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Dark Matter

Created by Mage Hand Press

A 5th Edition supplement for rip-roaring space adventures! A full campaign setting in a 200+ page hardcover (and PDF!) book.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

Quick July Update
almost 5 years ago – Mon, Jul 15, 2019 at 12:18:03 AM

Hey everyone!

I have a proper update ready and written, detailing all the changes and improvements in the final PDF, along with some information on when we're printing, but I'm having some trouble with BackerKit; specifically, I've tried to upload the new PDF over a dozen times from two different PCs, but the upload keeps stalling out after reaching 100%. Hopefully, BackerKit will help me fix the problem soon so I can deliver the PDF and release the update.

Thanks for your patience,

Mike from Mage Hand Press

Preorders Locked
about 5 years ago – Wed, May 01, 2019 at 02:02:42 AM

A quick reminder letting everyone know that orders for Dark Matter are now locked! The digital version can still be purchased via the Mage Hand Press store and on DriveThruRPG. Additionally, we plan to charge cards for preorders one week from now, May 8th.

If you preordered a physical copy of Dark Matter but did not receive an email with a download code for the Beta, please email me at [email protected] with the subject line "Dark Matter Preorder", and I'll send you a code!

April Update
about 5 years ago – Tue, Apr 16, 2019 at 12:29:38 AM

We have Beta!!!

This means the Dark Matter is basically in its final form, at exactly 280 pages. It's got all the art, all the chapters, and all the little things we expected to get in there. We'll be adjusting balance in the entire run-up to the final copy of the book and adding a few pages here and there, but no more giant additions. It's time to polish, polish, polish.

What's new in the beta:

  • Huge art additions at the beginning of each chapter, along with a short story following three characters as they attempt to rob an eternal dragon.
  • Completely revamped ships chapter. Balances and prices adjusted across the board.
  • New gadgeteer archetype
  • A bunch more art
  • Lots of other little changes. Full changelog here 

Backerkit Preorders Ending

We're going to start wrapping up BackerKit preorders very soon, so if you know anyone that wants to preorder a hardcover, they'll only be able to do so for the next two weeks. After that time, we'll send a reminder and charge all cards for BackerKit preorders within three weeks.

The Beta PDF will still be available at the Mage Hand Press store and the Hardcover will be available there after the print run is complete.

What's Next?

Playtesting and print preparation! We're going to keep playtesting the book as we finalize the print copy, do color adjustments for the art, get proofs of the book, and so on. With any luck, we'll be on our way to the printers soon.

If you notice anything in the Beta which could use adjustment send a note to us here!

Thank you so much for making this book a reality and bringing our science fantasy vision to 5th edition. It's been a real journey so far and we couldn't have made it without such outstanding support. We're on the home stretch now!

March Update
about 5 years ago – Sun, Mar 24, 2019 at 10:51:34 PM

Hey everyone, quick status update:

Beta Next Month

You've probably noticed that we haven't released the Beta quite yet. We're very close to having it done, but it'll likely be early next month when we get it out. All that's left is detail work, but I don't want to rush that stuff, if I can avoid it.

Here's what we've accomplished last month: 

  • Chapter introductions (and gorgeous artwork) added (18 pages!)
  • Two new pages of Lakshay frames and mecha campaign rules
  • Total rework to the Ships chapter, attaching Challenge Ratings to literally everything, rebalancing all the numbers to be more fun, and generally cutting down on ship tankiness
  • New gadgeteer subclass: Nanoengineer
  • New artwork throughout the Spells chapter and Appendices
  • New artwork scattered elsewhere

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Oh, and I got the map done!

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Next month, I just have some of those aforementioned details to clean up. Once all that is together, we can consider the book (basically) finished and release it under as a proper Beta release while we work on the final print copy.

February Update
about 5 years ago – Sun, Feb 17, 2019 at 05:56:01 PM

Updates! Timelines! Stuff!

Backer Names

First thing's first: We didn't do a fantastic job collecting everyone's names when we ran the Kickstarter. A number of you have made this clear to us, and we've got a bit of an ad-hoc solution:

Name Update Form

Use this form to change how your name appears in the book, if you'd like to be known as something other than your name as it appears on Kickstarter. 

Big Update: Alpha 1.3

We've just done a huge update to Dark Matter, which expands the book by a couple of pages and starts tying off loose ends. There's a detailed changelog here, but the tl;dr is:

  • New section called Creating a Character collects all the proficiency tables and starting equipment in one place for easy character creation
  • Reworked Craftsman archetype to match the newly reworked Craftsman class
  • New section on using skills with tools (so tool proficiencies can be more useful!)
  • Rebalanced weapons and new weapons added
  • Services section added
  • New magic items
  • Quote boxes (finally) filled (includes Space Wizard backer names)
  • Tons of little fixes and balance updates

There's tons of things we'd love to slip into the book if space permits, but I think we're closing in on the final version. Of course, we're still polishing everything to a mirror sheen (which is one of the reasons we made sure the weapons section was 1000% watertight with the new update) and you can expect to see more small changes in the coming weeks.

Beta Coming Next Month

Our art team had wind in their sails this last month! Just look at these pieces:

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Cool, right? These pieces are going at the introduction of chapters and tie together with a story that will accompany them. This little story follows three adventurers as they plot to steal the Blaster Prototype from the hoard of the eternal dragon, Garfreckt. When we add these pages to the book next month, we'll officially move the book from Alpha to Beta and start closing in on the Final PDF version and get to work on the final print copy.

Also, next month, (probably around the 15th) we'll be closing down the preorders on BackerKit in preparation for getting the final print numbers together. You'll still be able to pick up a digital copy of the book on DriveThruRPG and the Mage Hand Press store, but there might be a window where it's not possible to preorder a physical copy. Get your order in now!

Mage Hand Press Starter Kit

The final version MHP Starter Kit has taken longer than expected to wrap up, as reworking the Alchemist and Craftsman classes were larger projects than anticipated. At this point, we've completely finished the Complete Alchemist Redux and we've wrapped up most of the Complete Craftsman Redux (all of which is finished, with the exception of a handful of subclasses and a couple of art pieces.) If everything goes well, we'll send out an updated version of the MHP Starter Kit next month with the new alchemist and craftsman when we update to Beta. Thank you everyone for being patient on these new classes -- we think you'll love them as additions to Dark Matter.