Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you:
No adverts like this in the forums anymore.
Times and dates in your local timezone.
Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance.
Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely.
Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net.
If you are already a member then feel free to login now.
2021/03/24 14:22:08
Subject: [Modiphius] Five Parsecs From Home - Solo Adventure Wargaming
Five Parsecs From Home is a solo adventure wargame where your own crew of humans, robots and aliens take to the stars, find jobs, get into fights and encounter the strange things the galaxy has to offer.
Battles are procedurally generated with huge combinations of enemies, weapons, battlefield circumstances and objectives whether fighting rivals or carrying out jobs.
With each encounter you earn experience and loot, progressing your crew and story as you send your crew to look for contacts, trade, explore the colony, recruit replacements or train up their skills.
The game is playable with any miniatures you have on hand and requires only a small number to get started, making it ideal for both experienced and new science fiction gamers.
-184 page full-colour Royal Size (15.6cm x 23.4cm) hardback book perfect for the tabletop, packed full of full-colour art
-A fast-moving system, built for solo gaming from the ground up.
-Create a wide range of characters whether human, alien or robot.*
-Miniatures agnostic - use whatever you have
-After each battle, your crew may die from their injuries or level up and find new items and information.
-Upgrade your starship with expansion modules *
-Procedurally generate a huge array of possible missions, with more than 50 enemy types.
-Random tables for towns, trade, character events and starship travel.
-5 difficulty settings and super-hard Black and Red Zone jobs*
-Extensive options for Game Mastering scenarios, allowing complex RPG-like campaigns to be played with connected scenario plots, environmental hazards and factional conflict.*
-7 stage narrative solo campaign*
This is a full retail edition of the community favourite solo sci-fi wargame by Ivan Sorensen of Nordic Weasel games and comes with lots of new content (noted with a * above), full graphic layout design and lots of stunning full-colour art throughout.
NOTE we will be going to print in mid April so if you would like to contribute error reports please email support@modiphius.com with the subject heading FIVE PARSECS proofing - thank you!
This (and Rangers) are the tip of the iceberg as Chris is keen to bring more and more smaller/indy titles to the mainstream so, if this is your jam, expect more as time goes on.
...and you will know me by the trail of my lead...
2021/03/24 15:36:22
Subject: Re:[Modiphius] Five Parsecs From Home - Solo Adventure Wargaming
It’s been out for ages from Nordic Weasel. I bought a full package of that and a range of addons when the lockdown started. Is this a new edition or is it just a spanky new published rule book?
Automatically Appended Next Post: Ah ha... I see it’s been expanded a bit. Even just the background generator is quite fun to play with.
Looks like Modiphius just picked up a handy set of rules to tie in with the star grave model
Release. Good for them, and I hope the Nordic Weasel guy got a good deal as well
This message was edited 3 times. Last update was at 2021/03/24 15:52:57
Please excuse any spelling errors. I use a tablet frequently and software keyboards are a pain!
Flinty wrote: It’s been out for ages from Nordic Weasel. I bought a full package of that and a range of addons when the lockdown started. Is this a new edition or is it just a spanky new published rule book?
I fixed the original post, as it's grabbed from the Modiphius page. In the features, everything that has an asterisk has new content compared to the previous indie version.
BobtheInquisitor wrote: Can it work as a coop game, with two or three players working together instead of one solo player?
Having skimmed the rules I can't see anything that wouldn't work as a co-op games without a few minor tweaks (depending on number of players you may need to assign an extra crew to each but there are also different options on difficulty so could tweak that instead).
2021/03/24 16:00:17
Subject: [Modiphius] Five Parsecs From Home - Solo Adventure Wargaming
Oh wow, This looks amazing! This is a great game that's been around a while, but it looks like they took the original 1st and 2nd ed down from DrivethroughRPG, I can still access them in my library but the pages to buy new ones are gone. This sounds like it's almost a 3rd edition Five Parsecs with a substantial upgrade to the graphics design and artwork. The old self-published versions were decidedly... uh... well they were certainly printer friendly
I may need to pick this up a 3rd time, but will wait for the physical book. A book this pretty should have a proper physical rulebook
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2021/03/24 16:08:07
hey folks you can order from the US or anywhere in the world and get the PDF now, in about 6 weeks we'll have the US local store set up and the pre-order there will have improved US shipping prices
Fallout: Wasteland Warfare
https://www.modiphius.net/pages/fallout-wasteland-warfare
Elder Scrolls Call to Arms
https://www.modiphius.net/pages/elder-scrolls
2021/03/24 17:59:08
Subject: [Modiphius] Five Parsecs From Home - Solo Adventure Wargaming
modiphius wrote: hey folks you can order from the US or anywhere in the world and get the PDF now, in about 6 weeks we'll have the US local store set up and the pre-order there will have improved US shipping prices
So how does that work, do we pick it up now and are only charged once it's released?
I've got and read a copy of the fantasy version, Five Leagues from the Borderlands, and picked up a copy of the post-apoc Five Klicks from the Zone but haven't had a chance to give it a read through.
5Leagues reads like a great game, but I haven't had a chance to play it yet. 5Parsecs could tempt me, but I foresee a lot of Stargrave in my future. (Note: Probably going to pick it up, as it's easy to justify buying rules you're already going to be working on models for.)
2021/03/24 18:47:03
Subject: [Modiphius] Five Parsecs From Home - Solo Adventure Wargaming
modiphius wrote: hey folks you can order from the US or anywhere in the world and get the PDF now, in about 6 weeks we'll have the US local store set up and the pre-order there will have improved US shipping prices
So how does that work, do we pick it up now and are only charged once it's released?
Unfortunately no, you'd have to wait to buy it until the US store is live. You can check the postage in the check out before purchasing if you want to see what it's like. Sadly with all the price rises thanks to covid and brexit it's not great which is why we're trying to get the US store up asap.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Ancient Otter wrote: Guess their print of Rangers of Shadow Deep did the business for Modiphus to chance a sci-fi solo game.
Ivan from Nordic Weasel just posted about the changes on his blog as well, sounds even more extensive than I realized, he calls it "in essence, a 3rd edition"
So let me try to answer as many as possible, in no particular order.
Practical questions:
(With the caveat that detailed questions should go to Modiphius)
What do I get if I buy the book on pre-order?
The pre-order gets you an early copy of the PDF right away to peruse and start playing. This gives us another week or so to catch any last minute typos.
The books should print in about a month or so if all goes well.
Will there be a US shipping option?
I've been told that once the books go to the print in about a month or so, there will be a US-friendly shipping option for the pre-order which would save you a bit on shipping.
You absolutely can order now to get the PDF ahead of time, but you'll pay a bit more for shipping.
Will there be a PDF only option?
Once the books are printing, a stand-alone PDF will also be available.
Will there be a retail version?
Some books are going into retail. I am not sure about numbers or through which distributors.
What about the old version?
This new edition replaces the previous version. In essence, it is "3rd edition". As such, the old version is no longer available for sale (though it will remain available in your library on the Wargame Vault page. If you run into any difficulties with this, let me know).
Bug Hunt will remain available, serving as both an intro game and a standalone title.
If you absolutely want to own the older version, email me and I'll figure something out.
Will X game also come to Modiphius?
Time will tell. The current deal is for Five Parsecs.
What about old expansions?
I have taken the old material down for right now. Anything released post-patreon should be usable with the new version, possibly with a few house-rules here and there.
Over the next weeks, I am going to review the old expansions to see what is perfectly good, what needs serious updates and what may be ear-marked for expansion in future expansion packs.
If there is an old expansion you want to get your hands on, email me and we'll figure it out.
What happens to Patreon now?
There will still be a 5P item each month. It will likely switch more towards scenarios rather than new rules, which is something I had been planning for a while in any event (and everyone likes more scenarios to play).
Will there be new expansions from Modiphius?
This is planned yes.
What did not change:
The game is still miniatures agnostic, allowing you to use any figures you have (or intend on getting), it still uses the same core game engine, the game play loop of Town - Battle - Rewards remains the same. In fact, if you were playing one of the last updates, your crew can probably transfer over pretty readily (but there's some exciting reasons to start a new crew).
A number of rules have been tweaked and polished to remove some of the edge cases or just make things clearer. Notably armor is now handled by a saving throw, instead of a Toughness boost.
There are a lot of little tweaks like that to ensure the game runs as well as possible while remaining the same game you've come to enjoy.
What got upgraded:
Well, the visuals for one: The new layout should be much clearer and easier to use as well as lavishly illustrated in a way that really brings Unified Space to life for the first time.
* Pretty much every random table has been expanded: Results are better and more interesting now, entries that didn't work as well has been fixed up and there's more outcomes possible overall. This will also help long-term play as you'll have less duplicates.
* This carries over to other things too: For example the game now has 36 weapon types and over 60 types of equipment, including gun sights and weapon mods!
Equipment has also been reworked to be more interesting and exciting, cut down on overlapping items and fix any equipment rules that were a bit hard to use.
* Rules are now provided to play with a smaller base crew size, if you prefer using only 4 characters (for example).
* Campaign victory conditions (with unlockable bonus ranks) and 5 difficulty settings are included.
* There are now 16 types of mission objective, depending on the type of battle you are facing, giving your crew far more to do than just shoot the bad guys in the face.
* 60 enemy types in total, with 22 personality types to lead them. All enemies have been touched up with bonuses, penalties or particular conditions to make them more interesting.
All of the above should help make this the definitive edition of the rules BUT
What is new:
*Character creation now includes 6 types of alien character, robot characters and a total of 18 "oddball" character types. You can now have a proper space-opera crew. Each alien species has its own quirks and starting profiles taken from the Unified Space setting.
Additionally, these are fully integrated into the game. Many random events have different outcomes or effects if you have certain characters in your crew.
*Your starship now enters the game as well. Ships can get damaged, requiring you to repair them (or risk a disaster), can have special traits and can be upgraded with any of 14 upgrades, from drop launchers to military fuel converters.
Your ship can even be impounded or blown to bits.
*When traveling to a new world, a new starship travel events table is used.
*Planets now have a random trait table, making each location more distinctive.
*A setting chapter is included, introducing the player to the world of Unified Space, as well as a very cool colony map to use as inspiration. The game is also fully part of the Unified Space setting, reflected in both random events and characters.
*A 7 step story-driven campaign is included to play through, pitting you against an old rival out to make your life miserable.
* An optional set of random battle events allowing for more unpredictable and exciting battles.
*Options have been added for grid based gameplay on tiles, super-difficult Red Zone jobs and more.
*An extensive GM'ing and scenario section with rules for story connections between battles, 12 NPC profiles, mechanics for advancing plot points and faction conflict and a lot more.
This section is also useful for people who want to flesh out the narrative connections between their battles and is perfect for people who would like to run the game more like an RPG, where a GM creates scenarios and the players fight the bad guys.
Illumini wrote: Could this work as a 40k light-RPG thing? Does the enemies and characters fit (some) 40k archetypes?
Cheers. The different aliens in the world are based off pretty broad scifi archetypes: The Precursors are "refined and mystic aliens", K'Erin are warrior brutes, "Swarm" enemies are space ship creepy crawlies and so on. So you could definitely connect some pretty obvious dots.
Obviously you'd have to be a bit judicious: No androids in 40K and so on, but that's all within the players scope to fix. You could easily reskin things as an Inquisition retinue and have the "pay" be money you get from your cell's benefactor or chief inquisitor.
2021/03/24 20:41:02
Subject: [Modiphius] Five Parsecs From Home - Solo Adventure Wargaming
Modiphius needs to find some way to get the Shadowrun rights away from the current holder, who doesn't give a damn about the game, and get Ivan to make version of this game for it.
2021/03/24 20:43:37
Subject: [Modiphius] Five Parsecs From Home - Solo Adventure Wargaming
I’ve only played a couple of games, but it think it would be easy to do that. You get professional soldiers, corporate security forces, gangs, scum and general villainy. Looks like aliens and mutants might now be in line as well.
Please excuse any spelling errors. I use a tablet frequently and software keyboards are a pain!
It's a little too early to talk about it, but if you like our Squad Hammer rules, Jason is creating an absolutely mental "cyberpunk-fantasy" version of his ChromeHammer rules, which will be available in the somewhat near future.
2021/03/24 22:20:45
Subject: [Modiphius] Five Parsecs From Home - Solo Adventure Wargaming
Hey I played some of this early in lockdown, i got it through Drive Thru RPG and thought it was fantastic, I would definitely pick up a physical book version of it.