Tag / sci fi

by guyeatsfood

To Boldly Go Further: Star Trek Adventures Supplements Review

Modiphius’ Star Trek Adventures (STA) has to be one of those rare licensed TTRPG success stories; a whole raft of supplements for 1st edition, including sourcebooks for Quadrants, Divisions, and Discovery – and now a 2nd edition, which tidies up some of the rules (getting rid of the fiddly d6 variants) and gives, in my experience, a more streamlined gaming experience.

I’ve had a lot of fun with STA. I ran one of my longest-running TTRPG campaigns ever with 1st edition, and the rules held up well then. I’ve only scratched the surface with 2e (check out our one-shot on Unconventional GMs here) and I like what I see. 2nd edition loosens up the scope a little, rather than trying to fit campaigns into specific Trek eras, and brings a more mature, considered rules system. I don’t mind 2d20 for any game, but in Star Trek it shines – you’ll mostly have skills and extended tasks, with only the occasional ship or personal combat where you can bring out the crunch.

While you’re reading this, I should tell you about my Patreon. Patrons get access to content 7 days before they hit this site, and the chance to request articles or content, for a very reasonable backer level of £2 per month. If you like what you read, want to support the blog, and have the funds for it, please consider supporting here. Telling people about the blog, and sharing links/retweeting is much appreciated also – thanks!

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by guyeatsfood

The Cult of the New – playing new games in 2025

As we creep towards the festive season and the end of the year, I’m looking over my 2025 gaming spreadsheet. It’s looking in fine fettle at the moment – with 96 sessions logged, I’m on track to meet my 100-session target for the year; which I’m pleased with, especially as I had most of January off. I’ve tracked my games since 2020, and it’s a great way to look at patterns of play – and also to remember the times at the table! So, as I fiddle with COUNTIFs and Filters, I’m digging into the stats a bit – including the 37 new games that I played or ran in 2025.

While you’re reading this, I should tell you about my Patreon. Patrons get access to content 7 days before they hit this site, the chance to request articles or content, and the chance to play in one-shot games, for a very reasonable backer level of £2 per month. If you like what you read, want to support the blog, and have the funds for it, please consider supporting here. Telling people about the blog, and sharing links/retweeting is much appreciated also – thanks!

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by guyeatsfood

The Dilithium Dilemma – a Star Trek Adventures One-Shot

After talking about three-stage prep before, I thought I’d better give you the finished example. This one-shot for Star Trek Adventures (2nd Edition) is soon to be released on Unconventional GMs, and I rattled it off as a one-shot ready to run. 

UPDATE! The Dilithium Dilemma is now out on Unconventional GMs – here to watch in a tight 1hr 40min actual play!

It’s set in the Original Series era, as that’s where my co-host’s tastes lie (and, to be honest – it gives a bit more pulpy action than any of the other eras), and it played through in about an hour and a quarter. Scheduling meant we only had two players, though – a normal group and  normal pacing means this should run in a normal 3-4 hour slot no problem.

While you’re reading this, I should tell you about my Patreon. Patrons get access to content 7 days before they hit this site, the chance to request articles or content, and the chance to play in one-shot games, for a very reasonable backer level of £2 per month. If you like what you read, want to support the blog, and have the funds for it, please consider supporting here. Telling people about the blog, and sharing links/retweeting is much appreciated also – thanks!

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by guyeatsfood

Tatooine Manhunt – for Outgunned!

I’ve been doing a fair bit of adapting old “classic” adventures for modern systems recently – this was one that I did from the old WEG d6 Star Wars system into Outgunned! Here’s the notes for it – presented, as usual, in pretty raw form – if you’re a Patron, you can get the pregens I used for it too! (They’re the same as the Strike Force Shantipole ones, if you’ve already downloaded them).

I’ve included the CATS that I did with the session – just to encourage more people to do this explicitly in one-shots; it really helps to put everyone on the same page with the game. You’ll need, as with Strike Force Shantipole, both a copy of Outgunned! and the original adventure to use this – you should be able to get away without Action Flicks for this one, as there’s no starship combat in it.

While you’re reading this, I should tell you about my Patreon. Patrons get access to content 7 days before they hit this site, the chance to request articles or content, and the chance to play in one-shot games, for a very reasonable backer level of £2 per month. If you like what you read, want to support the blog, and have the funds for it, please consider supporting here. Telling people about the blog, and sharing links/retweeting is much appreciated also – thanks!

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by guyeatsfood

Existential Road Tripping – Review: Electric State RPG

Electric State is the latest setting / art collection to come out of Simon Stålenhag, the force behind Tales from The Loop and Things from The Flood – both TTRPGs published by Free League. The artistic inspiration fits really well in converting to a roleplaying game, and it gives a chilled-out post-apoc(ish) 1990s vibe that is something genuinely different.

I’ve run this game in a one-shot, and you can watch the Actual Play of this on the Unconventional GMs channel here. We played through the first “Stop” (adventure location) from the book in just under 2 hours – and like everything we’ve done, there’s minimal editing and proper engagement with the rules – so if you want to watch it in action, check it out there.

While you’re reading this, I should tell you about my Patreon. Patrons get access to content 7 days before they hit this site, the chance to request articles or content, and the chance to play in one-shot games, for a very reasonable backer level of £2 per month. If you like what you read, want to support the blog, and have the funds for it, please consider supporting here. Telling people about the blog, and sharing links/retweeting is much appreciated also – thanks!

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by guyeatsfood

“To Boldly Game…” – Playing Star Trek TTRPGs: A Guide to One-Shots and Campaigns

For a media franchise so big in everyone’s minds, it’s no surprise that Star Trek has seen a few TTRPGs through the years. And, as we’re currently in the Neutral Zone between editions of Modiphius’ Star Trek Adventures, I thought I’d explore a few ways to play Starfleet, using this or other systems. For me, Star Trek is a brilliant genre to play in, especially for one shots, and I’d be very happy to see more of it offered at conventions.

While you’re reading this, I should tell you about my Patreon. Patrons get access to content 7 days before they hit this site, the chance to request articles or content, and the chance to play in one-shot games, for a very reasonable backer level of £2 per month. If you like what you read, want to support the blog, and have the funds for it, please consider supporting here. Telling people about the blog, and sharing links/retweeting is much appreciated also – thanks!

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by guyeatsfood

Ice Station Zeta Alex – a One-Shot for Stoneburner

I’ve started doing this more – sharing prep notes for one-shots. This time it’s for Fari RPGs game of space mining dwarves, Stoneburner – a rules-light solo-friendly game you’ll be seeing on Unconventional GMs soon! 

As always, it’s up to you how complete this prep is for you to run the game yourself; a combination of this and watching the Actual Play on youtube should give you a head-start though, and it might be useful for what prep could look like for your game. I started by using Stoneburner’s great random tables, and then filled them out as best I could. The scribbly map and notes are below – an essential first step in any one-shot prep!

While you’re reading this, I should tell you about my Patreon. Patrons get access to content 7 days before they hit this site, the chance to request articles or content, and the chance to play in one-shot games, for a very reasonable backer level of £2 per month. If you like what you read, want to support the blog, and have the funds for it, please consider supporting here. Telling people about the blog, and sharing links/retweeting is much appreciated also – thanks!

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