Blood in the night

For a while I will be out of state and thus taking a short break from RPGing. Think that’s a very good thing – sometimes the soil grows best when it is allowed to lie fallow for a time. And the trip will be an adventure in its own right. Nonetheless, before I go I […]

Aquatic vs Terran Sports

I don’t undertand how three dimensional beings can stand the functionally two dimensional existence land enforces upon them. I confess that I often sleep during their terran sports which are often so . . . flattened from my point of view. Will the dribbler go left . . . or right? Only two options. Not […]

Playtesting and Other Extreme Sports

So the first Martian Muckraker playtest was a little rough. Maybe more than a little rough. A lot rough. It was rough. Solidly rough. So the first part of this post is to state that when you are designing a game: PLAY TEST PLAY TEST PLAY TEST. And be not discouraged. The chief areas of […]

Crisis of Faith

Written by Sp’Rark, Cultural Editor of the Martian Muckraker Nothing shook the religious foundations of Ancient Mars more than the discovery of Earthlings. For generations Martians regarded Mars as an Oasis in an otherwise uninhabited universe. Then scientists started hearing the transmissions from Earth. Two planets, Mars and Earth. Practically sisters. Each oblivious to the […]

Micro RPGs

Many people think of tabletop roleplaying games as requiring books and books of rules. However in recent years, there has been interest in rules-light systems. The limit case of this is the Micro-RPG or One-Page RPG. A Micro-RPG can cover its rules in four-pages or less and is designed when players want a quick-and-easy game […]

G-Forces

“Hello Muckrakers, this is Technology & Space Cruiser Reporter Sp’Rark!” “And this is Editor-In-Chief C’therax!” “And this sweet ride is the new and improved NeonNebula Optimex!” Sp’Rark said. “AHHHHHHHHH!!!” As Sp’Rark said the name of the starship, she fired its fusion thrusters, causing a sudden and heavy wave of G-forces to crash into C’therax. “CUT!” […]

Under a Foreign Sky

Many Earthlings recently had their people’s celebration of Fathers. That inspired our own Sp’Rark to reflect on hers. When I was little, my father and I would go under the stars and trade stories. Favula’s sky was a painting of heroes and monsters. Dad taught me them all . . . their names, their tales, […]

Military Standoff Ignited by Space Station Social Media

Students were asked to stay away from the student center of the University of Northern Mars today as several hundred refugees were expected to meet there to receive services from doctors, psychiatrists, religious leaders and immigration experts. By the days’ end every doctor we spoke to looked exhausted and even a little worried. Earlier this […]

The Milky Way’s Master of Horror

When I was younger, my parents always knew I was reading the Craters in the Heart series because whenever I finished one of In’cizor Ironcold’s books all my musical compositions would feel like the soundtrack for a blood-splattered budget flick for a solid two months following. Eventually good ‘ol mum and dad insisted I read […]

Ecological Purity or Tyranny?

F’vrel, a renowned Martian Xenobiologist, has been arrested on Silkweave, home planet of the eight-legged Venomite people. Official records list his crimes as “trafficking invasive species and corrupting the ecosystems of Silkweave.” The arrest was done in traditional Venomite fashion: by completely cocooning the alleged criminal in webbing. Enraged Martian diplomats have arranged for F’vrel […]