Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game

Final Hours!
almost 2 years ago – Wed, May 15, 2024 at 08:45:38 AM

Adventure Time fans,

Just a few hours to go! You have smashed ALL the stretch goals.

The final one at $1,370,000 is a Liveplay of Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game that we hope will take place right around the time you’re receiving your rewards. It’s going to be a fun LIVE streaming community event to celebrate the game and all the backers, as we watch some seasoned players make their way through a campaign!

We have three confirmed participants so far and hope to add more soon:

Sean Bouchard is part of the Mostly Walking ongoing series, streaming on Twitch and available on YouTube, about the adventure game genre. He has worked as a game designer and researcher in the University of Southern California's Interactive Media and Games Division since 2011. Sean also produces games as an independent game developer, including tabletop games, digital games, and location-based installation projects. His focus is on narrative design and motivating social interaction through game mechanics.

Sarah Horn Elmaleh is an accomplished American voice actor known for her versatile performances in video games, animation, and commercials. With a background in theater and a passion for storytelling, she brings a unique depth and authenticity to her characters. Sarah's notable work includes roles in popular games like "Gone Home," "Mass Effect: Andromeda," and "Final Fantasy XV." Beyond her voice acting, she is an advocate for the video game industry, often speaking on panels and supporting initiatives for better working conditions. 

Sam Roberts is the Executive Producer and Lead Writer of Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game (small world, eh?). Sam is a professor at the prestigious USC Games program, where he teaches the oldest ongoing tabletop roleplaying game design class in the United States. Since helping to found IndieCade, the “Sundance of Games,” Sam has worked as a designer, strategist, and creative director.

We can’t wait to see them play!

We’ll be back with another update after the campaign ends!

The Cryptozoic Team

The Final Dice Bag! And a Closer Look at Mutations!
almost 2 years ago – Tue, May 14, 2024 at 03:13:36 PM

Adventure Time fans,

You did it! You have unlocked the final Dice Bag… The Lich Dice Bag!

One stretch goal to go, which is a Liveplay of the game!

While we are talking about stretch goals, one of our loyal backers (@Sydney) has been requesting for weeks that we adjust the BMO Dice Set so that “the singular dice (D4, D8, D12) each represent a BMO button color, while the multiple dice (D10, D20) represent the standard BMO green.” Well, several of you have joined her in this request, so here you have it: The BMO Dice Set has been adjusted!

Design Journal #6: Mutations

As we round towards the finish, we wanted to get deeper into the nitty gritty of some of the character choices. As we discussed in the Species and Subclass updates, a big part of the design work was disentangling powers and characteristics from amazing Adventure Time persons and making them discrete game pieces a player can choose from to create their own Adventure Time person… a custom remix. While 5E has Species, Occupation, Class, and Subclass, we’ve broken Species down further to include a Talent, and possibly Mutations or Resources. We’ve done this to increase the flexibility and to leave room for a character to have a second Species instead of a Talent, or to have found some special magical item because of their Talent or Occupation. Each of these subsets is a different source for a part of a character’s background and power set. 
 

One piece we knew we wanted was Mutant. Ooo abounds in them following the devastating Mushroom War, and we see many persons who are humanoid Mutants, as well as Mutations of many other types of persons caused by magic or other strangeness. We wanted to make sure we captured this so that players could choose this to be a source of their character’s abilities.
 

Designing a category like this is delicate in a tabletop roleplaying game. The game pieces need to feel clear and distinct, and as Mutations, they need to feel like they can include major shifts and changes. We also don’t want the game to become an X-Men comic (not because those comics aren’t rad, but because this is an Adventure Time game and not an X-Men comic). This means choosing the flavor elements of the game pieces, the “story” parts, so that they feel much more Adventure Time and much less anything else. For instance, being able to make psychic fire is a very comic book mutant power, whereas in Ooo, that’s just being a Flame Person.

We also wanted some people to be Mutants first and foremost, rather than a changed version of something else. So we attempted to build a table of random Mutations that could be used multiple times; a Mutant might have one Mutation or might have many, and we want the story parts AND the mechanical parts to work both on their own or all together.
 

Once we solved for a structure that would allow for one or many Mutations, and a general size of power that felt meaningful without overshadowing a character’s Species, we got to dive into making up Mutations. This meant watching the show, but also reaching into the media that informed the show and thinking about what a Mutation could be. This doubles the risk of it not being Adventure Time-y enough, but it also means there was a lot of fun exploring. We can make a Mutation having laser eyes, as long as it is not all Scott Summers powerful, and it feels like it does belong in Ooo. The structure we built for balance assists in that process, suggesting that laser eyes might be like an offensive Wizard cantrip, something many characters can have that doesn’t overwhelm their identity, but that can be super useful and feel distinct.

Thanks to Mutations, we also just get to grab some of our favorite bits that don’t fit anywhere else and make them a part of the game. Ooo has got some two-headed people, and gosh darn it we want to let you, the players, have a two-headed character, too! If a penguin can be the reincarnation of a primordial monster, maybe that is a Mutation of its own.

Thank you all for coming along on this journey with us! We couldn’t be enjoying the Kickstarter more, and we are so excited for you to see all these amazing cool game pieces we’ve made so you can remix and play your own incredible adventures in Ooo!
 

Thanks for being here,

The Cryptozoic Team

The Final Set of Dice…
almost 2 years ago – Tue, May 14, 2024 at 09:55:08 AM

Adventure Time fans,

Before we get to the big news, in case you missed the comments: Due to fan feedback, if you back during the campaign (even $1) and decide to upgrade your pledge to a higher tier in the pledge manager later, the prices you see will be the same as they are right now. For Late Pledges on Kickstarter (after the campaign ends): These new backers will have to pay 10% more for each pledge tier (though add-ons will be unchanged in price). We feel that this is the most fair way to do it: Backers who support us during the 30 days of the Kickstarter get rewarded with lower pricing.

Now, let’s go! You’ve unlocked two more stretch goals:

At $1,220,000, you unlocked the Time Room Adventure “Prismo’s Quest.” This is  a 16-page bonus adventure in which you help Prismo finish his most recent game! It’s for high-level characters ready to deal with Cosmic Entities. This special addition adds 16 pages to the Adventure Book, bringing it up to a whopping 200 pages! To think, it started with only 50 pages. 

When we hit $1,270,000, you finally got the last set of dice. We asked you all to take a poll and there was a clear winner. The one, the only… THE LICH! The Lich Dice Set is now included in the All-in Apple Slaps Tier and will be an option in tiers with only 1 Dice Set. It is also available as an add-on.

There’s one last Dice Bag to unlock! And one last thing after that…

Thanks for backing!

The Cryptozoic Team

Classes and Subclasses! Plus Social Media Stretch Goal #2… Unlocked!
almost 2 years ago – Mon, May 13, 2024 at 04:09:10 PM

Adventure Time fans,

First of all, we have gotten some messages about Late Pledges. For this campaign, we are using Kickstarter’s new Late Pledges system, which makes them available as soon as the campaign ends. However, in fairness to the backers who supported us during the campaign and due to the strong recommendation of the Kickstarter team, Late Pledge tiers will be priced 10% higher (this will also be true if you change your tiers in the pledge manager, which is where you finalize your order details and shipping info after the campaign). Lock in the lower price by pledging to your desired tier now!

BIG NEWS: You have unlocked Social Media Stretch Goal #2. And because you’re all so awesome, we have upped it from 3 New Species to 4: Shapeshifters, Gnomes, Wolf Persons, AND (surprise) Breakfast Persons! We added the fourth because the votes for Breakfast Persons were strong in the poll last week and we heard your syrupy pleas.

You have also unlocked another stretch goal: At $1,170,000, you got 2 Algebraic Allies: Death and Gunter. In particular, there has been much love for Death in this campaign, so we couldn’t leave him out. 

Design Journal #5: Classes and Subclasses

Let's talk about all those wacky Subclasses! One of the super cool things about tabletop roleplaying games in general and 5E specifically is how delightfully suited they are for remixing. Just as we have done with solving which Species to include, our creative team did extensive research on the persons you, the player, might be in Ooo to solve which Classes you might be. We started by looking at the people of Ooo and figuring out what is a part of their upbringing, what is a part of their training, and what is central to their heroic pursuits and powers. We divided the character’s upbringing and training amongst Species, Occupation, Talents, Mutations, and more for the STORY system, But we still needed to take the parts that are a person’s heroic pursuits and powers and figure out what Character Class and Subclass they represent. 

Character Classes are an important part of 5E and have existed since the beginning of Dungeons & Dragons, powerfully representing the player’s heroic avatar. Classes are super cool, because they both help a player understand who their hero is in the world, but also constrain what their hero can do in the game. A 5E Fighter can be a Knight or a Mercenary or many things in between but at their heart is a heroic warrior. And a 5E Fighter is a character who can manipulate their powers to make powerful weapon attacks, have strong defenses, and endless endurance. Because 5E has such well-designed Classes that each cover a large area of fictional characterization, it did not make sense to make many new Classes (though we have created the Princess Class, which is for heroes who represent, defend, and gain their power from groups of people who they care for). 

Instead, we focused on creating fresh Subclasses. Subclasses are a choice in 5E. You start as a Fighter, or a Rogue, or a Wizard and at some point early on you choose a specialty within your Class, something that brings more specifics to your place in the world and your powers. For instance, you may choose to be an Eldritch Knight, a Knightly warrior who also uses magic.

To dive deep into making the right Subclasses, we needed to disentangle certain powers and positions from some of the people of Ooo, and then find the best Class for each. We started by talking about what Classes are most present. Ooo is a world with many Fighters, Rogues, and Wizards, but not so many Clerics and Paladins. Ooo is a world where every spellcaster seems to be a Wizard, no matter what their power set. And Wizards come in many varieties with lots of super cool abilities, many of which are not always traditional 5E Wizards: lots of blasting, shape changing, and telekinesis, but less book study and magical research. So we figured that the traditional Wizard Class was more like Princess Bubblegum: a scientist of study who figures out how magic works and what it is. And everyone else in Ooo with magic powers is a Wizard, so we chose to make an abundance of Wizard Subclasses for the many other spellcasting Classes of 5E (plus a few others). With the lack of overt religion in Ooo, we chose not to make a Cleric or Paladin Wizard Subclass (though we did make them other Subclasses!) and we felt the Barbarian was a little too not spell-casty to be a Wizard. Of course, we didn’t make a Wizard Subclass for Wizards. But everyone else gets one!

As we worked on what these subclasses would be, we looked at the different Wizards of Ooo (the “Wizard Battle” and “Wizard City” episodes being particularly great resources) for inspiration, hunting for Wizards whose powers were reminiscent of other Classes in 5E or who would make for a fun fit. Some are obvious (Grass Wizard is a Druid, natch) and some are clear with just a little thought (if a Fighter were a Wizard, they’d be a Weapon Wizard, right?). We eventually settled on the following list of Wizard Subclasses, one each for eight of the twelve 5E classes. 

We've created art for a bunch of new remixes that show you the wild variety of Heroes in Ooo. Each one represents a Species, an Occupation, and a Subclass that we've created. You've seen most of these images in the Species update highlighting the species they represent, but now you can see which Subclass!

Bard Subclass: College of Dance Wizardry

Druid Subclass: Circle of Grass Wizard
 

Fighter Subclass: Weapon Wizard

Monk Subclass: Way of the Laser Wizard

Ranger Subclass: Hunt Wizard

Rogue Subclass: Fortunetelling Wizard

Sorcerer Subclass: Nuclear Wizard

Warlock Subclass: Elemental Wizard

We’ve got 12 other Subclasses, each exploring power aspects from your favorite heroes and scoundrels of Ooo as a focus within another Class. Everyone on the team agreed that Jake was a Barbarian at heart, and so one of the 12 is a Path of Stretch Barbarian, letting you build a punchy dude who loves to get long. We know that Jake gets many of his powers from being part Shapeshifter, so we figured out which of Jake’s powers were Shapeshifting, and which were learned knowledge of body manipulation that focused on being a more powerful warrior, and disentangled those powers, again empowering you, the player, to remix. You could be a Shapeshifter and a Path of Stretch Barbarian and be a lot like Jake, but maybe you are just one or the other. This is the power of tabletop RPGS and the joy we hope you all find with Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game.

Barbarian Subclass: Path of Stretch

Bard Subclass: Peace Master

Cleric Subclass: Auditor Domain

Fighter Subclass: Adventurer

Fighter Subclass: Strongman

Paladin Subclass: Oath of Party

Ranger Subclass: Seeker

Rogue Subclass: Calculator

Rogue Subclass: Rebel Leader

Wizard Subclass: Scholar of GOLB

Wizard Subclass: Scientist

Wizard Subclass: Void Caster

Thanks for backing,

The Cryptozoic Team

$1 Million! FINAL 48 HOURS!
almost 2 years ago – Mon, May 13, 2024 at 10:20:20 AM

Adventure Time fans,

It’s the final 48 hours! We just had an incredible weekend: We made it to $1 million in pledges, over 5,000 backers, and more than 35 total stretch goals. In fact, with everything that’s been unlocked and a few more to come, we can safely say that the Core Book will now be 300 pages. Enjoy a heftier experience!

We may be back later today with a second update all about Classes and Subclasses.

Quick update: We haven’t quite hit Social Media Stretch Goal #2, but we are super close! If we make it, you’ll unlock 3 new Species! This is how you unlock it:

• Facebook: 400 likes of this post & 100 friends tagged in the comments
• Instagram: 600 likes of this post & 100 friends tagged in the comments
• X (Twitter): 200 reposts of this post
• TikTok: 400 likes of this video

So Many Stretch Goals 

Wow, it’s totally mathematical how many stretch goals you’ve unlocked since Friday! Just a few left after this!

At $960k, you got a New Territory: the Time Room. Enjoy this new section of the Core Book that lets you create adventures set in Prismo’s Time Room dimension (approximately 6 pages!).

The big one: At $1 million, you unlocked a new adventure set in the Nightosphere starring the Lich! The players race the Lich through an impossibly tall tower, navigating cults and monsters to reach the Chamber of the Shadow Gems first. These 40 additional pages represent the last regular chapter of the Adventure Book.

Next: When we hit $1,020,000, you got six additional monsters from the Candy Kingdom. We focused on areas of the wild for the first monsters in the book (grasslands, forest, swamp, etc), so these Candy Kingdom monsters are a special bonus.
 

At $1,040,000, you got a special Kickstarter Exclusive: The Core Book and Adventure Books will be upgraded with slamacow foil!

What did you get at $1,060,000? Try 3 Playtest 2 Character Sheets included with the Core Book. These fun artifacts are Character Sheets created by Jake, Finn, and Marceline during the second "playtest," with doodles and play notes. You COULD play with the characters they created as pregenerated characters too.

When we reached $1,080,000, things got ba-nay-nay with four Scoundrel subclasses for Clerics, Fighters, and Wizards (one subclass each for the first two classes and two for Wizards). These additions bring 6 more pages to the Core Book.

Last, but definitely not least, at $1,120,000 you unlocked Artifact cards for the Sweet Dosh Deck. These final 8 cards take up the total cards to 100 (34 Common, 26 Uncommon, 19 Rare, 13 Very Rare, 8 Artifact). These sweet cards that represent cool magic items are included in the Way-Cray Beeswax and All-in Apple Slaps Tiers, plus they are available as an add-on.

Thanks for backing!

The Cryptozoic Team