Card game play mechanics are just about complete and the official rules have been written. A couple of new “Action” Cards have been added to the game to smooth out game play, and a few have been removed since they did not “make the cut” during play-testing.
All the artwork for Master of Spies has been finalized and will soon be added to the card game. A new design for the game’s “chits” has also been completed and will be manufactured in the same time period. New prototype decks will be produced using this artwork and review copies will be sent out to some game review websites very soon.
Recent Play-Tests and Kickstarter
So far the clear majority of our recent play-tests for “Master of Spies” have resulted in positive feedback, so we are excited to move forward into the next stage of development. Hopefully we can bring “MoS” to Kickstarter soon (Early 2017? Keep posted).
We still have some play-testing notes to comb through, but overall this card game is very close to going into production.
What’s next? We’ll be digging out our second game, clean away the dust on it and resume development on that one as well, Rob has also teased us with a project he has been developing that has some local flavor!
A long time ago, in what seems a galaxy far away, I was bitten by the Dungeons & Dragons bug.
This bug afflicted me with a life-long virus that just won’t leave my system. This bug has, on occasion, kept me up into the wee hours of the morning, has had me screaming out loud in frustration, and left me breathless and close to exhaustion. The virus I was afflicted with so long ago is Dungeons & Dragons.
I was hit hard by this then new way of gaming. I devoured page upon page of source book material. I greedily saved my money in order to buy the latest adventure modules. I spent hours and hours developing my own PC sheets, dungeons, and world flavor. I spent many a day and night playing with friends, bonding over the adventures we shared.
I still play today, although not nearly as much as I used to. Time and adult responsibilities have eroded into my playing time. One of these responsibilities is raising a son. As he became older, he began to share some of my wife and I’s interests. He likes Super-Heroes and Comics, he likes to read, he has a deep “appreciation” for anything Star Wars, and he also began to like the fantasy genre, especially that world created by Tolkien; Middle Earth.
He was introduced to most of these interests through movies. Those high energy, flash and bang productions of the modern era that are all the rage with today’s youth. They may not always be true to their source material, but they are entertaining, and because of this I never thought my son would be willing to play in (to his movie warped mind) a “slow-paced imagination driven” role-playing game. How could a game run by me ever compare to the action he saw on the big screen?
Boy, was I wrong!
From the time I finally got him to sit down and play he has been hooked. He is the driving force that actually gets the group together for session after session. He is the one that makes sure that our group (which consists of him, my wife, one of my oldest friends and his wife and daughter) has the next session date already set before we close for the night. He loves to play, he can’t wait to see what happens next. He sits with anticipation over what crazy voice his father will use for the next NPC that is encountered. Wonders out loud at what monster may be lurking behind that next door in the dungeon.
I never knew that the Dungeons & Dragons bug was hereditary, but for sure it has been passed down to the next generation.
Hello again, and thanks for checking out Move Rate 20 Games!
Sorry for our long absence, but hopefully we will be here on a regular basis going forward!
If you have been here before, thanks for coming back…and be sure to spread the word about us to all your gaming friends. For those of you who are visiting for the very first time, WELCOME! I hope all of you stay with us for the ride, as we have what seems to be a challenging and exciting rest of the year ahead.
Work continues on “Master of Spies”.
The “new & improved” game play mechanics are now complete. Official rules have been written, the retail box has been re-designed and we have some demo copies set to go off to some reviewers. We still have some playtesting notes to comb through, but overall this game is very close to going to production.
So far the vast majority of our playtests for “Master of Spies” have resulted in positive feedback, so we are excited to move forward into the next stage of development. Hopefully we can bring “MoS” to Kickstarter again soon (Early 2017?).
So stay with us for the ride folks…it may get a little bumpy, but it will sure be fun!
Total Con 30 was great fun and a real success for MoveRate 20 Games (despite the fact that I missed a Constitution Check and had to leave early Sunday with a stomach bug!).
The demos for our upcoming game, Master of Spies, all went great and all feedback from players was positive as we head towards the Kickstarter on Leap Day!
Our exhibition table set up for Total Con 2016
I would also like to send out a personal set of thank you’s to the people who went above and beyond this past weekend:
Naomi Price: Thanks for giving us a hand all weekend at the demo table. Takes a special kind of person to put up with me all weekend! More mudslides anyone?!?!?
The Team at “Thunder” Role Playing: Thanks for your time and patience in answering all our questions and we look forward to working with you guys in the near future.
Don Higgins: Thanks for agreeing to do that ‘last minute’ art job we threw your way!
And a special shout out to Mr. Frank Mentzer, who not only came to Massachusetts a day early to game with us, but also played Master of Spies with us. Your insight and wisdom is invaluable sir…..!
See you all for the Kickstarter launch on February 29th!
Hello all…
So as some of you may already know, our upcoming game, Master of Spies (now scheduled for a Kickstarter in February 2016), takes place in the fictional setting of the world called Eldinar. What is this strange and mythical place? Well, Rob L is here with some answers to that question and more……
Art by Paul Singer
1st Age- The Age of the Wyrm (2612 years)
Little is remembered of this age, and less is recorded. What is known is that the Dragonlords ruled supreme. Century upon century of harmonious existence, with little to interrupt their equanimity. Eventually, though, they grew bored with this life, and longed to turn the land into a living shrine to themselves.
Art by Jack Holiday
Whether men were there from the beginning, or were created by the Dragonlords for their purposes, has been forgotten. Only Uthrax, the Dragon King & eldest of their race, may recall how they came to be. Regardless, the Dragonlords utilized the humans as slave labor, though the humans also came to worship the Dragonlords as gods, a notion the Dragons did not dismiss.
Over the years many shrines were erected & statues carved, though most important were the massive temples & carefully tended groves deep within the spawling forest which the Dragonlords called The Verdant Canopy (later referred to by the humans as the Umbrageous Wood).
As mankind spread across the land in their labors, they encountered strange creatures, similar to them in features, but taller & fairer, with an otherworldliness about them. They claimed to have come from “across the sea” to visit this land and discover its secrets. They called themselves elves, and some stayed among the humans for a while, and a few even mated with them, producing offspring. Eventually, most of the elves returned from whence they came, but their progeny remained, and these were regarded as fate-touched by the humans.
Time passed, and the numbers of men grew, while the Dragonlords slowly dwindled (this fact was kept hidden from the ever-increasing humans who still worshipped & feared them). Long life they had, but few offspring. To counter this, some of the optimal humans (nearly always ones with elven blood) were conscripted to serve as breeding partners for the few fertile Dragonlords who remained. They maintained that the purpose for this was to bequeath their own greatest aspects to the fecund but generally weak & short-lived humans. These pairings produced more hatchlings among the Dragonlords than had been seen in centuries, and succeeded in producing a hybrid that embodied many of the foremost traits of the superior race. Mankind, however, had contributed from among their keenest attributes as well, though many of these were to remain dormant for hundreds of years……
No one knows what caused the Dragonlords to sleep. Perhaps it was an inherent hibernation instinct, perhaps it was ennui; but sleep they did. And thus the 1st Age of Eldinar ended with mankind left to their own devices, for the first time in their existence.
Here are some further updates on where we stand heading into September:
All the artwork for Master of Spies has been finalized and added to cards. New prototype decks will be manufactured using this artwork and will “debut” in September.
Card art by Chris RooksCard art by Chris BennetCard art by Brian DeClercqCard Art by Simone Rego
The rules have been revised and these will also be printed and “blind” tested in the coming months.
A new design for the game’s “chits” has also been completed and will be manufactured in the same time period.
(Special thanks to Steve P for all the design work and time he has put in for all the above!)
Move Rate 20 Games will be hitting the convention circuit starting with the Boston Festival of Indie Games on September 12th. Other convention appearances will follow…stay tuned here for updates.
As of now, we have re-worked our Kickstarter timetable, and we are aiming for a February start date.
We also plan to continue development on our second game…as this one has kinda been pushed off to the side the last few months while we got MoS ready.
So, you may be asking, “Where have we been?!?! Here it is the third week of August and you have not heard a peep out of me or the guys!”
Our Beloved Taskmaster hanging out with comic con royalty.
Well…I won’t speak for the others, but I know that I have been on a much needed summer vacation. I packed up the car, jumped on I-95 South, and headed into the wilds of coastal Connecticut with the family.
(I’ve been working on the Demo cards for Master of Spies -Mr. P)
The Groton Naval Base
While there, we traveled the Thames River, visited an old Revolutionary Fort, stopped at the Groton Naval Base to visit the museum there, and finally visited the Connecticut Comic Con at Mohegan Sun.
But don’t worry, I was always mindful of what we have going on here at MR20. I even talked to an artist or two at the Con to see if they would be interested in doing some work for us.
Now that summer is starting to wind down, be sure to stop back here for more frequent updates!
So we did it…we finally really did it. We took the plunge, got our feet wet, and got the ball rolling!
We are an official LLC! The paperwork was signed last weekend and will be filed with the commonwealth. The four of us are now official partners in this thing called Move Rate 20 Games!
Here are some pictures of us during the “celebration”…
From Left to Right: Steve P., Ethan, our Assistant Art Director, Our Beloved Taskmaster, Rob L., & James M.Our Beloved Taskmaster, Rob L. and his daughter Emma discuss the import of what just happened as Simone looks on.Rob L., James M, and Mrs. P at the “first” company cookout.Break out the games!!!Gravwell is a new favorite in our group.Here is Asst. Art Director Ethan’s sketches dedicated to Sauron.
Every month, sometimes twice a month, my local game shop, Rivendell Books and Games, puts on a Saturday Board Game Nite. Admission is free, and gamers are encouraged to bring and play whatever manner of game tickles their fancy. We also have a selection of stored owned games on-hand too. Couples come in to play, as do entire families and we always have a healthy and diverse turn out for every event. We encourage people to mingle and to try out games that they may not have otherwise bought or played for themselves.
So this lend me to thinking….are we now in the Golden Age of Board Games? Are we in a gaming Renaissance?
In today’s world, with our video game culture, the concept of sitting around a table rolling dice and moving pieces seems archaic. But a large and growing board-game subculture is not only thriving, but may actually be growing so much that it may not be a subculture any longer!
Since the explosive introduction of Settlers of Catan and Carcassonne (and other Euro-Games) some years ago, a rapidly expanding marketplace has given rise to a new wave of publishers and designers, most of which have brought a new sense of creativity and innovation.
Moving beyond the old mass-market favorites of the past, this new community of independent designers and publishers has been producing exciting and innovative games at a staggering pace. Games are better than in the past and designers are turning out products with thought-provoking mechanics and breathtaking artwork as fast as their customers can buy them up.
The internet has been a key factor in the growth of tabletop gaming. Blogs, social networks and online videos have all contributed to creating word-of-mouth buzz for the board game boon. Smartphone, tablet, and computer apps have given new and old players an inexpensive way to try digital versions of board games before buying physical copies. Online retailers, specialty shops, and game cafes have all made games more easily available than in the past, allowing gamers to try out games with friends before they buy.
So, all in all, it’s a great time to be a board gamer….if we’re not in the Golden Age, we must be damn close!
Gamer-geddon was a great success and we would like to formally thank everyone who attended and the folks who volunteered to help us out on our, hopefully, first of many Gamer-geddons.
We would especially like to thank;
Rivendell Books & Games for hosting, Courtney Christopher & David Gulick for cooking & desserts, Brian & Kelly Estano for smoked pork & superhero & mana cookies, Zak Lanoue for all around help, Vincent and Patrick from Mech Deck for coming out and demo’ing their game, Kathy McLean & Mal Moen for the grill, and our friends and family. Especially my dear, sweet Naomi.
Here are some pictures from the event:
Now please forgive us if we take a little rest before driving into more game testing and development.
I am typing this in a half sleeping haze, please forgive any typos. -Mr. P.
