Starfinder Drift Crisis

Galactic Magic. Coming out in January before this book.

James Martin wrote:

Is anyone else concerned this book feels like a World of Darkness "Here's a book to shake everything up" way to end the line?

Do we have anything confirmed for after this book?

One would think they would say if this is the end.

Just the opposite. We want to give new and old players an exciting reason to jump into Starfinder!

Galactic Magic. Coming out in January before this book.

The Precogs in that book not the Evolutionist.

Galactic Magic. Coming out in January before this book.

If this is about the evolutionist, Galactic Magic has the precog, not the evolutionist, and I think the doomsaying about a product line with fervent fans is unsubstantiated, to say the least.

ETA: Dang ninjas.

keftiu wrote:

James Martin wrote:

Is anyone else concerned this book feels like a World of Darkness "Here's a book to shake everything up" way to end the line?

Do we have anything confirmed for after this book?

One would think they would say if this is the end.

Just the opposite. We want to give new and old players an exciting reason to jump into Starfinder!

Lol. I'm assuming you meant to reply to the inner most reply, rather than implying "No, we wouldn't tell you if it was the end so that we can get you into thinking the game is still going forward."

According to Jason Tondro on Twitter, Starfinder's sales are up and the product line is "wildly successful" (for a sci-fi RPG).

There are a ton of super exciting plans for the future. The Drift Crisis will set into motion events that we are charting out over several years.

There will be much more to come!

That's very good to hear. Starfinder has only been getting better and better lately, I would love to see it keep going for a long time!

Excellent to hear! I am a huge fan of Starfinder and would very much be disappointed to see it disappear.

Aaron Shanks wrote:

keftiu wrote:

James Martin wrote:

Is anyone else concerned this book feels like a World of Darkness "Here's a book to shake everything up" way to end the line?

Do we have anything confirmed for after this book?

One would think they would say if this is the end.

Just the opposite. We want to give new and old players an exciting reason to jump into Starfinder!

Lol. I'm assuming you meant to reply to the inner most reply, rather than implying "No, we wouldn't tell you if it was the end so that we can get you into thinking the game is still going forward."

I was replying to the OP, yes. :)

Based on what I'm reading, it's giving me a Infinity War vibe. I might be overhyping it but I'm excited to see what unfolds :)

Hopefully we'll get a little more Triune lore out of this book. They're my favorite Starfinder god, and I've been super eager to learn more about them. Regardless, seems like this will be a good way to learn more about what's going on with the planes in Starfinder's world, as most of the alternative interstellar drives that don't use the Drift pass through other planes instead, like chaos sails and elemental engines. If this book is at least in part about expanding those options and giving us a peek of what we can expect to see in the Great Beyond when using these drives (like Hmm suggested), consider me massively hyped.

I do hope the Drift comes back, though, in some form at least. The Spectras are still kind of new to the setting, and I've been really interested to learn more about them. Robot outsiders are best outsiders.

Now, if they come out with Drift 2.0 that could be kinda neat.

Especially if Triune went "Wait, all the Drift travel is based on having ONE network hub. That's incredibly problematic if the hub crashes/gets corrupted." and then had to shut things down because some space goblin crossed some wires in the wrong server room -- y'know, like the Paizo Website has been known to do every so often... :>

Now, if they come out with Drift 2.0 that could be kinda neat.

Especially if Triune went "Wait, all the Drift travel is based on having ONE network hub. That's incredibly problematic if the hub crashes/gets corrupted." and then had to shut things down because some space goblin crossed some wires in the wrong server room -- y'know, like the Paizo Website has been known to do every so often... :>

Ha!

Hopefully we'll get a little more Triune lore out of this book. They're my favorite Starfinder god, and I've been super eager to learn more about them. Regardless, seems like this will be a good way to learn more about what's going on with the planes in Starfinder's world, as most of the alternative interstellar drives that don't use the Drift pass through other planes instead, like chaos sails and elemental engines. If this book is at least in part about expanding those options and giving us a peek of what we can expect to see in the Great Beyond when using these drives (like Hmm suggested), consider me massively hyped.

I do hope the Drift comes back, though, in some form at least. The Spectras are still kind of new to the setting, and I've been really interested to learn more about them. Robot outsiders are best outsiders.

There will be more about Triune in Galactic Magic and more in the APs, at least.

Don't worry folks, Triune will be temporarily shut down for scheduled maintenance between 322 A.G. and 422 A.G. Please ensure that all Drift transits have been completed before this window to ensure no cargo or personnel is lost to the void. Apologies for any convenience this may cause!

--The Admin

Kind of like how Tobias convinces Lindsey that an open marriage is a good idea "it's never worked before but people still delude themselves that it could work, but it never does... But maybe this time will be different!".

If it hasn't worked before I doubt it will work this time.

Open Marriages Can indeed Work, as long as the individuals involved respect each other's boundaries and trust each other. The problem with most people is that those two things don't happen which just goes to show how fragile relationships can be in the first place >.<

I've been in an open relationship for almost 13 years (this upcoming April 12th will be our 13th Anniversary), and our love for each other is as strong as when we first became a couple sooooo it can work >.>

Back to the topic, I am looking forward to figuring how both trade and our ongoing storyline drifts.

Hmm

I've never been a fan of heavy meta-plot, especially cataclysm plotlines when the setting still has a lot of stuff that could be fleshed out. I guess Galactic Magic will be my last book.

Back cover text:

Cosmic Catastrophe

Hyperspace is broken! In a catastrophic instant, commonplace faster-than-light travel, made possible by the Drift, fails. Travelers vanish midflight, communications scramble, and the Drift’s progenitor god Triune falls mysteriously silent. In the aftermath, empires cling to far-flung holdings, opportunists exploit the chaos, and everyone demands to know what triggered this crisis—and how it can be solved. With Starfinder Drift Crisis, you can dive right into this galaxy-spanning adventure and determine what happens next!

-More than 100 new player options, from class options and themes to equipment, feats, and spells!

-Twenty detailed adventure seeds that provide a framework for playing a framework for playing through dozens of Drift Crisis stories, whether in encounters, adventures, or entire campaigns.

-Deep dives on the myriad effects of the Drift Crisis on factions, worlds, systems, and the galaxy at large.

-A toolbox with a vast store of information for running adventures in the Drift Crisis, from dozens of unique treasures and 20 new creatures to rich nonplayer character profiles and information on adapting Adventure Paths.

I am extra hoping paizo will canonize some of starfinder aps that would have interesting effects on setting(mostly in term of new species being introduced to pact worlds like the people who live in sun AND all of Eloritu's runes being discovered in setting since all missing runes have now been featured in adventures x'D)

Now, if they come out with Drift 2.0 that could be kinda neat.

Especially if Triune went "Wait, all the Drift travel is based on having ONE network hub. That's incredibly problematic if the hub crashes/gets corrupted." and then had to shut things down because some space goblin crossed some wires in the wrong server room -- y'know, like the Paizo Website has been known to do every so often... :>

The blockchain Drift.

Thanks for the extra info Aaron, lovin it!!

Tom

What book will the evolutionist be in? That class strongly implies a book after Drift Crisis that has yet to be announced.

I imagine there will likely be a book dedicated to Biotech/Necrografts, much as Tech Revolution was dedicated to what we consider standard technology and Galactic Magic is dedicated to magical advances. Tech Revolution brought in the Nanocyte and Galactic Magic brings in the Precog. While Evolutionist does have cybernetic and magitech build options, those bases are mostly covered by the previous two books, so Biotech/Necrografts seem the likely area to focus on.

Wei Ji the Learner wrote:

Now, if they come out with Drift 2.0 that could be kinda neat.

Especially if Triune went "Wait, all the Drift travel is based on having ONE network hub. That's incredibly problematic if the hub crashes/gets corrupted." and then had to shut things down because some space goblin crossed some wires in the wrong server room -- y'know, like the Paizo Website has been known to do every so often... :>

The blockchain Drift.

Drift is moving to Proof of Stake any day now we swear

MurderHobo#6226 wrote:

Wei Ji the Learner wrote:

Now, if they come out with Drift 2.0 that could be kinda neat.

Especially if Triune went "Wait, all the Drift travel is based on having ONE network hub. That's incredibly problematic if the hub crashes/gets corrupted." and then had to shut things down because some space goblin crossed some wires in the wrong server room -- y'know, like the Paizo Website has been known to do every so often... :>

The blockchain Drift.

Drift is moving to Proof of Stake any day now we swear

Please ignore the fact that every time a block of transits are processed, another star winks out. We're looking into alternate power sources.

I gotta say that I'm pretty excited about this, particularly in light of STARFINDER INFINITE.

Can't recall if I commented on this before, so apologies if its a repeat:

While I'm looking forward to this supplement, I can't help but think about something similar in another Sci-Fi RPG: Traveller.

A few years back, the then stagnant Traveller setting was 're-vamped' with a sourcebook that cast the setting into a post-apocalypse.

An intelligent virus knows as simply "Virus" had gotten loose, spread through the galaxy by ships (and wi-fi when 'in system'), causing all computer-connected tech to fail, bringing the galaxy to its knees.

This revamping did NOT go over well with Traveller players, and sales plummeted.

I think, if they had presented it as just a one-shot Setting Option, it would have been accepted better, but from that point on, 'Canon' Traveller was in the Post Virus universe.

Later on the game was re-booted yet again, this time ignoring Virus, and restoring things to status quo, more or less.

I don't think Drift Crisis will be the 'canon' setting going forward, at least I hope not for those of us who liked the universe as it was (I want to come up with something that destroys the universe, not have it forced on me.....now, where can I find some rules for those Octopus Headed Brain Suckers? ^_^)

I think the problem is that Traveller is pretty much locked in the "middle-to-older aged American traditionalist gamer" demographic and that's a demographic that doesn't take changes of any sort lightly.

Doing a world-changing event in a game aimed at such people was pretty much sure to backfire. Starfinder is catering to much younger and change-friendly crowd.

Also the Drift Crisis isn’t destroying the setting so…

I'm hoping for some tie ins and hooks when I feel some of my AP games need something a bit different before continuing on. So your traveling to planet X, when this happens to your crew, Starship or BOTH...... :)

I am quite happy we can choose to be in on the ground floor of this event and not just read about it in lore gone by.

And I would think that those who don't like this kind of thing can just ignore it or think this event happened before and is done for their group, fairly simple.

Only rub is that the next 2 AP's will be about this, the noted 3 parter and I would think the end cap to this would be a full 6 part AP, or so I hope!!

Just hope all the shipping delays will be over by this summer, Vast has taken it pretty bad sadly :(

Tom

If the setting ends up pretty different from what it was, as in you cannot really tell the same stories, I can see why some people could be upset.

And you people thought you were above Interplanetary Teleport. Look who's laughing now, huh?

welp. Better get to building my gates. and that extrasolar way station. let's see gonna need at least one in the pact worlds, one on Vesk Prime, and one planted somewhere hidden near New Thespera...

Private use of course. can't be having random space goblins showing up at a secret outpost in azlanti space and drawing attention.

2 months to go so hoping we get some good stuff soon for this product to tease this out, can't wait!!

Tom

I would expect a month further of delays, but yes it's been pretty light on starfinder news, for rulebooks at least

Im interested to see how this will impact Akiton and all that fuel they have.

AUTHORS
Kate Baker, Rigby Bendele, Jessica Catalan, John Compton, John Curtin, Alison Cybe, Leo Glass, John Godek, Sen H.H.S., Joan Hong, Jenny Jarzabski, Jason Keeley, Joshua Kim, Mike Kimmel, Ron Lundeen, Dennis Muldoon, Emily Parks, Samantha Phelan, Mikhail Rekun, James Rodehaver, Solomon St. John, Paul Scofield, Shay Snow, Kendra Leigh Speedling, Jason Tondro, and Andrew White

Exclusive previews, interviews, excerpts, a landing page, and more are on the way!

That is an all-star cast of authors. I am so excited for this, and am planning to run my regular gaming group through the associated Adventure Path!

Can't wait to see what ya got in store for that Aaron!!

Thanks

Tom :)

I think the problem is that Traveller is pretty much locked in the "middle-to-older aged American traditionalist gamer" demographic and that's a demographic that doesn't take changes of any sort lightly.

Doing a world-changing event in a game aimed at such people was pretty much sure to backfire. Starfinder is catering to much younger and change-friendly crowd.

well, also the world ending event in Traveller kinda sucked. It made it so that the best thing about the game - GOING TO STRANGE NEW WORLDS - was pretty much canonically impossible.

this still sounds like the one Starfinder book that I do not need.
we are playing Fly Free or Die, finishing up book 1.
All the other SF books are, or could be material for FFoD - new tech, new magic, beings to meet along the way,...
But scrambling the Drift so it no longer works?
Oops! That's just not going to work with any of the published APs prior to Drift Crisis.
I get that we'll then have an AP which uses (ie relies on!) the book.... but then for subsequent APs either you include Drift Crisis material and it won't play without, or you have normal core Drift, and it won't work.
Or all subsequent APs have to have a conversion section "if you play corebook Drift, do this, if the Drift broke, do this..."

this still sounds like the one Starfinder book that I do not need.

we are playing Fly Free or Die, finishing up book 1.
All the other SF books are, or could be material for FFoD - new tech, new magic, beings to meet along the way,...
But scrambling the Drift so it no longer works?
Oops! That's just not going to work with any of the published APs prior to Drift Crisis.
I get that we'll then have an AP which uses (ie relies on!) the book.... but then for subsequent APs either you include Drift Crisis material and it won't play without, or you have normal core Drift, and it won't work.
Or all subsequent APs have to have a conversion section "if you play corebook Drift, do this, if the Drift broke, do this..."

Consider keeping an open mind until you learn more. For example, the Starfinder team provides ways to play all the existing Adventure Paths within the Drift Crisis. We look forward to unveiling more!

I trust the starfinder team. They have a great way of making the game change in fun ways; from new and unexpected class options to crazy flavorful items. All while giving players wiggle room to make fun concepts for their characters or stories. There's also very little reason the team would make something not backwards compatible, I sincerely doubt that will be the case.

I have to admit this is also the book I wish had never been published unless a hard break was needed to distinguish the second edition of the game. Once it's out, every campaign is going to have to decide whether it's "pre-Drift Crisis" or "post-Drift Crisis" and open/limit access to material in it (and presumably subsequent books) accordingly. Advancing storylines in the AP line is one thing (because they're easy to cabin off), but advancing setting storylines in the main RPG book line is a very different thing. I also have no idea what Starfinder Society will look like since some characters may be built on the assumption it's post-Drift Crisis and others on the assumption it's pre-Drift Crisis (and older and newer scenarios having very different assumptions about fundamental aspects of the setting).

Admittedly, I'm still sore how the Adventurer's Guide has inadvertently spoiled more than one of my players on PF1 APs I'm running :)

My best guess is that the main relevant alteration might be to travel times, which seldom seem to factor into published adventures in any meaningful way.

Excerpt from Starfinder Drift Crisis

Kind of sounds like this is mostly going to be like a mini-campaign book that lasts a few to a half dozen AP's and is similar to the hard cover 5e campaign books.

Its pretty simple for me and my players as well as GM's that run games for me.

Pre drift Event AP's, one shot, Society play or single Adventures this event did not happen, during this event AP, one shot Society play or single Adventures, front and center, post Event, IF there is anything lingering it will be considered from above mentioned venues.

I tend to run and play these in order, but even if not I think that as some have got burned before from other systems doing this type of thing, (and rightly so to!!)

As mentioned above Paizo knows by now one has to handle this fairly gently for those who don't like and don't want to include this in their games.

Pretty simple and straight forward, have it in your game or don't simple as that and you will just miss out on some specifics to the games Paizo releases that have this in them.

And if you are playing something that has this as a key aspect and you don't like it, why the heck did you buy it anyways? As you knew fully well what you were buying and that this would be a main thing in the campaign. (Granted not knowing specific details one could be taking a shot in the dark when first buying any of the Drift Event products but I am SURE we will get responses and reviews ASAP lowd and clear so you will know a bit more about it before buying and risking your hard earned money, one would hope anyways :)

But I understand the posters thoughts, but knowing and trusting Paizo to do this right to ruffle the least feathers, not a problem, just hope they do't gimp it for that specific reason, we doing a drift event, cool BRING IT full on I say!! :)

And as we still are just guessing I might not like it myself, but more than willing to have new potential stuff added into the game I can choose to include, or not include into my games, as a GM and as a player.

Tom

Congrats to the Starfinder team on their front-page Drift Crisis article on Polygon. (While John Compton is quoted, Jason Keeley and Joe Pasini equally contributed.) We also have a Starfinder Infinite sidebar!