Eclipse Phase is an incredible transhumanist based sci-fi horror RPG. I picked up a copy at Gencon 2009 but only got to run a game of it recently. Because we were unfamiliar with the setting and system, I created a short tutorial adventure that takes place during the Fall, where most of humanity was wiped out by rogue AI systems called the TITANS. After the tutorial, I ran the adventure packaged with the GM Screen, called ‘Glory’. Tom, Aaron and Caleb are agents of Firewall, a secret organization dedicated to protecting humanity from existential threats. They are tasked with finding a missing agent, Tara Yu. She was investigating a possible hidden cache of pre-Fall tech. The players discover there are fates worse than death even in a future where death is not permanent.
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Episode isn’t even done downloading – but you guys just turned a crappy night of moving/packing into a night of pure awesome.
Downloading now, I can’t wait to listen to this AP.
One of the (admittedly several) things that I love about Eclipse Phase is that it is licensed under Creative Commons. This means that it is legal to share and remix their releases freely through the internet, making sure that both players and GM can have a copy of the game’s PDF. But remember to support the developers: after downloading and reading through the PDF I bought a physical copy of the book, and I’ve never regretted the decision of paying $30 for it since it was a hardcover book, full color and with stunning artwork.
You can download the first few PDFs from the personal blog of one of the lead developers of the game, Rob Boyle. http://robboyle.wordpress.com/eclipse-phase-pdfs/
Eclipse Phase is pretty much awesome. =>
Sweet! Finally, Eclipse Phase in real time. Ross, you are a genius for that tutorial intro.
For the love of god, turn this into a full length series like your new world campaign. I would follow it religiously
Only been able to listen through most of the tutorial, but already I’m salivating. This is good stuff.
Wow, guys. I’d heard of Eclipse Phase before, but this AP was really good, and really showcased the game for me, and now I totally need to play this.
Err, one small science-y error though, vacuum isn’t actually cold. I know people say space is cold a lot, but it isn’t. There’s not enough matter in space for it to BE cold, which means that the only way for you to loose heat is purely by radiating it, which unless you were really really hot, would probably take a while. So if Caleb was vac-sealed, his body made to minimize heat loss this way, and he probably would have been fine.
HELL. YES.
Been wanting an Eclipse Phase game for a while…and then from out of nowhere you guys yet again delightfully surprise…
You guys should make eclipse phase into a regular thing like Cthulhu and Dnd. There’s very little podcasts on Eclipse Phase and LOTS of people really like it, but I think alot of people really want to listen to a game to get a sense of how it flows, how some of the ideas come across, how the mechanics play etc to better sense of the game before launching into a campaign.
Please PLEASE do more Eclipse Phase games. Ill be GMening it later on in the year and you’ve already helped me TONES just listening to your game and absorbing the gameplay.
…and I know its unrelated but you should do another Don’t Rest Your Head too…that game was awesome 🙂
I laughed myself hoarse when I heard the questions about concealed-carry “laws” on an Autonomist habitat.
I wasn’t too crazy about the system. The sessions themselves were fine, with lots of interesting and funny moments, but I never really found myself engaged in the setting. Perhaps it was due to everybody learning the rules, or the entire premise of “Ghost In The Shell Meets CthulhuTech”. For me, only one of the two are necessary to create a compelling game; having both transhuman and “supernatural” atrocities kind of confuse the entire experience.
There are no supernatural elements in EP. The weirdest stuff is derived from alien technology – not magic or anything like that.
I’ve been intrigued by what this system has to offer for a while now, as its kind of the next logical step up from cyberpunk/post-cyberpunk – a genre I love but now feels more contemporary than futuristic. I imagine once you get used to the futuristic setting and accompanying technology games will be really engrossing. Thanks for uploading this one; looking forward to some original scenarios in the future.
Fantastic episode all around. Interestingly enough, I think I enjoyed the intro episode more than the regular game (which isn’t to say it was bad, just that the original content was better.) The “plugging into the Mesh” really fits with Ross’s love of symbolic Carcosa-esque challenges. Can’t wait to hear some original scenarios, something that’s more intricate than “Delta Green in the Future”.
This game reminded me that Death is truly the final frontier…
Hi. I heard about this recording on Twitter someplace (it might have been from @infomorph, I don’t recall) but I’ve listened to it twice and enjoyed it each time. It’s given me some things to think about for my game, and you really made combat sequences easy to follow.
Please, record more EP sessions!
I’m in love with this game.
loved this so much. I SIT NAKED IN THE CHAIR
more! also, MORE GAGA. I’ve never been all that into D&D, but every side-game thing you dudes ever do gives me such a happy.
Good game, although Ross, EP begs for narrative! There is so many interesting thing to describe, to experience, to investigate into. The whole EP setting is breathtaking to say the least. Don’t miss a chance to explore it. I was drooling for hours just reading it.
Also, to much sitting naked in the chair ruins it. Go outside, interact with something!
Nice. But why is the mic always next to the loud guy in these things?
The naked chair guy is a bit … extreme (not thanks for the visuals) but… it is Eclipse Phase… not so unexpected after all
Re-listening to all the EP APs in preperation for running the system for my friends. Great stuff. I somehow had never listened past the first part.
I almost choked during Caleb’s Burndemic rant.
A great introduction to Eclipse Phase! It was enough to get me to buy the core book and think about running it myself.
I wasn’t sure “Futuristic Horror” would work so well in an RPG. I was definitely wrong…
Have to say that the idea of doing the tutorial game before a campaign to see what the players might like as well as getting used to a new system is a brilliant idea on it’s own but the way Ross structured the tutorial part before all the hell broke loose, double brilliant. I know if I get people hooked on EP as a setting they will definitely need to listen to this one first. Great work all.
Just ran this scenario for a couple of friends tonight. Worked out well, great way to introduce the game piece-by-piece. If you published this scenario as a pdf, I’d gladly buy it. Just saying…
The tutorial part of this was really great. I was pretty skeptical about being able to easily learn EP, let alone teach it to my players, but I feel much better about it after listening to this. Breaking the mechanics down into manageable bits while introducing the world worked extremely well.
Also, the end of the Glory portion was delightfully space horror-y and helped sell me the rest of the way on the setting.
I would love it if you could stop eating, banging the table, and playing with phones during the game. Some audio levelling would also help, as at the moment some people are echoey and a little more difficult to hear while others sometimes get loud enough to become noise for a moment or two.