[15-Dec-21 12:24 PM] panny#1138
I’m Panny, a ttrpg designer based in London and Salvage Union is a post-apocalyptic mech roleplaying game powered by the Quest RPG System.
[15-Dec-21 12:24 PM] panny#1138
That’s live on Kickstarter now
[15-Dec-21 12:25 PM] Dan Davenport#6715
(Oh, almost forgot: Please give us a (done) when you’re finished with your intro. 🙂 )
[15-Dec-21 12:25 PM] panny#1138
(done)
[15-Dec-21 12:25 PM] Dan Davenport#6715
Thanks, @panny! The floor is open to questions!
[15-Dec-21 12:25 PM] Dan Davenport#6715
What can you tell us about the setting?
[15-Dec-21 12:29 PM] panny#1138
So it’s a post-apocalyptic setting in a ‘earth-like’ planet a few hundred years into the future that’s developed advanced technology including Mechs which are the primary means of both warfare and industry. The world has been scarred by numerous wars, global warming, deforestation and has slowly and gradually crumbled bit by bit.
About 1% of the population live in Corporate run cities known as ‘Arcos’, huge spires or sprawling megacities that dot the wastelands. Everyone else lives in the wastes ekeing out survival the best they can. These folk are known as ‘Wastelanders’
Finally there’s the Salvage Unions a collective band of mechanics, mercenaries, soldiers, engineers and other such folk who have banded together to oppose the oligarchic control of the Corpos and run their own self sufficient communities. They stride along the land in colossal mechs known as ‘Crawlers’ and range out from it in their mechs in search it for salvage which they use to sustain and grow themselves.
In Salvage Union you play as one of these salvagers. (done)
[15-Dec-21 12:30 PM] Dan Davenport#6715
Very cool. How would you describe the overall tech level of the setting?
[15-Dec-21 12:30 PM] Dan Davenport#6715
(And over to you, @Beelzedude!)
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[15-Dec-21 12:33 PM] panny#1138
It’s a ramshackle mix of technology we’d be familiar with today such as missiles, computers, various vehicles as well as futuristic tech such as mechs, lasers, hovercraft and advance drones. Everything has a purposeful ‘retro future’ vibe to it too, there’s minidisks and tape players. Hacking Systems for are huge things you slot into your mech.
[15-Dec-21 12:33 PM] panny#1138
(done)
[15-Dec-21 12:35 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Has there been some for of loss of technology as a basis for the somewhat ramshackle look of the mechs in the art or is it more a factor of the Wastelanders living off of the tech that the arcologies discard?
[15-Dec-21 12:36 PM] panny#1138
It’s a mixture of both in that respect, time has certainly causes an erosion in terms of technological advancement with many of the mechs being retrofitted industrial mechs for mining or assembly line that the salvagers are using for whatever else they want. Though those are also the types of mechs that the arcologies may well discard when they’ve run out of use and so can be easily salvaged.
(done)
[15-Dec-21 12:37 PM] Beelzedude#2802
So the corporations themselves still have a noticeably higher standard of technology?
[15-Dec-21 12:39 PM] panny#1138
Yeap corpo tech is purposefully a lot more advanced, they basically get things like advanced laser weapons, stealth mechs, high-tech drone mechs and all that other cool stuff. (done)
[15-Dec-21 12:39 PM] Beelzedude#2802
And as a follow-up to that: Is the conflict between the Wastelanders and the corporations part of the intended game play or is it more about surviving outside of their influence with minimal contact?
[15-Dec-21 12:41 PM] panny#1138
Conflict is designed as rather an inevitably of having two factions who both want the increasingly rare resources in the world however Corpos are also one of many factions within the game and they’re not necessarily hostile to the salvagers or at war. There’s also lots of different Corpos for with their own unique cultures and ways of operating and many can be bargained or reasoned with.
[15-Dec-21 12:41 PM] panny#1138
(done)
[15-Dec-21 12:43 PM] Beelzedude#2802
And a question regarding the setting and the title. From the language used in the KS page it sounds to me like the Salvage Union is supposed to be akin to a trade union. Is that so, or am I misinterpreting and it’s more of a loose alliance of people living in the wastelands?
[15-Dec-21 12:46 PM] panny#1138
Yeah loosely speaking they’re a trade union or at least inspired by that concept. Within the wider lore multiple unions formed against corporate control and policies and multiple wars ensued. Within the present the Salvage Unions are the legacy of those early band and an extension and evolution of them, banding together so effectively they can use all of their skills to work collectively for their greater good of the community rather than being forced to be individually exploited for their labour by the Corpos. (Yes the game is not subtle) (done)
[15-Dec-21 12:46 PM] R E T R O / C Y B E R#0325
👋 hi! Is the gameplay designed around tactical combat? Does it use a hex or grid map? If so, can it still run by theatre of the mind?
[15-Dec-21 12:47 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Cool. I guessed as much.
[15-Dec-21 12:47 PM] panny#1138
The gameplay of Salvage Union is purposefully designed for narrative, theatre of the mind play that’s simple to resolve. There’s no tactical combat, hex or grid maps, miniatures or anything like that. (done)
[15-Dec-21 12:47 PM] Beelzedude#2802
While we’re on that particular topic, can you tell us something about the general conflict resolution mechanics of the game?
[15-Dec-21 12:50 PM] panny#1138
The game is a hack of a fantasy tabletop roleplaying game called Quest. It uses the same resolution mechanic. Every roll in the game from attack rolls, to any time you want to do anything that involves risk/danger/potential consequence is a flat, unmodified d20 roll with variable resolution that looks like this -. There’s no stats, bonuses, modifiers or anything like that within the game.
[15-Dec-21 12:50 PM] panny#1138
(done)
[15-Dec-21 12:51 PM] Beelzedude#2802
I’m not familiar with Quest. How do you factor in what your character is or isn’t good at?
[15-Dec-21 12:55 PM] panny#1138
In the game you play as a Pilot. Pilots are split into classes such as Hacker, Scout, Soldier, Engineer. We’re planning on 12 of these currently. Each class has unique abilities which they can activate with ‘Ability Points’ and let them do things special to their class. They start with 3 abilities and can learn more as the game goes on. For example the Scout can activate an ability to always hit first in a combat, the Engineer can repair damaged Mechs on the field, the Hacker can Hack into databases and so on.
Each class also pilots a Mech within the game which has its own unique abilities derived from its chassis, systems and modules that they can activate with their ‘Energy Points’. These include things like modules that let you dodge out of the way, or hack into other mechs, or shoot laser guided attacks and systems that let you shoot chaff to scramble missiles, track opposing mechs with a node launcher, or even eject from your mech in a crisis.
These are a limited resource which you get back when you return to the crawler for downtime.
[15-Dec-21 12:56 PM] panny#1138
To outline the terminology a bit
Systems are physical hardware you mount on your Mech
Modules are software you install in your mech
Each is limited by how many slots a mech has. So a standard Light Mech can mount 7 System Slots and 4 Module Slots. A standard Laser might take up 2 system slots, a missile pod 5, a rigging arm 2. Whilst most modules are 1 slot each for the most part. (done)
[15-Dec-21 12:58 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Ah, so special abilities through resource management for automatic successes, I take it? And everything else you can do is the flat d20? This also answered my next question about what kind of roles the players take on.
[15-Dec-21 01:00 PM] panny#1138
Yeah it doesn’t always work out quite as cleanly as an automatic success though in many cases using an ability / energy point ability does just make the thing happen. Some systems and module do ask for a die roll on a sub-d20 table to determine the effect. A ‘Trojan’ hacking module that takes control of a mech entirely for example can still fail or result in you having the mech for 1 turn – 10 minutes or even permanently on a nat 20, and losing control of your mech on a nat 1! (done)
[15-Dec-21 01:01 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Ah, gotcha.
[15-Dec-21 01:01 PM] CoalCrystal#2554
Are the mechs fuel powered, or battery powered? How are they powered?
[15-Dec-21 01:02 PM] Beelzedude#2802
You already briefly mentioned that characters gain new traits while they advance. Can you tell us a bit about how character advancement works in general? Are there levels, point-buy for new abilities, something else entirely?
[15-Dec-21 01:03 PM] panny#1138
Mechs are nuclear powered by reactors. Which links to another key core mechanic which is pushing. If you make a die roll and don’t like it you can push your mech and get a re-roll. This adds heat to your mech and forces a ‘reactor overload check’ which if failed can result in your mech losing systems, shutting down or even exploding.
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[15-Dec-21 01:04 PM] panny#1138
All character and mech advancement is tied to salvaging. During play you will collect salvage which you can then bring back to crawler and using the games crafting system create new systems, modules and even mech chassis. Salvage parts are specific so you collect wiring looms, simple mechanisms, scrap metal, high heat ceramics and so on then craft with a certain ‘recipe’.
Character Pilot advancement also costs salvage which you spend to train during downtime and gain new abilities which are branched out like a skill tree. (done)
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[15-Dec-21 01:05 PM] Beelzedude#2802
I can already see how that will lead to heroic sacrifices by blowing up your mech and yourself in a nuclear explosion in order to save everyone else while taking the baddies with you. 🙂
[15-Dec-21 01:05 PM] panny#1138
Absolutely a possibility!
[15-Dec-21 01:06 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Cool. Reminiscent of BattleTech.
[15-Dec-21 01:06 PM] panny#1138
One of our many inspirations ^
[15-Dec-21 01:07 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Is salvage specific to a mech type or can you use it on any kind of mech?
[15-Dec-21 01:09 PM] panny#1138
Salvage is it’s own thing. It’s parts you use to build something. So to use a visual aid. This is a Pulse Laser. It’s made of Scrap Metal, Wiring Loom, Circuitry, and 2 x Optical Glass.
To build it you need those specific pieces of salvage parts.
If you were to find one in the game you could salvage from it. You’d receive just one of those parts at random. So the idea is you’ll need to salvage lots of different things until you can build what you want.
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[15-Dec-21 01:10 PM] panny#1138
Salvage is further split into tiers for organizing and to denote its value. There’s 3 base tiers + exotics at the moment and possibly more to come! (done)
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https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/780948065367490590/920754800554049616/unknown.png
[15-Dec-21 01:11 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Ah, neat. Seems to me very video game inspired.
[15-Dec-21 01:12 PM] panny#1138
Yeah the crafting mechanics are in part inspired by video games such as Rust or Minecraft etc which do a similar thing. The game is super simple to play in practice so we wanted to put the crunch into the downtime and crafting systems where you’d have out of game time to work it all out basically. (done)
[15-Dec-21 01:12 PM] R E T R O / C Y B E R#0325
How much narrative control do the players have?
[15-Dec-21 01:12 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Is there a system, or suggestions, in place for players or the GM coming up with their own recipes?
[15-Dec-21 01:14 PM] panny#1138
Lots, it’s a very narrative focused game, players are encouraged to come up with ideas and also partly build the setting as they play. The core mechanic encourages that as pretty much anything you want to do in a game has a 75% chance of succeeding to encourage player agency and let players come up with interesting ideas in play and have it work out most of the time. We’ve had players use mining saws as impromptu chaff launchers, heat up their mechs reactors to stop melee attacks, befriend wastelanders by simply saying their characters used to know them and try to cause landslides to slow down incoming foes.
[15-Dec-21 01:15 PM] panny#1138
Each system and module in the game has a specific list of salvage items you need to craft them so that’s all provided. The GM can of course come up with their own and we’ll be including guidance in the core book on how to come up with your own systems and modules and how to cost them in terms of salvage. (done)
[15-Dec-21 01:17 PM] Beelzedude#2802
As a corollary to that question: How much is the GM involved mechanically? I know that some of the more narrative-focused games leave all the dice-rolling in the hands of the players.
[15-Dec-21 01:19 PM] panny#1138
The GM, or Mediator in this game, still rolls for all the NPC actions with the same table such as their attacks or risky actions. The results are also technically reversed in that players come up with consequences if The Mediator fails a roll or gets a tough choice. We’ve got some subsystems too such as Morale rules, Reaction Rolls and Random Tables The Mediator is encouraged to roll and they still have the freedom to just say stuff happens if it fits the situation and narrative etc. (done)
[15-Dec-21 01:20 PM] R E T R O / C Y B E R#0325
Does the material contain mature themes?
[15-Dec-21 01:21 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Huh, cool. I’m personally not a fan of the “succeed with consequences” thing, but that’s an interesting twist that I like.
[15-Dec-21 01:22 PM] Beelzedude#2802
I’d say trade unions are plenty mature as a theme. 😄
[15-Dec-21 01:22 PM] panny#1138
It explores a post-apocalyptic world so it’s always going to err towards a darker and more mature setting and tone however we try to broadly keep things ’15 rated’ and have purposefully avoided the more extreme stereotypes of the post-apocalyptic genre. We also like to think the setting has a degree of hope to it, the game is about rebuilding, growing and expanding your community.
[15-Dec-21 01:22 PM] panny#1138
And thanks! (done)
[15-Dec-21 01:24 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Let’s continue from there. What are the general things you will encounter in the wasteland? What kind of people, apart from the Salvage Union, live there, what kind of creatures roam around, what are some of the sights you’ll see?
[15-Dec-21 01:24 PM] Beelzedude#2802
And maybe: How much of that is already in the material and how much is up to the people playing?
[15-Dec-21 01:27 PM] CoalCrystal#2554
Is there offworld instalations or is Earth still working at stablizing it’s environmental situation?
[15-Dec-21 01:28 PM] panny#1138
So the setting is also purposefully a bit of a kitchen sink, we’ve included various tropes from the mech, sci-fi and post-apocalyptic genres. There’s wastelanders who eke out existence in static ramshackle settlements, outlaws and mercenaries who prey on them and others, traders who wander the land between settlements and corpos plying their wares, mutants who have been warped by the wastelands and of course the various corpos and their high tech mechs, agents and representatives.
There’s also bio-titans which are effectively kaiju…because why not. The lore hints that they were created by the corpos and they continue to roam the land. There’s also aliens our most iconic being the Meld who are an intelligent race of nanites who can form over and control both mechs and people.
The idea with all of this is that it ultimately is up to the GM and the players which ones they take and which ones they play down or ignore we want to basically provide a toolkit in the core book with all of these options so you can run the games you want within the mashed up genres.
[15-Dec-21 01:29 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Ah, I was going to ask about the bio-titans.
[15-Dec-21 01:29 PM] panny#1138
The main focus of the game is earth, there’s hints to offworld and other colonies but they’re not something the game explores. Things like air and space travel specifically have been made incredibly dangerous to impossible due to the constant radiation storms and global warming and other such hazards that plague the wastes. (done)
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[15-Dec-21 01:32 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Does the kitchen sink approach also translate into intended game play? Is there an intended play style or is it more of a post-apocalyptic sandbox that the players and the GM will have to decide how to tackle?
[15-Dec-21 01:32 PM] panny#1138
Thanks for all your time and questions so far. As a note I do need to leave soon so will only be able to take one or two more questions!
[15-Dec-21 01:33 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Ah, okay. Then let me ask one of our favourite questions here: What is your personal least favourite thing about the game?
[15-Dec-21 01:35 PM] panny#1138
Yes so the core of play is Campaign Mode which is a post-apocalyptic sandbox with mechanics to handle exploring the game map which will be split into a grid and randomising that map as well as encounters and situations within it as you explore and gradually upgrade your mech and pilots. This is similar to a more traditional ‘hexcrawl’ you might find in old school D&D and intended to be played with the same group over a long period of time.
We are also developing a subset of that which is Mission Mode. This is intended for narrative, cinematic play and lets you run a one shot or small series of 2-3 sessions that is more character and story focused.
[15-Dec-21 01:36 PM] Beelzedude#2802
And maybe as a last “question”: Is there anything you would like to get into that we haven’t covered so far?
[15-Dec-21 01:37 PM] panny#1138
So there’s a free Quickstart of the game currently available to download – https://leyline.press/products/salvage-union-beta-quickstart-digital-edition-pdf
It includes premade characters, the core rules and a sample scenario. However we are still in the process of developing the game and currently we’re working on the campaign mode and how the salvaging systems interact with that which needs more work and playtesting to make into the experience we want in the final book which is planned for a December 2022 fulfillment. If you’re interested in joining those we are running playtests in our Discord too – https://discord.com/invite/kMwD2bWgtC
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https://leyline.press/products/salvage-union-beta-quickstart-digital-edition-pdf
Salvage Union Beta Quickstart Digital Edition (PDF) V1.2
You can follow the Salvage Union Kickstarter here. You can join the Salvage Union Discord here to join a playtest game! Salvage Union is a post-apocalyptic Mech game powered by the Quest RPG that focuses on fast paced, narrative mech action with a simple and widely accessible rules set. Set on a post-apocalyptic world
https://images-ext-1.discordapp.net/external/-ULAQzaeHNuESr9ek2TVpSnYTohZhZffqnFztd1uB_Q/%3Fv%3D1638323277/http/cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0592/6934/9566/products/20211201_014723_1200x1200.jpg
[15-Dec-21 01:39 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Cool. I like variety in possible game styles. 🙂
[15-Dec-21 01:40 PM] R E T R O / C Y B E R#0325
Where can we see the game played on stream? Any actual plays? YouTube gameplay examples?
[15-Dec-21 01:40 PM] panny#1138
We’re working with some great artists, creators and designers. Hamish Frater did the banner art which we are trying to evoke into the setting. Francesco Lobo has done much of the pilot art and has a great vision for it. Alex Connolly did much of our mech art included the magpie on the cover and has a great eye for industrial design.
We also have ENnie award winning Diogo Noguiera writing an adventure module for us – ‘We Were Here First.’ !
[15-Dec-21 01:42 PM] panny#1138
Yes we have two recent actual plays of Salvage Union. The first is the scenario in the Quickstart ‘The Downing of the Atychos’ The second is a custom scenario that the GM designed to run it called ‘Manta Ray Down’
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1233475759
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The Drunken Storyteller
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Rr8w7U0sNw
Salvage Union – The Downing of Atychos
Salvage Union – The Downing of Atychos
Fiona from What Am I Rolling podcasts introduces me, Ben, Rob and Vivien to the new game from Leyline Press – Salvage Union. A dystopian mech table top RPG.
Out on a salvage run to a down shipped in the ruined town of Hopes Fall not everything is as it seems. After a dangerous journey, what salvage do…
https://images-ext-2.discordapp.net/external/1veXoZHoqdS2WHWhzWbkFoUuGJNpojivjecVRPhFn9s/https/i.ytimg.com/vi/9Rr8w7U0sNw/hqdefault.jpg
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https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1233475759
Salvage Union by Leyline Press – “Manta Ray Down” – chaoticneutralg…
chaoticneutralgames went live on Twitch. Catch up on their Tabletop RPGs VOD now.
https://images-ext-2.discordapp.net/external/VxFSgjmdrlMua6s04VbaJFrvb-rgOgTXFcBlUkLiBPI/https/static-cdn.jtvnw.net/cf_vods/dgeft87wbj63p/5418c6fe62584e5aeb16_chaoticneutralgames_44072490780_1639512159//thumb/thumb0-640×360.jpg
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[15-Dec-21 01:43 PM] GenoFoxx#2590
are there mecha scaled melee weapons available?
[15-Dec-21 01:43 PM] R E T R O / C Y B E R#0325
Thanks for your time!
[15-Dec-21 01:43 PM] Beelzedude#2802
(You just say the word when you need to go.)
[15-Dec-21 01:43 PM] panny#1138
We have a Mono-Molecular Blade! Which is a giant vibrating sword so there’s some stuff like that.
(done) And that about wraps me up for time, thankyou all again so much this has been a lot of fun! I’m not too precious so if you do have other questions please feel free to message me and I’ll answer as reasonably as I can.
[15-Dec-21 01:44 PM] Beelzedude#2802
Alright, then thank you very much for coming here today and congratulations on funding with over 650 % so far.
Dan will export and upload the log to his website (gmshoe.wordpress.com/) as soon as possible and provide you with the link.
Usual reminder: If you’ve enjoyed this Q&A and would like to treat Dan to a coffee or two, you can do so at https://www.ko-fi.com/gmshoe. Anything’s appreciated!
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[15-Dec-21 01:44 PM] panny#1138
Here where appropriate, or our discord, or DM me if you wish ^
[15-Dec-21 01:45 PM] Beelzedude#2802
have a good evening/night then and further good luck with your game!
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