News

We're excited to announce that we will be bringing the English version of the hit Japanese tabletop roleplaying game Convictor Drive: Armored by Grief to Kickstarter on November 1st!

Convictor Drive is a superhero/tokusatsu-inspired TTRPG from the team behind Picaresque Roman that features action-packed combat and roleplaying, an original d10 system, beautiful anime art, and a slew of unique and engaging gameplay mechanics.

OVERVIEW

The world is changing, and nowhere is it changing faster than in the Yokohama Zone. In this prototypal city, established by the Japanese government as a test bed for the burgeoning science of mechatronics, the citizens enjoy everything from drone delivery to AI assistants. But technology is only as benevolent as those who use it. Thanks to the deadly exoframes and sophisticated hacking tools that mechatronics also makes possible, crime is undergoing its own renaissance, and the law is struggling to keep up. That's where you come in.

In Convictor Drive, you'll create and roleplay an employee of DRIVE Private Security, a company established by no less than the father of mechatronics himself, Mr. Aitani. Equipped with energy-generating nanomachines, your characters can transform into their custom Convictors, the most advanced exoframes in the world, and fight for what's right.

Piloting a Convictor isn't something that just anyone can do. Only those who have suffered loss and still feel the pain of it can will their bodies to power the Convictors and turn the regrets of their past into justice for the present.

GAMEPLAY

Criminal masterminds are sneaky sorts. It's never as simple as just deciding to bring them to justice. Fortunately, your pilots have the skills and the determination to unmask even the most subtle mastermind during the Investigation Phase.

With the culprit a mystery, your pilots need to do the legwork by solving problems in the Zone, such as subduing rowdy gangs and tracking down missing people. They'll do this by taking on missions in which they roll a number of 10-sided dice equal to their chosen Job Skill and count up how many of them rolled a 5 or higher—in other words, a success. If they rolled enough successes, the mission gets done.

Players can earn extra dice for their pilots by having clever roleplay ideas or by finding ways for their Convictors' special functions to be of aid. If they still can't succeed, this doesn't mean all hope is lost—they'll get to try again, and this time their fellow pilots can help. However, failure gives the enemy more time to muster their forces for the final fight.

By completing missions, the players earn Intel Cards, each one offering another clue towards the identity of the mastermind and their sinister goal. Collecting enough of these will eventually allow them to take on the evildoer with their Convictors in the Climax Phase.

Combat in Convictor Drive is easy to learn yet rewarding to master. It takes place on a 3-by-3 grid, with one axis representing height. Pilots can customize their Convictors to go for height advantage with flight units, swiftly close the distance to the enemy with rollers, or hunker down and hold their position against any assault. Friends and foes alike have separate armor ratings against MAT (material) and ENG (energy) attacks; when anyone attacks, their dice must meet or beat the armor rating that matches the weapon used. Target your enemy's weak points, gain an advantage through positioning, or just bring overwhelming firepower to bear—it's your choice as a player.

Convictors may fall in battle, but it's at those times the pilots can snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. By using a pilot's special "Convictor Drive" ability, they can unleash a final game-changing attack before leaving it up to their allies to finish the fight.

CLASSES

The Convictor exoframes that players get to pilot come in a few varieties. There are the heavily armored Strength-type Convictors that are built for brawling; the lightweight, ultra-swift Runner-types built for movement; the deadly Shooter-types meant for long-range threat engagement; and the well-rounded Adept-types that can do a little bit of everything. Each model can be customized with different head, arm, torso, and leg parts in addition to weapons, and it's up to the players to decide how to outfit their frame in a way that best fits the problem.

INFLUENCES

Convictor Drive has been influenced by a number of superhero TV shows and anime series. Franchises like Kamen Rider, Super Sentai, and My Hero Academia can all be felt in the game's theme, visual tone, and gameplay approach.

ENGLISH RELEASE

Convictor Drive debuted at number 1 for the month of May 2019 on the Yellow Submarine sales charts (Japan's leading sales reporter for tabletop games), illustrating how well-received it was in Japan! Because of this, we'll be presenting a faithful reproduction of the book's Japanese release but with all new art from the game's lead illustrator Temi! The Japanese release had art from a variety of artists and styles, so we decided to standardize all the art just as we did for our last TTRPG release, Picaresque Roman.

LANDER PAGE

You can view the campaign's sign-up page here. Below is a look at a few of the book's pages!

We're pleased to announce that we will be bringing the English version of the hit Japanese board game Shitamachi Maid to Kickstarter later this month under the name Maid Knight Saga: Story of Faltisia - The Complete Edition.

OVERVIEW

Maid Knight Saga: Story of Faltisia - The Complete Edition is a card-drafting board game from Japanese developer LAUGH SKETCH where 1-6 players assume the roles of students at Faltisia's esteemed Royal Academy and work their way through their studies to graduate and obtain the illustrious position of Maid Knight—a job integral to the country's national defense.

Maid Knight Saga: Story of Faltisia - The Complete Edition is a tableau-builder inspired by Sega's long-running Sakura Wars series that plays out over the course of three in-game years where players improve their student's various statistics in hopes of becoming official Combat Maids. Along their journey to Maidhood, players will draft cards and use those draws to either attend or skip various school-related functions such as lectures, supplementary classes, extra-curriculars, missions, and club activities. Choosing which of these to focus on shapes how your student grows and how prepared they are for their Maid Knight licensure exam.

Upon obtaining their license, students earn a character-specific power and level up in appearance to reflect their new Maid role. Throughout the game, players will earn gold, visit the academy shop to purchase items to help them beat out their rivals, and obtain victory points by the actions they take. And it's ultimately those victory points that are at the heart of Maid Knight Saga's aim, as at the conclusion of the game, the player with the highest victory points is the winner.

Maid Knight Saga: Story of Faltisia - The Complete Edition includes the base game Maid Knight Saga: The Story of Faltisia and its expansion Battle for London. In the expansion, players are presented with a new setting: 19th century London! Players will also be introduced to a host of other fresh features including new characters, components, mechanics, and art, all of which come together to create an experience that expands upon the base game in interesting and meaningful ways.

ENGLISH RELEASE

Maid Knight Saga: Story of Faltisia - The Complete Edition includes 216 cards, 286 tokens of various shapes, sizes, and purposes, 36 wooden cubes, 8 player boards, multiple rulebooks/reference guides, and all the Kickstarter exclusives we have planned for the game! For the English release, we've added a 2-player mode and a solo mode as well as made some visual/presentation changes to tighten up and streamline the game just a bit more.

SIGN-UP PAGE

Below is a look at just a fraction of the game's assets and art! The official Kickstarter sign-up page can be located here.

We're thrilled to announce that we're bringing the English version of the hit Japanese tabletop role-playing game Picaresque Roman: A Requiem for Rogues to Kickstarter next month on August 24th!

Picaresque Roman: A Requiem for Rogues is a rules-light, narrative-driven tabletop RPG from Japanese design studio Group SGR that features a streamlined 2d6 system, beautiful anime art, and a slew of unique and engaging gameplay mechanics.

OVERVIEW

Picaresque Roman: A Requiem for Rogues is played with 4-5 people, as well as a gamemaster. Each person makes their own player character (PC) with a quick, streamlined system, then competes with each other in addition to the GM to earn the highest amount of "influence" each game. Over the course of a session, players can earn secret info that gives them a leg up on the other PCs, as well as make deals with or even steal from them. Regardless of whether or not you decide to help or hinder your fellow rogue, all that matters at the end of the day is who's got the most influence of the group, which means stealing from the sought-after "VIP" character who's under the GM's control each game and is often the focal point of the scenario or story.

Do watch out though, because just to make things interesting, one of the players is secretly a traitor working for the VIP. If you can't figure out who it is before the end of the game, you might just find all your hard-earned influence gone—stolen by the traitor!

SETTING

Picaresque Roman: A Requiem for Rogues takes place in an area of Japan that isn't located on any map; an area simply called the City. The City is the nexus where crime, corruption, and power meet. It's got all sorts too, from hustlers to assassins to embezzlers, and more. Sure, it's got a domed sky, and that's a little weird, and the oldest and tallest building in the area is the Clock Tower with its hands stuck at 4:32, but there's just nowhere else like it, with its neon-lit streets filled with vice and temptation.

CLASSES

The game features five core classes (called Main Gigs) that represent what the PCs do in the City. The five Main Gigs are Yakuza, Info Broker, Swindler, Heartbreaker, and Gambler. Each Main Gig comes with its own unique list of skills, as well as instructions on how to assign its stats.

There are also Side Gigs to choose as well. These represent either what the PCs used to do before coming to the City, or what they still do as a side hustle. Side Gigs provide their own unique skill, as well as a boost to a single stat. With 21 Side Gigs in total, players can play their Heartbreaker any number of ways. Are they an idol, used to fame? A martial artist that can't help but draw eyes? Or maybe they're a cynical lawyer. It's all up to the player!

INFLUENCES

Picaresque Roman: A Requiem for Rogues has been influenced by a number of popular video games and anime series. Franchises and shows such as Yakuza, Persona, Baccano!, and Black Lagoon can all be felt in the game's theme, visual tone, and gameplay approach.

ENGLISH RELEASE

Picaresque Roman is in its fifth edition in Japan and is considered one of the most popular Japanese doujin (aka self-published) TRPGs on the market. Thus, we are beyond excited to help bring it to the West so that even more players get a chance to experience all it has to offer. For the book's English release, we worked with the original design team to add over a dozen new pieces of art (all from the latest edition's illustrator, Takamu) as well as a host of graphic design and layout elements. We are also presenting the game in hardcover form, providing two different variations, in addition to offering a slew of Kickstarter accessories and extras. The English version will retain the Japanese release's original 7.1" x 10.1" sizing in addition to its manga-style monochromatic presentation.

KICKSTARTER PAGE

You can view the campaign's sign-up page here.

We’re so excited to announce that we will be bringing the English version of the hit Japanese mecha-based skirmish board game, Embryo Machine, to Kickstarter in February 2021! Embryo Machine is an anime-themed tabletop combat game for 2-6 players featuring mecha-based battles that unfold across modular boards and a combat system that utilizes a combination of card drafting, simultaneous action selection, and grid movement. Embryo Machine is one of the latest game from studio Cosaic, the design team behind classics like Shadow Hunters, Demon Worker, and Zombie Tower 3D.

In Embryo Machine, up to six players engage in action-packed free-for-all or team-based showdowns making use of the game's grid battlefield and the cards with which they draft and equip their mechas. Players start each game by first choosing which mecha—called Embryo Machines, or "EMs" for short—they'd like to pilot, according to their playstyle, and then utilize a deck of cards unique to their EM that comprises all of their unit's equipment and attacks.

Once players have their EMs set up, they then build the battlefield using the modular board that comes with the game. On the board are wide open fields, bottlenecks, stat-altering terrain, and various other obstacles to contend with. Players then position their EMs on the field using the two-sided custom standees, which feature each Embryos' art, and prepare to maneuver around the battlegrounds.

Play in Embryo Machine is fast-paced, leaving little room for downtime. This quick-playing approach is accomplished through the use of the game's simultaneous action selection system wherein players reveal the movement of their EMs, as well as their actions, at the same time as one another. Having to predict your enemy's movement and incoming assaults are part of the complex yet seamless strategy of the game.

Embryo Machine is a great game for both newcomers and veterans of the skirmish genre. Each Embryo Machine unit has a Basic version and an Advanced version—with the former being a more simplified, streamlined version while the latter is a more complex one—thus allowing for casual and competitive matches.

This play pace lends itself well to the game's theme too, providing players with the feeling of piloting giant mecha at breakneck speeds across lush vistas, dodging attacks and firing off shots in quick succession; the type of action you might see in shows and games like Gundam, Evangelion, and Armored Core.

It's with great excitement that we announce today that we will be bringing the English version of the hit Japanese expandable card game, Gun and Gun, to Kickstarter next month! Gun and Gun is a fast-playing battle card game for that sports action-packed one-versus-one duels, a distinct two-deck draft system, and gorgeous Japanese art that depicts a unique cyberpunk-infused post-apocalyptic world and a cast of anime girls who wield all manner of deadly futuristic firearms. Gun and Gun is the latest game from Japanese design studio Keepdry, the same team that brought you Core Connection: Rise of Atlantis and Core Connection: Titans Unleashed! 

Gun and Gun is a "high-speed, double-gun" card game that utilizes both new and traditional battle card game mechanics. It employs an expandable card game model, so there's no need to purchase random boosters. What's most compelling about Gun and Gun though is its trademark two-deck card pool that players draft from each turn. At the beginning of the game, players choose a character (called "Gunners"), one of their three Gunner's associated Skill Cards, and then two guns with which to equip their chosen character. Both of these guns have their own separate deck of cards attached to them. Each turn, instead of pulling from a single deck, players have the option to pull from either of their two Gun Decks depending on the situation, the gun they want to use, and the play they want to make.

Gun and Gun's two-deck system adds a layer of strategy simply not present in most traditional one-deck battle card games. This wrinkle in the time-honored formula changes how players approach the game, requiring them to re-conceptualize the competitive card game experience they've become so accustomed to over the decades. Moreover, through the implementation of its two-deck format, games fly by. This makes Gun and Gun a great option when you're either limited on time or want to get in as many matches as possible.

Furthermore, Gun and Gun is an accessible game. Those who have never played a collectible/trading card game needn't be scared off here; the game's been designed not to overwhelm newcomers and instead get them right into the fun and right into learning the mechanics. Over time, of course, the depth of Gun and Gun's nuanced gameplay begins to show itself, ultimately making it a great experience for newcomers and genre-veterans alike.