Press ARS MAGICA™ RPG BECOMES OPEN LICENSE VIA CROWDFUNDING

[Egg Embry]

​ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ARS MAGICA™ RPG BECOMES OPEN LICENSE VIA CROWDFUNDING​ Proctor, MN – 09/27/24 – The legendary roleplaying game of myth and magic will soon itself be transmuted, as Ars Magica's game system and setting will be released under an open license. The crowdfunding campaign supporting the release starts Oct 15 at 11am Central US time, on BackerKit.com. Atlas Games®, the stewards of the award-winning tabletop roleplaying game Ars Magica, announced earlier this year the upcoming launch of Ars Magica Definitive Edition. This deluxe version of the 5th Edition marks an epic return for the game, not only with an expanded rulebook weighing in at over 600 full-color pages, but also by embracing an open license for third-party creators. ​ Ars Magica Definitive Edition will empower players and creators like never before. The text of the core rulebook will be released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0) license as an early stretch goal. This open license will allow players to freely share, adapt, and build upon both the core mechanics and the Mythic Europe setting for the game, and sell their creations. All of Ars Magica's 5th Edition sourcebooks may also be released during the campaign, depending on backer support. Stretch goals for licensing the existing 40+ titles in this edition, which flesh out every facet of Mythic Europe™, are scheduled to appear later in the campaign. John Nephew started Atlas Games in 1990 to produce Ars Magica adventures with a license from Lion Rampant, the game's original publisher. In 1996, Atlas Games bought the entire game from Wizards of the Coast, and went on to publish the 4th and 5th Editions that included 65 supplements in total. "Ars Magica has never had an open license," observes John, "yet still the internet is full of fan-created content, which is something we've always quietly encouraged. That speaks more than anything to the game's devoted and creative fan following, and the importance of this license to make our support explicit." Michelle Nephew is the project's Co-Producer, as well as co-owner of Atlas Games. "We've had the amazing opportunity to publish Ars Magica for over three decades, supported by that devoted fan community," she agrees. "As the stewards of this incredible piece of roleplaying history, John and I feel it's time to give back to our fans, and let them take the game in new directions we haven't had the resources to explore. It's our way of fostering a vibrant community of creators, and ensuring the game's longevity for generations to come." "I already have a Patreon to make material for it, with permission from Atlas to start before the licenses are released," notes Line Developer David Chart. "Anyone who wants can write for the game, and charge people for what they make. I very much hope that this will be a new beginning, and that the amount of material available to build on will encourage lots of people to do so." "Their creativity will determine the game's legacy," David continues, "and it will be more than I can imagine." The highly anticipated crowdfunding campaign launches on BackerKit.com October 15th at 11:00 AM Central US time. Resources: BackerKit crowdfunding page: atlas-games.com/backarsmagica Definitive Edition layout special preview: atlas-games.com/definitivepreview Info on Definitive Edition: atlas-games.com/definitive About Ars Magica: Ars Magica is the award-winning tabletop RPG set in a Mythic Europe teeming with magic. Players take the roles of powerful wizards, bound by a complex covenant system and dedicated to unraveling the mysteries of the arcane. Widely regarded as the benchmark for magic systems, Ars Magica is also the pioneer in troupe-style, storytelling games. About Atlas Games: At Atlas Games, our passion is offering exceptional games to the world. Our first release was in 1990, making us one of the most reliable hobby game publishers in business, too. We believe in creative curiosity and sensible operations. We love new ideas and always keep our word. If that appeals to you, boy have we got a treat for you! Contact: John Nephew Atlas Games Co-Owner john@atlas-games.com Ars Magica and Mythic Europe are trademarks, and Atlas Games is a registered trademark, of Trident, Inc. d/b/a Atlas Games. ​

 

[jdrakeh]

This is potentially some of the biggest gaming news of 2024. And I'm here for it!

 

[darjr]

Wow! That’s amazing. Nice!

 

[Morrus]

Wow.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

As exciting as a new edition of Ars Magica is (although there's no way I can afford to back this campaign this fall, with all of the other campaigns as well), what's really exciting is what will grow from these seeds in future.

 

[dchart]

Just to be clear: Definitive Edition is a compilation of the core material from the whole of the Fifth Edition line, with vastly improved production values. If you already own all 40+ Fifth Edition books and download the errata, you have virtually all the text in the Definitive Edition book. (I think I added two or three explanatory inserts that are genuinely new.) The art and layout include a lot of new material, however, and I think they are gorgeous.

 

[darjr]

It’s live.

Ars Magica Definitive Edition

Ars Magica's deluxe edition with vastly expanded text, new art and graphic design, and luxurious upgrades.

www.backerkit.com

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I knew this was going to be expensive, but it looks like $150 is the minimum buy-in if you want the (seemingly spectacular) new rulebook.

 

[Cergorach]

I've always found Ars Magica interesting, it always reminded me of Mage: The Sorcerers Crusade/Dark Ages in a good way. Our group would never have played it though, thus I never picked it up physically. Until the Bundle of Holding came out with all the AM5e pdfs (no DRM AND via DTRPG), thus picked it up digitally. This being released through CC BY-SA 4.0 via crowdfunding is absolutely awesome! Especially that with stretch goals, more is being added.

Folks doing the Foundry VTT implementation are already preparing to add all the CC BY-SA 4.0 stuff to their VTT implementation. I see big similarities to Pathfinder (Archives of Nethys), it's accessibility to all the rules for free (legally) and it's easy adoption into VTTs. Hopefully Ars Magica will have a similar successful adoption among VTTs with this direction of openness!

I backed at the $40 pledge (the digital pledge). I am looking at adding the 4e/3e/2e pdf collections, but it's being redeemed via Backerkit, if they would also include DTRPG (like Humble Bundle does) it would be a no brainer. The 4e bundle is also on DTRPG for $80 (same price), but is missing one item (21 items vs 22 items). Having a non-DRM version is awesome! But having a copy at DTRPG makes managing my pdf collection over all kinds of different platforms and crowdfunding pledges a little bit easier.

Side note: This kind of stuff is great for any other game you want to play in a Mythic Earth kind of setting. Be that D&D, Pathfinder, Mage: The Sorcerers Crusade/Dark Ages, or anything else...