Transatlantic Tea Party

We're back from Indianaoplis now (mostly awake, but not entirely), and I'm pleased to report that we had a fabulous time. Not only did the game sell well, but we also met some fantastic people.

I got to run an impromptu demo for two very lovely non-gamer steampunk ladies, who were so taken with it that they bought the game! As Cogs, Cakes and Swordsticks was partly written with these kind of ladies in mind, I was absolutely thrilled to bits.

I also got to discuss the potential for Space Mounties with two smashing Canadians, chat to the fantastic Liz Spain (whose Incredible Expeditions is currently on Kickstarter - please do go and take a peek!), and finally got to meet one of our first and most enthusiastic supporters, the wonderful Donna Prior.

Not only that, but we set ourselves a little cosplaying goal over the course of the convention. As the tagline for the game is "Tea! Cake!! Adventure!!!", we decided that we'd have to find ourselves two very special cosplayers...

Tea! Cake!! Adventure Time!!! With Jake the Dog...

And Finn the Human!

Yes, we know it's daft, but we're very proud of ourselves, and both lads were quite happy to indulge our silliness.

Indianapolis Ahoy!

(Photo courtesy of Shadow Caver, www.city-data.com)

It's time for the tea and cake to make it's way Stateside for the next week, as Cogs, Cakes & Swordsticks makes its debut at Gen Con, one of the biggest gaming coventions in the world.

We're very excited, as it's nearly two decades since I was last there with Nightfall Games and Wizards of the Coast. It may have moved cities, but I expect it to be just as hectic and entertaining as ever it was!

And don;t tell anyone, but there are rumours that the infamous tea-pot fez will also be making an appearance...

Sky High!

Never ones to rest on our laurels, we are very pleased to announce that the first supplement for Cogs, Cakes & Swordsticks is available from RPGNow.

Atlantis: City in the Clouds takes you to that marvellous miracle of the steam age, Her Majesty's Flying Steam City Atlantis. Hovering far above the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantis is the pride of the British Empire, ranked alongside India as one of Her Majesty's greatest treasures. Home to myriad businesses and personalities, Atlantis (better known as "The Cog" to its inhabitants), is the perfect place to explore new horizons and seek high* adventure.

The sourcebook contains:

• Insight into the history and construction of Brunel and Stephenson’s engineering marvel, HMFSC Atlantis
• Details on the layout of the city and its environs, including notable businesses and personalities
• A full-length adventure of sky-high intrigue set aboard The Cog
• Six pregenerated characters ready for you to pick up and play
• Even more Attributes to help build your own adventurers in the Empire of Steam
• Thrilling steampunk art by Kit Cox

So grab your Earl Grey - it's time for High Tea!*

 

*And when we sasy "high", we really mean it!

A Spot of Tiffin

Tomorrow should be a very interesting day for Cogs, Cakes and Swordsticks, as we're off to Hartlepool's Historic Quay for Tiffin on the Trinc!

Picture courtesy of IAIN, the International Association of Institutes of Navigation.

HMS Trincomalee is a beautiful old girl, with quite the history. A Leda-class frigate, she was actually obsolete by the time they'd finished building her, leading to her spending most of her life either mothballed or acting as a training ship. She is now the oldest British warship still afloat, thanks to her unusual teak construction (most warships of the time were made of oak).

Lovingly restored over the last twenty years or so by a charitable trust, you can imagine how excited we are to be running taster demo games on board this gorgeous ship, surrounded by fellow steampunks and probably quite a few bemused members of the public!

The historic quay opens at 10am, and Tiffin on the Trinc officially opens at midday, with legendary graphic novellist Bryan Talbot firing the noon-day gun. If you can make it along, we'd love to see you!

Time Flies...

It's been a busy old week here at the Cake Factory, with lots of social media promotion for the game, as well as the paper version making its debut on Modiphius Entertainment's stand at the UK Games Expo.

So far, there have been over a thousand downloads of our free preview version, and the full game was at No.6 in the download charts (I would make a Prisoner-themed joke, but it wouldn't quite work seeing as only the first full chapter of the game is free), and is currently sitting at No.33 in RPGNow's Top 100 games. Not bad after only a week, eh?

And last night, way after this humble author's usual bedtime, I was chatting to Dan and friends at the Harboiled GMshoe's Office about the game and its influences, the Victorian space race, dinosaurs as player characters, how to handle supernatural elements and whether or not you could play at superheroes with the system. Dan is a very gracious host, and asked some very challenging questions which I hope my sleep-addled brain managed to answer fully and coherently!

Drum Roll, Please!

If you're going to do something, it's best to make sure you do it properly. And I'm very pleased to announce that, after a few years of polishing, refining, and stalking some wonderful artists (in the friendliest way possible, of course), myself and Modiphius Entertainment are pleased to announce that Cogs, Cakes and Swordsticks is available for your delectation and delight from those fine purveyors of all things gamery: RPG Now (click on this to go straight to its sales page).

With lovely artwork by his High Tea-ness, Dr Geof, additional squiggles by my good husband, Mr. Richard Hardy, and beautifully laid out by that dedicated gent, Mr Michal Cross, we do hope that you'll find the game as much fun to play as it was to write and test.

I'd also like to thank everyone who helped with that testing and supported us during the early days - I think I managed to get all of your names into the Acknowledgements!