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updated .txt file

Updated .txt file

Hello! On looking at the preview I realised I made some mistakes in formatting the .txt file... definitely not my forte. Have now reuploaded a better version, hopefully that'll be more legible. Others seem to have their pictures added also? Do I need to upload the image file seperately for this?

Eclectic and impeccably presented as always Gonzo, great work!

Very fitting with the Troika vibes and styling, love the creature and event designs. Would love to see more!

Wonderfully whimsical and inspired in concept. It opens up all sort of genius ideas, and yet doesn't overstay its welcome. Will definitely try to set up a play through of this sometime. Very well done!

Beautifully stylised, I love the limited palate spreading both between text and images, but also the fact you're not afraid to use more muted reds in between the bright, gaudy ones to accentuate or soften details. The writing is indeed suitably gothic and evocative, though I will mention I spotted a few typos and word skips, so do give it a editorial pick through before you go final final. I do think some more arrangement for accessible reading would help, but I'm sure that can be looked at as you move forward and wouldn't want it to hurt the aesthetics. Overall very well put together!

Beautifully thematic in presentation, love the aesthetic as a whole and rather soulless, detached writing style. That being said, I did find it a little tricky to parse and follow at times... perhaps just a weakness of my ageing meat brain. I will say just a little bit more info for the benefits of each modification might make it a little more playable. I know the openness to interpretation is a strength of Troika, but just a hint of how many slots of extra storage are provided or a +(?) to all rolls involving reflexes would really go a long way to making it super playable. Style is 11/10, substance really only needs a little bit of cleaning up and adding to in order to be accessibly playable.

A very evocative, colourful and intriguing set of backgrounds, that at the same time seem pretty well balanced for use... if occasionally a little complex to get one's head around. I certainly think having one such artiste or researcher in a party would add a great deal of flavour, I fear having two might be insufferable. But still, bravo all round and I enjoy the subtle layout with splashes of extra character. 

Wonderfully laid out and thought through, love the availability of options for players to go about their objectives... or come up with new objectives on the fly. Will mention that I think the encounters section references 'Bandwidth Bats' while the Bestiary calls them 'Energy Bats'? I do that a lot when a better name suddenly pops into my head. 

Thanks for the kind words! Yeah, I do think once I got the ball rolling with how a multi-person telepathic submarine might work within the game systems, it really opened up a whole world of opportunity. My first expansion Invertia sort of ended up a dumping ground of a lot of dissolute ideas, but I think Abussos will be a lot more solidly directed along a theme. 

I will certainly hit you up for some adventures when I get a bit more solid background laid down. Am currently trying to write a few for Invertia and struggling a little with the compression in scope. My current thoughts are that Abussos is going to be a lot more open in general, to allow for Vessel based exploration with finding things floating in the endless ocean being something akin to a space hulk like affair: mini dungeons where your crew is suddenly pressed into cramped, dark spaces trying to explore what you can before fleeing back to your ship. 

Ah, did think it was a strange omission, but that extra context makes perfect sense. Like I say, the way you've utilised the slightly unorthodox inspiration is marvellous. Yeah I know from my own experience writing backgrounds that you start yourself off restrained and catch yourself later, but there is definitely a bloat in the central section where you start panicking that you haven't made enough options with 'Awareness' or 'Second Sight' or some other fairly generic but generally necessary ability. 

An inspired/deranged menagerie of doodads and whatsits! Beautifully and thematically presented and as far as I can tell, fairly well balanced for play! A really stellar job and worth every Silver Pence thrown its way. 

I very much like the inspiration behind, and cohesively tied-together, interesting and humorous bios for each background. Your layout and image placement is also top notch! My only humble suggestions, if you would like them: 1) Layout a chart at the beginning with links to each background to allow for ease of rolling up a character and jumping straight to the one generated. 2) Go a little easy on the starting Advanced Skills for each background... they each have just a few too many I feel. Having a character that can do too much actually detracts from play, by not letting each member of the party have their moments to shine and allow a natural flow where perhaps shyer players can feel confident stepping up and also denies the opportunity for growth. I'd go back through and just trim each one down to having Skills that are specifically tied to their theme. A strength of Troika is they can always learn more if strictly needed.

Thank you! Well watch this space, I'm hoping to produce something as expansive as my first expansion Invertia, but with perhaps a more directed focus on being the 'crew' of a submersible.

Just need a talented artist to make it happen... XP

Yeah, the idea really came together for how a mobile base/vehicle could really take on character of its own without overcomplicating the Troika systems whose main strength i feel is in their simplicity and room for organic improvisation. Fortles along a similar vein sounds awesome! Feel free to use any of the base ideas i had if you want to!

Thanks, yeah I had originally thought to post my first setting... but it didn't really fit the theme and had been a year in the making so wouldn't really count as part of the Jam. Had been figuring out how these might work for my next full Sphere so thought I'd just get them solidly fleshed out, has given me plenty of ideas for Abussos as a setting too!

Thanks all for the kind words! Will hopefully get some time to look through all your entries too in the next few days/weeks! 

Hi all. I have just submitted 'Vessels of Abussos', to this jam, a small guide to the use of Sentient Symbiotic Submersibles in the next sphere I plan to write. I also have a 45k+ word Sphere expansion already written... However a brief look at either of the covers will tell you all you need to know about my artistic talents as compared to literate ones. So if any stray artists are out wandering and would be interested in collaborating do hit me up on here or the Troika discord. Many thanks!