| Dark•Matter | |
 Dark•Matter cover |
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| Designer | Wolfgang Baur, Monte Cook |
|---|---|
| Publisher | TSR, Inc. (Wizards of the Coast) |
| Publication date | 1999 |
| Genre(s) | Science fiction, near-future conspiracy |
| System | Custom (Alternity) |
Dark•Matter is a science fiction/conspiracy theory campaign setting that was originally published in 1999 by Wizards of the Coast for the Alternity role-playing game. A "game designer" is a person who designs Video games or one who designs traditional games such as Board games Video Games Designer A video game designer Monte Cook is a professional table-top Role-playing game designer and writer A video game publisher is a company that publishes Video games that they have either developed internally or have had developed by a Video game developer TSR Inc was an American game publishing company most famous for publishing the Dungeons & Dragons Role-playing game. Wizards of the Coast (often referred to as WotC or simply Wizards) is an American publisher of Games primarily based on Fantasy and Alternity is a Science fiction Role-playing game (RPG published by TSR in 1998. A conspiracy theory attributes the ultimate cause of an event or chain of events (usually Political, Social or Historical events or the concealment A campaign setting is usually a Fictional world which serves as a setting for a Role-playing game or Wargame campaign see also 1998 in games, 2000 in games This page lists board and Card games Wargames miniatures games Wizards of the Coast (often referred to as WotC or simply Wizards) is an American publisher of Games primarily based on Fantasy and Alternity is a Science fiction Role-playing game (RPG published by TSR in 1998. A role-playing game ( RPG; often roleplaying game) is a Game in which the participants assume the roles of Fictional characters. It was written by Wolfgang Baur and Monte Cook. Monte Cook is a professional table-top Role-playing game designer and writer It was later converted to d20 Modern rules and published as a stand-alone book in 2006. d20 Modern is a Roleplaying game designed by Bill Slavicsek, Jeff Grubb, Rich Redman, and Charles Ryan. see also 2005 in games, 2007 in games This page lists board and Card games Wargames miniatures games
Contents |
Background
In the setting, the Hoffman Institute is an organization which investigates strange creatures and phenomena. The players take on the roles of members of this organization, and delve into the supernatural and mysterious. The premise of the game is that nearly every strange or supernatural story ever widely told is true, but a web of conspiracies and secret organizations hide this truth from the average person. [1]
This premise was not unique to Dark•Matter, having first been used as the basis for a role-playing game in Bureau 13. Bureau 13 is a fictional a top-secret government agency in the Role-playing game (RPG Bureau 13 Stalking the Night Fantastic which investigates and combats
Contents
The original book was hardbound with 288 pages illustrated in color. It was divided into chapters covering the background of the Dark•Matter setting to include an introduction to the Hoffmann Institute, hero creation, magic and psionics, history of the setting, the Illuminati, and places of interest. Highlights include:
- The true and secret history of Earth.
- Detailed descriptions of 13 powerful conspiracies and secret societies pulling the strings of power, plus nearly 20 more minor organizations.
- Dozens of mysterious sites and hidden strongholds, from the ancient enigma of the Pyramids to the rotten façade of Washington, D. C.
- New skills and careers for heroes, including options for advanced characters.
- New rules for using FX (magic) in your Alternity game, including 45 new Arcane Magic and Faith FX spells.
- Nearly two dozen strange creatures.
- Gamemaster tips and tricks for running paranormal- and conspiracy-based games.
- Raw Recruits, an introductory adventure.
- Alternity Fast-Play Rules.
Accessories and Novels
There were four accessories produced for the setting. Three of them were published in perfect bound paperback format and one was published as an electronic PDF file. There were also various articles published in Dungeon magazine and Dragon magazine. Dungeon Adventures, commonly called simply Dungeon, is a Magazine targeting people who play Role-playing games particularly Dragon is one of the two official Magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons Role-playing game and associated products
The Dark•Matter Arms and Equipment Guide provided a more detailed list of equipment appropriate to the setting.
The Xenoforms Book provided many more supernatural and alien creatures from myth and folklore to add to a campaign.
The Killing Jar was the first adventure published after those provided in the main rulebook.
The final book, which was provided as an electronic PDF, is The Final Church. It is a combination sourcebook and adventure. It provides information on the organization known as The Final Church and pits the characters against them.
There were five novels written for the setting although only four of them actually saw print. The fifth was offered as an electronic PDF file for a short period of time. In order the books were:
1. In Hollow Houses, by Gary A. Braunbeck
2. If Whispers Call, by Don Bassingthwaite
3. In Fluid Silence, by G. W. Tirpa
4. Of Aged Angels, by Monte Cook
5. By Dust Consumed (only available for a short period of time as a pdf file)
d20 Modern system
Some of the Dark•Matter material has since been incorporated into the d20 Modern role-playing game and its d20 Menace Manual supplement. d20 Modern is a Roleplaying game designed by Bill Slavicsek, Jeff Grubb, Rich Redman, and Charles Ryan. The D20 Menace Manual is a listing of statistics for animals aliens and other potential enemies for use in the D20 Modern Role-playing game.
Dark•Matter was also converted into a d20 Modern campaign in Dungeon #108/Polyhedron #163. Polyhedron was a Magazine which started out as the official publication of the RPGA (Role Playing Gamers Association The name of the article was Dark•Matter: Shades of Grey. The setting was then released in 2006 as a hardcover supplement for the d20 Modern system.
In September 2006, Dark•Matter was officially made into a d20 Modern campaign setting with the publication of d20 Dark•Matter.
References
- ^ Patton, Daron "Dan" (2002). Alternity Dark Matter Campaign Setting.