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Starfinder Drift Crisis

3.90/5 (based on 8 ratings)
Starfinder Drift Crisis
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In a catastrophic instant, travel through the faster-than-light Drift realm failed, with travelers vanishing in mid-flight, communications scrambling, and the Drift's progenitor god Triune falling mysteriously silent. In the aftermath, empires cling to far-flung holdings, opportunists exploit the chaos, and everyone demands to know what triggered this Drift Crisis and how they can solve it.

The Drift Crisis hardcover rulebook and setting guide details this massive galaxy-wide event, introducing a vast array of new conflicts, opportunities, and stories. Equip your characters with the latest technologies and techniques for surviving the upheaval, with new gear and character options. Discover the influential factions that are restoring order, profiting on the wreckage, or perpetuating the pandemonium. And experience the Drift Crisis with 20 detailed adventure seeds that range from survival to saving the galaxy!

ISBN-13: 978-1-64078-419-2



Other Resources: This product is also available on the following platforms:

Fantasy Grounds Virtual Tabletop
Roll20 Virtual Tabletop
Archives of Nethys

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New and Interesting expansion

4/5 —

Drift Crisis is a new kind of book for the Starfinder line, full of ways to complicate your player's lives with twists on existing adventures and seeds for entirely new ones. Tons of great content and beautiful art.

Time of Troubles... In Space!!!!

3/5 —

It's a good book with interesting plot hooks and artwork but it is NOT the cosmic catastrophe that it's been hyped out to be and is just a vehicle for advancing the metaplot slightly forward without any substantial long term changes.

Overhyped - would have been 5/5 otherwise

4/5 —

Art - good

Adventure hooks - good

Metaplot advancement - mostly good? A bit annoying that the Pact Worlds seem to have been minorly inconvenienced while the Veskarium and the Azzies have had earth-shaking events occuring.

Integration with prior AP's - terrible.

In my opinion the main drawback that keeps this from being a 5/5 is that for all the narrative talking-up of things, there is approximately only one mechanical effect shown in the book that affects the day-to-day of players, and that's that it takes longer to jump through the Drift.

That's it. No new random encounter tables. No effects from long-term drift travel. No possibility of mis-jumping and getting spat out into a place on the other side of the galaxy from where you intended. No, things just....take longer.

It's underwhelming to say the least.

Similarly, the end of the book talks up the new "drift lanes" and new tensions....you know what would have been useful to try and see how the galaxy has changed? A star map, but the writing staff refuses to engage in even some basic stellar cartography for us, so a lot of these "BATTLE LINES ARE BEING DRAWN...." paragraphs promising future conflict are impossible to really comprehend in your head. Which systems are threatened? Who knows. Go re-read the last few paragraphs and write down all the planet names and maybe you'll figure it out.

Finally, and I don't ding the book on this because honestly I could do without it, but the half-hearted attempts to "integrate" the Drift Crisis with existing AP's is ham-fisted and terrible. For instance in Fly Free or Die, not a single mention is given to how to adapt the Wintermourne and its crew to the new circumstances. Which is strange because in book 2 half the plot is about trying to beat them to your destination! But if they're flying in slo-mo and you can get there in 2 weeks, what's the tension?

An innovative concept, masterfully executed

5/5 —

Drift Crisis is without question the strangest book in the Starfinder lineup - possibly even in Paizo's entire publishing history, if not in the history of tabletop RPGs in general. Seasoned TTRPG players might think of it as 'metaplot' (though Paizo themselves likened it more to a comic book crossover event), but there are a number of key differences that distinguish the Drift Crisis from the likes of Time of Judgment (World of Darkness) or the End Times (Warhammer Fantasy), or even aforementioned comic book crossovers. But novelty alone does not a great roleplaying game supplement make, so how does Drift Crisis hold up?

So what even is this Drift Crisis? It’s simple, really: the Drift, Starfinder’s hyperspace and default means of FTL travel, suffers an unexpected catastrophic failure - first in the instantaneous Drift Crash, and in the ongoing Crisis that follows. However, with the sheer importance of the Drift to trade, travel, military strategy, communications and even faith, every strata of galactic society is affected - and in turn, every type of Starfinder adventure.

The Drift Crisis is, above all else, a toolbox for storytelling, a surprisingly flexible one at that - although there is a canonical cause and conclusion that Paizo themselves are sticking to in this and other upcoming products, the bulk of the material works just as well if you diverge from the canon (indeed the book even encourages this to some extent). In fact, there isn’t even a default start date like you’d expect with a typical metaplot event - you could have your campaign start off pre-Crisis and only introduce it midway into your usual Adventure Path (more on this later), and you could just as easily start things off with a brand-new adventure that takes place with the Crisis well underway, using one of the many provided adventure seeds that constitute the bulk of the book.

There is 20 of said adventure seeds, which vary in length (between 2 and 6 pages each), cover a wide range of levels (a few can go from 1 to 20!), and in some cases can be chained together (with advice on a few possible arcs presented at the start). Each one features a general outline of possible events, as well as NPCs, creatures, factions and locations involved. Most also have a few new player options (which might be given out as rewards for the adventure, or used independently), and there is a new creature in the back associated with each one. They’re less detailed than a typical standalone adventure or Adventure Path, and this can be either a boon if you enjoy filling in the blanks to suit you and your group, or it can be a little intimidating if you’re a flaky GM like me. Regardless, they are very actionable tools that can help you bring the Drift Crisis to the table, which is the main thing that matters in a book like this.

While the canonical Crisis will be resolved (sometime next year with the Drift Hackers Adventure Path), it may damn well never end in your home game if you so desire, or you might end up with a very different set of consequences once it does resolve. Paizo has even provided reasonably detailed advice on adapting almost every already-existing Adventure Path to take advantage of this book, some of which can pretty radically alter the feel of the APs, and might reincorporate material published in this and other Starfinder books.

Which leads me to another strength of this book - very little of it is about resolving already-existing conflicts or killing off your favorite NPCs, the way that some metaplot-style books in the games of yore might have. While a few corner cases may be slightly invalidated due to the shift in circumstances, the vast majority of what’s on offer here only exacerbates, complicates, and overall enhances the already-presented story hooks scattered throughout the rest of the game, while obviously creating a whole host of brand new ones. You get references to all sorts of already-published Starfinder products, and not just the expected hardcovers - a number of Adventure Path issues and even an organized play scenario get a shoutout here, which can be either great payoff if you have a large collection of Starfinder materials, or it might feel a little annoying to have to hunt down disparate products like that. Your mileage may vary, but I for one enjoy when a game remembers to reincorporate stuff published earlier in its lifespan.

Not only that, but because of its global scale, the Drift Crisis serves as excellent connective tissue for what in the past might have been rather disparate areas of the setting - everything feels a lot more dynamic and interconnected, and although you can still just as well run a self-contained story that doesn’t touch on the greater ongoings of the Crisis, you get a much richer and livelier backdrop to do so against now.

It wouldn’t be a hardcover Starfinder book without some new player options, and there’s all sorts to be found here - although not every class gets dedicated toys here (sorry, soldiers!). For those concerned that the new options are only relevant to the Drift Crisis (and might not be of use to those not interested in the Crisis, or are worried they’ll be outdated once it’s resolved), fear not - most of them, while thematically linked to it, work just as well outside of its context, whether that’s the class options (like the Drift connection mystic), the equipment, or the spells. They are somewhat scattered, with a solid chunk in chapter 1, and then sprinkled throughout some of the adventure seeds in chapter 2, but thankfully there is a nice index in the back that collates them all, and it will all eventually be on websites such as Archives of Nethys or the Hephaistos character builder anyway.

A few final miscellaneous points that I didn’t have a great place to mention elsewhere:

- The art is, as always, top notch. Starfinder’s art direction has always been one of its strongest points, and it shines bright as ever in this book. Some fan-favorite species make an appearance here (check out the shield-throwing vlaka on page 48!), and we finally get a look at what Drift beacons look like in here.

-There is a section further describing the Drift as it exists before the Crisis, which will be universally useful even to groups opting out of the Drift Crisis storyline.

- The final chapter has rolling tables for treasure you might find, generally in the wake of the Crisis, either to sell for credits or to use as further story hooks. If you’re a fan of this stuff and you felt that Starfinder was missing genre-appropriate loot tables, you will enjoy this one.

- There is a section on concluding the Drift Crisis and what consequences it might bring to the larger setting moving forward. It’s not immediately clear which of these will become ‘canon’ (though I have my own suspicions), but at least a few of them could be really interesting moving forward (or even just in your home game). So keep an eye out on the Drift Hackers AP in 2023.

Sometimes it can feel as though Starfinder exists in the shadow of Paizo’s bigger game Pathfinder, but Drift Crisis proves that there is a very passionate team still hard at work on this d20 science-fantasy RPG, and Starfinder isn’t going anywhere. It’s a revolutionary approach to a setting book, and it will be interesting to see how it affects the game as time goes on.

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Sovereign Court RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16, 2011 Top 32

Galactic Magic. Coming out in January before this book.
Marketing & Media Manager
4 people marked this as a favorite.
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!

James Martin wrote:
Galactic Magic. Coming out in January before this book.

The Precogs in that book not the Evolutionist.

Grand Lodge
4 people marked this as a favorite.
James Martin wrote:
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.
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."

7 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber

According to Jason Tondro on Twitter, Starfinder's sales are up and the product line is "wildly successful" (for a sci-fi RPG).
Paizo Employee Chief Creative Officer, Publisher
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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!
1 person marked this as a favorite.

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!
Sovereign Court RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16, 2011 Top 32
1 person marked this as a favorite.

Excellent to hear! I am a huge fan of Starfinder and would very much be disappointed to see it disappear.
Marketing & Media Manager
Milo v3 wrote:
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 :)
2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook, Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

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.
5 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Lost Omens Subscriber

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... :>
Marketing & Media Manager
4 people marked this as a favorite.
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... :>

Ha!

Marketing & Media Manager
4 people marked this as a favorite.
Opsylum wrote:

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.

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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
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captain yesterday wrote:

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 >.>
Wayfinders Contributor
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Can confirm.:
Our polyamorous (not open, but closed) relationship has weathered 22 years and the raising of two kids to adulthood. It can work with the following ingredients.

1. Respect
2. Transparency and Honesty
3. Empathy
4. Consent and Communication
5. An Excellent Scheduling App, and Shared Grocery Apps to prevent meltdowns and misunderstandings.

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

Hmm
2 people marked this as a favorite.

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.
Marketing & Media Manager
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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.
Dark Archive
1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

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)
3 people marked this as a favorite.
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.

Thanks for the extra info Aaron, lovin it!!

Tom
Dataphiles
2 people marked this as a favorite.
David knott 242 wrote:


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.

4 people marked this as a favorite.
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

7 people marked this as a favorite.
Elegos wrote:
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.

Acquisitives
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Pathfinder Adventure Path, Lost Omens, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

I gotta say that I'm pretty excited about this, particularly in light of STARFINDER INFINITE.
3 people marked this as a favorite.

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? ^_^)
5 people marked this as a favorite.

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.
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Also the Drift Crisis isn’t destroying the setting so…
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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
Liberty's Edge
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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.
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And you people thought you were above Interplanetary Teleport. Look who's laughing now, huh?
Second Seekers (Jadnura)
Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Maps, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

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.
Marketing & Media Manager
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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!
Wayfinders Contributor
4 people marked this as a favorite.

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 :)
Acquisitives
1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Adventure Path, Lost Omens, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Totally Not Gorbacz wrote:

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.

Scarab Sages
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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..."
Marketing & Media Manager
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caribet wrote:

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!

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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 :)
Pathfinder Starfinder Society Subscriber

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.
Marketing & Media Manager
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Excerpt from Starfinder Drift Crisis
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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.
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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
Marketing & Media Manager
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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!
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