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Katanas & Trenchcoats RPG

Created by Ryan Macklin

Embrace the dream of '90s tabletop roleplaying through the darkness-fueled madness of immortals, werebeasts, car wizards, and more!

Latest Updates from Our Project:

A Brief Victory Lap, then the Real World Begins!
almost 8 years ago – Mon, May 02, 2016 at 04:32:42 PM

I spent most of the day catching up on some stuff that I had been putting off for until the fundraising phase of the campaign is over. Now I get to sit down and write this update. :)

Midnight Live Stream

I talked for 50 minutes about whatever questions people asked last night, up to and after the campaign closed. It's pretty rambly, since I was tired, but some of you might enjoy it.

The Final Metagame Update

You quite handily unlocked the final Grandeur reward, which was revealed to be a release of the basic K&T rules under a Creative Commons Attribution license! You'll be able to take some or all of the retromodern core and mutilate them for your own '90s-era game or whatever you like, under the same sort of license as Fate.

How did you all unlock that? With awesome fans doing awesome stuff.

For those wondering about the exact score, I stopped mentally counting after around 510, and people kept putting stuff on #YOLF. I invite you to keep doing so! It's really fun to see what y'all come up with, especially as you get to play with more released stuff.

Reaching Darkest Color!

Since we hit $30,000 (and then some!), the book will be doing with a four-color process, which means stark reds and rich blacks! (And other spots of color as mood dictates.)

That added layer of production complexity runs the risk of possibly causing the book to be a month or two later than I originally spec'd out. I'm going to do what I can to make sure that's not the case, but that's something I've been told to keep in mind, so I'm saying that now.

Next Steps

Nothing different from what I wrote in the last update, but it's worth pointing out for those who haven't read that update: my next milestone is the immortal beta document to you by June 15th. And around May 15th, I will be in contact with the higher-tier backers about content stuff.

I also have a bunch of business stuff I need to do once the funds hit my account—nothing specific worth writing about here, except to say I'm happy I have folks on board to help since running a tiny publishing outfit isn't the small feat it may sound to be.

I'm also going to share some of the overall behind-the-scenes on my blog, for those who want to see how numbers shake out and other logistics stuff they perhaps gets some information from. I'll post links in the comments (and I'll tweet about them, of course).

#YOLF

—Ryan

Nearing the Campaign's End!
almost 8 years ago – Fri, Apr 29, 2016 at 06:44:32 PM

Metagame Update

Current total: 487! Surely we'll unlock the 500-point mystery by the time the funding campaign ends, right? :) We're still in Challenge Mode until the end. Keep posting your characters and pics to Twitter using the #YOLF hashtag!

And if we can get to $30,000 in the next 37 hours, the book goes color. (Which includes Darkest Black.) Less than $2000 to go!

Nearing the Campaign's End!

Less than 48 hours to go! This will likely be the last update before the campaign closes, and I'll post a wrap-up update May 1st sometime after I wake up. :) This has been an exciting ride, and I'm happy to be near the point where I can get my crew together to work on the next phase!

I want to do something tomorrow, but I haven't been able to figure out what that is yet. I think doing a Q&A somewhere could be cool, but I'm not sure where to do that. If anyone has some thoughts, please comment! (I also apparently have to run some boring life errands tomorrow, which is way inconvenient timing, but that's life for you.)

A Few More Reveals

There are some bits I've wanted to mention that didn't quite fit into the other posts, so I'll bullet point them for this final campaign reveal post:

  • Grandeur points are used to create influences of dramatic license, which includes being able to add more flavor to how you overcome an achievement or (and this is one of my favorite little things) stop time with a soliloquy.
  • Advancement happens "on screen," meaning that you buy scenes or otherwise reveal your advancements in play. You can pre-plan if you like, but nothing is considered spent or used up until you actually show it off in the story.
  • You can retcon a element about your character after a story arc is over, much like a writer deciding that a character isn't as much about hacking anymore because they're getting into occultism.
  • There's another form of response similar to Counter called Subvert—like using Influence to make someone not hit you as a response to someone's attack. You need an Edge or splat feature to use Subvert in various situations, and vampires tend to use Influence-based Subvert responses to avoid unwanted violence.
  • I'm talking with Rob Donoghue about making random tables for use akin to what we did in Leverage. He's really great at coming up with inspiration tools, so I'm super-excited to see what he'll make.
  • One of the things I learned in the last playtest is that I need to give guidance and tools for how to open a dramatic game with many players. This is where lessons learned from games like Smallville and Apocalypse World will come in handy, distilled and focused for the meta-genre. Basically, I want to give Story Masters the tools to succeed, especially when for some folks it'll have been years since they're run a '90s-style game.

My Post-Campaign Communication Plan

Since we're about to wrap up the funding portion of this project, it's a good time to talk about how the campaign's communication will run after that.

Full updates get scheduled based on milestones. I don't personally like campaigns that give small status updates every week—it makes me tune out and I miss the updates of substance. (Those of you who do like that: keep reading, I got your back.) So I'm going to tell you when I'm planning to reach the next milestone, which is when you can expect a full update post. That commits me to a goal, and if there's a significant delay I'll communicate that.

Deliverables (like the first milestone) will be backer-only posts for those at $15 and higher.

First milestone: get the Immortal Beta Rules Packet to you all by June 15th. You'll be able to play the game as we develop the rest of the book and supplemental PDFs, and give your feedback to us. I'm looking forward to getting this to y'all. :)

Twice a month (around the 1st and 15th), I'll post a small status update to the campaign's comments. That way, those folks who want micro-updates still get those. If there's a minor delay in a deliverable, I'll communicate that in a comment as well. That starts May 15th.

I think that's pretty much it on that front. Please let me know if you have questions.

Names, Visages & Archons Folks!

For those who bought into Name Woven into Lore, Visage Etched in Time, and Illuminated Archon tiers, I'll be in touch with you after May 15th. That gives times for all the credit cards to be charged and for me to deal with the first set of post-campaign tasks.

#YOLF

—Ryan

Creating Your Immortal's Story, Call for Artists
almost 8 years ago – Wed, Apr 27, 2016 at 04:08:21 PM

Metagame Update

Current total: 457! That means we've unlocked everything except the 500-point mystery box! Now the Metagame goes into Challenge Mode: I want to see photos, illustrations, and immortal stories (using the rules later in this post)! Everything else is worth fewer points than before.

And we're around $4700 away from making the book in color.

Creating Your Immortal's Story

Follow up from the last update, this preview tells shows you the Creating Your Immortal's Story section, also around 2200 words.

Check out the Google Doc at: bit.ly/kty2immortalstorypreview

Feel free to comment on this post with questions! The nice thing about it being a Google doc is I can address your questions with clarification notes in the doc itself.

Now that this is released, here are the metagames rules for posting your immortal's story:

  • 5 points per story that's at least 500 words, linked to on Twitter with the #YOLF hashtag. (Fewer words is okay, just worth fewer points.)
  • Bonus points if you tie your immortal to one someone else made as described inside. Those of you who make one early can edit it to add a tie to one later.

Call for Artists!

Anna Kreider and I are looking for artists! The call for artists is on my blog.

#YOLF

—Ryan

What it Means to be an Immortal
almost 8 years ago – Mon, Apr 25, 2016 at 04:20:19 PM

Metagame Update

Current points: 424! That means we get a map of Darkest Vancouver to go with that writeup, and the Metaplot is unlocked!

And we're $5500 away from making the book in color.

What it Means to be an Immortal

We're in the last week of the Kickstarter campaign! Wheee! :)

Just like I did with the Basic Rules update, I'm going to share a document that shows a draft of the Being an Immortal section: 2200 words on what it means to be an immortal and on the immortal Houses. 

Check the document out at: http://bit.ly/kty2immortalpreview

This draft shows how we're translating the five Traits from Year One (Awesome Sword, Ancient Memories, Mystical Talents, Raging Passion, and Kickass Wardrobe) into individual powers immortals have. The other splats are getting the same sort of treatment, though I'm allowing the folks writing those sections to take liberties with the names of the attributes—one of my rules for Year Two was to stick to those names for immortals, because without things like "Awesome Sword" and "Raging Passion" the game wouldn't have the same semi-irreverent feel.

Feel free to comment on this post with questions! The nice thing about it being a Google doc is I can address your questions with clarification notes in the doc itself.

Campaign Ends on Saturday

So, I'm still trying to figure out what to do during the last day of the campaign. It ends at 11:59pm Pacific time Saturday night, which isn't the most hopping time to have a countdown or a last-minute Q&A session. I'm sure something will come to me, if I have to open my mind to Apeiron to make that happen…

#YOLF

—Ryan

Guiding Story Masters on Aphotic Journies
almost 8 years ago – Fri, Apr 22, 2016 at 04:18:21 PM

Metagame Update

  • +5 Grandeur points for these potential backdrops (one, two, three)  
  • +20 points for four (!) write-ups of locations in Darkest Vancouver (one, two, three, four)   
  • +2 points for this stunning immortal. Well played, Victoria. 
  • +4 points for this linked bit of Twitter fiction (starting here)
  • +5 points for reaching $23K! Inches from $24K, too.

Current points: 357! We've unlocked an expanded writeup on Darkest Vancouver (which means I need to take a trip up there!) and the LARP rules. Next up, a map of Darkest Vancouver.

Weekend Bounty: Since this is a post about what Story Masters do, tweets these weekend that are about plot seeds or rumors or other great Story Master fodder are with bonus points! Always remember to tag with #YOLF.

And we're just over $6000 shy of making the book with color.

Figuring Out What Story Masters Do in the Game

I've talked a lot about what players and characters do, and have received some great questions on what the Story Master does to run a game session.

Truthfully, in Year One, I didn't know. I didn't have to—the point of the exercise was to make a book that happened to be playable, not to make something inherently playable. Since that's not the sole point with this retromodern edition, I had to give some serious thought to that question. And that's when I turned back to the Powered by the Apocalypse games that i've enjoyed, particularly Apocalypse World, Dungeon World, Monsterhearts, Monster of the Week, and Urban Shadows

Years ago, I wrote on my blog a breakdown between what I think of as "adventure games" (where the characters generally work together against some adversity) and "drama games" (where the characters are expected to struggle against each other, at least some of the time). Apocalypse World is totally a drama game to me, which is why I enjoyed it, and seeing how it guides the MC very pointedly helped me to be a better GM of drama-oriented games. Dungeon World took that same GM framework to an adventure game space, which makes for some neat compare/contrast. Anyway, point is that the way PbtA frames GM "Principles and Moves" is a great way to express what you think the GM should be doing, even if your game isn't written in a move-based framework.

Guiding Story Masters on Aphotic Journies

Here's the bullet list form—some of these entries are verbatim from other PbtA games, as this is my shorthand and not final text. Even still, it's the list I tried to keep in mind last night as I ran a playtest at Verne & Wells.

Principles—the rules the Story Master as a person plays by

  • When if doubt, fall back to '90s drama.
  • Be a fan of the characters and the story.
  • Paint the world with a dark brush—brooding, intriguing, sexy.
  • Ask questions about current desires and past moments, and build on the answers.
  • Sometimes, turn questions back to the players (disclaim decision-making).
  • Push characters together, even across social boundaries.
  • Put characters at the center of conflicts personal and political.
  • Give everyone named a pressing drive or need.
  • Treat everyone according to their station.
  • Close scenes when PCs fail, unless they pay to keep in the moment.
  • Make them work to justify absurdity.
  • Be excellent to your players as other people around the table doing this thing with you, and own up when you do something assholish. (We all do from time to time.)

Moves—the rules the Darkest Cosmos plays by

  • Reveal a lead
  • Ensue violence
  • Offer an opportunity, with or without cost
  • Have the Cosmos make itself felt 
  • Introduce an entanglement 
  • Assault them, with cause
  • Threaten them, their Throne of Comfort, of their Deep Yearning
  • Put someone in a spot
  • Tell them requirements/consequences and ask
  • Inflict a hardship to overcome, always with a possible boon (though you don't necessarily need to know what that boon could be)

This isn't a strict list—you aren't breaking the game if you do something else that isn't one of these things—but it's a list to fall back on if you're lost. And it's a reminder of the sort of general direction Katanas & Trenchcoats assumes you'll go. (I'm a fan of the idea that it's cool to break rules like these, but if you don't know why those rules work as they do, you won't break them well.)

There's more I have planned for the Story Master chapter on how to open games of various themes and agendas, coming up with antagonists and threats, handling scene cutting to create the best K&T experience, and other stuff that honestly has been stuff I needed to remind myself as I've been running this game for people. One of the hardest things during the playtesting of this was trying to get into the simultaneous headspace of "we're the '90s!" and "we're today!" So I'm gonna do some of that work for you in this chapter.

If reading this list brings to mind some questions, please ask in the comments. :)

Even More Writers Announced!

It's my pleasure to announce some more amazing women as part of the Darkest Legion. The joy in getting people involved in this project is in working with folks I've known for years and folks I've just met, in having seasoned writers mix together with new writers (in the blender that is Josh Roby's and my mind). Point is, these people are awesome, and I'm super stoked to have them involved:

  • Nicole Lindroos (Green Ronin Publishing; first edition Vampire: the Masquerade, Chicago by Night)
  • Kira Magrann (Mobilize, Resistor, Selfie, Sword and Sorceress, Arcana, Twilight Dames)
  • Amanda Baldwin (D20 Girls Magazine)
  • Stephanie Bryant (Night's Black Agents, Epyllion, Timewatch)
  • Brie Sheldon (The Sound of WaterBaby Bestary 1 & 2, Firefly Smuggler's Guide to the Rim)

#YOLF

—Ryan