🚀It's here - Venture into the Void Above🚀
Our hard sci-fi game is released digitally!
In Spring 2024, Murkdice launched a Kickstarter for our hard sci-fi game Void Above.
Our backers have had exclusive access to the game for 6 months. Today we launch Void Above digitally worldwide! So what’s this game all about?
🚀Check out the Void Above Spacer Guide and Host Guide now! You can also get the free Quickstart Set!🚀
What’s it about?
Void Above is about a crew of Spacers (players) led by a Host (GM) who take on Contracts in a not too distant sci-fi future. Tasks range from scavenging, space station repairs, business negotiations, and sleuthing in nightclubs. It’s all set in hard sci-fi: no faster than light space travel, no artificial gravity.
It’s about problem solving and teamwork. You deal with tense situations with your head, not with a gun.
What do other folks think of the game?
“You’re trying to earn a living doing salvage and repair. Maybe on Mars, maybe near the moons of Saturn. Take contracts, fix things, and upgrade your ship. And there is no combat system whatsoever. Does that sound interesting to you? It sounds interesting to me.” - Ben Robbins (Creator of Microscope)
"Plausibility of both the Premise and Vibes are on-theme for fans of hard sci-fi like me." - KJ, Watch Well Games
"I think that what is really going to be best about… Void Above, is that this [is] something that is simple enough to pick up and apply and yet it is something that matches its genre." - TechnoFunkBoy, Everything Board Games
TechnoFunkBoy reviewed the Quickstart on Everything Board Games YouTube channel!
Game system
The core mechanic is a d6 roll under system with partial successes. Roll under your skill → success, roll equal → success with a complication, roll over → failure. You’ll also find in the core rules:
A customisable ship for the crew.
Travel rules for Ships and for operating them.
A combined currency and experience (XP) system, where XP upgrades your Skills but also buys stuff!
A flexible injury and stress system.
A gear system which includes breaking and mending.
And much more!
Two books?
Void Above has a Spacer Guide and a Host Guide. The Spacer Guide has all of the core rules you need to play. The Host Guide has additional kit for those running the game, providing tools and guidance for making scenarios and includes our own solar system as a micro-setting. Each one also comes with a cheat sheet!
Spacer Guide (get it here)
Why don’t I just show you the contents so you can see what’s in it!
You’ll find ‘vibes’ guidance to help immerse Spacers and Hosts in hard sci-fi:
And rules presented as helpful flow charts:
Don’t forget the Spacer and Ship sheets!
Host Guide (get it here)
Here’s the contents page:
You’ll find situation design tools:
A micro-setting of our own solar system:
And a ready to run scenario:
🚀Check out the Void Above Spacer Guide and Host Guide now! You can also get the free Quickstart Set!🚀
The humans behind it
This project was created by a team of four. Yours truly for writing, graphic design, and game design. Lyndsay (our editor) for editing, project management and testing. Georgia was our art director and lead illustrator (see the recommended video below), with Jack as our assistant illustrator. It was a labour of love and we are so proud of these two books.
It was made possible by the amazing backers who funded it back in Spring this year. Backers who are reading this, know we are still so thankful to you for making this project happen.
Recommendation
Our lead illustrator for Void Above, Georgia, recently put one of her animations on YouTube ~music by yours truly~. Worth a watch!
Looks fantastic
This looks really cool! I’ll def be checking it out. Always love me some good sci fi!