The Skein Saga Game

Skein Saga was ultimately created as the setting for an online/offline hybrid web-based/paper, die and pencil game. The game is still being developed and integrated into this website, but you will start to see more and more game-related elements popping up here and there. Below are some explanations about what some of the things you may encounter are.

Game Mechanics

The Skein Saga game will initially be set up as a strategy game, in which you - as the player - register a frontier mining company, buy ships, hire crews and do everything else needed to set up your operation before sending you small flotilla of mining ships to a chosen planet or moon where they will mine rare resources for you. You won't be able to move your ships around in real time (initially, anyway - hopefully that will come in time) but you will be able to issue basic instruction to your crews instead and then rely on their skill and luck that they make it through the dangers they face. As you earn money, you'll be able to invest, repair and enhance your ships, hire better crews and so on until you are able to afford new and better ships.

The first incarnation of the game will take the form of several online calculators and tools that will provide feedback on the actions you (or your crews) take. Much of the game will be played using downloaded PDF manuals, printed out manual forms as well as dice. This may not appeal to those who are not familiar with traditional role-playing games, but for those of us who used to relish the games we played with friends, clustered around makeshift maps hastily drawn on scraps paper while leafing through thick, beautifully illustrated game manuals, seeking out stats or details that would save our characters or rolling our lucky die in our fingers.

The plan is to automate more and more of the game so that you will eventually be able to play exclusively online without need of paper or dice. The calculators and online tools will be integrated so that the entire playing experience is automated and the game universe is able to function independently of the creators according to how players act.

If there is enough interest, I will then be creating dedicated game application that will start to function more as a traditional game interface. And from there, we'll see what transpires.

The aim is to create a game with player involvement and feedback from the first, rudimentary step so that the playing community gets a game they want to play, not one that's imposed on them.

Social and Engaging

The Skein Saga game will be built on two fundamental principles; a social element and an engagement element.

• Social - Ultimately, I would love to see groups of friends playing Skein Saga, gathered around source books, manuals and files as well as tablet computers or smartphones. Players would also be able to play with others remotely, using the tools available on the website to engage and co-operate with or fight against others from around the world. Either way, the game will be a socially rewarding and fun experience.
• Engaging - This fundamental consists of at least two aspects. Firstly, the game will be engaging so that you most certainly will want to play it regularly, even if you have to steal a few minutes here and there to check on the progress of your mining operations or how your investments are doing. The second aspect of engagement is far more visceral by presenting source material and game resources in great detail that will be available to download as image-rich PDF files, printables and even books, cards and playing pieces. Knowing and understanding the details of the game will be the key to succeeding in it. And more than that, having beautifully illustrated hard-copies or rules and resources in your hands will make discovering those details so much more pleasurable. This tactility is one reason that I would like to include the use of dice in the game (although we'll have to make sure this is feasible). Wouldn't it be awesome to use your very own lucky die?

I will be working hard to realise these game elements over the coming months and I hope you will join me in testing them as they come online. To this end and if you haven't already, I would encourage you to sign up for the Skein Saga Newsletter (in the page footer) so that I can let you know as soon as the game elements come online.

GAME STATS DEFINITIONS