This week’s RPG Publisher Spotlight returns with an interview with Than Gibson, the creative force behind DMing the World Press.
With over three decades of storytelling experience, Than has transitioned from running games to designing them, bringing a wealth of real-world historical and cultural inspiration to the table.
We discuss the origins of DMing the World Press, their rules-light sci-fi roleplaying game DarkSpace, and their latest post-alien-invasion campaign setting, Xenosalvage. We also get a sneak peek at the upcoming expanded edition of DarkSpace, which promises more tools for GMs to build their own sci-fi sagas.
An Interview with Than Gibson
To start, who is Than Gibson, and what’s the founding story for DMing the World?
I’m a gamer who started playing when a kid smuggled the D&D Red Box to school in his gym bag back in the 80s. For most of that time, I’ve always been a GM/DM. I was the one who would find a cool new game and try to get my group of friends to play it. I’m still that way today with my family and friends.
DMing the World emerged from that experience. I had been writing RPG reviews for a board game website and wanted to do something more than reviews. My original goal was to just provide GM tips, but there’s a lot of that out there. So, I looked at how I find my stories and realised that I was basically “DMing the world”.
Inspiration doesn’t occur in a vacuum. Storytelling is about communicating an experience, so we should relate our gaming stories to the world just like we do with other stories. For example, I hold an art degree, and my wife works as a museum consultant. We are always talking about these fascinating little tidbits of history and world cultures, and I sometimes weave those into my personal campaign world. So, I started writing about it and also created some YouTube videos about it.
You have over 30 years of storytelling experience. What inspired you to move from running games to designing and publishing them?
Well, my first real dip into publishing was when I wrote an article on DMing the World about creating Dragonlance adventures. The 5e book had just come out, and Dragonlance was something I grew up with. I wanted to help aspiring Dragonlance DMs write adventures that felt like the books – themes about loyalty, honour, and balance. So, to prove my point, I wrote a Dragonlance adventure – Quest for the Horn of Kiri-Jolith and put it up on DM’s Guild. It was decently received, but more importantly, I had learned how to self-publish.
Your design philosophy on your site mentions drawing inspiration from real-world history and culture. Can you give an example of how you’ve woven a piece of real-world inspiration into DarkSpace or Xenosalvage?
DarkSpace is (for now) just a rules hack. So I don’t necessarily have real-world cultural influences in it beyond the nods to classic sci-fi that my co-creator, Derek White, and I threw in there.
In Xenosalvage, we came to a project that was loosely based on X-COM, but neither of us had played it. So, we examined the broader body of alien invasion/abduction stories and incorporated many of them into the background of Xenosalvage. For example, we start the invasion in 1996/97. That’s because there was a massive resurgence of alien-related pop culture – The X-Files, Independence Day, and Men in Black were all out at that time. So, we tie that into the background. Those were psychic manipulations by the invaders to soften Earthlings up to the idea of alien visitors and make them complacent.
Why was the rules-light Shadowdark RPG the right foundation for the sci-fi universe you wanted to build with DarkSpace?
Derek and I had both already been playing Shadowdark. It was perfect for running one-shots and teaching new players because it’s just enough of a framework to build on.
It was Derek’s idea to create a sci-fi rules set because he was getting burned out on D&D and fantasy after the pandemic. He wanted to get back to his roots and play sci-fi again. When he approached me for help in making it happen, Shadowdark was an easy choice.
DarkSpace swaps traditional alignment for a “Motivation” system. What was the thinking behind that design choice, and how does it change how characters navigate the world?
That was Derek’s idea. He wanted there to be a virtue aspect to alignment and give it some weight. Also, when we started talking about making this a rules set for all subgenres of sci-fi, we knew that Law vs Chaos wasn’t always going to work. Motivation can be interpreted on a personal level much more than Alignment. It allows for more roleplaying opportunities.
For readers who haven’t heard of it yet, what’s the elevator pitch for your new campaign setting, Xenosalvage?
The alien invasion is over. We won. Now what?
Xenosalvage is a partnership with Menagerie Press. How did that collaboration come about, and what was the creative process like?
The Kickstarter for Xenosalvage came out at the same time that we released the original Quickstart version of DarkSpace. We both backed it because we were thrilled to see another sci-fi Shadowdark at the same time as us. When production issues arose with Xenosalvage, I reached out to Will MB to see if he needed some help with it. We ended up turning it into a full partnership where we wrote Xenosalvage for DarkSpace under the Menagerie Press label. The creative process has been great. Derek did a lot of the worldbuilding, I mostly did rules and layout, and we stayed in constant communication with Will, who offered feedback and is now editing it.
The setting is about salvaging alien technology after a massive war. What films, books, or games were inspirations for the tone and feel of Xenosalvage?
You name an alien abduction/invasion property, there’s probably a nod in there somewhere! However, for primary inspirations, it’s a blend of X-COM, Fallout, Independence Day, and the classic lore of grey alien visitors.
You’re planning to crowdfund an expanded edition of DarkSpace. What exciting new additions or changes are you hoping to bring to the game with that project?
The major addition and primary reason we wanted to produce an expanded edition is to include more GM material. We’ve always said DarkSpace can be used for any subgenre of sci-fi, so we want to help GMs do that. We’re doing that with what I call “One-Page Settings.” On one page, you will have the major themes and flavour of a sci-fi subgenre, and then which rules between Shadowdark and DarkSpace work best for that subgenre. The intent is to give GMs a rules reference for playing Fantasy Space Opera vs Hard Sci-Fi.
Beyond that, we’re expanding Space Ship rules to include six different classifications of ships and provide rules on how to build your own ship from the ground up.
Xenosalvage will introduce more complex systems like cyberpunk-style hacking and bio-formulas. How do these new mechanics build upon the core DarkSpace experience?
Hacking is a great example where we took something that already existed in DarkSpace and adapted it into something new. It’s effectively another use for The Triad, our metaphysical power system – three stats that give a player a lot of flexibility for imaginative play. However, the difference lies in its connection to a specific piece of hardware – the hacking rig, cyberdeck, etc. We also provide players and GMs with a selection of programs and malware to start with and use as a reference when customising their own.
When a group sits down to play a game of DarkSpace or Xenosalvage, what sort of experience do you hope they have? What defines a great game for you?
Quick, collaborative play. The Shadowdark system is designed to keep the action moving. Players should be playing off each other’s successes and failures and overcoming challenges. In the end, if everyone is smiling, then we’ve had a great game.
Looking past the DarkSpace expanded edition, are there any other projects coming from DMing the World that you think readers should know about now?
Beyond the expanded edition, we have more Void Echoes (our zine) lined up already and will be working with some other creators on those. There are more ideas on the board, but it’s too soon to talk about them.
However, more importantly, we have also announced the DarkSpace 3rd Party License! Some great creators are already writing their own products for DarkSpace, which is so exciting! We can’t wait to see more added to the community.
Thanks, Than. Thank you also to Geek Native’s patreons who steer the RPG Publisher Spotlight each month. They voted to find out more about DMing the World Press.
Quick Links
- DMing the World Press official site.
- DMing the World at DriveThruRPG.
- DMing the World on YouTube.
- DMing the World on Facebook.
- DMing the World on Instagram.
