Stars Without Number: Record Sheets

Tuesday, August 09, 2011

I have recently discovered Stars Without Number, quite possibly the best sandbox-gaming RPG ever made. SWN won the "best free game" category in the Indie RPG Awards this year, which prompted me to give it a look. I'm VERY glad I did.

The GM tools presented in this game for managing a sandbox are second to none. Every last element is considered and provided for, from creating a sector of space to explore -- its planets, factions, and NPCs -- to modular adventure creation, one-roll quick generators for every conceivable thing (from religions to corporations to alien species), and a simple but interesting faction-level conflict system to keep the world(s) spinning with conflicts. The amount of work put into this game is staggering. Major kudos to Kevin Crawford, the author.

Those who love Apocalypse World will recognize this style of game immediately, and feel right at home. (The skill system just so happens to be 2d6+bonus, which makes it a cinch to tweak to AW-style miss/partial/hit results). I really can't recommend the game enough. Oh, did I also mention that it's FREE?

Since I plan to run the game soon, I had to make new record sheets for it (naturally). You can grab the PDF, which includes class sheets for the Expert, Warrior, and Psychic, a starship record sheet, planet sheet, and faction files.



Enjoy! If you have experience running or playing SWN, I'd love to hear about it.