Despite calling Nibiru nightmare fuel, I liked Federico Sohns innovative and imaginative sci-fi RPG.
One of the quirks with the Kickstarter success is that Sohns works for British tabletop logistics and publisher powerhouse Modiphius but Nibiru was entirely separate. The RPG was a labour of love, an authentic Kickstarter, from Sohns.
Well, Nibiru is still separate but Nibiru is now available at the Modiphius store, not that it’s easy to find. On the DriveThruRPG shelves, Nibiru appears with Modiphius as the publisher. However, each listing also includes a copyright statement from Araukana Media, and so it looks like Modiphius are just helping distribute the game.
Family Matters
Nibiru’s transformation from a Kickstarter project to a game complete with hardback and shipping deal is marked with the arrival of three adventures for it.
Family Matters is a $7 PDF of 8-pages, written by Sohns.
The time of harvest is here. As the Vagabonds venture into the Archaean Sorrows, in hopes of fulfilling their debt and keeping their place at the crossroads haven, a family struggles through tragedy and hardship. What stalks them, beneath the still water, and the glowing fungi?
Family Matters is an adventure set in the mysterious region of Umbra, of desolated communities and the strange creatures that roam their edge. It is an ideal starting point for any Nibiru chronicle.
The cover art shows just how flexible Nibiru can be. At a glance, it looks someone walking through a field, but the buildings in the background are actually machines. This is all happening inside that great spaceship.
Boiling Point
Boiling Point is another 8-paged, $7 adventure written by Sohns.
This time, the front cover could depict a scene from Bladerunner. There’s a kasbah decorated with hanging lights and populate with stalls selling cloth and spice. There are no stars in the night’s sky, and that’s because there’s no night. Once again, all this is happening inside the spaceship.
The barge arrived, yet just in time. With the sequels of their ailment still lingering, the Vagabonds seek help. But the strange events that will unfold during their search hint at the causes of their illness, and at hidden forces trying to take control of the City of Suruptu. Will they find the cure?
Boiling Point is an adventure set in the city of Suruptu. It deals with themes of political intrigue and environmental crisis, and with the twisted ways in which hidden forces exert control over the peoples of Penumbra. It is an ideal starting point for any Nibiru chronicle.
Foundations
Foundations fits the same format as the first two adventures. It’s written by Sohns, costs $7 and has 8 pages.
This time, though, the cover looks more overtly sci-fi. There’s a towering citadel that looks industrial and this time the superstructure in the background is easier to spot. This is a nexus point of machines within a more massive machine.
Deep in the city’s bowels, Vagabonds meet. Their gather heralds the establishment of new foundations; of a new community below the shadows of the Assyrian arcologies. But is this hidden utopia really worth the sacrifices they’ll soon be pushed to make?
Foundations is an adventure set in the city of Ashur. It deals with themes of persecution, and of the sacrifices the persecuted make to find a place to call home. It is an ideal starting point for any Nibiru chronicle.
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