up before the conflict starts is preferable - as well as some in-between outcomes, if applicable. I will try to find a good spot to add some guidelines about this.

Thanks Jakob, good to hear you enjoy the book! I have found that Lenses do an amazing job of adding details to conflicts. Especially when players need to be nudged into a more descriptive mode. And as you say, Lenses work like combat manoeuvres but for any type of conflict. Good to hear your thoughts on Tags! I wanted a catch-all mechanic for all those advantages that PCs acquire, instead of adding several sub-systems. In future plugins, Magic will be added as a Tag, but the actual magic/power systems will run as a sub-system. I will certainly look into your idea about armour. Very interesting concept to keep the rules as slim as possible.

Thank you @ThornPlutonius! I'm happy you like it. I hope to release the first update in a few weeks.

And Comae Engine just hit #1 in Most popular under $5 at DriveThruRPG!

And I'm releasing a second book today, Comae Engine! Comae Engine is a barebones d100 ruleset with Extended Conflicts from M-SPACE at its core. Which means all conflicts use the same mechanics - social conflicts, chases, piloting a ship through a storm, climbing castle walls, combat and everything in between. CREATE BETTER STORIES Take d100 roleplaying back to its core. Comae Engine charts a new path for the classic d100 rules, retooled from the ground up for more creative and flexible storytelling. But keeping the grounded approach they are known for. At the core is a versatile conflict resolution system. Combine mysteries, social conflicts, puzzles, stunts, combat - and most other challenges in modern storytelling. You can play almost any story, in any genre. Comae Engine is a freestanding game, but with close ties to Mythras, M-SPACE and Odd Soot. And if you are familiar with classic d100 games, you will feel right at home. The book is available now at DriveThruRPG for only $2: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/418884/The-Comae-Engine

And The Red Star is finally available for purchase! https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/416718/The-Red-Star

I’m releasing the first campaign for Odd Soot tomorrow! The End is Near It is October 1922 and a meteor is heading towards Eorthe. Hysteria and despair spreads like wildfire. Is this the end of Doggerland? An unearthly madness strikes the citizens of Glimminge. At the observatory, an ageing astronomer is murdered as the meteor’s red glow intensifies by the hour. Amid doomsday heralds and a frantic population, the investigators must find the murderer before it strikes again. But what if it is already too late? The Red Star is a standalone scenario for the Odd Soot roleplaying game, based on Mythras. It also forms the first part of the longer campaign A Falling Mind. The campaign is written by Nils Hintze (Tales from the Loop, Vaesen, The Walking Dead) and Erik Hylander (Symbaroum). Illustrations by Clarence Redd. Odd Soot is a sci-fi RPG set in the 1920s, where humans have explored the interstellar neighbourhood around Earth. In addition to inhabitable exoplanets and intelligent aliens, they have also triggered a semi-dormant plague - The Odd Soot.

Good to hear the physical copies are starting to arrive! Here's another review: "Junkyard Blues is another excellent sandbox setting and adventure for M-Space. With a little prep, a GM will have a location ready to go that can serve as a springboard for many adventures." Charles Dunwoody on EN World Link: https://www.enworld.org/threads/review-of-junkyard-blues-for-m-space.684559/

Runeblogger has published a well-balanced (as always) review of Junkyard Blues: " [...] unlike many other sci-fi scenarios, this one seems more inspired by that kind of sci-fi movies one could label as "astronauts in trouble". Movies such as Gravity, The Martian or Stowaway, but with a fair dose of alien species and weird technology added on top." "The exploration, the sandbox approach, the fight against the environment, the ample roleplaying opportunities and the modular nature of this scenario all contribute to creating an interesting little gem." Read the full review here: https://elruneblog.blogspot.com/2021/12/junkyard-blues-sandbox-scenario-for-m.html

Just a quick note that the launch sale for Junkyard Blues ends tonight. Tomorrow, prices go back to normal again. Here is the link to DriveThruRPG: Junkyard Blues PDF $7.95 $6.76 Print $14.00 $11.90 Clarence Redd

Thanks @ThornPlutonius!

Junkyard Blues has been out for a few days and some first impressions have dropped in. Here’s one from the Murallas Blancas blog: "This is a great adventure that will surely require several sessions of play. It could be a multi-episode mission on a series like Star Trek, as it has that harsh sci-fi background where the PCs need both technical and social skills. Although, the aliens would be more at home in The Expanse. What comes to mind is an Expanse-style crew solving a tough Star Trek situation." Thorkrim Orlanthson (And make sure you activate Google Translate if you want to read the full review). On DriveThruRPG, Ville K says: "The atmosphere is really something, the npcs and factions [...] are evocative and full of plot hooks. M-Space has good published adventures, but this stands out." Sandbox Scenario I have also got a few questions about what a “sandbox scenario” means. The RPG community has not really agreed upon a definition, but most players would probably accept the following description. In a sandbox scenario, the Game Master has created a world with several elements in it - ie. locations, NPCs, organisations - to let the players freely choose which one they interact with. The Game Master has a general idea of how the various elements will react to the PC's actions, with some reactions being quite detailed, while others are deducted from the motivations of an NPC, for example. If the players do not act at all, elements might stay static or certain events might unfold anyway. The big difference from a regular scenario is that locations can be visited in any order, giving the players more freedom. Most people points to the greater freedom a sandbox offers, compared to strictly plotted adventures. The Launch Sale for Junkyard Blues Continues If you plan a purchase, make sure to snag it at the lower price. Here's the link again: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/376189/Junkyard-Blues