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« Reply #525 on: 15 April 2016, 09:45:11 »

Fully Operational

Published 21 March 2016|Star Wars: Rebellion

Fully Operational


The Rules for Star Wars™: Rebellion Are Now Available for Download




"That blast came from the Death Star! That thing's operational!"   Â–Lando Calrissian

Star Wars™: Rebellion is nearly here, and it is coming fully armed and operational!

If you had ever hoped to find the whole Galactic Civil War condensed into a single game and a single box, this is it. Star Wars: Rebellion is scheduled to arrive at retailers a week from Thursday, and when you pick up your copy, you can take command of either the entire Galactic Empire or the fledgling Rebel Alliance. More than that, by picking up an early copy of Star Wars: Rebellion, you gain the opportunity to take part in the action of Rebellion: Week One. All week long, when you play your games, you can report your results and see how they help to shape the ongoing struggles between Imperial and Rebel forces.

First, however, you will want to learn the game, and to that end, you can now download the rules!
Witness the Firepower
"Now witness the firepower of this fully armed and operational battle station."   Â–Emperor Palpatine

Star Wars: Rebellion is a big game. You have fleet battles, secret missions, and political gambits. You have two rival militaries vying for the hearts and minds of citizens throughout the galaxy and calling upon the resources of dozens of planets. You have Death Star Plans and Jedi training. You have probe droids scouring the galaxy to find the hidden Rebel base.

Over the course of our previews, we saw how these many different concerns play out over the course of a game round. Although we also demonstrated how everything traces back to your leaders and their influence, the Galactic Civil War is still massive, and there is still a lot to absorb. Accordingly, for your convenience, the rules for Star Wars: Rebellion have been divided into two separate rulebooks.
 

The Star Wars: Rebellion Learn to Play booklet (pdf, 17.2 MB) serves as your introduction to the game. It is intended to lead you quickly into and through your first battles.
 

The Star Wars: Rebellion Rules Reference (pdf, 5.8 MB) is not intended to teach you the game, but it serves as an indexed resource that addresses and clarifies all rules questions that might arise over the course of your games.

Once you download these documents, it is recommended that you read through the whole Learn to Play booklet before you play your first game, and then you may find it best to use the prescribed First Game Setup and save the advanced rules for a later session. In this way, you can focus less on the additional rules and more on the heated conflicts at the heart of your battles for the fate of the galaxy!
Advanced Rules
"The Force is with you, young Skywalker. But you are not a Jedi yet."   Â–Darth Vader

Once you have played a few games and mastered the basic rules, you will likely appreciate the ways in which the game's rules and its flavor work together to weave deeply engaging play experiences, loaded with narrative drama. Some of these experiences may line up with the films; others may lead your Galactic Civil War in other directions. For example, you might discover the Rebel base on Hoth, only for the Rebels to fire their ion cannon and make their escape. Or you might witness Emperor Palpatine successfully luring Luke Skywalker to the dark side of the Force. Either way, you are almost certain to be swept up by the tension and the larger-than-life stories that all begin with your assignment of your leaders.

The advanced rules outlined in the Learn to Play booklet carry these thrilling, narrative moments even further and lend further distinction to each of your heroes or villains. While the advanced setup challenges you to respond to the task of starting with different systems each game and permits you to make tactical decisions about the deployment of your units from the outset, the main adjustment in advanced play is the way that you handle action cards.

You use action cards in the basic game, but only in order to recruit new leaders. Then, after you have recruited your leader, you remove the action cards that you drew from play, placing them back in the box. However, each of these cards also features an ability that you can use in advanced play. Instead of putting them back in the box, you hold onto them and can play them at the appropriate time. Accordingly, if you choose to recruit Han Solo withThe Millennium Falconcard, you can immediately trigger the card's ability to attach theMillennium Falcon ringto Han, which provides him the ability to rescue a captured leader after he succeeds at a mission.

Most action cards, however, do not give you attachment rings, and only a small percentage of them need to be played immediately. In fact, there are four triggers for when an action card can be used: Assignment, Start of Combat, Immediate, and Special.
  • Assignment: The card is used during the Assignment Phase. Instead of assigning a leader to a mission, a player can flip the card faceup and resolve its ability.
  • Start of Combat: The card is used immediately after step 1 (Add Leader) of combat.
  • Immediate: The card must be used as soon as the player gains the card, either during setup or after choosing it when recruiting a leader. The card is immediately revealed and resolved.
  • Special: The card is used when specified on the card.
Notably, because your action cards only provide their benefits when used in conjunction with one of the leaders they depict, the action cards that you draw in the advanced game may very well end up influencing the leaders you recruit. For example, if the opportunity arises to recruit a new leader and you drawGood IntelandProceeding as Planned, your first instinct may be to recruit Colonel Yularen for his three Intel icons, space tactic value of two, and ground tactic value of two. But recruiting either Yularen or Soontir Fel would leave you unable to target one of the leaders shown on Proceeding as Planned, meaning you would not be able to play it and would lose the ability it grants you to search the project deck for theConstruct Death Starmission.

On the other hand, if you recruited Moff Jerjerrod, you could play Proceeding as Planned in the next activation phase to take the Construct Death Star mission into your hand, use it the next round to place the Death Star Under Construction miniature in a system of your choice, and begin building a second Death Star.

In the end, the use of the game's advanced rules and the addition of its action cards serve to further reinforce the thematic and cinematic aspects of Star Wars: Rebellion, even as they further enhance your leaders' uniquity and importance. After all, Luke Skywalker is not just a Rebel leader with three mission icons and two tactics in both space and ground battles; he is theSon of Skywalkerwho canSeek Yodato receive his Jedi training, and he is the Rebel ace who struck aOne in a Millionblow against the Galactic Empire by firing the shot thatexploded the Death Star. In the advanced game, these elements make an even greater impression, even as your action cards provide you even more tactical options and sneaky ways to disrupt your opponent's best laid plans.
Play Your Part in Rebellion: Week One!
"Impressive… most impressive."   Â–Darth Vader

The Galactic Empire needs you! So does the Rebel Alliance!

Star Wars: Rebellion is scheduled to arrive at retailers next Thursday, and we invite you to celebrate the first shots in the Galactic Civil War by jumping in, playing with your friends, and reporting your results. From Thursday through Monday April 10th, we will collect your results and add them to our constantly changing heat map. See which areas have fallen under Rebel control. See where the Empire has asserted its might and established order.

Over the course of Rebellion: Week One, we want you to be a part of the greatest board game battles in the history of the Star Wars galaxy, and at the end, we plan to report which leaders and which missions saw the greatest success, as well as how many planets the Death Star manages to destroy. We also want to share some of your favorite moments, so be sure to report the most exciting and fateful moments from your games. How will the galaxy come to life on your tables? We want to know.

So get ready! Thursday the 31st, the Rebellion begins!
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© & ™ Lucasfilm, Ltd.




Source: Fully Operational
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« Reply #526 on: 15 April 2016, 09:45:13 »

Personal Invitation

Published 22 March 2016|Talisman

Personal Invitation


Preview the Denizens and Characters of Talisman: The Cataclysm




Toxic, torrential rain had made travel unsafe, so the young boy had taken refuge in the tavern, along with seemingly everyone else. He was quietly eating his stew when a burly, drunken man sat down next to him. “What’re you doing here, kid? Where’s your mum?”“Don’t have one,” the boy replied, focusing pointedly on his stew.“Then you gotta learn how to defend y’rself,” the man said. “Here. Try an’ punch me.” The boy smiled a little. He murmured a few magical words very quietly as he pulled back his fist, then punched the man in the gut, sending him sprawling across the room.“Oh, I can defend myself just fine.”Â

The Cataclysm expansion for Talisman takes you to a realm still recovering from the apocalypse. Many of the Strangers who once roamed across the Fields, Deserts, and Forests are gone, either slain in the events of the apocalypse itself or fled to another land. Yet some managed to survive, and some of those who fled are now returning. Today's preview is yourpersonal invitationto meet the tough Denizens who inhabit Talisman now, as well as a few of the Characters who aim to rule the realm during this time of renewal.
Denizens of a Changed Realm


Many things have changed in the realm of Talisman, but the City, Village, and Tavern have weathered the chaos of the apocalypse and the tumultuous years that followed. However, the people you used to reliably find in these civilized places—the Doctor, Blacksmith, Alchemist, and others—may be difficult to find, although rumor goes that they haven’t left the realm. The Chapel, meanwhile, is less a place of worship than a refuge for healers and priests. Some people have also made homes in the decaying Graveyard and at the Castle where the Black Knight used to dwell.Â

In The Cataclysm, when you arrive at one of these places, you draw a Denizen Card to see who you’ll meet there. Once they’ve appeared, Denizens tend to linger around in their favorite haunts. Over the course of the game the realm’s population will grow, and when you visit places inhabited by its Denizens, you’ll be able to choose who you interact with.Â

The Denizens of the Tavern, for example, include theGambler, always up for a game of cards, and theFamous Brawler, eager to give some “fighting pointers” in exchange for gold. Meanwhile, the friendlyBarmaidwatches over tables and pours pints, serving hearty meals and getting her customers perfectly drunk. You might also meet a lonelyWandererin the Tavern, eager to share stories about her travels and perhaps road-weary enough to sell you some of her equipment.

Some of the Denizens who frequent the Tavern can also turn up in other locales. In the Village or the Tavern, you might have a chat with theVillage Mysticwho can change your alignment or enhance your magical powers. Should you choose to visit the City or the Chapel, you risk running into anInquisitordetermined to eradicate all evil from the realm, even if it means harming a few good Characters as well. If you are, in fact, evil, you might visit the Graveyard in search of aDark Beingwho can replenish your fate.
Changed CharactersÂ


Some of the Characters who first sought the Crown of Command may undertake that quest again in this altered, post-apocalyptic world. Competing with them in The Cataclysm are five others who have never sought it before. Some of them have long inhabited the realm. For instance, theBlack Knighthas abandoned his castle in the Middle Region to claim greater power. He now rides through Talisman, forcing the other Characters he meets to give him gold or else he’ll take one of their lives. TheMutanthas also lived in this realm her whole life, and also remained there through its darkest times, but she is not longer the human that she once was. Magical energies that flared and fluctuated during the apocalypse infected her body so thoroughly that her form, Strength, Craft, and fate have continually changed.Â

Others have no memories of what it was like before the apocalypse. TheScavengergrew up during the decades that followed and learned how to survive by staying in motion and collecting whatever Objects she could find. The most valuable ones she stashes away so that they cannot be stolen. Youngest of all is theArcane Scion, born during the outbust of magical energies that transformed the Mutant. Unlike the Mutant, who cannot fully control her mutations, the Arcane Scion has harnessed those energies, using them to wield Magic Objects and cast Spells.Â
How Will You Transform Talisman?


In any game of Talisman, whoever seizes the Crown of Command gains the power to shape the realm according to his or her will. With The Cataclysm in play, however, you affect the realm from the beginning of the game. You populate the City, Village, Graveyard, and Chapel. You change the landscape, determining where new settlements take root and where new highways lead. No matter your Strength, Craft, alignment, or fate, your choices affect the future of the realm.Â

Pre-order your copy of Talisman: The Cataclysm from your local retailer today!
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Talisman are © Games Workshop Ltd. 1983, 1985, 1994, 2007. This edition and its expansions are © Games Workshop Ltd. 2008-2013. Games Workshop, Talisman, its the foregoing marks' respective logos and all associated marks, logos, characters, products and illustrations from the Talisman game are either ®, ™, and/or © Games Workshop Ltd. 1983-2013, variably registered in the UK and other countries around the world. This edition published under license to Fantasy Flight Publishing, Inc. 2008. Fantasy Flight Supply is a trademark of Fantasy Flight Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved to their respective owners.



Source: Personal Invitation
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« Reply #527 on: 15 April 2016, 18:45:05 »

See Things Differently



Published 23 March 2016|Android: Mainframe

See Things Differently


A Look at Controlling the Board in Android: Mainframe




"I'm on a need-to-know basis. I need to know everything." –Nero Severn

In Android: Mainframe, you are one of the world's greatest runners, an elite hacker capable of slicing through ice and reshaping servers with the greatest of ease.

When one of your contacts informs you that Titan Transnational Bank has had its mainframe isolated, it's time for you to go to work. A bank with its server defenses down and its sysops shut out? That's easy money. But as soon as you jack in, you discover that you're not the only user connected to the server and plundering its wealth.

In Android: Mainframe, you have your shot at fantastic riches, but only if you can outmaneuver the other runners connected to Titan Transnational's mainframe. It won't be easy. These aren't bots, after all; they're the best of the best—just like you. However, if you move fast and form your plan on the go, you might be able to carve out a significant fortune. And you might even earn a measure of fame.
Access Points and Partitions


From the moment you first enter the mainframe, you'll find it a maze of ever-shifting possibilities. Everyone's trying to secure Titan's data for themselves, and in so doing, they're constantly rewriting the server. You'll see programs of all varieties flare up and flash out. But in the end, you just need to focus on two basics: access points and partitions. Everything else is secondary.

You start your games of Android: Mainframe with a single access point. This represents your initial connection to Titan's mainframe, and it represents your access to all the data surrounding it.

However, almost as soon as you observe the distances between your access point and those of your opponents, the whole picture changes. Your opponents will start laying down lines of blue partitions to close off the board, thereby limiting your access to Titan's data. These lines of partitions may be straight or they may be jagged, but they ultimately cut off external access to anything they enclose.

Accordingly, you and your opponents are constantly jockeying to secure data that only you can access, even as you're adding additional access points in order to retain your access to the data your rivals are attempting to lock away.

As we noted in the game's announcement, you get to take one action each round:
  • Establish a new access point. You can discard the top program from the stack to add one of your character's tokens to the game board, placing it faceup on an unsecured node.
By adding a new access point to the area Kate "Mac" McCaffrey threatens to score, Nero Severn guarantees Kate's haul will be smaller than she might have hoped.
  • Execute a program. You can execute any of the generic programs in the program suite, or you can execute one of the three signature programs with which you start the game (more on this later).
Kate decides to execute the programLockand places three partitions on the board in the shape that Lock indicates.
  • Pass. If you choose to pass, play proceeds immediately to the next player. If all players need or choose to pass, the game ends, and you and your opponents score your runs.
To win the game, you'll need to gain more access to Titan's data than your opponents, and to do that? You'll need to secure multiple zones containing only your access points. And that means you'll have to learn not only how to see the board in terms of access points and partitions, but how to think two, three, or even four turns ahead.

The trick of Android: Mainframe is that you're trying to place your access points and partitions amid a board that's always changing. You and your opponents are using programs to write partitions, establish access points, and shift things around. You might move sections of your opponents' partitions. You might swap your access point with an opponent's. You might have your partitions erased. The only time that any section of the board is "safe" is once it's been closed off around a single player's access point (or access points).

This makes the game extremely fluid, and the more players you have, the more fluid everything becomes. Despite this fluidity, however, there are a number of hard-and-fast rules that determine how you can create your partitions and that give you insight into the plays your opponents might possibly make:
  • You cannot place a partition that would create an enclosed zone without an access point in it.
In the example on the left, the partition would create an enclosed zone without an access point and is, therefore, illegal. However, as illustrated by the example on the right, if there's an access point within the enclosed zone, the placement of the partition becomes legal.
  • An enclosed zone is unsecured if it contains more than one runner's access points; it is secured if it contains only one runner's access point (or access points). You cannot perform actions against the partitions, pathways, or access points in secured zones.
The zone on the left is contested by both Nero Severn and Kate "Mac" McCaffrey and is unsecured. The enclosed zone on the right is occupied by only Nero Severn, so it is secured and "locked" from play.
  • When you execute a program to write a string of partitions onto the board, you can rotate that arrangement, but you cannot mirror it.
  • You must be able to place the full string of partitions indicated by any program you execute. Those partitions may cross existing partitions, but they may not overlap them, cut into secured zones, or extend off the edge of the board.
As you play, these rules will become second nature, flashes of light that spark within your subconscious mind as you survey the board and the row of available programs. Each round, you'll process which moves your opponents are most likely to make, given the positions of their access points, the current divisions of the board, and the generic programs you see on display. In your mind's eye, you'll see the board gridded and sectioned off in shapes and colors, each corresponding to a different runner's growing influence.
The Painter and the Info Broker


Of course, since you're one of the world's best runners and not some generic hacker, you won't content yourself to work solely from the row of generic programs that lie before you. You'll want to reveal your genius through the keen use of your signature programs. In the end, as everyone is trying to envision the future of Titan's servers and find the most advantageous ways to carve it up, your unique programs allow you to recognize plays that no one else can make.

Each runner in Android: Mainframe has a set of five signature programs, each of which is unique, and at the beginning of the game, you randomly select three of these to add to your hand. These programs are all more powerful than those in the generic display, and the fact that they are hidden from your opponents means they serve not only as potent actions, but as threats of action, as well.

Finally, because these programs are so different than your generic programs (and from each other), they go a long way toward layering personality over your game experience. Play once as the ultra-creative tinkerer Kate "Mac" McCaffrey, and you'll find an entirely different experience than you would enjoy as info broker Nero Severn.
Kate "Mac" McCaffrey


Kate is a constant tinkerer and famous for clever program designs and modifications. All of this holds true in Android: Mainframe. Her five signature programsPaintbrush,Battering Ram,Gordian Blade,Pipeline, andTinkerprovide Kate with an astonishing range of versatility.

She can use Paintbrush or Battering Ram to execute a generic program and deny her opponents the next visible move. Of course, there's no guarantee the program suite won't be replenished with even more effective programs, but if it is, Kate's Gordian Blade grants her the rare ability to cancel an opponent's program, forcing that opponent to add an access point instead.

Meanwhile, Pipeline allows Kate to execute the top program in any discard pile, including her own, meaning she could use her Battering Ram again, or even copy the abilities from another runner's unique program. And her final program, Tinker, allows Kate to intercede even when it's not her turn. With Tinker, she can force an opponent to execute a program of her choice, denying that opponent the use of the generic program she might want on her turn, or even denying that opponent the use of a program that might secure a valuable zone.

It's noteworthy to mention that while a program like Tinker might appear more valuable than a program like Paintbrush or Battering Ram, since those only interact with the suite of generic programs, there's a reason Kate counts those programs among her most valuable. Your games of Android: Mainframe end whenever all players pass, and this usually means it ends when the players are no longer able to perform actions.

To get to that point, though, you must first run through one of your vital supplies—access points, partitions, or programs. Of these, programs usually run out first, meaning that by clearing out the program suite and forcing it to be fully replenished, Kate is also cleverly accelerating the pace of the game.
Nero Severn


Where Kate is all about tinkering with her programs—and yours—info broker Nero Severn prefers to operate from a place of greater knowledge. Naturally, this inclination is reflected in his suite of unique programs:Switchblade,Leviathan,Snitch,Expert Schedule Analyzer, andSneakdoor Beta.

As Nero might argue, the best option is to have more options, and the majority of his signature programs grant him additional options. Switchblade, Expert Schedule Analyzer, and Sneakdoor Beta all grant Nero advanced access to the stack of generic programs, allowing him to make plays from a range of options his rivals can't even touch. While two of these programs, Switchblade and Sneakdoor Beta, allow Nero to execute a generic program immediately, the third, Expert Schedule Analyzer, doesn't allow Nero to execute another program right away. Instead, it adds two generic programs to his hand, extending the range of hidden information he has at his disposal.

Snitch functions similarly in the way that it grants Nero access to additional options, but it doesn't target generic programs. Instead, it targets the unique programs in his opponents' hands. While it's unclear that he'll find a perfect play from the options he unveils, it's likely that he'll find an option more potent than any he'd find among the generic programs. And more than that, he gains advance knowledge about the plays his opponents are likely to make, allowing him to anticipate and counter them throughout the remainder of the game.

Meanwhile, Leviathan doesn't allow Nero to make an immediate play, but extends his future options by allowing him to take two turns back-to-back in the next round. While this definitely changes the nature of the chess-like progressions of a two-player game, it—like Expert Schedule Analyzer—has even greater ramifications in a multiplayer game.

The more runners in Titan's servers, the more you're likely to see them cutting off each other's moves, and a runner like Nero may be able to bank on his opponents blocking each other for a round in order to gain the options afforded him by Expert Schedule Analyzer. And the sort of delay provided by Leviathan? That's not nearly as important as the chance to plot out two movements with perfect information of the board state—no disruptions.
Plan Your Route to Riches


Just as Kate "Mac" McCaffrey and Nero Severn represent two wildly different approaches to the runner-versus-runner challenges of Android: Mainframe, so do each of the four other runners and their signature programs. You'll soon be able to sample all the different playing styles of Android: Mainframe, so head to your local retailer to pre-order your copy today.

Then, in the meantime, stay tuned for our next preview, in which we'll look at how the game is scored and learn more about the talents of two of the game's other runners!
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The copyrightable portions of Android: Mainframe are © 2016 Fantasy Flight Games. Android and Android: Mainframe are trademarks of Fantasy Flight Games.



Source: See Things Differently
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« Reply #528 on: 15 April 2016, 18:45:05 »

Prepare for Maneuvers

Published 24 March 2016|X-Wing

Prepare for Maneuvers
Three X-Wing™ Maneuver Dial Upgrade Kits Are Now Available




“Lock S-foils in attack position.” Â–Red Leader, Star Wars: A New HopeYou’ve sighted a squadron of Imperial TIE fighters, flying in formation and ready for action. It might be foolish to attack them now, but they’re far too close to the Rebel outpost for you to allow them to continue forward. Lock your S-foils in attack position and prepare for the first maneuvers of your dogfight with three X-Wing™ Maneuver Dial Upgrade Kits, now available at your local United States retailer!
  • Rebel Maneuver Dial Upgrade Kit
  • Imperial Manuever Dial Upgrade Kit
  • Scum Maneuver Dial Upgrade Kit

Fast and Convenient Maneuvering Â
Every game of X-Wing pits you against a single opponent controlling squadrons of iconic ships and characters from the Star Wars™ universe. Each turn, you’ll select your ship’s maneuver and attempt to shoot down your opponent’s starships. Now, the Maneuver Dial Upgrade Kits invite you to take another step into the game’s limitless customizability by pairing your ships’ maneuver dials with a stylish and secure plastic housing. There are three distinct Maneuver Dial Upgrade Kits available, corresponding to the three X-Wing factions. You may fly with the tyrannical Galactic Empire, fight for freedom with the Rebel Alliance, or make your own way with the galaxy’s Scum and Villainy. No matter which faction you play, you can represent the colors and symbols of your faction prominently with upgrade kits for your maneuver dials. Each Maneuver Dial Upgrade Kit offers three sculpted plastic shells for your squadron’s maneuver dials. To use one of these plastic shells, you simply take the cardboard maneuver dial token that shows a ship’s maneuvers and insert it into the plastic housing. Once situated, you can push the plastic maneuver selection marker into place, and you’re ready to take your ship into any interstellar dogfight with confidence.   These plastic maneuver dials have been specially designed to ensure the greatest usability. To begin with, each plastic maneuver dials allows you to clearly see all of your possible maneuvers at once. No longer will you have to rotate through your entire dial if you want to see all of your ship’s available maneuvers—you can simply take it all in at a glance.In addition, each upgraded maneuver dial features a space on the back for you to insert a dial ID token, showing a silhouette of the corresponding ship and clearly distinguishing which dial belongs to which ship. Each Maneuver Dial Upgrade Kit includes three dial ID tokens for every ship in the game, from the T-65 X-wing and TIE Fighter in the original X-Wing Core Set up to the T-70 X-wing and TIE/fo Fighter from The Force Awakens™ Core Set. Beginning with the Ghost Expansion Pack, the Mist Hunter Expansion Pack, the Punishing One Expansion Pack, and the Inquisitor’s TIE Expansion Pack, every X-Wing expansion pack will include a dial ID token for use with these plastic maneuver dials. The standard cardboard maneuver dials will continue to be included in each expansion. Â
Form Up on Me
Protect your maneuver dials from harm even as you represent your chosen faction at every dogfight. Your opponent will know that you’re ready for action when you protect your ships with plastic maneuver dials! Pick up your Maneuver Dial Upgrade Kits at your local U.S. retailer today.
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© and ™ Lucasfilm Ltd.




Source: Prepare for Maneuvers
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« Reply #529 on: 16 April 2016, 03:45:09 »

The Inventor's Handbook


 
 


   
     
   

   

       
     

         Published 24 March 2016
         
           |
           Star Wars: Edge of the Empire
     


     

     

       
         

The Inventor's Handbook


       
       

         

Special Modifications Is Now Available for Star Wars®: Edge of the Empire™



       

     

     


   

 

   
 

   



 
   
     
       
           
       

     
   
 

 
   
 



"Sir, I don’t know where your ship learned to communicate, but it has the most peculiar dialect. I believe, sir, it says that the power coupling on the negative axis has been polarized. I’m afraid you’ll have to replace it."

     –C-3PO



Build the tech to take on the galaxy… Special Modifications is now available for the Star Wars®: Edge of the Empire™ roleplaying game!



The sourcebook for Technicians living at the fringes of the galaxy, Special Modifications offers plenty of tasty new gear, along with rules for crafting your own weapons, gadgets, and droids. Game Masters will find hints for getting the most from their technical encounters, such as fleshed-out guidelines for slicing that come complete with consequences for failures and situational challenges that they can add to their Technicians' mechanics checks in order to amplify the narrative tension. But as much as this book helps your Game Master better incorporate your Technician into your ongoing campaign, it is your Technician that derives the primary benefits.



Among its 96 pages, Special Modifications introduces a wealth of new backgrounds, motivations, obligations, specializations, and signature abilities for your Technician. Along with the book's four new playable species, these options afford you fantastic new freedom to reinvent your Technician or to invent the one that best suits your vision of a tinkerer living and working within the galaxy's shadiest, grittiest locations.





 
   
     
       
           
       

     
   
 

 
   
 



New Specializations



Special Modifications introduces three new specializations for your Technician, each of which allows you to pursue a new avenue of invention.




  • The Cyber Tech excels at creating and installing mechanical prosthetics. As a Cyber Tech, you can use your talents to replace your friends' missing limbs or upgrade them with impant armor or neural recorders that would allow them to record and store sensory data with the same veracity as data stored within a computer system. Moreover, your specialization in the realm of cybernetics allows you to upgrade yourself beyond the standard limits and use your cybernetics more effectively and imaginatively than other characters might.

     
       
         
           
               
           

         
       
     

     
       
     


  • The Droid Tech specializes in constructing, repairing, and managing droids, and is unparalleled in this capacity. While you will have to decide for yourself where you stand on the ethical concerns of limiting or altering the nature of a creature's sentience, there's no one better at developing custom droid directives or getting droids to work the way you want them—whether that means simply talking to them in binary or rewriting their programming. And if your group needs an army of combat-ready droids? There's no one better than a Droid Tech to have on your side.

  • Finally, the Modder is an expert of attachments, and can tweak personal gear and starship systems in ways that they far surpass their original factory settings. Sometimes that gear and those starships might be your own, but just as often, you're likely to be improving these things for your friends and associates. This makes you an extremely valuable addition to any group traveling through the roughest parts of the galaxy. Your group will never know what you might find along your journeys, but if your Modder's along for the trip, it's a safe bet that you'll get the best possible value from anything you find. Modders are generalists in the sense that they diversify their technical interests, but they're specialists in the sense that they always make things better than they were.



Whether you create a new Technician or explore the possibilities inherent in these specializations as you advance your existing Technician, you'll find that their unique talents allow you to tackle a whole new range of challenges. And life at the edge of the Empire is full of challenges.



New Signature Abilities



In addition to its three new specializations, Special Modifications introduces two signature abilities that allow you to truly distinguish your elite Technician from the hordes of lesser practitioners. Both Inventive Creation and Unmatched Calibration give you new ways to spotlight your talents, but where Unmatched Calibration offers profoundly beneficial new mechanics—such as dice rerolls—that are immediately recognizable, Inventive Creation stands out for its potential impact on your game's narrative.



This intriguing signature ability is rife with potential for both you and your Game Master, and developer Max Brooke takes a moment to illustrate just a bit of its potential:



"The ability to escape disaster by jury-rigging a new device with nothing but the equivalent of a hydrospanner, some depleted power cells, and half of a droid chassis is a time-honored tradition in all forms of heroic adventure, and the Inventive Creation signature ability included in Special Modifications gives players (and Game Masters) a potent new storytelling tool to recreate such scenes in their own campaigns. When a Technician activates Inventive Creation, the character immediately gathers up useful items in the scene to build an item that lasts until the end of the scene. If you have upgraded your ability sufficiently, you might even be able to create a fully functioning vehicle.





 
   
     
       
           
       

     
   
 

 
   
 



"Players can benefit from this ability in many ways, some more obvious than others, but Inventive Creation gives GMs new opportunities, too. For instance, when a character activates Inventive Creation, the GM can use it to flesh out the scene and engage players. Instead of simply allowing the character to build the device, the GM can identify the list of unlikely items that the player has at hand and ask how the Technician retrofits them into a functional device, encouraging the player to be as creative as the Technician in the description.



"Alternately, the GM can ask the player to list the supplies available in an environment controlled by the PCs. This establishes details for use later in the scene. For instance, if the Technician’s player says that there happens to be a barrel of tibanna gas—useful for fueling many devices—then the GM should keep this barrel of extremely flammable material in mind for later, especially if a firefight breaks out in the impromptu workshop. If the player and GM are both stuck for ideas as to supplies on hand, the GM can solicit the other players for ideas, and in some scenes the other PCs might need to chip in, giving some of their gear to the Technician to help build the device to get them out of their current situation.



"The GM should also keep in mind that the signature ability dictates that the jury-rigged device always fails at the end of the encounter. If the characters aren’t careful, they might be making their escape in a patchwork vehicle right as its engine goes out. Or they might be relying on a rapidly assembled weapon, only for it to run out of ammunition as one fight wraps up and another begins. Just as Inventive Creation is a very powerful problem-solving tool for the PCs, it can also be a very potent problem-creating tool for the GM. For that reason, the ability's greatest strength may be in how it can help keep the story moving quickly from one action-packed encounter to the next."





 
   
     
       
           
       

     
   
 

 
   
 



Bring Your Hydrospanner



The Star Wars galaxy is a vast and fantastic place, full of myriad adventures, but for all its greatness, it's always possible to make it just a little bit better. You want to start tweaking and tinkering with it? You had better bring your hydrospanner, and you'd do well to pick up your copy of Special Modifications.



Special Modifications is now available at your local retailer and online through our webstore. Pick up your copy today!



   
   

   
     

       
         
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Source: The Inventor's Handbook
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« Reply #530 on: 02 August 2018, 09:55:16 »

Arkham Horror Third Edition


Published 1 August 2018 | Arkham Horror Third Edition

Arkham Horror Third Edition

Announcing a New Edition of the Classic Board Game of Cosmic Horror


"You don’t want to see real magic, kid. Nobody does.”
   –Dexter Drake

Order your own copy of Arkham Horror Third Edition at your local retailer or online through our website today!

The year is 1926, and it is the height of the Roaring Twenties. Flappers dance till dawn in smoke-filled speakeasies, drinking alcohol supplied by rum runners and the mob. It’s a celebration to end all celebrations in the aftermath of the War to End All Wars.

Yet a dark shadow grows in the city of Arkham. Alien entities known as Ancient Ones lurk in the emptiness beyond space and time, writhing at the thresholds between worlds. Occult rituals must be stopped and alien creatures destroyed; before the Ancient Ones make our world their ruined dominion.

Only a handful of investigators stand against the horrors threatening to tear this world apart. Will they prevail?




Fantasy Flight Games is proud to announce Arkham Horror Third Edition, the next evolution of the classic cooperative board game of cosmic horror for one to six players. Originally developed in 1987 by Richard Launius and re-released by Fantasy Flight Games in 2005, Arkham Horror has long been synonymous with thrilling, thematic, cooperative board gaming. Now, we invite you to return to the Lovecraftian-inspired nightmare again—or visit it for the first time!—with a modern take on the classic game. You can pre-order your copy at your local retailer or online through our webstore today, then read on to learn more.


Return to the nightmare with Arkham Horror Third Edition!

A Light in the Dark

Arkham Horror Third Edition sees players taking on the roles of investigators in the bizarre town of Arkham, Massachusetts. Unspeakable evil waits in the space between moments and just past the veil of our existence, and investigators must work together to unravel the mysteries of the Ancient Ones, risking their lives and sanity along the way.



As the wall against the encroaching darkness, Arkham Horror Third Edition features twelve iconic investigators, each prepared, in their own way, to defend the world. Each investigator not only comes with a unique ability, but also a customizable starting kit, letting you choose how you want to outfit your investigator for the coming game. And ultimately, each investigator has their own history, and their own reasons for investigating the horrors of Arkham.



Although she may be a great lover of wealth and comfort, Jenny Barnes always had a curious and adventurous streak. While she adored the fashion and society of Paris and Venice, she was equally at home sport-shooting in rural Scotland or trawling the jazz clubs of New Orleans. She’d even funded an archaeological dig of her own, just for the fun of being the first one into the old tomb. So when she learned that her sister Isabelle was missing, Jenny came to Arkham to handle the matter herself. Perhaps a life of wealth and power had made her overconfident… or perhaps the rogues who’d taken her sister had just made their last mistake.



Jenny Barnes is one of Arkham’s most prolific and recognizable investigators, so it's only natural that she makes an appearance in Arkham Horror Third Edition! She's joined by eleven other investigators, many of whom will be familiar to players of Arkham Horror: the Card Game or Mansions of Madness Second Edition. It is these heroes who will provide a light in the darkness, who will stand against the terrors of the unknown, and if fortune favors them, will succeed in saving Arkham and the world.

The Approaching Doom

Each game of Arkham Horror Third Edition sees you and your friends exploring one of four different scenarios in the dark and deadly town. Each adventure brings your investigators to the edge of their sanity and beyond.

These scenarios see a race between the investigators desperately searching for clues across the city, and the forces of evil spreading doom to further their cause. Finding clues can advance the narrative of each scenario, inching you closer to victory. Spreading doom not only produces effects that will hinder you, but can lead to a very different conclusion… one where the world isn’t so fortunate.

While this push and pull between uncovered clues and impending doom will often determine how the narrative advances, other factors can come in to play, including choices made by the players. The fate of the world is in your hands. Do you have what it takes to succeed?



But what is all this madness in search of? What greater goal are the investigators trying to achieve? How will the unlucky few who know of these cosmic horrors discover a way to thwart them?

It's not simply a matter of closing gates to other worlds and hoping that the problem goes away. At the start of the game, the exact goals of your scenario are a mystery to investigators and players alike. As a scenario progresses, archive cards are added to a codex that sits above the board. Each of these cards advances the narrative and offers new objectives for the investigators to strive for, with victory eventually in sight. Finding clues may lead to favorable new archive cards, while the spread of doom may reveal cards that were best left unearthed. Ultimately, the choices that you make and the specific events of each scenario lead you down branching paths, encouraging you to explore the scenarios and determine the best way to achieve your unique goals!



Archive cards guide the narrative of the story, offering a branching path within the scenario!

No matter which scneario you're embarking upon, investigators will have to stay ever-vigilant. Moving around Arkham to discover clues will progress the scenario, but our heroes will also fight and evade monsters, gain resources, perform tests of skill, and more. Still, you won’t be alone; you and your friends will work together to defeat this unknowable evil and, by some miracle, you could come out victorious.

A Cycle of Chaos

Playing a game of Arkham Horror takes place over a number of rounds, each consisting of four phases. We’ll look at these phases in greater depth in later previews, but for now, they are:

    The Action Phase
    The Monster Phase
    The Encounter Phase
    The Mythos Phase

The Action Phase is the investigator’s chance to unravel the mysteries of Arkham. You can move around the town, attack monsters, discover clues, and more as you investigate Arkham like never before. Double-sided, modular hexagonal tiles (new to this edition) represent the different neighborhoods of this troubled city, and every scenario sees these neighborhoods arranged in a different way, offering a new look and a new piece of Arkham with every challenge.



 A modular board design makes every game of Arkham Horror Third Edition a different experience!

But investigators won’t simply be walking around the city. Alien creatures encroach on Arkham, and fighting and evading these beasts will be essential to success. You must balance these encounters with researching clues and purchasing the new tools that will be vital to your survival.



Investigators can move up to two spaces during their turn. The symbols on the spaces give hints as to what kind of encounters await them at that location!

After you've acted, the Monster Phase sees your darkest nightmares come to life. Monsters roam freely about the city, attacking investigators both physically and mentally, instilling fear and disrupting your carefully laid plans. Fans of Arkham Horror: The Card Game will instantly recognize this phase and understand the horror it brings.

On their character sheet, every investigator has two values representing the threshold of their health and sanity. Every attack can lower one or both of these values, and if either your health or your sanity hits zero, your investigator is removed from the game, physically unable to continue or driven to utter madness by the horrors they have discovered.



When monsters spawn, they will exhibit some sort of pattern to their movement. Once they engage with an investigator, their card is flipped and true terror is revealed.

The Encounter Phase sees the world of Arkham come to life via encounter cards. Every neighborhood has its own full set of encounter cards, and players draw them one at a time to discover a new twist in their narrative based on their location.

Along with the encounter cards that are distinct to each neighborhood on the board, every scenario also offers different event cards that are slowly slotted into the encounter deck, providing a truly new adventure in every game. Maybe you find a weapon to defend yourself in a mysterious shop on the far side of town, or perhaps the police finally believe your mind-bending story. Every encounter reveals a new piece of your evolving story and a new piece of life in Arkham.

Many of these encounters will see your investigator performing attribute tests. Success can be a moment of respite from the horror surrounding you, but failure can see your investigator dive deeper into madness and despair. Every investigator can be distilled down to a set of five attributes: lore, influence, observation, strength, and will. Encounters see these skills put to the test, and they can lead your investigator closer to the truth, or to madness.



Finally, the Mythos Phase sees the town of Arkham growing and changing. During the Mythos Phase, players take turns pulling tokens out of a Mythos Cup. These tokens can do everything from inviting more monsters into the town, to spreading doom across the city, to triggering a terrible reckoning. As the cup is passed from player to player, the board shifts and changes. While many of these tokens will make the game harder for investigators, they are also one of the few ways to introduce more clues to the board, giving  the investigators a goal to strive for.



Beyond Reality

Behind our own dimension lurk horrors beyond comprehension. No longer can you drift blissfully unaware on the blind side of the veil. Evil lurks around every corner. Can you save the world with your sanity intact? Find out in the fourth quarter of 2018!

Return to the nightmare with Arkham Horror Third Edition (AHB01), available now for pre-order from your local retailer or our website!
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