Sign up to the project and get a free mini-adventure for Cepheus Engine/Traveller SRD.

I love giant star-spanning campaigns with deeply engaging storylines, NPCs that come alive during play, and chain reaction political implications as the characters bowl through the universe.

But, characters don't always follow the train tracks, do they? As a referee, you have to be able to think on your feet and improvise. And sometimes, everyone needs a palate cleanser -- an episodic session with no connection to epic storylines.

The Referee-Ready Card Decks are intended to fill those gaps or be the basis for an entire, emergent campaign!

Each card in the patron deck looks remarkably like a patron entry in the old 76 Patrons book from Classic Traveller, with a few additions.

Each card contains the following information:

Type. General class of job (Infiltration in the example)
Patron Number. On a d66
Value. Uses a system that allows the referee to target compensation based on their campaign style.
Expertise. A specific skill that’s essential to the job. Not necessarily required, but the patron may actually be looking for someone rated in that skill.
Player’s Information. A description of the patron, how the players meet them, a summary of the job, and anything the patron provides.
Potential Rewards. In addition to the pay, the players might net other valuables, contacts, or even skill bonuses.
Legality. This is a judgment call, but tells the referee if the job *generally* legal, illegal, or in a gray area.
Complications. No job is straightforward. There’s a reason these jobs are being offered to strangers. Referees can roll, choose, or mix and match complications.
Consequences. Long-term results of the job, like enemies, being wanted by some powerful group, or other lasting effects. These might provide the referee with additional hooks.

Each card in the salvage deck is a mini-adventure at destroyed, derelict, or otherwise abandoned site. It may be a wrecked starship orbiting a moon, a debris field, or an abandoned scout base on a desolate planet.

How the characters come to this job is up to the referee, but can easily be paired with one of the patrons in the patron deck.

Each card includes a point-crawl map to either improvise the site through a session or for the referee to develop in more detail if that's their style.

Either way, you can run the whole scenario from the card.

That chickenscratch map will be replaced with actual art by an actual artist...

Each salvage card includes:

Site/Type. General type of salvage. This example is a ship in space.
Card Number. on a d66
Value. Uses the same system as the patron cards; a general level of compensation expected from the salvage based on the referee's campaign style.
Expertise. Each card implies a specific skill that would be useful to complete the scenario. Not required, but probably harder without it.
Conditions. These affect the whole site. It may be a time limit, a specific piece of equipment to recover, or events that may occur during the salvage operation.
Point-crawl Map. These mockups have my chickenscratch! I have someone working on some nice point-crawl diagrams. But, the idea is that you have an at-a-glance representation of the site with symbols like entry points, hidden pathways, blocked areas, etc.
Key. Gives you the quick description of what’s in each area of the point-crawl map.

Back of the Salvage Card

Hazards/Complications. More curveballs to throw at the characters!
Prizes. Other potential rewards that the characters could find or parley from salvaging the site.

I have no idea how interested my fellow Traveller/Cepheus Engine referees are in something like this, so I’m starting rather small with two 18 card decks (for a total of 36 cards). The stretch goals will expand both decks to 36 cards each, add a tuckbox (with great art by Craig Brasco!), and some other interesting ideas that I'll keep under my hat for the moment.

The cards are tarot-sized cards (2.75” x 4.75”) with rounded edges, embossed on card stock, double-sided with a low-gloss UV coating. They'll be printed and fulfilled at DrivethruCards. See the video below to see the prototypes. I’m liking the feel, size, and colors (though I’m tweaking a few things after holding them in my hand).

Unless we can get to that tuckbox level, the cards come shrinkwrapped. If we get to that level, they'll be in their own individual tuckboxes with some bonus cards.

Check out this video of my hands...with the cards.

Keep your spacesuit on! The manuscript is written for both card decks. I have layout templates for both. So, delivery should be a fast turnaround.

My expectation is to be done with the entire project on the day that this Backerkit ends and to start delivery very soon after that – within 30 days. The big risk is that Drivethru takes forever on the proof copies of the full decks, but check my previous projects here and on Kickstarter. I communicate everything. Maybe I overcommunicate. I dunno. But, you'll know stuff when I know stuff.

If you’re used to crowdfunding campaigns taking months (or years...or never) to deliver, this one will be fast.

I hope this is something that interests you. I have a few ideas for other useful card decks, but I'd love to see how this one is received.

Thanks for reading -- Paul

Latest from the Creator

Paul Wolfe

5 minutes ago

We Did It!

Thanks so much to everyone for your support on this project. We didn't quite make it to the NPC card additions, but that's okay. I have something cooking for that. More news later.

Hope everyone has a wonderful day. Now back to work getting this project fulfilled for you guys. Expecting to have everything finalized by the end of November and shipping!

Be sure to join the Scout Base Blue Sun newsletter for more Cepheus Engine / Traveller-esque content. And if you have an idea for something that should be in the newsletter, Submit it!

-- Paul

Paul Wolfe

2 days ago

Less than 48 Hours! $31 to reach our next Stretch

Hey Spacers,

We're less than 48 hours to closing this little funding campaign up and I want to thank everyone that's backed us so far. It really means a lot to see the support within the indie community for this game.

If you can, please SHARE on your socials that you backed the project, maybe why you backed it, and let's see if we can push through this second stretch goal, get these decks into their own boxes, and maybe even reach that NPC card stretch goal ($700 to go!).

Thanks again. The Baroness is a little less peeved today. Let's see if we can turn her green!

Paul Wolfe

3 days ago

4 days to go and We're Really Close!

Spacers and Spacettes,

We are about $81 from getting nice tuckboxes for our two Cepheus Engine card decks and about $700 from getting 24 NPC cards with sweet art by Victor Merino and JE Shields.

This campaign ends on Thursday at 3pm Central US time. Can you get the word out? Find those folks that you know need something to help their campaign. It's the final stretch!

Do it! Or risk the wrath of the Baroness!

Paul Wolfe

5 days ago

36 Patrons: Newsletter! And a Correction!

Hey Space Travellers,

I made a mistake yesterday in crediting the artist for the stretch goal NPC cards. The artist was Victor J. Merino who has some great art and gaming stuff over on Itch.to. Apologies for getting your last name wrong Victor!

We have an open incentive to get folks to sign up to the monthly newsletter. I was futzing around and using my Mystic Bull Wix site as a base for that, but I've decided to use a different service. With that in mind, please take a look at Scout Base Blue Sun -- my Traveller/Cepheus Engine/Science Fiction newsletter site.

I've got a piece of goofy fiction there and a map currently, but this is the Plan (t):

USEFUL Sci-Fi Game Content -- mostly for Traveller/Cepheus Engine, but also some generic content useable in other sci-fi games.
Fiction -- I love game fiction, so I'll be soliciting for a regular monthly fiction column.
News -- One of the great things about this game is that there's an *ancient* and very supportive community. I'd like to highlight that community every month.
Other fun stuff -- I'm always nooding with this and other games, so I figure I can drop that random stuff in here.

The idea is that it's not your standard bloviating Substack newsletter. It's something you can skim over your morning coffee, some gameable content you can actually use, and some genuine community news.

So, apologies if you've already signed up over at Mystic Bull -- you don't have to sign up a second time. But, if you haven't signed up, please consider hopping over to bluesun.mysticbull.com and joining the fun!

Paul Wolfe

6 days ago

Space Traveller Adventure Decks: New Stretch Goal!

Greetings Space Siblings,

We are about a week away from being done with this crowdfunder and $381 from crossing the 2nd stretch goal. So, I'm announcing a third stretch goal. See below.

Space Treasure

The Salvage Deck has 18 2-sided Discovery cards...essentially space treasure. I think I've finalized a design for those cards. Let me know what you think:

New Stretch Goal ($3200): 48 NPCS!

If we can cross that magical number, I'm creating 24 NPCs for each card deck (12 2-sided cards). These are the current mockups, but I think they're pretty close to final. Art is by the awesome Victor J. Merino.

So, if you want 48 more ready-made NPCs for your game, go tell your friends, trick your enemies, gloat to your frenemies...help us get past that next stretch goal before October 22nd!

Portrait Art by Victor Moreno! Card design by ME!

Progress

I've sent off the newly designed cards for a test print. I updated colors, settled on (what I think) is a final point-crawl map/diagram format, and generally made some improvements. Hoping to see these back before the campaign ends on the 22nd.

The manuscript for both decks is completed in a draft! I'm still editing/rewording/reducing, but I should be very close to being at a final manuscript by the time this Backerkit closes. All the cards are templated up, so it's just matter of throwing in the words, doing a final final edit, and it's off to the printer for a final test print.

Paul Wolfe

10 days ago

Ten Days and We're Close to Tuckboxes and Cover Art!

Good Monday Morning Space Travellers,

Just a quick note to say that we're lining up for the home stretch and we're within $700 of our second stretch goal -- tuckboxes for both the Patron and the Salvage decks and (of course) art for both boxes.

I really appreciate the support so far. If you're still on the fence, let's push by this goal and see what's next.

I'll also mention, we're THREE sign-ups for the Mystic Bull newsletter from getting some sweet Personal Combat Reference Sheets for Cepheus Engine.

I'm hard at work finalizing both decks this week. I want to have them completed and ready for a final proof the day this Backerkit closes. So, you know, you don't have to wait a year for your decks.

These are the designs I'm working with. Sending off for another prototype today.

I added Red highlights to the "illegal" patron cards. And actually did a full re-design to bump up the font size and get rid of some ancillary elements that were cluttering up the card.

And I think I'm good on the design of the point-crawl maps for the Salvage cards.

Let me know what you think or if you have other suggestions.

Thanks again for backing our little project. Looking forward to getting these into your hands at at your table.

- Paul

36 Patrons/36 Wrecks Adventure Card Decks for Cepheus Engine

Newsletter

Space Treasure

New Stretch Goal ($3200): 48 NPCS!

Progress

Leaderboard

Confirm