10 MIN - PRESENTATION

Created and narrated by Nathan Reese Maher, Artwork by Tobias White and Music by Simon Wilkinson.

2 MIN - CHARACTER CREATION

Created and narrated by Nathan Reese Maher, Artwork by Tobias White and Music by Simon Wilkinson.

THE MAGIC OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Narrated by Tobias White and Music by Simon Wilkinson.

THE MAGIC OF ILLUSTRATIONS, PART 2

Narrated by Tobias White and Music by Simon Wilkinson.

LONG AWAITED GAMEPLAY VIDEO

Narrated by Nathan Maher and Music by Simon Wilkinson.  A rough video due to time restraints.

WELCOME TO THE GREAT BEYOND

   "Congratulations, you're dead and the afterlife isn't what you thought. Don't worry about it, my new friends, we've all had to rub the dirt out of our eyes and come to terms with our, as the scientists say, metamorphosis. You're a spook now, a soul living the unlife in the great city of Necropolis. What you do from here is up to you, everyone is looking for that perfect piece of the afterlife and some will do anything to get their hands on it. It's not just the city here in the land of the dead, there's the Salts, the River of Styx and the Sea of Lost Memories, the Hellfire Lands and let us not forget the Dream Veil. Be careful where you stick your nose, not everyone who goes searching comes back. The well-wishers believe those sorry spooks found what they were looking for, but let's be realistic, we may be dead but there are a lot of dangers out there and we're not the only ones here. Listen to me talk, you're fresh from the quietus and you probably need a good poison to better take this all in. Follow me, I know a guy who has a couple extra bone cards lying around - trust me you're going to need them."

THE STORY BEHIND THE GAME

     When my grandfather died many years ago, I had a dream where I was sitting in his living room on the sofa and I asked him, referencing his recent departure from this world, "What is it like?" He turned to me, a man devoted to his faith, and said so matter-of-factly, "Nathan, it's not what we thought." That statement has stuck with me since... Five years ago, I was experimenting with different role-playing systems, just trying to see what I could come up with. From it, I was able to create, "Sticks & Stones - The Free RPG", which still remains in playtest, but also I had the idea for, Spooks! It was very elementary at the time, nothing more than basic die formulas and a few spook types; nothing really concrete. I became distracted, as life often does, and didn't return to the game until late in 2012. Now that I am older and busier, I found I had less free time than I did when I would play eight hour sessions with my friends. I wanted something that I could jump into for maybe 3-4 hours at a time, like a card game or board game; something that had little preparation time. As I continued to flesh out the game, I realized that one day I was going to have children and I would want to introduce them as early as possible to a family friendly RPG. Having a game set in the afterlife could offer many opportunities to introduce historical people and events to a younger generation without making it boring. With Spooks! I could meet George Washington, have a gun battle at the OK Corral, team up with Edgar Allan Poe as a detective, aid brilliant minds like Nikola Tesla, Anna Lovelace or Joseph Swan. The possibilities were endless and all I had to do was write it.

     As I neared its completion, I teamed up with Tobias White, an artist out of Anaheim, California, who has a talent for painting dark and spooky things. Together, we bounced ideas of each other and came up with some pretty interesting art pieces to help bring the game to unlife. Art, however, is time consuming and can be expensive. That's where you come in. With your help, we can enter a new chapter of, "Spooks! Welcome to the Great Beyond". With more art and your feedback together we can build the afterlife one illustration at a time. I cannot wait to see the outcome.

OUR GOAL

      "Spooks! Welcome to the Great Beyond" is nearly 70% complete and come October 2013 a playtest version will be available to those who donate to this kickstarter. The funds I am seeking are to be used strictly for art and illustrations for the core rule book - or if donations are large enough - for additional "Spooks! WTGB" products. None of these funds will be used for administration or creator reimbursements. I want a good looking product and I know you do too. The more illustrations, the better our chances for the game's future success once it is released to the public. Digital copies will cost $19.99, with softcovers at $29.99 and hardcovers at $35.99.

     Prices may vary depending on manufacturers cost. Spell decks and additional products will be sold separately. The game will be first sold on Amazon.com and Drivethrurpg.com first and then to other distributors as we progress.

STRETCH GOALS

     While $3000.00 would help produce great art, this is the minimum we'll need to complete the book. The below stretch goals will give a better perspective on what we would see with additional funds:

$3,000 - Bronze Level of Illustration: Spook Portraits and approx. 10-15 images in the book. 

$5,000 - Silver Level of Illustration: Spook Portraits, background and chapter images, approx. additional 15-20 images.

$7,000 - Gold Level of Illustrations: Spook Portraits, background and chapter Images, obituary and denizen Portraits, approx. 20-25 additional images.

$9,000 - Platinum Level of Illustrations: Spook Portraits, background and chapter Images, obituary and denizen portraits, image frames and borders, approx. 30-35 images.

$11,000 - Platinum Plus Card Fronts: Same as Platinum but with commissioned fronts for the Bone and Spider spell decks.

$13,000+ - Platinum, Card Fronts, New Books - Same as Platinum Plus Card Fronts, but all additional funds not used in the core rules will be put towards, "The Book of Breathing", a compilation of historical characters in the Great Beyond and, "Necrology Vol I", a compilation of spooks and denizens that exist in the afterlife.

REWARDS

(Additional information on rewards)

$150 - POSTCARD FICTION

     Postcard fiction is short fictional blurbs, no more than 50 words that describes a scene or action. An example is as follows: “Your ticket.” Said the skeletal-clerk as he tapped his boney finger on the counter. He slid me the voucher. “I don’t have money.” I replied nervously in the empty station. “Everyone gets one. You can’t stay here.” He points to the track. “It’ll take you to the city.” This short pieces will be used throughout the core rule book to add a sense of story and to help draw the reader into the world. Those who donate $150.00 or more are able to submit postcard fiction to be added to the book.

$200 - 2,000 WORD FICTION

     With each chapter there will be a segment slotted for fiction that is related to the, "Spooks! WTGB", multi-verse. Those who select this option will be offered themes to write on such as combat, magic or encounters with denizens or historical figures.

$400 - DREAM VEIL BROCHURE

     Brochures will be produced for the game as additional in-game locations especially focusing on the Dream Veil. The Dream Veil contains the dreams of the living and dead with locations, people and events transpiring inside each unique dreamscape. Additional information, as well as examples of the Dream Veil and its dreamscapes will be provided to make your personal fan-inspired masterpiece. The brochure format is a regular 8 1/2 by 11 inch piece of paper folded into 3 parts creating 6 columns. Artwork for the front cover will be provided by Tobias White, who will work with you to best present your ideas. Then, there may be 1-2 smaller images inside the other columns including maps, character portraits and borders. The brochure will include a description of the dream, important people, denizens inside and treasure that typically can be found. Depending on the content, you may be invited to have it added to the core book.

WHO ARE WE?

     Nightingale Publishing is a company created in 2005 by Nathan Reese Maher to separate his gaming materials from his fiction. A few titles have been published beneath the nightingale logo such as, "The Wailing Sorrow" a Ravenloft fan-made adventure, "Sticks & Stones - The Free RPG, The Playtest" - a new gaming system in development to reflect the old AD&D Skills & Powers - and now, "Spooks! Welcome to the Great Beyond."

Nathan Reese Maher

     I live in Clive, IA, a small suburb of Des Moines, and have been playing tabletop role-playing games since 1991. In December 2009, I self-published my first novel, "Secrets of the CitySpire", and then my second "Rubberband Lazer - Or, The Adventures of Casey Norider and Jaq Synergy", in 2011.

     While I am still writing fiction, I don't anticipate seeing another published until 2014 as Spooks! has my full attention. In 2012, I released the playtest version of "Sticks & Stones - The Free RPG", and come October 2013, I'll be releasing the playtest version of, "Spooks! Welcome to the Great Beyond", exclusively to those who donate $10 or more to the kickstarter. I have a BA in English Literature, enjoy the arts, video games and tabletop gaming! Don't hesitate to reach out to me if you have questions in regards to this game or just games in general. My personal page is http://www.nathanreesemaher.com .

Tobias White

     Commissioned artist and contributor out of Anaheim, CA. You can find his works and his love for spooky things at http://tobiasartwork.blogspot.com/.