Shattered City is now live!
over 3 years ago – Tue, Sep 08, 2020 at 04:35:40 AM

Hey folks,

I'm very happy to say that Shattered City is now out! You should all have DriveThruRPG codes on their way to you - if you haven't got it by this time tomorrow (and checked your spam folder!) please get in touch. The itch.io listing has also updated with the final files: core book, handouts with and without art, landmark and factor cards, and the borderlands map.

If you want to point your friends to the game, you can now find it on sale at:

• DriveThruRPG: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/327480/Shattered-City
• Itch.io: https://ufo-mina.itch.io/shattered-city
• UFO Press: https://ufopress.co.uk/product/shattered-city/

As for print fulfilment - the book files are now on their way to the printers, as are files for the handout cards and game board. I'm very much looking forward to getting print proofs to share with you, and I'll keep you updated.

Thanks so much for your support with this project!

Mina McJanda

Here it is - the (almost) final version!
over 3 years ago – Sat, Aug 08, 2020 at 07:32:44 AM

Hey folks! It's been a while - longer than expected, and I'm sorry about that. But, I'm happy to announce that the final PDF of this game is on its way to you now via BackerKit! We'll take the next few weeks to collect feedback, playtester names, and layout bugfixes, then send this off to the printers to get that whole process moving. 

I understnad it's been longer than expected since we locked down addresses. If you need the address on Backerkit changed, please let me know. Please do this even if you've sent in a previous request - I want to make sure no-one is missed out.

Here's a summary of the main changes:

• The game is now called Shattered City - Mysthea: Legends From the Borderlands proved unwieldy, and  didn't really communicate what you do in this game. 
• We reshuffled the book's contents to give readers the core setting details they need first, let them build out their own city and heroes, and then present deeper details in the back half of the book.
• Guild Moves and Hero Moves have been comprehensively revised, making sure your story stays focused and dramatic
• Guilds are now more distinct from local houses, and the default style of game is now a Venture of local Houses working out how to live under the occupation of a singular Guild.
• Non-human characters are now fully playable - you can be an ice-sculting Esrith, a flying hive-minded Cryphon, a trinket-hoarding Onygauros and more.
• The Outcast hero playbook has been reworked into the Immersed, a bridge between two very different communites.
• Quests have been renamed into Crises, and integrated more tightly into the more-developed Council move to set up each Cycle of your story.
• A bestiary of beasts, horrors and titans - the mysterious Caerulas, insidious Duke, rampaging Kodron and more!
• And many more changes!

Playbooks and handouts will be on their way soon, once you've had a chance to look over everything here.

New version of the Mysthea board game

Tabula Games have launched an Essential edition of the original Mysthea game. If you were looking for your own copy, check it out here: https://tabula.games/shop/mysthea-essential

Another changed name

Finally, as a personal announcement, I've changed my name since the last release of this game. The designer known as Jay Iles is now Minerva (or Mina) McJanda. Nice to meet you all!

State of the game - July 2020
almost 4 years ago – Mon, Jul 06, 2020 at 01:38:01 AM

Hey folks,

Once again I'm very grateful for your patience. The last time I updated here I had no idea how much of a toll the coronavirus pandemic would place on us here. Douglas has been hard at work in crisis response, organising quarantine procedures; I've been doing some moonlighting as a lab tech, while also having to juggle two house moves (and the resultant lack of internet access and productivity) in the interim.

That doesn't mean we haven't stopped working on this game. Firstly, Travis Anderson has been hard at work making more art for this game. Here's some pieces we're particularly happy with:

Second, we've received plenty of feedback from our editor and from our cultural consultant. That means that we're now going through a final round of revisions to the game, working through some adjustments to the text and game systems that make the game sing a bit more and be more approachable to people who aren't as steeped in Mysthea lore as this team is.

There's a few particular points this revision will hit:

• Tighter integration of Quests, Wonders and Flashpoints into the setup and resolution of each major arc of your city's story.
• Merging Borderlander and Citizen Houses into a broader group of 'locals', giving your play group greater ability to decide what kind of place Montara was before the Dulkodel War - or has become, after two rounds of occupation.
• More clearly positioning the Ilvashan guilds as occupiers of Montara, giving their player more tools to show how their presence is affecting the city while also placing them under greater pressure to placate their ancestral guild back in Ilvash.
• Clearer language around what makes this world unique and interesting, what you can do in this game, and what the magics of the Qoam Arts are capable of.
• Increased integration of non-human races into the play experience, with players able to play as nonhuman Heroes and learn from other species and cultures.

For a work-in-progress sample of those final two points, check out this extract from the book.

This revision should result in a final, playable PDF in your hands at the end of this month. After final feedback from you all, we will then move into production, printing books and acessories and shipping them into your hands as soon as possible.

I'll update you again before the end of this month, no matter what our progress is. Thank you again for your support thus far, and I hope you're all well.

Cards charged, and book sent to editors!
about 4 years ago – Mon, Apr 06, 2020 at 03:05:12 AM

Hey folks,

I'm just writing a little update to say that I've sent the book to our editors for a final pass, and taken the step of charging cards on the BackerKit. If there's been any problem with your order, if you were charged for more than you were expecting, or if your card was declined, please get in touch and I'll help you sort it out.

As for the book? Well, we're still waiting for Leonardo to finish up the bestiary chapter but the rest of it is essentially complete, just waiting on editor feedback and some final playtest reports. At this point it's weighing in at about 85k words, and I'm very proud of what we've made here. 

If you'd like a preview of what you'll find in the final release, try these - final art for the Verdant Priesthood, and a PDF of the current draft of our single-player mode, The Lonesome Road!

Mysthea March Update
about 4 years ago – Sat, Mar 21, 2020 at 12:41:13 AM

Hey folks,

As you're all probably aware, it's a pretty tough time at the moment worldwide. We're still working hard on Mysthea, but there's going to be a few delays; here's Douglas saying more:

"Citizens!

I have relied on Jay to keep you all up to date on the project so far. But as its Lead Designer, responsible for all the writing and game design, I am here to tell you myself about Mysthea: Legends of the Borderlands final version release being delayed.

At times like these, it's very easy to mention personal or health issues, blame my other job or any external factor. Nonsense. What really matters is that I am working to deliver you the best possible game. We are investing in rigorous playtesting of its many novel parts - Covenants, Influence systems, Factors, the Solo Mode, and Magic. I have also extensively rewritten every playbook adapted from Legacy, to integrate them to all these new systems smoothly. And I am lovingly polishing  the new exclusive playbooks, based on our playtesters' feedback. If I had settled down for less it would all be ready by now, really. But I am confident it's worth to invest another month or two in having it not only ready, but excellent.

I have just sent Jay the Solo Mode. Now, I am working on the last chapter, Arcane Horrors & Treasures, with Leonardo Bertinelli's support - the main creative mind behind the Mysthea universe. Then, we will just have to add examples of play and a final review.

So, bear with me a little longer, we are almost there.

Thanks for the support!

Douglas Mota."

I'm now at work laying out the Solo Mode and Douglas' other changes to the drafts, but I'm not sure how long that'll take - I've volunteered my time at the local hospital's laboratory helping run virus assays, so my free time might become a bit limited. But in good progress news, the completed chapters are now on their way to the editor and we're getting more art rolling in from Travis Anderson. Here's a few examples:

That's it for now. Wishing health and happiness to you all,

Jay