Mistfall: Heart of the Mists

Print and Play as Melekai!
about 10 years ago – Wed, May 18, 2016 at 09:41:53 PM

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Despite being in the middle of a very important discussion on a Pladge Manager making its first appearance in an NSKN Games Kickstarter project (if this is news to you, you can check out the details in our previous post), we do not forget about other obligations. And since I promised you a new Hero as Print & Play today, it's time to make good on that promise:

If you click here or on the image above to get the PDF, and then get your scissors ready!

Now, if you don't have any of the previous resources, here's a short list of useful links:

- Rules Supplement and Printer Friendly Rules Supplement with everything you'll want to know about new rules of Heart of the Mists

- The new Quest Charter and Time Charter, which you can (but do not have to) use with Melekai.

- And finally, Elatha the Misthuntress, the first HotM Hero to make a PnP appearance, if you did not get her yet.

I sincerely hope you have fun with Melekai, and, as always, I hope you'll have a great day!

Błażej

See the Stretch Goals
about 10 years ago – Wed, May 18, 2016 at 09:40:46 PM

Ladies and Gentlemen!

I'm coming to you with a super-fast and super-short update. Aseke the Namebearer has just been unlocked, so you probably want to see her. Well, here she is:

A future update will tell you more of her story, as well as of her as a Hero in the game. But before that... care to make some educated guesses? ;-)

And, as a bonus, here's a fresh-from-the-artist picture of the Headless Hulk, an Enemy unlocked in one of the previous Stretch Goals:

Thank you all for taking Heart of the Mists so far and so fast, and now... let's go even further!

Enjoy and have a great day!

Błażej

Making of a Hero
about 10 years ago – Wed, May 18, 2016 at 09:40:18 PM

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Among the hundreds of comments on this project, some of you asked about the process of designing a Mistfall / Heart of the Mists Hero. As you probably guessed from the title, this is exactly what this Update will be about.

Step 1: The Idea

I’ve been a gamer for over twenty years now, but I went heavily into designer board games only about ten years ago. Before that, I spent a lot of time playing RPG’s, probably spending most time with Warhammer Fantasy Role Play (1st and 2nd edition), AD&D, and D&D (both 3.0, as well as 3.5). So, unsurprisingly, a lot of my inspirations come from those days.

If you look at Mistfall, you will see a gallery of fantasy hero archetypes (Fighter, Mage, Priest, Rogue), with each of them starting as an idea for a character that would allow you to play them as the said archetype. Naturally, as more Heroes entered the picture, I would dig a little deeper into less and less staple characters, but still trying to stay around stuff people would easily be able to recognize.

Step 2: The Nuts and Bolts

The truth is that Step 1 and Step 2 often go hand in hand. I would usually immediately think of one or two tricks for a given archetype, and then start building the rest of their cards around those base ideas. For example, in the case of Arani, I would immediately think of healing and the ability to effectively strike at the Undead, whereas in case of Elatha, I’d start off with the favoured Enemy idea, and the trap.

Then would come the time of building the list of abilities I could emulate within the Mistfall / Heart of the Mists system frame, together with trying to imagine possible synergies. At this stage, only the most basic math would come into play, as I would be building the new Hero with a simple idea of what would be cool and thematic to have, instead of what would be a balanced system withinthe game.

Step 3: The Grind

After building the first version of a Hero, it’s time to bring it into a few quests. At first the Hero would have to stand their ground on their own against Into the Wilds and The Abomination, two benchmark Quests I use to see if the Hero shows any promise. This is also the time when some of the Feats change, and during play actual calculations start, in order to bring the power level of a Hero closer to those already existing.

Then comes the time of playing the new Hero together with other Heroes, and using them with different Quests. This is also the time when I spot options for synergies between characters. A lot of notes and small tweaks are made, I also take careful notice of which Heroes the new arrival works best with. Why? Well, it’s for…

Step 4: The Story

Now is the time to give the New Hero some background, perhaps flesh out the broader order he or she belongs to, and make them part of the Mistfall world. During this stage I go back to synergies spotted in the previous step, usually making them a base for their interactions with other Heroes, simply figuring that the more mechanically compatible Heroes would make better friends within the story.

Step 5: The Wilds

Now it’s time to let the new Hero run wild. This is the step when I open the new character for playtesting, and spend a lot of time myself playing them as well. With Heart of the Mists, this is also the moment when a character becomes a Print & Play. Yes, you can help making him or her the Hero everyone will receive in the final game box!

Be the Hero!

Drop back in tomorrow to get your PnP of Melekai, and become a new iconic Hero of the Mistfall universe. And as for now, have a great Saturday, and talk to you tomorrow!

Błażej

Pledge manager?
about 10 years ago – Sun, May 15, 2016 at 06:25:06 AM

This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.

Of Mists, Miniatures, Sand & Snow
about 10 years ago – Fri, May 13, 2016 at 12:59:22 PM

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Strap yourselves in, because this Update is the one that brings it, and brings in plenty. I’m going to try to be brief, but there is a lot of ground to cover, so… sorry if it turns out to be quite long.

Sand and Snow!

Firstly, we’ve just made a new addon available! Sand and Snow is an expansion that will enhance your Mistfall and Heart of the Mists experience with a set of 110 brand new cards, you can add to any of one of the sets, or use when you mix them.

What is Sand and Snow?

Let’s start with a new type of Enemy: the Lieutenant. Easily recognizable by lacking a Resolve value, a Lieutenant is an alternate version of an existing Enemy which, when eliminated, allows you to take a Reward card right out of the display. Most Enemies appearing in Mistfall and Heart of the Mists will see their Lieutenant version in the Sand and Snow expansion, and even if you don’t have one of the sets, you can still mix all of them in. Or mix just the ones you want to face, leaving others aside.

New opportunities to receive Reward cards call for (you guessed it!) more Rewards. And you will get a nice big cache of brand new General Rewards. I’ve noticed over the last year that many of Mistfall fans wanted more cool loot, and besides bringing some to the Heart of the Mists box, you can now get an even greater number of new weapons, armour and arcane items to use against the Mists.

Sand and Snow will also feature a few new Allies, and a set of Special Event cards, drawn at specific times during the game, becoming essentially more permanent versions of Encounters. If you can beat them within a few turns of the game, you might be rewarded for your effort, and if you decide to ignore them, they will come back to bite you!

The exact number of cards is still to be locked down, as new Enemies being added to the game via Stretch Goals may influence the number of Lieutenants in Sand and Snow.

So, how about those miniatures?

The truth is, you already know everything there is to know about using them in Mistfall/Heart of the Mists. So why are they here? Because of me.

About a year ago, already at work on new stuff for Heart of the Mists, I created a set of mechanisms that did not make it into the game. While trying to work them into the current structure, I stopped, separated them, and built them into something new. A small, competitive dungeon crawl, which we all toyed with from time to time. And now, this game is almost ready.

It was my idea, my own gamble, to tie the miniatures to the Heart of the Mists Kickstarter, in hopes that it would go as well as it is going. And after discussing all with the NSKN team, I can tell you this: we will work it into the publishing schedule of Heart of the Mists, and should you want to back another game right here, right in this campaign, and to be the absolute first to jump in, you will be able to.

The cat is out of the bag

As you can see, we’ve not opened the option to pledge for anything new. We will before the campaign is over, and when we do, you will also get full access to a print and play version of the whole game. It will not be a nice looking print and play. Hell, it will be one ugly as sin, as you will simply receive the raw playtest kit, but you will be able to play it, if you want it, and then decide if it’s something you want to support.

What is this secret project all about? About dungeon crawling in the world of Mistfall, about fighting monsters, gathering treasure and being the same Heroes you can be in Heart of the Mists and Mistfall, only this time in a different, simpler, faster playing game. A game in which you will be able to place those awesome miniatures and your table (or tokens, if you decide to pass on minis), and make your moves count. And a game which you will be able to test completely, before you decide to pledge.

You will get full access, just like you did with Elatha the Misthuntress, and with the Time Charter – and as you will with all Heroes from Heart of the Mists. And you will be the first to see the game, the first to ever have it and, in essence, the first to become its patrons. Which seems to me Kickstarter should be all about.

Like I said, it has been and still is my gamble. Even if you don’t like the idea, you will get some awesome miniatures, if you decide to pledge just for them. I know that, as a team, we will be able to deliver what now seems like only a madman’s dream to your door without delays. We are already working all the things needed: from development and art, to having shipping deals in place.

And you probably know that as well, because hey, we’ve proven that we’re good for it.

Błażej