Apocalypse the Risen Campaign Setting (5E & Pathfinder)
Created by Rusted Portal Games
Battle undead and demonic horrors ravaging post-apocalyptic Earth 25 years after the Rise. DnD Fifth Edition (5E) & Pathfinder RPG.
Latest Updates from Our Project:
AtR Campaign Setting: Pathfinder PDF Published!
over 4 years ago
– Fri, May 08, 2020 at 05:56:51 PM
Greetings, Survivors!
First and foremost, we hope this email finds you safe and healthy during these crazy pandemic times. The wellbeing of your colony is of utmost importance to us. We have been working hard to protect our colony while developing your manual to the apocalypse.
TL:DL – DELIVERY! Before delving deep on the production and publication calendar, we want to make sure you are aware we have officially published the Apocalypse the Risen Campaign Setting Pathfinder Compatible edition PDF on DriveThruRPG.
If you are scheduled to receive the Pathfinder version PDF and you have not already done so, check your email for a DriveThruRPG exclusive download link to redeem your free PDF!
If you cannot find that email and are supposed to have received the PATHFINDER PDF, send us an email and we will send you your unique code. You will need to communicate in your email the email address that you use specifically for KICKSTARTER!
We are so excited to finally see a completed PDF reach publication and hope you find that it exceeds all the lofty expectations we have continued to pitch. We feel comfortable putting this product side-by-side with the big companies of the industry. And we are far from done. So thank you again for your continued support, encouragement, and interest!
* Please look over your PDF and if you love it, post a review on DriveThruRPG. It means the world to us and will absolutely help promote future products you can enjoy.
* If you really love it, tell your friends they should pick it up as well!
* If you find any typos or things we have overlooked in the PDF, send us an EMAIL and let me know. We can get it corrected before we go to print.
* Head over to the BackerKit Pre-Sale page. We have updated EVERYTHING to include actual art and descriptions wherever possible. If there is something you did not back but would like to have, buy now. We have also updated prices on the adventures just for the pre-sale!
* Especially send your fellow gamer friends over to the pre-sale and get in on these Kickstarter materials now! We think you’re going to love the content, so tell somebody!
* A few backers at the Legend and Antiquity levels still have not submitted their handles. We will make yours up if we don’t have them soon.
Also note – We have added back in the Colony Builder add-on. This will be included in the next book, Apocalypse the Risen: Campaign Expansion 1. We have so much content and lots of lead time to work with backers to build these colonies and include. You have a great chance to be a game designer in this world and have your home campaign colony in the book. We are looking at Q1 2021 to launch this Kickstarter… with a much faster production calendar. ;)
AtR: Pathfinder Edition Print Schedule:
We are ready to go to print! 432 glorious full color pages in a hardback cover (or ‘leather’ for some of you)!
We are currently negotiating with our preferred printer to bring Apocalypse the Risen Campaign Setting to you in hardcover format. We found a fantastic European printer for which we are incredibly happy with the quality (as delivered by a fellow Publisher we backed on Kickstarter). We expect to finalize an agreement before the end of the month and go to print.
We have not yet locked down the turnaround time on the print job at this time. However, we believe we should still see a roughly 30 day process. We are requested a few physical copy reviews throughout the process, which requires international shipping. The biggest delay on time will be the slow boat delivery back to the states, but that is the price of doing business internationally.
At this time, we are hopeful to receive the full shipment and deliver to backers by the end of July. That timeline could shift into August based on shipping and necessary corrections. We are also hopeful the impact of covid-19 does not strengthen here or in the country where we are printing.
---> AtR Pathfinder PDF: DELIVERED!
---> Target AtR Pathfinder Deliver: July 2020/August 2020
AtR 5E Edition:
Designer and rules guru Chad Matson is hard at work transferring all final documents from Pathfinder to 5E and updating rules. Most chapters are updated with 2nd or 3rd pass design changes. Final touches are being put into the bestiary presently, with more time needed on colony design and the multiverse. Much of that will be new rules for 5E, which we are excited about!
In the coming weeks as we send Pathfinder off to the printer, the full team will transition to playtesting the present 5E build. Playtesting by friends and backers has taken a hit with conventions being shut down for quarantine purposes. We thank our backers for staying safe and protecting others. Recognize it does impact our schedule, but we are working effectively in a remote environment.
Chad has also taken to climbing the steep learning curve of roll20 so we can host remote playtests more effectively (Discord and Zoom work, just not comprehensively). The more playtesting we can accomplish, the quicker we can run the content through editing and ultimately layout.
On that note, if you have interest in running playtests via roll20 or have experience in building out a roll20 adventure, send us an email. We for sure want to discuss. Thank you in advance to our existing Game and Dungeon Masters for keeping the fires burning at conventions for as long as you could. If you’ve got skills on digital gaming or just want to engage with us on the subject, send us an email. We take care of our contributors! :)
Regardless, development has been steady and progressive. We have the following targets for 5E delivery.
---> Target AtR 5E PDF Delivery: September/October
---> Target AtR 5E Print Delivery: October/November
We have learned a tremendous amount on how to actually publish a game. We knew we had a great idea and an eye for good art. Now we know what it takes to bring that all together. So with that, here are the future plans for the company as we move forward in producing games for you to enjoy. We hope to have you all back and see you at tables in the future (either in person or online).
* Hardback books will be sold direct on the (in progress) new Rusted Portal website
* Campaign book PDFs will be sold exclusively through DriveThruRPG
* Adventure series ePub books will be sold exclusively through Amazon
* Future products will again launch on Kickstarter to fund publishing – we will Kickstart when we are much further along in design going forward
* We will launch a Patreon account with exclusive access to Truth Transmissions, design discussions, and influence on future products
Bottom Line:
We are bringing you all of the Apocalypse the Risen Campaign Setting products you backed and expected. They are going to be everything we have promised and more. And we hope you find it worth the time and frustration in waiting on what you backed. We couldn’t appreciate you more and look forward to building on the colony we’ve started.
Thank you again and keep an eye out for more in the coming months. Reach out with any related topics from above. And above all, stay safe and sane in your battle against the Darkness.
Pre-Apocalypse Post: AtR
almost 5 years ago
– Wed, Mar 18, 2020 at 06:06:52 PM
Greetings, Survivors!
Before anything else, we want to express our sincere well wishes for you and your loved ones to stay safe and (seriously) sane during these crazy times. None of us have quite experienced anything like this in our lifetimes. Doing so absolutely requires our colonies to be tight and supportive.
We also want to express our deep appreciation for your patience and continued interest in Apocalypse the Risen. We have endless love for those backers that can’t wait to get their hands on AtR and especially those who continued to run convention games (prior to event shutdowns). Without you we are nothing in this industry that we love dearly. It is because of that we have worked so hard to bring a fantastic game to life. Anyone can have a great idea, not everyone can bring it to market. We will be bringing this game to market and in print.
And that, my friends, leads me to the latest update on what you really want to know. Development, printing, and delivery.
AtR Pathfinder Edition:
We know that most of our backers are awaiting the 5E version; however, Pathfinder was first in development and will be delivered first.
We have provided full book feedback to our layout artist for the Pathfinder Compatible edition of Apocalypse the Risen. We expect to get a full turn on that feedback and work to final approval by early April. Simeon (layout artist) has suggested that will be tight but doable.
There are a few odds and ends (cover print layout both standard and leather, opening binding layout, back cover copy, and index) that need added. These shouldn’t take considerable time and should be completed along with the rest of the book. We are again researching our best printer option as things have obviously changed since our initial research.
Provided finalization happens as described, we will look to get on a printer’s calendar by early May. That should put Pathfinder books in your hands sometime in early July (unless Covid-19 is the actual cause of the Rise).
---> Target AtR Pathfinder Delivery: July 2020
AtR 5E Edition:
To start here, I want one thing perfectly transparent. We have not stopped development on the 5E Compatible edition while we finalized Pathfinder. The team orientation has been split up to make sure we made continued incremental progress. And we are really stoked with how the classes and archetypes for each are shaping up. All classes and all creatures have been updated from those seen in past conventions. By that I mean, full rebuild and play balancing. That will happen at least one more time over the coming months as the team transitions fully to 5E development.
Once the Pathfinder book ships off to the printer, the full team will begin working on 5E in both design scrub and playtest sessions. We already have a few GMs running the new build for the 3rd level adventure (Endless Descent), for which we could not be more thankful (with understandable delays due to the global pandemic).
Regarding timing, our present (and conservative) goal is to begin editing AtR 5E when AtR Pathfinder ships. Provided that holds true that would put us on track to deliver AtR 5E in the October timeframe. We know that’s not what you want to hear, it certainly isn’t what we want to say. This update is an attempt to provide a target expectation we can hit based on turnaround times we have seen with our partners. That said, it is possible our final draft for AtR 5E will be much cleaner when it reaches editing and layout. That’s our goal, and if that is true, we could move faster through those timelines.
---> Target AtR 5E Delivery: October 2020
COVID-19:
The Rise jokes aside, we are obviously in the midst of major world disruption with this global pandemic. This could have significant impact on all aspects of development through print and delivery. While we do not have reason to believe that will be the case at this time, we understand it is a possibility. We do not expect this disease to interrupt our development timelines, though we will alert backers of any changes. Development and production are presently full steam ahead, with a focus on remote work sessions and playtests. We have already launched remote Zoom dev sessions and expect to do the same with playtests in the coming weeks. We hope everyone stays safe and healthy. Support and look out for each other, we’re all we got (we’re all we need).
Building a Colony
Build Your Colony:
In all times, a colony helps keep you safe. In Apocalypse the Risen the colony is a physical place with physical defenses. In real life, your colony might just be friends, and family, and strangers looking out for each other. It’s really important right now to find or build or maintain that colony for you and everyone else. And probably not in a physical place. (Laughter is important). Anyway, here’s some page selections from Chapter 9: Narrating. This chapter covers the rules for colonies and the session zero colony builder. I’m including because I’m reminded how important your choices are in determining the colony in which you live.
Session Zero Opening
The Bottomline:
Rusted Portal will deliver high quality full color Apocalypse the Risen books for both Pathfinder and 5E systems as sold in our Kickstarter campaign. We are very late and well aware. Our solution is to overdeliver quality content and physical presentation. We can only hope our wonderful backers will understand and forgive once you get your hands on this campaign setting. AtR is far more epic and deeper than ever communicated during the Kickstarter. You don’t have to take my word for it, you will eventually have your hands on it to find out.
Session Aftermath
War Chest Stretch Goals:
We have completed development of the convention versions of all three adventures unlocked during the Kickstarter. Each of these games will be expanded with additional narrative, encounters, and story hooks before final delivery. The final product will be PDF with formal layout and art. The convention versions are intended for 4-5 hour sessions which play well as one-off home games.
In the coming weeks we will be putting a shared folder together for backers to distribute all three convention games. These include pre-gen characters for all 9 classes, multiple creatures (including some found only in these games), and environmental effects not previously released. This release will include both Pathfinder and 5E versions, so all backers can get a feel for AtR with their home groups. Bear in mind that these shared conventions versions do not include final publishing publish. They will before the final delivery.
Dead in the Darklands: 1st Level – “Grave danger is discovered near your colony, putting its very existence in jeopardy.” Upon final delivery will include the printable PDF Scavenge Map of an encounter/location in the adventure.
Demon Divided: 2nd Level – “Food stores in your colony have gone missing and your hunting party definitely smell a rat in this twisted who-done-it.” Upon final delivery will include the printable PDF Scavenge Map of an encounter/location in the adventure.
Endless Descent: 3rd Level – “There’s nowhere to go but down when old problems arise from the depths. Will you and your hunting party survive the intrusive dark?” Upon final delivery will include the printable PDF Scavenge Map of an encounter/location in the adventure.
Adventure Stretch Goals:
While the focus has been on the campaign setting for both systems, we are still keeping track and making progress on all additional deliverables unlocked as part of the Kickstarter. All rewards will be delivered. Some of these stories are complete and progress continues. All will be included in layout with the complete PDF journal and written agnostically with regard to either system, save for any necessary stat blocks.
Iconic Intro Stories – 9 tales of travel from Dr. Dobrin as he meets each of the iconics. Get to know the characters and art that inspired the best examples of each class.
Micro Adventure Hooks – 45 micro-stories from the travels of Dr. Dobrin. Each is roughly 250 words and introduces a new item, creature, people of interest, or place of intrigue meant to inspire your own games.
Ghost Stories (Emotes: Grief, Terror, Loathing, Rage)– 4 ghost stories covering Dr. Dobrin’s encounters with each of the four known Emotes. Each short story will be around 1,500 words.
Ghost Stories (Apparitions) – 4 ghost stories recanting Dr. Dobrin’s run-ins with terrible Apparitions, the true ghosts in Apocalypse the Risen. Each short story will be around 2,000 words.
Ghost Stories (Poltergeist) – 3 ghost stories telling of Dr. Dobrin’s narrow escapes from tormenting Poltergeist. Each short story will be around 2,000 words.
Truth Transmissions:
Includes 12 broadcasts from the post-apocalyptic ham radio operator, “Truth” who discusses the rumors and events happening around the globe. We have the equipment, some of these are written, and more importantly once these are done this will become an ongoing support element for your games.
We haven’t forgotten about them at all. We are actually really excited about how impactful these can be for GMs and players. Obviously that impact is only real once you have the campaign setting and can start to play. So, cheers… more depth, fun, and content support to come post-delivery!
Apocalypse the Risen Progress Recap:
The Rusted Portal team is working diligently to get both campaign setting books off to the printer this year. We have thought we were here before and aware of similar communications. Publishing is a learning experience for which we are grateful to have this opportunity. There’s a reason companies like us use Kickstarter. The reality in that for all of our backers is that we are smaller and less experienced than other majoring game publishers who also use Kickstarter for their products. We hope you continue to remember that difference as we work closer to delivery. We especially hope you remember that difference when you ultimately receive your books. Ours will stand up fantastically to the quality you’ve seen from much better funded and staffed operations. We are small but talented and feisty. Trust.
In close, just an extra thank you for your support, questions, and feedback. All of it is truly appreciated. We will continue to engage in comments and answer questions. It would be awesome if you had some world or multiverse questions to pick our brains about, but I’m happy to field the criticism and challenges as well. You’ll find we are not afraid of tackling challenges head-on, which is exactly what continues to happen in bringing our first game to market. I keep saying first game, because we are really excited to use this learning experience to bring even more awesome games to our backers and fans.
Until next time, keep shining light into the dark corners.
Sincerely,
Donaven – Rusted Portal Games
Apocalypse the Risen Campaign Setting: C1-4 Preview
about 5 years ago
– Sat, Nov 23, 2019 at 10:02:57 PM
This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.
Truth Transmission: AtR Update!
about 5 years ago
– Thu, Nov 21, 2019 at 04:38:43 PM
Indisputable. Irrefutable. Undeniable. This is Truth. Shining light into the dark corners, one broadcast at a time. Or in this case, one lonely update at a time.
Greetings our loyal backers and fellow survivors!
I regularly ponder time, especially how the last two years have so quickly passed into the ether. Time slips by so easily, though it bears such weight. That weight is especially present as the faithful at Rusted Portal press to finalize the Apocalypse the Risen tome. And a tome it is, with the Pathfinder pages pushing close to 450. A larger volume than you expected? Certainly, more than we expected. Before showing some of that content, let me answer the most pressing questions...
* AtR Pathfinder Compatible Edition: Layout first draft is one chapter short of final review. Our layout master Simeon Cogswell is as patient as talented, guiding our first time laying out such a book. The time in layout is much longer than anticipated, for which we take responsibility. Simeon has provided amazing feedback for tweaking how the information is structured to give you the best book possible. We asked for a sample to provide our wonderful backers and we’ve got that ready to share. An email will be going out to all backers at any product level shortly after this update. If you do not see that email, verify it did not hit your spam filters and then feel free to message and let us know.
Note that we will have one final pass before finalizing layout. There’s a handful of tweaks on what you’re seeing in the first 4 chapters, but this is how layout looks throughout the book. We hope you like how it’s turned out as much as we do.
* AtR 5E Compatible Edition: I know a larger percentage of you are really eager to get your hands on this version of AtR. While layout makes progress on PF, requiring a significant amount of bandwidth, Chad has been working diligently on progress for 5E. We’ve found a number of play balance issues that we have corrected and will continue making sure we’re solid before hitting editing. We are unlikely to hit editing prior to the PF version going to print. However, getting that initial milestone behind us will allow for full attention to 5E which is exciting. Simeon hasn’t murdered us yet, so once we are through editing, we hope to roll straight into layout. I’m not giving you a date on this because I don’t want to miss a target again. Please know we are for sure working hard on it.
* Adventure Series: I have recently pulled files out of the backer share as they need to be replaced with some updated versions. We have some GMs running convention games (THANK YOU!) and we will be prioritizing getting them the updated 1st level adventure “Dead in the Darklands”, the newly playtested 2nd level adventure “Demon Divided”, and a physics bending 3rd level adventure “Endless Descent”. As those playable files are ready to share, we will update all backers with a version to run at home. Trying to get some AtR in your hands as soon as possible. The sooner we do, the sooner we can enjoy relaunching our home campaign! :)
* AtR Pathfinder Layout Previews: As discussed above, you will shortly have a PDF of the first four chapters of AtR Pathfinder. However, we want to make sure you know those aren’t the only chapters that exist. The following images show off some select spreads from chapters 5-12 as proof of concept. We know we’re late and now you know we’re working hard to deliver an awesome book.
Chapter Five: Feats
Fan that hammer, darlin'!
Chapter Six: Skills
Good stuff in the Darklands
Chapter Seven: Trading Post
Pre and Post Rise Firearms Matter
Chapter Eight: Magic
Types of Magic Multiverse Design
Chapter 9: Narrating
Colony Features
Chapter 10: The World
Regional Darkland Hazards
Chapter 11: The Multiverse
Multiverse Planar Rules
Chapter 12: Catalog of Beasts
Ghosts are No Joke
So why the delays and what’s next?
That’s a great question and where the weight of time bogs down. At the end of the day, Apocalypse the Risen and the surrounding Worlds of the Portal multiverse was a much larger endeavor than expected. Part of that came from stretch goals, but mostly from my desire to deliver players a complete framework of the multiverse I imagined. We firmly believe Apocalypse the Risen and future connected projects benefit immensely from that consideration. Do we wish we could have delivered much faster? Of course we do, there’s a lot more content to develop! But we are building a gaming universe that we know will occupy your tables for a long time and that the risk in delays will be worth the reward in depth and quality. I personally can’t wait to put these books in your hands to prove that hypothesis.
Going forward, keep talking with us in the comments. We really do read them all. Ask questions that may come up from the shared pages. Dig on the world, multiverse, classes, races, creatures, and upcoming additional content. Writing these updates takes limited time away from production, but I will always spend time engaging with our backers. You all are awesome. Thank you again for the time and love and a big thank you to those running the content we’ve shared!
Sincerely,
Donaven – Rusted Portal Games
Apocalypse the Risen: Layout & 5E Progress!
over 5 years ago
– Mon, Jun 24, 2019 at 05:07:08 PM
Hello Survivors,
The natives are again restless and marauders circling the colony. But don’t stress, we have what you need. A crisp clean update with some insights into just how this book is coming together.
We told you back in April that layout was underway, and that is still true. We’ve burned through the most difficult chapters, and we want you to see a few snapshots so you know what’s up. Below are 24 pages of insight into races and classes. In the chapter opening for Races you’ll see a blank page on the left and placeholder text in the small paragraph at the top. Sorry, you don’t get to see all the special text yet. These pieces hold narratives from key NPCs in the world you can use in your games and help establish the flavor for the world. Each chapter opens with these narratives to set the mood.
Each of these images are two page spreads:
Races Chapter Opening
Descended - Cherubim
Descended - Seraphim & Throne
Humankind & Start of Lazarus
Arbiter p1-2
Arbiter p3-4
Arbiter p5-6
Arbiter p7-8
Splicer p1-2
Splicer p3-4
Splicer p5-6
Splicer p7-8
We also told you that the cover art was looking fantastic, well that might have been an understatement. Here’s some mockups so you have a full taste of what’s coming. Simeon (layout) hasn’t done his magic, but this should give you a good idea. That's a full front, spine, and half back cover wrap scene. Oh, you didn’t think we’d share the back cover copy just yet, did you? Also know that the cover iconic is highlighted throughout the book and will be another important NPC in the future. :)
AtR Front Cover Mockup - PF
AtR Cover Spine Mockup
AtR Back Cover Mockup - PF
Overall art additions: we have added dozens of pieces of art since our last update! From full page pieces to found artifacts in game, you are getting significantly more art than previously announced. Our goal from the start was to come out like an established company rather than some indie startup. We know you’ll agree when you get this book in your hands. And it IS coming.
Bloody Enforcer Weapon
Harbinger Denial
Found art, sketch weaponry, and full page color scene!
While Simeon (layout) and I are hard at work finalizing chapters, Chad (lead developer) has been tearing up progress of 5E. Significant work has been made on locking down Races, Classes, Weapons, and Gear. That includes direction on what to trim for the slimmer ruleset and what to add for AtR flavor. AtR 5E has been playable for over a year, so changes are intended to maximize 5E rules and introduce changes unique to Apocalypse the Risen (such as insanity, ballistic AC, etc). Our goal is still to trail the Pathfinder print by about 3 months. Layout will be simpler, with art placement and direction decided. Classes are less complex to format, so we will be well ahead of this piece allowing us to hit the next layout running.
Overall message: Look, we are small team and are busting our asses to deliver you a freaking amazing game. We’ve been slower than hoped, but we have not been slacking. We aren’t playing by the typical small company rules and have long been dedicated to making sure the AtR Campaign Setting is foundational in establishing us with our fans. We’ve lost two backers that didn’t believe we can delivery on that promise. And we’ve gained nearly ten times that in people that have played our very well designed game and adventures in the time since this Kickstarter. Hopefully the above progress delivers just that message. Stick it out, you’ll be with us for as long as we are churning out games. And we’ll keep delivering for you for years to come, because that’s what we are here to do.
