All posts by Ed Jowett

AetherCon is almost upon us! – The Oracle

As promised, your chance to play a game with us online will start tomorrow. We will be running a game of Era: Lyres, Era: The Empowered, and our flagship title Era: The Consortium. If you’ve ever had the urge to give one of our RPGs a go, there’s never been an easier opportunity!

If you don’t have time for a game you can still join Ed on Sunday, November 12, 2017 at 4:00 PM EST for an in-depth discussion. He will be talking for one hour about all the game projects he’s got in store for us, 9 that he’s publicly talked about are currently underway! Pop in and ask a question or two, we’d love to hear from you. http://aethercon.com/ACEventMan/Tickets/viewevent.asp?EventID=39

After you’re done visiting with us, you can also head over to our Consortium Expansion Kickstarter where we’ve surpassed our initial funding and have now unlocked the first three expansions! This mean that every backer will receive the Free Trader, New Worlds, and Predictive Genetic Algorithm books. We’re just getting started and have plenty of other books available through Stretch Goals, so come take a look! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/shadesofvengeance/era-the-consortium-a-universe-of-expansions-2?ref=9ko5sa

There is a ton of information on the Kickstarter regarding game play and what to expect from these books. We will also be putting up some links to several interviews that Ed has done recently where you’ll get a chance to hear from the developer himself regarding the game and its expansions. You don’t want to miss this so check back here to catch the interviews once those edited versions come in.

I’ll have another Consortium Spotlight for you on Saturday where we get to discuss a bit more about everyone’s favorite aquarian species; the Eulutians.

See you next time!
-A

Consortium Expansion Spotlight: Human Sourcebook – The Oracle

How well do you know the humans of the Consortium? It’s common knowledge that the first humans which landed on Taranis had been travelling for a considerably long time. But, the details of their journey have never fully been known. Even some of the Consortium’s greatest minds such as Benjamin Hayden and Gueya were unsure of the facts.

Now, you will be among the first to finally find out what really happened during those lost years. It’s evident that the humans on board the Kurmaja went through quite a lot to reach Consortium space; numerous intrigues, dangerous encounters with strange anomalies, and much more! Their thousand-year long journey to Sulis was certainly no walk in the park. This will be your chance to get inside the very earliest memories of the Consortium and explore a world before The Big Eight, The Bug War, and the Resistance. What mysteries will you uncover?

You can find the Human Sourcebook as well as our other Expansion books through Kickstarter; Era: The Consortium- A Universe of Expansions 2. We’ve reached over 100% funding and are working towards those Stretch Goals!

Thank you to everyone who’s helped support this project so far. We can’t wait to show you all of the amazing stories, artwork, and additional details that the whole team has been working hard to produce.

http://kck.st/2xS5HtK

That’s it for me, I’ll be back here next week to share more news and updates from all our Era games!
-A

Find Shades of Vengeance at AetherCon in 1 week!

Hi everyone!

In a week, we’re at AetherCon, a virtual convention (10-12 November)! It’s our first time there as exhibitors, but we have loads going on.

Sick of not living in England so you miss seeing us at conventions? No longer! As a virtual convention, AetherCon takes place online over the whole weekend, so you can chat to us, join games and much more!

Probably most important to you guys is that we’ll be offering special prices for that weekend on all of our books, including several bundles which will let you get hold of anything you didn’t yet managed to get hold of at lower prices than ever!

We’re also entering a number of rewards in the prize draws, so don’t forget to check those out!

Keith, one of our most experienced artists, will be participating in the Speed Painting competition, so drop over there to have a look at what he comes up with!

We’ll also be running a number of games with anyone who wishes to join us, calling some of our most experienced GMs in to lend a hand!

Overall, it’s going to be a brilliant weekend, and I hope you’ll consider checking it (and us!) out there! Here’s a list of everything that’s available:

(Note: You do have to get tickets, as there are limited spots, but the tickets are free!)

We’re doing loads of things, so don’t forget to check it out and sign up for (free) tickets!

– Ed

More Conventions on the Way – The Oracle

Thank you to everyone who stopped by to meet Ed and our convention team at MCM Comicon in London. It was a fabulous event and we were thrilled to show our games to so many new folks. There are plenty of photos and a video on our Facebook page for anyone who wasn’t able to come see us.

https://www.facebook.com/shadesofvengeance/

Now that MCM is over we’re on our way to the next convention of the season which is; Aether Con. We still have room left in our game sessions so jump in and save your spot today. You can choose between sessions of Era: the Consortium, Era: Lyres, and Era: Empowered. Make sure you check us out November 10-12!

http://aethercon.com

We still have 2 games with spots left if you want to try our games:

Era: The Empowered – http://aethercon.com/ACEventMan/Tickets/viewevent.asp?EventID=137

Era: Lyres – http://aethercon.com/ACEventMan/Tickets/viewevent.asp?EventID=136

Every year we attend as many conventions as possible. Each one is unique and fantastic in its own way. MCM is a bustling rush of fans and activity while Aether Con is a more focused and private event. Among the conventions we attend there is one that we feel is London’s best Tabletop RPG convention. Dragonmeet is a one day collection of gaming fans that we’ve had the pleasure of participating in for a few years now. This year we are an Associate Sponsor and we’d love to have you join us. Consider making plans now to play a few games with us on Saturday December 2nd!

https://www.dragonmeet.co.uk/

Whether you’re joining us from the comfort of your own laptop at Aether Con or throwing some real dice at Dragonmeet, there’s nothing quite like playing one of our RPGs. We can’t wait to show you around these amazing games!

That’s everything I have for you today, come back on Saturday for another Consortium Expansion Spotlight!
-A

Spotlight on Journey to Albiorix – The Oracle

Have you ever wondered what the exploration ship, the Orion, encountered during its 90 year mission? Oh sure, they brought back some amazing finds such as the Vilithii on Albiorix. But, what else happened during their quest to chart and record the mysteries beyond Consortium space?

In the Journey to Albiorix you will get to take part in the expedition of the Orion, a ship which left some time before the Bug War began and did not return until it was all over. Having been gone for over 3 generations of time there are plenty of unanswered questions that you will get to investigate.

This will be an adventure unlike any we’ve brought you so far as you get to delve into this system for 10 years! You will be able to research all the strange and wonderful things found in this new solar system. However, being cut off from your home world means that you’re going to have limited resources.

Getting this in-depth look at the journey of the Orion will help you uncover some of the secrets which were never revealed to the general populace upon the Orion’s return. If the mission discovered so many amazing things, why is it that no one has ever gone back? The 40 year long journey can’t be the only reason why they’ve decided not to return. Join the crew and dive into this secretive expedition.

The Orion is just one of so many interesting story lines in the Consortium and if you’re in London right now you’ve got an opportunity to try out some of them! Join us at MCM Comicon, we’ll be there all day answering questions and running sessions. There is no better time to try your hand at Era: The Consortium or to chat with our game creator, Ed Jowett. He loves talking about games and we can’t wait to meet you!

See you next week where I’ll talk a bit about other conventions coming up and give you another Consortium Spotlight!
-A

Join Us At MCM Comicon! – The Oracle

Tomorrow is the big day! Right now, Ed has everything prepped and ready for the crush of players and fans who will descend upon the Shades of Vengeance team at Stand #72. Are you going to join us?

Ed and the rest of the Comicon team will be at MCM, ready to answer your burning questions and run you through some fantastic games. We’ll be bringing along all our released titles and fan favorites as well as give you a chance to try out a brand new game.

Evil Overlord will be making its debut at this event and you won’t want to miss trying out this fun game. Do you think you can create the strongest army of evil minions? Come on over and show us how it’s done!

[ http://www.mcmcomiccon.com/london/ ]

For those of us stuck at home, don’t worry. Even if you’re not able to join Ed and the team at the event itself you can still follow along through the Shades of Vengeance Facebook page. Ed will be posting build-up videos as well as interviews with players. So, grab some popcorn and check out what’s happening!

[ https://www.facebook.com/shadesofvengeance/ ]

Still bummed that you’ll miss out on playing games with us? You will also have a chance in two weeks to join us at the online gaming event, AetherCon. All you’ll need is an internet connection and a smile! We still have slots open to join in one of three events that we’ll be running. Choose one or all of these options to get some unique gaming experiences…

Before I leave, I should mention that we do have an amazing kickstarter running right now. A Universe of Expansions 2, the next set of books for Era: The Consortium is out and doing amazing. There are loads of rewards to choose from and as the event grows you have the opportunity to get even more books. Don’t wait, check it out today!

http://kck.st/2xS5HtK

That’s it for me, I’ll see you on Saturday for an update on MCM Comicon and another Consortium Spotlight!
-A

Spotlight on Era: The Consortium 2 – The Oracle

This is it folks, the moment we’ve been waiting for. This is where all those previous Consortium Spotlight articles really come back around!

Era: The Consortium – A Universe of Expansions 2 is up and running right now on Kickstarter! Feel free to go right now and check it out, I’ll wait for you to get back… https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/shadesofvengeance/era-the-consortium-a-universe-of-expansions-2?ref=9ko5sa

For many years, Ed has said that the story in the Era: The Consortium rulebook is not the end – it’s just the beginning. This is our chance to unlock the next 500 years of Consortium history!

Through this Kickstarter we have the opportunity to answer questions such as:
– What happens after the Pliangrathilon’s arrival?
– What does the prophecy mean?
– Who are the two remaining Chosen Races?
– And what is the source of the installation on Sirona?

With “Era: The Consortium 2”, all these questions and many more will be (at least partially) answered – we need to save a little mystery for what happens next! It gets better – it’s an unlockable Stretch Goal in this Kickstarter.

This new, standalone rulebook will offer even more of Era: The Consortium’s richly-detailed universe allowing you to expand your game play for years to come.

In the Kickstarter itself, Ed is offering an impressive array of benefits. You can choose between more than just hardcover, paperback and digital editions: there will are collectors editions which include everything ever made for Era: The Consortium, from Time Travel Campaign Parts 1-3 and the first volume of Consortium Expansions (containing The Secret War, The Fifth Race, Rapier and A New Dawn), as well as all of the new books unlocked during the Kickstarter.

The first three expansion books available once we hit 100% funding are Free Trader, New Worlds, and Predictive Genetic Algorithm.

If you’re an Era: The Consortium fan I know you’re going to enjoy what Ed’s got planned through these next series of stories and adventures. Stick with me and I’ll keep you updated on how things are going and what’s happening next. And don’t wait to see what it’s all about, go check it out now! Here’s the link one more time: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/shadesofvengeance/era-the-consortium-a-universe-of-expansions-2?ref=9ko5sa

That’s all I’ve got for today, see you again next week!
-A

Shades of Vengeance at MCM October 2017 (London) – Stand 721!

Hi everyone!

You may have already seen this from Amy’s posts, but we’re going to be at MCM Comicon London this October (27th-29th). You can find us at Stand 721!

We’ll be running all of our RPGs and we’re offering our brand new card game, Evil Overlord, along with Champion of Earth for anyone who wants to give it a go!

 

This is our 4th MCM Comicon in October and, as always, we’ve volunteered to run a panel about creativity, as well as talking with anyone who wants to get into writing, comics or games. We believe that working to help other people achieve their creative dreams is one of the greatest responsibilities of the companies in these industries.

We’ve got a huge amount of experience across our team: from writing novels to creating comics, from game design to sound and artwork. We use these skills to create our own games and to help others create the game or comic they had always dreamed of!

We’ll be at MCM with a huge number of our games, and we’ll be more than happy to share any or all of them with you!

You can find all of this and much more at Stand 722:

Champion of Earth

A massive favourite at the last MCM, we’re bringing Champion of Earth back, once again to MCM London. You can have your chance to defend the Earth against not only Aliens, Undead and Creatures, though!

We’re bringing the brand new expansion, Robots and Cyborgs, with us as well, which adds Robots and Cyborgs as enemies, along with loads of brand new equipment for you to try!

We hope you’ll join us in defending the Earth at MCM as one of our 8 brave Defenders!

Era: The Consortium – A Sci-Fi game with 500 years of playable history

In Era: The Consortium, you can explore a massive universe and play at any time during the 500-year history. This allows you to play any sub-genre of Sci-Fi you want: colonisation of the first planet, exploration of new solar systems, first contact with aliens, all-out war with forces determined to destroy the Consortium or as part of a Resistance movement trying to overthrow an evil government!

The critically acclaimed Era: The Consortium “Last Stand of Stiletto Unit” session is going to be running as a demo throughout the weekend, so come along if you love Sci-Fi! Have a chance to save 14 billion lives inset at the climax of the game’s 500 year history!

We’ve been running this game for a long time, and loads of people have had a great time playing!

We’ve recently run a successful Kickstarter which enabled us to add 8 new expansion books to the Era: The Consortium universe and we’ll be bringing them with us. Gain Psionic powers, play as a secret agent, enter the virtual worlds within computer systems and play as a brand new alien race – the choice is yours!

Era: Survival – Survive a world where Infected zombies are everywhere!

The fan favourite Era: Survival puts players into Gaia, a world where Humanity is dying out – in 100 years, there may not be anything left. No-one knows what caused the cataclysm and, honestly, no-one really cares any more. All that matters now is staying alive: faced with the Infected Mutants and Shamblers as well as the 14 factions of humanity convinced that they have the best way of surviving this post-apocalyptic world.

Will you survive? Find out in our Era: Survival Session “In Her Name”, which we’ll be running throughout the weekend!

If you’re interested in joining in, we’ve got a Kickstarter for Era: Survival running during the convention , so feel free to drop by and grab one of our flyers or talk to us about it!

Era: Hitman – Become a super-powered assassin!

Era: Hitman places you in control of an assassin with superhuman abilities. Avoid guards to reach your target in this game, inspired by Assassin’s Creed and Hitman!

After an amazingly popular Kickstarter campaign, we actually sold out of copies of Era: Hitman, but we’ve got hold of another print run just for you guys!

We’ll be running demos of this for the first time at this convention, so don’t miss out this chance to try our latest game!

Era: Lyres – Adventuring? That sounds dangerous…

In Era: Lyres, you enter a fantasy world… but not as adventurers! Adventuring is dangerous, dirty, and doesn’t even usually reward you all that well! Instead, you are going to tell stories to the good folk of Yarnolth and convince them you have been on amazing adventures and have saved them! In return, they will reward you with gold and adoration!

Find out whether you have what it takes to be an adventurer in Era: Lyres, and don’t forget to bring your friends! We’ll be running sessions of it for anyone who wants throughout the weekend!

Era: The Empowered – Be a superhero!

Who hasn’t wanted to be a superhero at some point? In Era: The Empowered, you can create and play with your own powers to fight the evil villains who plague your city. Or… perhaps you’ll join them?

We’ll be running demo sessions of Era: The Empowered for anyone who wishes to play! Just come to the stand and ask to play!

Era: Silence – Join with your friends to prove yourself as a Warrior!

Visit the Isle of Silence in this game, where you must work as a team despite being unable to speak to each other. If you fail to overcome the Challenges placed around the Isle, you will never earn your name as a warrior and return.

Can you overcome the Challenges of the Isle? Find out with us – we’ll be running demo sessions of Era: Silence throughout the weekend!

If you’re interested in knowing more about what people thought of our games, check out our video log from October 2017:

Day 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uGuIW9Sr2U

Day 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSrFxcQgVio

Day 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUpabvxa-o4

Comics – Sci-Fi to Superheroes!

Shades of Vengeance also creates comics, and we are bringing several of them to MCM! With two Science Fiction comics (in the Era: The Consortium universe) and two superhero comics (in the Era: The Empowered universe), we’re starting to move onward with our comic production!

We hope that you’ll visit our stand and check out what we have to offer!

Ever dream of becoming a writer or game creator?

Ed and Leo are running a panel about how to be creative and how to keep that creativity going through the hard parts of projects.

Of course, you can also join us for a chat at our stand any time!

We’re pleased and proud to be visiting MCM Comicon once again! We hope you’ll join us!

Shades of Vengeance will be exhibiting at Stand 721, near the S5 entrance, for all 3 days!

– Ed

A Glimpse Into Era: Atlantis – The Oracle

One of our most anticipated new games developing over the coming months is “Era: Atlantis”. Brought to you by Ed Jowett and Guido Valetta (who you might remember from the last MCM Comicon), this game is based on an ancient legend but we’ve added plenty of new ideas to keep you interested.

The world of the game is filled with magic, mystery and intriguing characters. It is based around various half-human races who live underwater along with many different curious creatures. There will be numerous different environments for you to explore from polar regions to tropical seas with differing creatures for each and even humans to encounter. This is a fully developed universe with a wealth of detail so there will be plenty of options for you to run a variety of campaigns.

One of the more unique things we’re doing with this game is the magic system. The magic system will work by calling on your deity. Of course, as with anything regarding such powerful beings, your success will depend on how much favor you have with that chosen deity. This new magic system is just one of several brand new mechanics that Ed will be offering with Era: Atlantis.

Atlantis  is being designed as a Core Rulebook of similar size to Era: Survival, with all the attention to detail, rule elements, and story backgrounds that we can muster. It will be illustrated by our own Sofia Michailidou. For those of you who might be unfamiliar, Sofia is the talented artist behind some of our most enduring games such as; Era: The Consortium, Era: Lyres, Era: Silence, Champion of Earth and many more. This rulebook is going to look fantastic as well as give you an opportunity for a unique gaming experience.

As work progresses on this new game I hope to get you more details and perhaps even a few pieces of art to feed your interest. That’s it for today, join me this Saturday where I’ll catch you up on all the latest Era: The Consortium news!

See you then!
-A

Era: The Consortium – “A Universe of Expansions 2” Kickstarter Launched!

Hi everyone!

Now is your chance to get hold of the latest Era: The Consortium Expansions:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/shadesofvengeance/era-the-consortium-a-universe-of-expansions-2?ref=7x40cx

I hope you’ll consider joining us in unlocking all of the expansions which The Oracle has been talking about for the last few months: everything that’s been mentioned is unlockable on this Kickstarter!

See you there!

– Ed

Era: Survival – The Swarm Source Book now available on DriveThruRPG

Hi everyone!

The Swarm, the first Source Book for Era: Survival is now available on DriveThruRPG!

http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/223219/Era-Survival–The-Swarm

Join the only people who truly know how to survive the post-apocalyptic world of Gaia.

Become an Abcediary, reprogramming recruits as needed, an Artificer who builds amazing weapons unlike those seen elsewhere on Gaia or an Administrator, making life-or-death decisions daily!

Will You Survive?

– Ed

Consortium Expansion Spotlight: Character and Equipment Card Decks – The Oracle

Today I want to talk about an expansion item that we had offered during the last Consortium Kickstarter but didn’t quite unlock. If you’ve been following us through the years you’ll know that we hate to keep anything from you guys so if an item is posted under Stretch Goals and we don’t achieve it, there’s a good chance we’ll give it a second try to make that happen. This time, those lost items are the Character and Equipment Card Decks.

I’m sure you’ve had that experience where you’re with a bunch of players who only have a small amount of free time and want to get in and get to the action without taking the time to create characters or bother with outfitting equipment. Then again, maybe you love character creation but you’re starting to feel like your ideas are getting a bit stale and you want something fresh and new. Either way, these card decks are going to bring you a ton of great playability.

The Character Cards will feature all races and all backgrounds, along with character-appropriate names and important stats. The Equipment Cards will have a variety of both weak and powerful weapons, leaving your chances of getting something impressive up to fate. The Equipment cards can be drawn by the group either at the start of the adventure or perhaps when searching new areas or even looting corpses. This is just one of the ways we’re trying to make looting more fun and give you an increased variety. The Character and Equipment Card Decks are a great addition to any gameplay and I hope to bring you more details on these fun additions further down the road.

So, that’s it for me today. Be sure to come back next week for more news and Consortium updates!
-A

Preview Demos of “Era: Survival – Colony” at MCM, another upcoming game! – The Oracle

Everyone loves Era: Survival. Now, that’s not just my opinion, that’s a fact. Survival has found its way into the hearts of fans and clung on with three-inch claws. This is why I’m excited to announce that Ed will be offering preview demos of Era: Survival – Colony at the upcoming MCM Comicon in London!

You’ll get a chance to test your mettle in an all new card game based on the universe of one of our most terrifying games. To survive, you’ll have to defend your colony not only from Infected but also the Sisterhood of Pyrus, the Swarm and many more!

In small teams of 1 to 4 players you’ll pit your various abilities against the denizens of this blasted landscape to defeat the dangers on Gaia and come out on top… hopefully. This game has an estimated run time of 30 to 60 minutes and a suggested player age of 8 and above.

Stop by our Stand (721, near S5) at MCM and see if you have what it takes to Survive!

http://www.mcmcomiccon.com/london/

Era: Survival – Colony isn’t the only game I get to talk with you about today, though…

This next RPG is one that’s been on the table for a long time. Ed has been planning a High Fantasy game for years and it looks like this project has now spread its wings and begun to fly.

Era: High Fantasy (working title) aims to offer the magic system which Ed had developed 3 years ago. At that time this project was put on the back burner and Shades of Vengeance ran full tilt with several other ambitious ideas (including Era: Survival!). It wasn’t until just recently that the High Fantasy game has gotten back on track.

At the helm of production will be Ed Jowett and Dave Harrison (some of you might remember Dave as one of our GMs during MCM May!). We’re happy to welcome Dave onto the creation team and excited to see where he takes this game.

Holding true to its High Fantasy roots, this game will include mythic beginnings, giant dungeons, swords, and of course sorcery!

It will have everything you’d expect in a major fantasy game and I’m willing to bet there will still be plenty of surprises, thanks to Ed’s worldbuilding. Everything for the game will run on the Era system which means it will be easy for players of our other games to pick up and entirely compatible with Era: The Consortium, Era: Survival, and our other titles!

That’s it for today. Stop in on Saturday when I get to discuss an exciting new addition to the Consortium Expansion offerings.
-A

Everything that’s available at AetherCon!

Hi everyone!

You have probably seen a few posts from Amy recently, letting you know that we’ll be at AetherCon, the online convention.

If you’ve ever wanted to play with us but not been able to get to a local convention, or if you just can’t resist playing one more time, this is the place to go – join us from the comfort of your own laptop!

We’re doing loads of things, so don’t forget to check it out and sign up for (free) tickets!

Don’t forget to get hold of the free tickets for the events you want to attend – there are limited spots available!

I hope to see you there.

– Ed

Consortium Expansion Spotlight: The Armoury – The Oracle

Raise your hand if you love getting loot!

One of the things I always enjoyed about playing RPGs was getting to build a character from the ground up and advance to higher levels where I could employ an increasingly impressive array of skills as well as tools. Now that might not trip everyone’s fancy but for those of you who love exploring gear, this Expansion is all for you.

In the first iteration of the Consortium the weapons you’re given were quite straightforward. Truth be told, Ed isn’t much of a loot guy when he runs sessions so most people just got what they wanted from the start and the only limiting factor was Encumbrance. Ed realises that, while this method gets you in and playing the game, it leaves out some potential for growth. He started to work on this idea with the Equipment modification rules in The Fifth Race, but there were still loads of possibilities for loot gradation.

So, we present to you… The Armoury, which will bring you loot-lovers exactly what you’ve been looking for!

The Armoury will offer a huge range of loot; with something for everyone. Using this book will give your group a chance to start out with substandard equipment like the kind you’d expect a novice to own. As you progress through the success of your campaigns and gain higher levels you’ll be rewarded with opportunities to gradually improve upon the gear you own. This way a seasoned veteran is going to be handling some serious firepower whereas a rookie will be making do with what’s at hand. I think this book will be a great way to add some extra challenge and incentive to your sessions!

That’s all I’ve got for you today. Remember to come see us the end of this month at Comicon in London and if you’re looking for new sessions to play in the interim head over to our Patreon page!

[ https://www.patreon.com/SoV ]

Come see me next week for more Expansion Spotlight news!
-A

Our busy year isn’t over yet. Here’s what’s still to come! – The Oracle

It may sound like I’m saying this all the time, but that’s only because it’s true. We are currently working on more games than we ever have before. This is great news for all you game lovers out there. Over the next couple of weeks, Ed is going to be giving us glimpses of what’s in store for the future of Shades of Vengeance. I can’t wait to give you all the details. For today, I’ve been given the go-ahead to let you in on two new things coming your way.

This month we’re releasing Evil Overlord at MCM Comicon in London. Have you ever wanted to run your own evil empire? This game will let you do just that, but we’ve got a little twist for you. In this game you play as an Evil Lord with an army of minions. Sounds pretty great, right? Well these minions just refuse to fight together! You will have to head over to the Evil Minion Trading Exchange so you can trade out these difficult minions with the other Evil Lords. You’re going to have to make the strongest army of minions in order to defeat the others and, of course… TAKE OVER THE WORLD! [insert evil chuckle here]

This is a fast-playing, light-hearted card game brought to you by the same development team and artists as our fan favorite card game, Champion of Earth. Evil Overlord will be a “sequel” to Champion of Earth and you can expect to see the same fun style and quirky elements. Playtime is anywhere from 5 minutes to 1 hour, making this an easy game to take with you on the go and set up whenever you have a spare moment. Though the game is fun and the art is engaging we only intend this game for Evil Overlords who are ages 6 and up. Sorry gang, maybe I can talk Ed into doing a Toddler Overlords?

This isn’t the only project that Ed’s got up his developer sleeves. We are also working on several new Era games! I will hand out details as the weeks go by but for today I can introduce you to “Era: Cyberpunk”. Created by Ed Jowett and Lukasz Furmaniak (who is running the Era: The Empowered game for AetherCon), this will be a Core Rulebook similar in size to Era: Survival and will use the Era d10 Rule Set, making it compatible with all of our other Era games.

In Era: Cyberpunk (which is a working title!) you’re going to fight for mega corporations in the last city on Earth. There’s really no point in trying to get out of the city because it’s surrounded by a desert from which no one ever returns. As you can guess, there will be loads of mysteries to crack and enemies to face. This game is inspired by Judge Dredd, the Matrix and similar stories, and will offer its characters unique abilities which grow in power as the characters grow closer to the truth…

There’s certainly more to this game than first meets the eye and you’ll have loads of content to help you start building your first campaigns. Era: Cyberpunk is just one in a number of new games that you’ll be introduced to over the next few weeks so keep checking back to see what we’re getting up to!

That’s it for me, I’ll catch you on Saturday for another Consortium Expansion Spotlight where we get to talk about one of my favorite rpg elements… loot!

See you next time!
-A

Double DriveThru Survival!

Hi everyone!

Today, we’ve released two more Era: Survival books on DriveThruRPG:

http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/220235/Era-Survival–Rulebook-Primer

http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/220248/Era-Survival–Tales-of-the-Outlands

The Rulebook Primer is designed for two purposes. Firstly, it is a cut-down Rulebook for GMs who want to try the game without investing for the Core or Definitive Edition Rulebook. At only $5, it’s a steal! Secondly, it contains everything that a player needs to make a character and the full rules for the game, so it makes a fantastic Player’s Guide.

Tales of the Outlands is our second expansion for Era: Survival. It provides information and Adventure Seeds for what exists beyond the regions which hold Human civilisation. Dare you venture into the Outlands?

With these two released, there is only one more Era: Survival book pending release on DriveThruRPG – The Swarm Source Book. Keep an eye out for that, because the mysteries of the Swarm will be available to DriveThru customers soon!

– Ed

Era: The Consortium – The Fifth Race Review

Hi everyone!

Talking About Games has updated their review of The Fifth Race (previously, he had seen only a preliminary v0.7), and has put it up on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLtGLPeR1mI

He’s very thorough, going into the details of the book and why it’s a valuable expansion, so I’d strongly recommend it if you were on the fence about getting hold of this expansion.

I’ve been told this is the first of several which will be released over the coming month as a lead-up to the Kickstarter for the second wave of Era: The Consortium expansions! I think that’s fantastic and I’ve always felt that Talking About Games does a particularly good job of getting into the details of a book, so I’d strongly recommend you keep an eye on these videos.

– Ed

Era: Silence now available on DriveThruRPG!

Hi everyone!

Era: Silence, one of our most innovative and original games is now available in Digital Format on DriveThruRPG!

http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/222871/Era-Silence–Pocket-Edition

Face the Challenges of the Isle of Silence and earn your name as a Warrior in this High Fantasy RPG. But will you be able to work together with others when you’re unable to utter a sound?

Find out in Era: Silence!

– Ed

Consortium Expansion Spotlight: Company Registration Handbook – The Oracle

In the Consortium, companies like Hayden Bank rule the world… literally. If you don’t own a major corporation there’s not much chance of you reaching the top of the social ladder. So, what are you waiting for? Let’s get you started on your very own big business venture!

The Company Registration Handbook will give you the ins and outs of everything you need to know in order to build, run, and succeed in your own company within the Consortium. This expansion will follow the group of explorers from our New World book and will reveal the end to their story. It is being written by the same two creative minds who first brought you New World; Darren Watts and Ed Jowett. Along with writing for The Consortium, Darren has also written for the Conan RPG and several others. We’re excited to see what this team creates!

Whether you fancy yourself a tech-giant bringing marvelous new inventions into the world, or a transit hauler moving products from one end of space to another, there is plenty of room for your business idea in the Consortium. With the right amount of determination and a bit of luck you may just find yourself becoming a powerful player in the Senate!

Meet me back here next week where I’ll give you a run down of our current projects and another Consortium Expansion Spotlight!
-A

Join Us At The AetherCon Event In November – The Oracle

There has never been a better time to join Shades of Vengeance at a convention! This online event is free to attend and easy to participate. The games are run using Google Hangout and/or Roll20 so it’s perfectly situated for remote players.

If you’ve never had a chance to play one of our sessions hosted by game creator Ed Jowett, this is a great opportunity. What better way to experience a new game than through the eyes of the one who developed it! We are hosting three events at AetherCon this year and I know you’ll find at least one that you’re going to love. Check out the schedule of our RPG sessions to find just the right game for you.

  • Friday November 10 at 7pm GMT/ 2pm EST, “A Tale of Three Taverns”
    • Join Ed Jowett as he introduces you to the fabulous city of Yarnolth where the heroes are just as questionable as their adventures. You will join with other pseudo-adventurers as you attempt to convince the townspeople of your heroic deeds… and try to earn a little cash in the process!
    • [ http://aethercon.com/ACEventMan/Tickets/viewevent.asp?EventID=137 ]
  • Saturday November 11 at 2pm GMT/ 9am EST, Face the Red Devil
    • Lukasz, one of our fabulous GMs, will be bringing you a session from our Era: The Empowered RPG. You’ve seen the primer, you’ve read the comics, now you get to experience what life is like trying to save the world with your own set of unique powers. With a villain named “Red Devil” I’m guessing that this session isn’t going to be your average criminal caper.
    • http://aethercon.com/ACEventMan/Tickets/viewevent.asp?EventID=136
  • Sunday November 11 at 2pm GMT/ 9am EST, The Last Stand of Stiletto Unit
    • Ed will be back again to run the Consortium’s most critically-acclaimed session. If you’ve never had a chance to experience one of our games, this is the one you should put at the top of your to-play list! The fate of 14 billion lives rest on your shoulders. Do you have what it takes to stop the Consortium’s monstrous plot before it’s too late?
    • http://aethercon.com/ACEventMan/Tickets/viewevent.asp?EventID=85

Log in at the AetherCon links to register for these events today and save your spot for these fantastic games. Space is limited so don’t wait!

That’s it for today, meet me back here on Saturday where we explore the next Consortium Expansion book and talk all about creating your own company.
-A

Era: Survival – Infected Manual Expansion now available on DriveThruRPG!

Hi everyone!

I am pleased to announce another release today! Era: Survival’s Infected Manual expansion is now available on DriveThruRPG: http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/220244

With the Infected Manual, you can encounter biomorphs of Mutants and Shamblers with a huge range of abilities as you explore Gaia. This expansion offers no less than 100 different options!

Fight Infected with saliva that makes you stick to yourself like superglue, others which jump from rivers and swamps to surprise you and old favourites like fire breathing!

Will You Survive?

– Ed

Era: The Consortium’s Time Travel Campaign Part 3 now available on DriveThruRPG!

Hi everyone!

Part 3 of the epic Time Travel Campaign is now available on DriveThruRPG!

http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/218927/Era-The-Consortium–Time-Travel-Part-3

Join the Agents of Change as they step into their parents’ shoes and attempt to overcome the challenges within their own team in a way that’s never been so necessary before!

Witness the next step of the story begun in Part 2, with Campaigns 5 and 6!

– Ed

Consortium Expansion Spotlight: Sirona Specials – The Oracle

It’s time once again to get an inside look at what’s coming at you for our next Consortium Expansion series. This time I’m talking about a place where the atmosphere is as lethal as the company. The prison planet of Sirona isn’t the first stop on anyone’s tour bus but it’s where we’re going to take you for our next book.

As you might remember, placement on Sirona is reserved for only the worst of the Consortium’s offenders. You will be among murderers, hackers, pirates and the like who all have a serious record to their name. They also have some unique skills with a lot of potential uses! Crone Correction, the managing company on Sirona, isn’t about to let any of those resources go to waste as they use your skills to gain power within the Consortium. This means that you’ll be keeping busy while spending out your sentence… along with a likely lengthening of your life expectancy if you can complete the missions.

In this “Suicide Squad meets the Canaries of Red Dwarf” style book, the campaign is going to follow prisoners assigned to Sirona as they complete various missions. Unlike other scenarios, this prison-specific book will focus on your party’s attempts to gain privileges within the system; risking life and limb on and off world for added benefits on this merciless world. What would you do for a little extra comfort on Sirona?

Not quite sure what Red Dwarf is? Check out this link to get an idea of what I’m talking about… [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D4QStuVeyc&feature=youtu.be&t=54 ]

Come back next week so I can tell you all about Aethercon, a tabletop RPG convention you can visit from the comfort of your own laptop!

Until next time!
-A

Era: The Empowered is getting a Comics Anthology – The Oracle

Last week I directed you to check out the Kickstarter for our most recent comic; Violete from Era: The Empowered. Thank you to everyone who ran over and expressed an interest in our latest hero. It’s because of that excitement and our own desire to bring you something even better that John and Ed have decided to cancel that Kickstarter. Now, before you tell me I’m crazy, let me reassure you: Violete’s still going to tell her story and all you fabulous backers will still get a chance to read it. Ed has decided to make an anthology!

This Era: The Empowered Anthology will bring you stories from all the characters featured in the Empowered Rulebook. You’ll get to read about Penumbra, Lacuna, Violete, and so many more of the amazing heroes and villains which exist at the very centre of the story of this universe. We are pulling out all the stops and creating a compendium of stories the likes of which hasn’t been seen since before the Hunger. This anthology is a fantastic way to help build your gameplay sessions and I’ll give you more details as we get closer to this exciting project.

In the meantime, we’ll be continuing to make comics in the Empowered universe, which focus on other Empowered and their various adventures! I should be able to tell you a little more about the one currently underway when it’s a little closer to completion.

In game news, I’m pleased to report that Drive Thru RPG is stocked with titles from some of our most popular Era games. You might have noticed that these releases have been going on over the last couple of weeks. You can now get Era: The Consortium as well as several of the Expansion books, Era: Survival with some of its Expansions as well as Era: Lyres! The Consortium Expansions, A New Dawn and the Time Travel Campaign, are available in Digital format. We keep stocking the shelves and more will be coming in over the next few weeks!

You can visit their online shop for the full selection-  http://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/8156/Shades-of-Vengeance

For those of you who’d prefer the paperback or hardback versions you can still get them from our web store. If you ask me, there’s just something fantastic about running a game with a solid Rulebook in your hand; if all else fails you can throw them at the GM. Side note: Shades of Vengeance does not support any acts of violence towards your Game Master, even if your character did just die in a freak pie eating contest.

https://www.era-games.com/store/

There are a dozen ways to find our games and a million ways to play, so stop planning your next adventure and start living it! I’ll see you on Saturday for the next Consortium Expansion Spotlight where I get to talk about everyone’s favorite prison planet, Sirona.

Until next time!
-A

Consortium Expansion Spotlight: Time Travel Campaign 4 – The Oracle

I have another Expansion spotlight for you today and this time we get to build on a series which you just might be familiar with. The Consortium’s Time Travel Campaign follows the adventures of a team sent back to the very beginning of the Consortium. Their mission is to forever alter the natural course of history in order to prevent a future catastrophic event. No small task!

Book 4 will continue this storyline and give you the opportunity to mould the Consortium in a new direction. Graeme Penman and Ed Jowett have been working on continuing the story of this campaign for almost a year now, since the last Kickstarter ended, and they’ve created some fantastic scenarios!

Although these sessions have all been released on Patreon, you can expect an updated and improved book, just like the previous Time Travel books, when it is released in the upcoming Kickstarter. If you want to know more about the Time Travel Campaign, there’s no better way than to jump in and start playing from book 1. You can find a copy on Drivethrurpg.com now! If you’re already familiar with the series you can keep up with the unfolding story through Patreon.

So, that just leaves one last question. How would you change the Consortium?

[ www.patreon.com/SoV ]

[ http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/218924/Era-The-Consortium–Time-Travel-Part-1 ]

See you next week for more news and updates!
-A