Exodus: Event Horizon

Odds and Ends
about 7 years ago – Thu, Mar 02, 2017 at 05:41:28 PM

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Today we come to you with the final (at least as the campaign is still running) update form Rainer. So, if there is anything you thought was missing from his previous updates, there's a chance you'll find it here!

Everything Else

Now that we are nearing the end of the campaign, let me first express some words of gratitude. I am incredible thankful to all of you for your support and positivity throughout this campaign. Whether you have been with us from the launch of this campaign, or just came on board today — a warm welcome, and a sincere thank you for your support!

Together, we have examined every aspect of Exodus: Event Horizon in various updates. We have looked at mechanisms, how things work, the purpose and design behind the various modules, new gaming modes, and even just some fun Easter Eggs.

In this update, I would like to acknowledge the artists whose creative vision and artistry has brought Event Horizon to life!

I have been a long-time fan of Odysseas Stamoglou. He manages to blend a broad scene with intricate detail. His artwork is vivid and evocative, and I am thrilled that he is involved in this project as well.

Before I saw the first draft for the Event Horizon box cover, I really was not sure what to expect. Judging from previous Exodus artwork, I knew it would be thematic and stunning, but I was not sure what scene it would depict. I also was not sure what type of art direction he was given.

To tell you the truth, I could not be happier! I love the blend between the detailed pilot in the foreground (awesome to have a shot from within the cockpit!) and the apocalyptic event in the background. I always envisioned a dual meaning behind the name Event Horizon, and I was hoping the artwork would depict something that could either be interpreted as the stellar event of a dying star, or the return of the Centaurian Stronghold morphing into view. Is that a dying Proxima Centauri? Is that the Centaurian Stronghold emerging in the midst of the solar system? I really do not know! And I love it!

Of course, I never told NSKN Games or Odysseas any of this previously … so to see the artwork capture that vision — amazing!

Then you have Agnieszka Kopera, whose magical talent is bringing you some amazing graphic design on cards, icons, and symbols. I have no idea how she manages to translate entire technologies into a single symbol with depth and meaning. Throughout play testing, everything was always spelled out — Sector Scan, Quantum Targeting, etc. To see technologies, actions, and abilities depicted on cards in digital form — I am so thrilled with how everything is coming together!

The truth is, Event Horizon would not be what it is today if it were not for the collective talents and work of several individuals. There is Błażej Kubacki with his excellent voice work on the Kickstarter video, and his eye for detail and accuracy as he helped proof read the rule book etc.

A lot of attention to detail has gone into the design and development of Exodus: Event Horizon. While I cannot promise that nothing has been missed, I can promise that the very best efforts have been made, over the last many months, to keep diligent track of … everything.

A few examples of such details:

Event Horizon will come with 3 additional resource dice. Why? In case you play with 6 players and all three Dual Resource planets happen to come up at the same time.

You will also get 40 black cubes (just like the ones the players use). Why? This way, you can mark off technologies which “do not exist” unless you play with a module that uses them. There is one technology for the Exploration (M4) module, four for the Centaurian Outposts (M3) module, and two for the Proxima Centauri (M6) module. Therefore, if you only play with the Exploration (M4) module, each player can use black cubes to mark off the other six technologies. So why the 4 extra black cubes? Feel free to use one to mark the current Turn on the Centaurian Resistance and Warship Squadron Strength Charts.

“And where do I put random stuff that I would like to tell you, but which did not fit in a previous update? Here, I guess …”

Fun and Games
about 7 years ago – Wed, Mar 01, 2017 at 09:49:19 PM

Ladies and Gentlemen!

We are slowly closing on the final 48 hours of the project. Just before the final push let's relax for a moment and let Rainer talk about the perks of designing a game, how names are created, and... Fun and Games!

There is a common phrase in English (and probably elsewhere): “X is (is not) all fun and games.”

“This job isn’t all fun and games …”

“Enough fun and games; let’s get on with the business …”

“Don’t take things so seriously. It’s just fun and games …”

Designing a board game is, most definitely, fun. That’s the driving force behind the creativity and the ideas. But there is also a lot of hard work involved. Months of design and development, followed by tedious “running of numbers” and play testing, followed by redesign and redevelopment, followed by more play testing, etc. … until, at some point, the game is “done”.

Despite any amount of work involved, the whole process is rewarding and fun. Reading your feedback (whether positive or negative) is wonderful. You care, and you want the game or expansion to be the best it can be.

Today, I do not want to talk about modules … I do not want to talk about numbers, balancing, or any of that.

In today’s update I want to get more personal. Today, it is all fun and games!

On names and such …

One of the fun perks of designing a game is that you get to add a touch of your own personality. Let’s take planet names, as an example.

Exodus: Event Horizon contains 23 new planets. In addition to having cool abilities (mechanisms), each planet does, in fact, need a name. Not every name has a special meaning, but some do. I would like to share some of those with you today!

MU-1010 is a reference to the location and date my wife and I got married. We were married in Manti, Utah on October 10.

P1-FF is an homage to a Board Game Geek sub-community: Pay it Forward First. However, the name is also an homage to Star Wars (which I am a big fan of) where many droids have similarly constructed names.

Kal’Dan is a blend word comprised of my oldest son’s first and middle name: Kaleb Daniel.

Several planets are named in Romanian: Glorie means glory, Ascuns means hidden, and Feeria means fairy. NSKN Games is headquartered in Romania. Andrei is also of Romanian descent.

New Texas was named as a nod to a very dear friend of mine who is from Texas. The name is also a cultural nod to the fact that, even hundreds of years in the future, the Texan pride runs deep.

Rakmaic uses the initials of all names of the members of my family.

I am by no means familiar with the Chinese language. However, to the best of my knowledge, as a possible translation (when the words translated individually) the name Kuan-Yin means means-because. Why? Why not! I also like puns … and weird facts … In fact, I’m just weird, period.

Proxima II is a reference to newly discovered Proxima b, an earth-like planet orbiting the real-life Proxima Centauri star.

Saefigla is the old (15th century) name of the Swedish town where I grew up, Säffle. I doubt most residents of Säffle actually know this.

And, finally — K-123 — this one is for you! At the end of this campaign, the planet will be renamed to reflect the final number of backers.

On artwork and such …

There are also some references in various artwork used in the game.

On the MU-1010 planet you will find a disguised outline of Greece, the birthplace of Odysseas Stamoglou whose evocative and stunning artwork has graced each Exodus game.

Remember how ascuns means hidden? While you cannot visibly see it, in the source artwork file (layered Photoshop) there is a moon hidden behind the planet. Below (on the left) you can see the planet hex as it will appear in the game. On the right is the same hex without the planet itself, leaving only the two moons visible (and revealing the normally hidden moon).

Remember New Texas? Being an advanced military planet (military techs being represented by a star), the ability (and related iconography) is also a reference to Texas being called The Lone Star State.

The planet Bakusk is a remnant from early design and development, when I was investigating how to use asteroids in the game. While asteroids themselves were quickly scrapped, the artwork of one lived on in the form of a planet.

The text near at the top of the Centaurian Stronghold spells Horizon, using an alien looking font.

The vast majority of the “text” used on the Jump Gate and Communication Satellite blueprints is pure gibberish, nonsense text produced by randomly drumming the fingers on the computer keyboard. However, one of the text segments on the Communication Satellite blueprint, although completely illegible, simply spells out the manner in which the text was created, much like I have just done for you now.

The Big (Box) Reveal
about 7 years ago – Tue, Feb 28, 2017 at 06:12:30 PM

Ladies and Gentlemen!

We have some good news, and what better way to give them to you than via a neat, short update. So, here we go!

The BIG Box

You backers are fantastic! So far, you have managed to unlock a whole range of stretch goals, ensuring that Event Horizon will come packed to the brim with all the goodies we had hoped to be able to include! Naturally, all that makes putting Proxima Centauri, Edge of Extinction and Event Horizon into one Exodus box simply impossible.

In a recent update we discussed the possibility of upgrading the expansion box for Event Horizon to a much larger box, capable of holding all components that comprise the Exodus experience. We have now received quotes back from the manufacturer and determined that such an upgrade would be possible once we reach $90,000 in total funding!

And that's not all! Along the way we will also be able to add a few new cards, which we will reveal as we make our way through more stretch goals!

Consolidated Player Aid

But what about the consolidated Player Aid? As of this moment — it is already included! So, if you were worried about missing any of the new - or old! - rules, now you will have everything you need right there beside your player board!

No stretch goal here, just a little gift from us to you!

The Last Few Days

If you have a friend or gaming buddy who may have been on the fence about backing previously, perhaps they would take a second look now? If we work together to spread the word, we can cross off these last few stretch goals as well!

$90,000 may seem like far away, but we are feeling confident we can get there. While we still have the 48-hour surge ahead of us, if you would like to help spread the word by sharing this campaign via social media, we encourage you to do so. Simply click the "Share" button next to the project video at the top of the page.

We have come this far with your incredible support, and we believe we can go the rest of the way as well!

As always, have a great day!

The NSKN Team

Centaurian Resistance: a look at the math
about 7 years ago – Mon, Feb 27, 2017 at 04:14:30 PM

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Once again, we're peeking behind the curtain, to see how the idea of the new Centaurian Resistance grew into a module of the game.

Enjoy the read, and - as always - have a great day!

The “new” Centaurian Resistance emerged as a loosely defined idea very early in the design process. The concept was simple — the strength of the resistance should increase slightly as the game progresses, instead of becoming an insignificant threat towards the end of the game.

But how to get from concept to a polished module was easier said than done.

Originally, I imagined a simple scaling bonus, where the cannon strength and shield power would increase by 1 for every two game turns. +1 during turns 2 and 3, +2 during turns 4 and 5, and so forth.

Since this was an area that would alter an existing mechanism, I definitely wanted to hear Andrei’s thoughts. We bounced some ideas back and forth, but nothing felt quite right. Everything had its definitive pros and cons.

My first idea would increase the math and just felt a bit unsatisfactory.

Andrei suggested that simply creating brand new decks would work, but that would also render existing components (the Centaurian Resistance cards) useless.

If we were going to change the Centaurian Resistance, we also wanted to consider ways for the Resistance ships to respawn.

Then, one day — lightbulb!

To accommodate new levels, and without needing new card decks, combining cards to create tougher opponents would work. In fact, something very similar had already been done for the solo scenarios in Edge of Extinction.

And thus, the Centaurian Resistance Strength Chart was born. Surprisingly, the final version of this chart is very similar to the first version.

In the base game, the average Level 1 Resistance ship has:
1.56 cannons, 1 shield

An average Level 2 Resistance ship has:
2.70 cannons, 2 shields

And, the average Level 3 Resistance ship has:
4.40 cannons, 3 shields

The difference between a Level 2 and a Level 3 ship is, on average:
1.70 cannons, 1 shield

With the new scaling resistance, the math works out as follows:

Those final two columns I find fascinating. When comparing the number of cannons per shield, the math works quite beautifully!

No, it’s not absolutely perfect, but it does not need to be either.

By utilizing the existing Centaurian Resistance cards, allowing the ships to spawn at a scaling pace that makes sense, and utilizing the ability for multiple ships to spawn at the same time — the new Centaurian Resistance module was a success!

Early play tests were tremendously successful, and the new Centaurian Resistance mechanism kept getting high scores in surveys after play tests.

And, I have to admit — while the Centaurian Resistance has definitely become more challenging, it feels just right!

Module Interactions: Part Two.
about 7 years ago – Sun, Feb 26, 2017 at 07:07:17 PM

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Today Rainer continues his explanation of module interactions, and gives you a very special preview.

We hope you enjoy the read and have a great Sunday

Module Interactions

In past updates, we have looked at each module, individually. Now I would like to review Exodus: Event Horizon as a whole, as a coherent expansion and addition to Exodus: Proxima Centauri.

Designing Event Horizon was not an exercise in trying to throw “everything but the kitchen sink” into the game. Instead, it came about from an earnest desire to enhance the gaming experience for everyone while staying true to the spirit of the Exodus universe and the marvelous game that started it all — Exodus: Proxima Centauri.

Where new modules and new steps were added, it was critical to ensure a natural fit without disrupting the experience existing fans of Exodus are familiar with. However, with so many modules, touching every aspect of the game experience, keeping everything straight can seem overwhelming at first.

Rest assured that each module was carefully designed to fit as naturally into existing rules as possible, mimicking similar mechanisms, following the same general turn order, whatever it might be.

As a reminder, here are the 10 modules, in the order they appear in the expansion:

Bonus Actions (M1)
Challenge Level: 0/5

Centaurian Resistance (M2)
Challenge Level: 3/5

Centaurian Outposts (M3)
Challenge Level: 4/5

Exploration (M4)
Challenge Level: 3/5

New Planets (M5)
Challenge Level: 1/5

Proxima Centauri (M6)
Challenge Level 2/5

Jump Gates (M7)
Challenge Level: 1/5

Communication Satellites (M8)
Challenge Level: 1/5

Energy Barriers (M9)
Challenge Level: 1/5

Leaders (M10)
Challenge Level: 1/5

Thinking back on previous updates and the massive amount of new content that Event Horizon adds to the game, it is no wonder that a lot of people have been asking for an updated player aid. We always knew that one would be necessary. In a recent update we also teased the fact that we have been working on one.

As a special preview for all you wonderful backers:

The reverse side will additionally contain any steps introduced in the Edge of Extinction expansion. This also offered us a good solution for the placement of the Jump Gate and Communication Satellite blueprints (repeated on both sides).

So, how big would this player aid be?

With this player aid, there should be very few new rules you actually need to memorize. In fact, they are so few that I am going to list them here:

• Bonus Actions — It is recommended that the Vice Chancellor will shuffle and randomly draw six of the Bonus Actions used in the game and make their selection from those six cards.

• Centaurian Outposts — +1 Population each Upkeep Stage! Outpost Combat attack roll: Roll dice equal to 1 + the number of Population you have on the planet. Infrastructure adds 1 die. One or more Fighter ships add 1 die. Quantum Targeting lets you count 4+ as successful hits (instead of the normal 5+).

• Exploration — Reveal a face-down hex as soon as one or more ships end their movement on the face-down hex. Draw and resolve an Event. Place resource dice (and Outposts, if applicable), then proceed as normal.

• Jump Gates — At the end of any Conquest Stage, you may activate one of your Jump Gates to move one or more ships from another hex to that hex.

• Communication Satellites — Owner deals +1 damage (per combat round) in space combat in the hex and receives a +1 bonus to range when launching WMDs from the hex.

• Energy Barriers — Player ships suffer 1 damage when flying through (except Dark Raiders). The barrier applies a -1 penalty to range when firing WMDs through the barrier.

… and that’s pretty much it!

“But what about the new Centaurian Resistance?”

Simply keep the Centaurian Resistance Strength Chart handy next to the three Resistance decks.

“And what about all the new tokens?”

As a general Rule of Thumb — you only need to worry about something when it is in your hex.

For example, Planet Debris and various Event markers — these only apply when the token is in your hex.

Likewise, you do not need to worry about the Outpost markers until you Deploy Population onto a planet. Then, at the end of each Conquest Stage (just like “Deploy Population” happens at the end of each Conquest Stage), you will resolve Centaurian Outpost Combat wherever there is an Outpost and Population.

Recognizing the Play Testers

Numerous play tests (both blind and organized) were conducted in various groups, often mixing three groups of players:

• those who had never before played Exodus
• those who had played Exodus only a few times
• those with intimate knowledge of and experience with Exodus

In some play tests, even with brand new players, all modules were included. In others we tested modules individually or in certain combinations.

When play testing cooperative play, it was important to include players who are fans of cooperative games as well as those who normally dislike them.

If you were one of those who took part in these play tests — a sincere thank you!