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Arcane Atlas Games
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Hell and High Water is a pulpy WW2-remnant vampire tower-climb with evocative themes, dangerous foes and rising waters.
Style:
- I think it was a stroke of genius to combine the map and the clock, it is a brilliant mirror for the rising water cutting off parts of the map
- Rad cover art, a poppy red spot colour and slick yet familiar FIST-like layout
Content:
- A rising water clock and a bait and switch on the extraction helps the referee push players towards the climax of the mission without it feeling forced
- The locations and foes are clear, succinctly described and offer interesting dilemmas to the players with plenty of space for the referee to build on
- This is a great combination of evocative themes - WW2 castle remnants and a legion of vampire fanatics
- Strong structure - a clear hook, solid content and foes and well thought-out outcomes
Hell and High Water is a pulpy WW2-remnant vampire tower-climb with evocative themes, dangerous foes and rising waters.
Style:
- I think it was a stroke of genius to combine the map and the clock, it is a brilliant mirror for the rising water cutting off parts of the map
- Rad cover art, a poppy red spot colour and slick yet familiar FIST-like layout
Content:
- A rising water clock and a bait and switch on the extraction helps the referee push players towards the climax of the mission without it feeling forced
- The locations and foes are clear, succinctly described and offer interesting dilemmas to the players with plenty of space for the referee to build on
- This is a great combination of evocative themes - WW2 castle remnants and a legion of vampire fanatics
- Strong structure - a clear hook, solid content and foes and well thought-out outcomes
What might I change?
- I wonder if exploring a slightly softer black might be slightly easier on the reader
- I wonder if a tri-fold layout best supports use during play or if this might be even more effective as 2 a4-pages (and rearranging the content slightly to suit)
Disks and Daemons is slick hacker-corporate dungeon generator that creates a bustling zone for your players to explore and escape before they dissolve into hapless bytes.
Style:
- The computer admin / office / 90's hacker vibe and theme is fully explored and leant into at every opportunity
- The layout is clear, feels on-theme and like it would be easy to use during a game (I'm really impressed with Typst's flexability)
- The black/white dice icons and diagrams are clear and effective
Content:
- The concept is rad and executed brilliantly
- The hook is clear (love that the stakes aren't immediately world ending), the unique data-loss mechanic effective and the combination of generated rooms and flavourful foes - In 2-pages it creates a clear 'zone' that is both dangerous and has an internal logic that the players could exploit and explore
- Love an inspirations list
- Ironically, the concept feels super simple to hack (which is a compliment!), and I'm keen to see how this tech / mechanic could be explored in other settings
Disks and Daemons is slick hacker-corporate dungeon generator that creates a bustling zone for your players to explore and escape before they dissolve into hapless bytes.
Style:
- The computer admin / office / 90's hacker vibe and theme is fully explored and leant into at every opportunity
- The layout is clear, feels on-theme and like it would be easy to use during a game (I'm really impressed with Typst's flexability)
- The black/white dice icons and diagrams are clear and effective
Content:
- The concept is rad and executed brilliantly
- The hook is clear (love that the stakes aren't immediately world ending), the unique data-loss mechanic effective and the combination of generated rooms and flavourful foes creates a clear 'zone' that is both dangerous and has an internal logic that the players could exploit and explore
- Love an inspirations list
- Ironically, the concept feels super simple to hack (which is a compliment!), and I'm keen to see how this tech / mechanic could be explored in other settings
What might I change?
- No notes!
Operation Broken Trident is a detailed cargo-ship extraction mission with a Kraken, a nuclear-tipped RPG and the potential to escape on jet skis.
Style:
- The layout is simple, but does the job
- It feels on-theme for FIST
Content:
- A classic, and effective mission hook - 'retrieve the powerful weapon' with a dilemma on whether to use it to escape
- The operation has detail poured into every aspect of its content - the ship, the factions, the foes and even the narrative structure and ways it might escalate
- The threats are varied and fit the maritime theme, the incentive to not hurt enchanted crew members gives an interesting choice to the players
- The referee is supported with an effective overview and guidance on choices they can make
Operation Broken Trident is a detailed cargo-ship extraction mission with a Kraken, a nuclear-tipped RPG and the potential to escape on jet skis.
Style:
- The layout is simple, but does the job
- It feels on-theme for FIST
Content:
- A classic, and effective mission hook - 'retrieve the powerful weapon' with a dilemma on whether to use it to escape
- The operation has detail poured into every aspect of its content - the ship, the factions, the foes and even the narrative structure and ways it might escalate
- The threats are varied and fit the maritime theme, the incentive to not hurt enchanted crew members gives an interesting choice to the players
- The referee is supported with an effective overview and guidance on choices they can make
What might I change?
- I wonder if there is almost too much detail, though that might be personal preference. In editing down where you provide information, could you retain the feel of the operation whilst making it easier to pick up and quicker to reference during play?
- I wonder if more choices around the layout could better support use while playing (e.g. could the ship diagram + points of interest text be a single spread)
Three Point Insertion is a flooded-base crawl packed with strange enemies in a video-game manual style.
Style:
- The art and colours set a clear spooky underwater tone from the get go, it feels like an old-school video game manual
- The underwater setting is front and centre, clearly informing the enemy design, air-tank mechanic and location-specific threats
Content:
- I love the clear mission structure of an initial singular objective that opens up to three points that you have to reach
- Each location is thoroughly described, reinforcing the underwater tone with a unique feel and threat
- Enemies pose different and interesting challenges, I particularly liked the 'hold your breath in real life' boss move
- A range of interesting traits and items serve as rewards and tools for agents that survive this lethal mission
Three Point Insertion is a flooded-base crawl packed with strange enemies in a video-game manual style.
Style:
- The art and colours set a clear spooky underwater tone from the get go, it feels like an old-school video game manual
- The underwater setting is front and centre, clearly informing the enemy design, air-tank mechanic and location-specific threats
Content:
- I love the clear mission structure of an initial singular objective that opens up to three points that you have to reach
- Each location is thoroughly described, reinforcing the underwater tone with a unique feel and threat
- Enemies pose different and interesting challenges, I particularly liked the 'hold your breath in real life' boss move
- A range of interesting traits and items serve as rewards and tools for agents that survive this lethal mission
What might I change?
- I wonder if moving the 'exploring the base' / 'three filtration systems' sections before the locations might be easier for the referee to reference.
- I wonder if adding a diagram showing any connections and any location-specific NPC stats to the location pages might be easier for the referee to reference
- An extra proof-read to catch repetition and page references could make the text even punchier
Piranesian slum is a FIST op with punchy design and a strong 'zone' vibes.
Style:
- The flow-chart map gives the adventure a strong visual structure and grounds it's twisting layout for the referee
- The palette and clear layout fits the F.I.S.T. aesthetic but adds a dash of colour and its own spin, it feels fresh
- The art / diagrams are rad and feel purposeful
Content:
- Each location is packed with description to support referees
- The clear setting, (body-horror themed) altered locations, suggested music and written-flavour create a cohesive unwelcoming and eerie location
- The hook of being the support team while things go wrong for the A team is neat, and builds on the dangerous zone that you reluctantly have to enter
- There are some bigger swings - use of non-D6, interesting enemy traits and weapon effects
Piranesian slum is a FIST op with punchy design and a strong 'zone' vibes.
Style:
- The flow-chart map gives the adventure a strong visual structure and grounds it's twisting layout for the referee
- The palette and clear layout fits the F.I.S.T. aesthetic but adds a dash of colour and its own spin, it feels fresh
- The art / diagrams are rad and feel purposeful
Content:
- Each location is packed with description to support referees
- The clear setting, (body-horror themed) altered locations, suggested music and written-flavour create a cohesive unwelcoming and eerie location
- The hook of being the support team while things go wrong for the A team is neat, and builds on the dangerous zone that you reluctantly have to enter
- There are some bigger swings - use of non-D6, interesting enemy traits and weapon effects
What might I change?
- An editing and proof-read pass could have tightened up the content
- I wonder if a 'what is happening' section for the referee would give a helpful overview of the scenario before diving into the detail (I was still a little unclear about what the entity was after reading)
Thank you for the feedback, we’ll keep those points in mind for future projects. We’re glad you enjoy 1e.
R.e. the ‘crack the case’ section in 2e - that is a slight mistake that we’ll correct, it is intended to be up to the players when they want to end the game instead of after 2 suspects every time.
A fun, calustrophobic mission for mothership. I played with Mothership 1e and a mix of newer and experienced players and everyone enjoyed it.
Running it was easy with a well-laid out pamphlet that has the information that you need but with plenty of room for the warden to be creative in building an atmosphere. The infestation mechanic nicely raises the tension and keeps things feeling theatening as the players gradually realise what is happening. The monsters are scary, but don't tend to kill players instantly, which helped give the newer players time to come up with solutions.
A few maps handouts are available in the creator's discord, which helped the players understand the submarine and navigate the space.
No Bones About It is a rad, skeleton street racing FIST hack.
My favourite hacks / jam submissions stay true to the original ideas behind the mechanics, but twist them in a new and exciting way. No Bones About It nails this.
Mechanically it sticks to the player driven, d6-only, 4-stat simplicity of FIST. The stats are not only relabelled, but adjusted to fit the vibe and how the player characters would make decisions within it. 'Death' is great - why shouldn't skeleton characters get a chance to straight up not die? There are a few twists here, most notably the addition of vehicles. Vehicles are designed as an extension of the characters themselves, directly enhancing their abilities on the character sheet.
Thematically the zine is on-point, the skeleton and car filled art, punchy writing pair well with the mechanics to bring the street-racing skeletons to life (or undeath?). The scenario is a good demonstration of all of these, with a strong narrative and twist.
The character sheet, contents and quick reference pages are all useful additions for running or playing the game.
No Bones About It is a rad, skeleton street racing FIST hack.
My favourite hacks / jam submissions stay true to the original ideas behind the mechanics, but twist them in a new and exciting way. No Bones About It nails this.
Mechanically it sticks to the player driven, d6-only, 4-stat simplicity of FIST. The stats are not only relabelled, but adjusted to fit the vibe and how the player characters would make decisions within it. 'Death' is great - why shouldn't skeleton characters get a chance to straight up not die? There are a few twists here, most notably the addition of vehicles. Vehicles are designed as an extension of the characters themselves, directly enhancing their abilities on the character sheet.
Thematically the zine is on-point, the skeleton and car filled art, punchy writing pair well with the mechanics to bring the street-racing skeletons to life (or undeath?). The scenario is a good demonstration of all of these, with a strong narrative and twist.
The character sheet, contents and quick reference pages are all useful additions for running or playing the game.
Old Dogs gives ideas and enemies for FIST agents that have somehow survived a few too many times.
The layout is crisp, and fits the FIST aesthetic perfectly, complete with even more acronyms. The vibe of all the content is spot on, conjuring up images of grizzled veterens in action films. I'm such a sucker for a 'one last job' trope, and you can bet your cotton socks that this includes it.
This feels very useful as inspiration for referees to create their own, or adapt existing, missions for long-in-the-tooth player characters.
Old Dogs gives ideas and enemies for FIST agents that have somehow survived a few too many times.
The layout is crisp, and fits the FIST aesthetic perfectly, complete with even more acronyms. The vibe of all the content is spot on, conjuring up images of grizzled veterens in action films. I'm such a sucker for a 'one last job' trope, and you can bet your cotton socks that this includes it.
This feels very useful as inspiration for referees to create their own, or adapt existing, missions for long-in-the-tooth player characters.
A 2-parter, To The Slaughter is part NPC generating mechanics/representation and part campaign.
The generating mechanics took a bit of getting my head around, but they clearly have a lot of depth represented in a really concise way. With a bit of practice they would be allow referees to act as NPCs with a lot of detail and interesting motivations. The NPCs in the campaign illustrate the mechanic nicely, a clever touch.
The adventure equally took a bit to grasp, but has loads of depth, interesting challenges and a cool setting (it is pretty dark and graphic, but in a 'part of real-life that we prefer to ignore' sort of way).
Squad traits is a pamphlet adding a simple, but creative and clever mechanic to FIST. The players or referee choose from a list of traits which make the game easier, harder or a bit more unique. It stays true to the feel of traits in the main rules, but with great ideas for how these could impact a group all at once.
The use of art from a field manual fits the vibe and jazzes up the simple and clear layout.
This is a great mechanical addition to a referee's arsenal with a lot of potential for people to build on top of.
Squad traits is a pamphlet adding a simple, but creative and clever mechanic to FIST. The players or referee choose from a list of traits which make the game easier, harder or a bit more unique. It stays true to the feel of traits in the main rules, but with great ideas for how these could impact a group all at once.
The use of art from a field manual fits the vibe and jazzes up the simple and clear layout.
Currently, the layout works better digitally than printed. This isn't a negative, as I think most users will look at it digitally (and it's easier to follow this way round than print-friendly pamphlet layouts!). If you did print it, the page break for telepaths would be a little awkward, and I think the cover might open backwards (but I don't have a printer, so can't check for sure).
I love the idea of Wave Function Expansion, spending war dice to mess with the referee is really cool. However, it might be of limited use as the referee rarely (if ever) rolls dice in the main FIST rules.
Overall, this is a great mechanical addition to a referees arsenal with a lot of potential for people to build on top of.