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While I never understood the "Don't touch mah dice' thought process, why do they need to be different?

If everyone needs 5 dice, why does it matter if you have 5 dice of different color opposed to 5 dice of the same color? The dice by me, rolled by me are my results. The same colored dice by you, rolled by you are your results.

In AQ:Masmorra, it at least made sense as there is a fixed dice pool size. No one will ever need more or less than 6 dice. But for games like this, the dice pool is variable and forever growing. Why the need for player-specific-designated dice opposed to just a massive pool people can keep for themselves?

Rulebook today

Thiago Aranha - CMON 10 minutes ago

I plan on releasing the rulebook later in the day, so I want to trample this SG before that!

Sure, Zombicide works just fine with plain black pips on white dice. It's just a bit more colorful and fun when each player can pick their "own" dice and have their own personal set to use. Just because.

Also, it does slow down play when players are passing dice around.

Played Warhammer Quest Silver tower, only had 5 purple dice we all had to take turns sharing. No way, we ended up in a knife fight and 3 of us in the hospital....

Dice is serious business

"Story Mode" confirmed - along with a 'persistent' world, skills and equipment!

Huzzah!

WIP Rulebook

http://resources.cmon.com/MD-Rulebook-WIP.pdf

For those worried about 5 levels of chest stretch goals the contents only lists level 1 x30 and level 2 x4 so at most there would only be 1 more SG for the level 2s

Story Mode details

Massive Darkness is designed to be easy to get into and have fun – there are 10 Quests in the campaign, which at 1 hour+ each means it’s going to be difficult for most groups to sit through all 10 sessions together. You can pop in at any stage of the campaign and get all the fun of the levelling and monster slaying experience, even if your group can’t meet regularly. However, for the dedicated heroes amongst you, you’ll be happy to hear that we’re also including a Story Mode, which tweaks the balance and other aspects of the existing campaign so that heroes persist in a more constant fashion from Quest to Quest.

Story Mode features:

∙ Slower experience gain, heroes evolve over multiple adventures.

∙ All unlocked Skills are available at the start of each Quest, but Enemies are all the more dangerous.

∙ Equipment access and use is also scaled : Equipment cards can only be used if the Hero is powerful enough. The Inventory size is limited. Equipment cards also have a Gold value and may be sold and bought (with the merchant's markup, of course).

∙ The Story Mode also features a Town Phase. Heroes may buy and sell Equipment, heal and train.

This of course will require a truly committed group of players to see through to the end, and we look forward to seeing your tales of epic adventure in 2017! We will give you more information about the Story Mode as those rules are crystallized during the development process.

But even if you have 'your own dice' why do they need to be different from other people? Why not just have like 50 dice and let people grab a fist full to use?

Im not sure how I feel about the story mode. Was this well thought out and planned from the start, or is this rushed because everyone wanted it and they didnt think so..

Well, it is entirely optional, so if you don't like it, or if it is no good, you can ignore it!

Well, there's no rulebook WIP for story mode, so it's less developed and could be on the "back of a napkin" phase. If MD really is like Z, it's sandboxy enough to mod, and the GG folks have several years of Z experience to make design changes.

Can anyone read the Event cards in the rulebook? Wonder if there's a way to add the crazy old Warhammer Quest-style event cards to MD! (:

"Trap. Someone falls into it. This is not a brave way to die."

Humans, Elves, Dwarves... you know them, but Goblins, Orcs and Ratlings were there, too

Ahhh, yeah. "Ratlings".

2 unlocks at $1.4M: Trogoldyte Agent & Bloodseeker Minotaur.

The horns on the minotaur make it look rather stupid. Actually, the entire sculpt is pretty bad. It boggles the mind how any sculptor can do such a bad job on a classic, archetypical monster like a minotaur.

Different strokes and all that, but I think the Minotaur looks pretty good!








Minotaurs usually set certain Highlords to Highlordin' too...

The Minotaur is very Warcraft Tauren in design.

Aeneades wrote:
The Minotaur is very Warcraft Tauren in design.

lol yeah, good call.
I like it.

Aeneades wrote:
The Minotaur is very Warcraft Tauren in design.

I didn't like it until you said that. Damn nostalgia.

*high fives Alpharius* STORY MODE!!!

I won't lie... I'm thrilled. The game is so far out that even if it was done as a response to fan desires, they still have plenty of time to make it work. Its an option, and options are terrific. If it turns out solid, I will be over the moon, but even knowings its there, there's a town phase, etc... is EXACTLY what I wished for.

I'm genuinely hoping they bake in an "ongoing" way to keep randomly generating plays for story-mode, even if you out-pace the challenge in time.

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
*high fives Alpharius* STORY MODE!!!

I won't lie... I'm thrilled. The game is so far out that even if it was done as a response to fan desires, they still have plenty of time to make it work. Its an option, and options are terrific. If it turns out solid, I will be over the moon, but even knowings its there, there's a town phase, etc... is EXACTLY what I wished for.

I'm genuinely hoping they bake in an "ongoing" way to keep randomly generating plays for story-mode, even if you out-pace the challenge in time.

I know - right?!?

I thought of you when I saw that 'Story Mode' announcement!

Did you catch the "Town Phase" reference too?!?

This has been a good day for the campaign - that announcement, and the new stretch goals too.

Onward and Upward from here!

In unsurprising news CMoN still clearly hasn't hired a copy editor, so if you care about things like poor grammar and word choice that don't actually break the game please post suggestions in the rules preview update.

Now, I don't necessarily expect it, but i'd love a couple "paper" stretch-goals to augment story-mode during some campaign lulls, especially if they see a big response from fans to said campaign mode.

Things like more town events, more objectives for random dungeons, or modifiers which make dungeons somehow feel "different" than a previous run.

Since its all in the mists right now its a cost effective way to go, "we'll significantly bulk out how in depth we're willing to make this mode."

I guess my only other wish... slow down some on wandering miniboss types, and add more generic enemy groups. Though I expect other "expansion" add ones will check that box.

Minotaur is fantastic IMO. Nice bit of Paul Bonner referencing.

Themed groups would be high on my wishlist. It sounds like the mechanics wouldn't really work to tie a wandering monster in with an agent/group but it would be something I'd like to see especially in the context of Story Mode.

Well this is a first for CMoN - retailer pledge

@40% off the Lightbringer pledge that would be $72 but your committed to 6, 9 or 12 sets.

The retailer pledges will be separate but the total will be added to the final funding amount to potentially unlock more SG

http://cmon.com/massive-darkness-retail-pledge/

In our latest efforts to support FLGS, CMON is pleased to announce that for the first time we will be introducing a retail pledge option to our current Kickstarter Campaign.

As of Tuesday June 14th, and up till the end of the pledge manager, you, the retailer, will be able to be part of the Massive Darkness Campaign and receive the game and all unlocked stretch goals 2 weeks prior to the release date, which is expected to be summer of 2017.

Only retailers with a brick and mortar store in the USA are eligible to the retailer pledge.
The retail discount will be 40% off the Lightbringer pledge.
Retailer pledges will contain all the Stretch Goals unlocked during the campaign, and will be delivered at the same time as normal backers.
A commitment deposit of $100.00 is required for the bundle packs (6, 9 or 12). The balance will be due right before shipment.
Each retailer backer will be limited to 12 pledges at the most.

Please consult our Massive Darkness Kickstarter page and be part of this project. Please use email mdretailer@cmon.com to contact us with your order or any questions you may have.

Boo to the 'in the USA' part, but it's a good start.

I guess they feel they're doing it outside of the KS tos, but it seems a bit daft to risk offering 12 (when KS would limit things to 10), since they are limiting it anyway

Lessee...

* fwiw, I've seen other KS, including Reaper, have retailer pledge levels. Some KS will tell you to mail them directly for retailer terms.

* I know Wizards won't let some retailers sell outside of the USA, so there may be some sort of agreement with non-USA retailers and distributors that prohibits non-USA retailers from this retail pledge option. Or it could just be a pilot and they'll open retail pledges later. Or it could any sort of courier or customs-fee related issue that CMON doesn't want to deal with (yet).

...so how about them doors?

Looking over the rules, we need some doors up in here.


Official Massive Darkness doors. Not Zombicide ones.

Also need some objective 3d markers at some point. Lairs too. Wonder if those would be add ons or stretch goals?

Minotaur and Troglodyte Agent look great.

The Minotaur reminds me of the log GW stone trolls .

Will we see an add on which has all the Troglodytes (minions, boss and agent) along with the Minotaur? Or will it be a couple heroes and the troglodytes?

 highlord tamburlaine wrote:
...so how about them doors?
Looking over the rules, we need some doors up in here.
Official Massive Darkness doors. Not Zombicide ones.

I predict repacked Zombicide Black Plague doors, with pillars and treasure chests.

I'm just going to post this once, as I don't want to rain on everyone's parade.

But quite honestly, I think Cmon should ditch the cartoonish monster design and hire Jason Hendricks to do their sculpting, as well as executing their best monster sculpts (which he already does, for Black Plague and Blood Rage, among others.)

Zombicide Black Plague put out some really extraordinary monster sculpts. The Abominataur (which is the best large demon sculpt I've ever seen), the Abominarat, the Ablobination, the Abominatroll. Have a look at these if you get the chance, they're pretty amazing, and each one of them was not only sculpted but also designed by Hendricks himself. The Ablobination and Abominataur were actually sculpts he did on his own time and initiative, then showed to Cmon, who knew a good thing when they saw it and subsequently incorporated them into the Black Plague campaign (the BP concept artists did drawings / paintings of the sculpts after Hendricks submitted them, in fact, turning the usual flow of things completely around). Hendricks creatures are worlds more impressive and better designed than the Abominalpha, which Hendricks sculpted after someone else's cartoony concept drawing.

Having participated in Black Plague and been really wowed by the sculpts that came out of it (not just the monsters, either), I've found Massive Darkness really underwhelming so far. Hendricks is involved in Massive Darkness too (he sculpted the stone-chucking cyclops, not his design, but given his sculpting talent not surprisingly it's one of the best creature sculpts so far), so his creative input may find its way in sooner or later. I'm not disappointed, exactly, as I love Black Plague and don't need another game like Massive Darkness, but even from the peanut gallery, I'd like to see Cmon capitalize on their strengths more.

Anyhow, critique done. Enjoy the KS.