Monster Kart Monday #1: Mermaid Adventures

This entry is part 1 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

Last week I told you I was working on additional content for Monster Kart Mayhem and that I would have more to report soon. This week I’ll show you a first look at the first add-on for MKM, Mermaid Adventures.

If that name sounds familiar to you, it’s because Mermaid Adventures is a great RPG for kids by Third Eye Games. Check out this review I wrote in January 2013. Mermaid Adventures was also recently nominated for an ENnie award, one of the most prestigious awards in gaming.

With all of that being said, I received permission from Eloy Lasanta, the game’s author, to use Mermaid Adventures as the inspiration for the first add-on track of Monster Kart Mayhem. The world of Mermaid Adventures actually worked out very well for the game: in the core book, we discover that the residents of Atlantis …
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Monster Kart Monday #2: More Mermaid Adventures

This entry is part 2 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

In last week’s Monster Kart Mayhem update, I talked about the newest race course for Monster Kart Mayhem based on Third Eye Games’ Mermaid Adventures. At that time I hadn’t finalized the Power-Ups or many of the race course details, but now the entire course has been completed.

Each new course, of the six total courses planned, will have a varying number of new racers and race course locations, but they will all have nine Power-Ups. The complete list of new Power-Ups for Mermaids of Monster Kart Mayhem includes:

  • Shooting Starfish
  • Oi-eel Lamp
  • Turtle Armor
  • Treasure Map
  • Pearl Necklace
  • Piranha Repellent
  • Clam Clamps
  • Clown Fish
  • Mime Fish

I’m pleased to say that I have developed new and creative ways to work with the simple game mechanics of Monster Kart Mayhem to make some fairly unique race course terrain effects and Power-Up effects, as well as new Perks and Quirks for each of the racers.

For instance, the Clown …
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Monster Kart Monday #3: MKM Goes to Camp

This entry is part 3 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

Last week I revealed the rest of the details behind Mermaids of Monster Kart Mayhem, which is based on Third Eye Games’ ENnie Award-nominated family game, Mermaid Adventures. This week I’m happy to announce another great mashup: Monster Kart Mayhem meets Camp Myth the RPG in MKM Goes to Camp!

If you recall, a few weeks ago I published a review of Camp Myth: the RPG. Camp Myth is another kid-friendly game by Third Eye Games using their unique Pip System. Written by Chris Lewis Carter and designed by Eloy Lasanta, Camp Myth makes a perfect backdrop for a new Monster Kart Mayhem race course.

In MKM Goes to Camp, you’ll find 10 new playable characters, 9 new Power-Ups, and one new Camp Myth-inspired race course. Additionally, players will be able to earn a Camp Myth Kart Race Merit Badge which can be ported into …
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Monster Kart Monday #4: More Camp Myth

This entry is part 4 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

Last week I revealed the next race course that will be available for Monster Kart Mayhem: the Camp Myth Kart Race. Read last week’s post for a brief overview of the new racers and race track locations you will find in the game.

This week I’d like to spotlight some new Power-Ups. If you haven’t read the freely available Monster Kart Mayhem RPGGeek Contest Edition, a Power-Up is an item you can acquire during game play to to provide a boost to your haracter, to attack another player, or to overcome certain negative effects.

For MKM Goes to Camp, I had a lot of material to draw upon thanks to the rich world of Camp Myth. I’m very pleased with the outcomes of the Power-Ups designed for this course, so I’d like to reveal not just their names but their special abilities as well.

Remember to come …
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Monster Kart Monday #5: Merit Badges

This entry is part 5 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

I’ve been talking a lot about the new Camp Myth race course for Monster Kart Mayhem, but that’s because it’s the biggest and most engaging yet. In addition to the new track and the new Power-Ups, MKM Goes to Camp adds a new merit badge mechanic that can be used in conjunction with Camp Myth: the RPG by Third Eye Games.

While I’m talking about Camp Myth, I’d like to point out that Chris Lewis Carter is currently (as of the date of this post) running a Kickstarter campaign for the second book in the Camp Myth series, entitled “Kraken Fishing.” Check it out if you’re interested in a great new work of kid-friendly fiction.

Merit Badges

In Camp Myth: the RPG, players can earn merit badges which give them unique bonuses during game play. Because MKM Goes to Camp is tied …
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Monster Kart Monday #6: Fairyland

This entry is part 6 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

As Monster Kart Mayhem continues development, I continue to research and develop new ideas for race course locations and new racers. We already have monsters, merfolk, and mythic creatures, but there is so much more potential.

Next up for development is Fairyland. Similar to Camp Myth in some ways, Fairyland will contain several new varieties of fey creatures from many different cultural backgrounds. These aren’t completely fleshed out yet, but here are a few of the ideas I have for new creatures in the fairy realms:

Dryad
Satyr
Brownie
Sylph
Sprite
Gnome
Boggart
Hobgoblin
Spriggan
Nixie
Pixie
Nymph
Dwarf
Elf

 

There are obviously a lot of different creatures to choose from, and I am actively researching all of the various world and cultural differences between the ideas we have based on them. Our modern views of these creatures aren’t necessarily the same as the way people viewed them centuries …
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Monster Kart Monday #7: VirtuaCon and a New Alpha

This entry is part 7 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

This week I took a bit of a break from designing MKM Fairyland because I had a lot of work to do on the core book itself. There’s a lot to talk about this week, so let’s get started!

Monster Kart Mayhem at VirtuaCon ’13

First of all, I’d like to bring your attention to VirtuaCon ’13. Player sign-ups went live today, and we already have 3 out of 10 total slots filled up for Monster Kart Mayhem.

Here’s the info you need to get started.

Sign up for games using this list.

Specifically, Monster Kart Mayhem sign-ups are on page 4 of this list. You might also wish to check out the sign-ups for Psi-punk on page 1.

RPGGeek’s VirtuaCon is unofficially “the best 3 days in virtual gaming.” Games are run via Google Hangouts …
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Monster Kart Monday #8: Now With More Faeries

This entry is part 8 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

Monster Kart Monday is back! We took a week off due to the holiday here in America, but we’ve returned to tell you a little bit more about MKM: Fairyland.

You may remember me talking about MKM Fairyland in Week 6. Now it’s been a few weeks and I have a bit more news for you on that front. The new race course is coming along great, and 7 out of 8 new racers have been fully written up. So far we have

* Daphne the Dryad
* Gunther the Gnome
* Seth the Satyr
* Sylvia the Sylph
* Paisley the Pixie
* Barty the Brownie
* Bogey the Boggart

I’m still torn between two options for the 8th character: Natalie the Nixie or Nell the Nymph. I suppose I could make 9 total characters, but that’s such an odd number (geddit?). What are your thoughts: Nixie or Nymph for character number …
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Monster Kart Monday #9: Fairyland Progress, Playtesting

This entry is part 9 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

Progress on MKM: Fairyland has been slower than on some of the other adventures, but I still feel it’s coming along quite nicely. After I”m done with Fairyland I’m going to begin work on MKM: Circus Carnage, which is a departure from the mythology theme of some of the other race courses but brings the game back to its monstrous roots.

I hope to launch a Kickstarter campaign for MonsterKart Mayhem in October, just in time for Halloween. My goal is to have the core book and four adventures finished with enough detail to show off when the Kickstarter goes live. Stay tuned for more details.

Additionally, I have had some renewed interest in playtesting lately. The offer still stands to let playtesters create new content for the game and gain a free copy of the book, so if you’re interested head on over to this …
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Monster Kart Monday #10: New Alpha, Upcoming Kickstarter

This entry is part 10 of 21 in the seriesMonster Kart Monday

Monster Kart Mayhem has been getting a lot of polish this week. Thanks to the feedback of one of our volunteer playtesters, I was able to add some much-needed rules clarifications and examples of play into to the book. Just this week I added about 1100 words to MKM, which is mighty impressive if you consider the whole book was only 8,000 words before.

I clarified and simplified language surrounding the Pace rules that were introduced to the Alpha 1 version of the book. There was some confusion over using the Trait Ladder’s numerical annotation alongside the notation for the number of Spaces moved  during around. For example, the rules used to say something like: “if your Pace is Good (+1) you may move 5 Spaces.” The question was: If my Pace is +1, why am I moving 5 Spaces instead of 1? And if my Pace …
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