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CºNTINUUM
the roleplaying game
of genuine time travel
 
 
CONTACT US
aethertales@gmail.com
 

 

Updated AD 2023.08.07
Offers listed herein may have expired.
Links in Cold Storage will not be updated.
Take the page back in time to when it was posted, and follow the link then.

 

 2012 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 - top

DEXCON 15
DEXCON 15 "Where America Comes to Play"
Morristown Hyatt, Morristown, NJ; July 4 - 8, 2012
Double Exposure
Bradbury

We will be playing:
* The 9th Annual CºNTINUUM Championship
  This year's theme will be in honor of the late Ray Bradbury (1920–2012)

And we will be demoing:
* Oh My God! There's An Axe In My Head
  We'll be playing mockups of the FINAL VERSION out October 2012 from Game Company Nº 3
* John Company

 

BPA
World Boardgaming Championships
Lancaster Host Resort, Lancaster, Pennsylvania; July 30 - August 5, 2012
Boardgame Players Association

We will be demoing:
* Oh My God! There's An Axe In My Head
  We'll be playing mockups of the FINAL VERSION out October 2012 from Game Company Nº 3
* John Company

 

METATOPIA 2012
METATOPIA 2012
Morristown Hyatt, Morristown, NJ; November 9 - 11, 2012
Double Exposure

Double Exposure's second annual game design festival. Come playtest & experience games that are still in development!

We will be demoing:
* Games for Game Company Nº 3
* John Company

 

Dreamation 2013
Dreamation 2013
Morristown Hyatt, Morristown, NJ; February 21 - 24, 2013
Double Exposure

 

 

 2011 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 - top

From 2006 to 2011, news was posted in our Forums at yamara.com, which are currently down. [2012.06.18]

 

 2010 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 - top

From 2006 to 2011, news was posted in our Forums at yamara.com, which are currently down. [2012.06.18]

 

 2009 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 - top

From 2006 to 2011, news was posted in our Forums at yamara.com, which are currently down. [2012.06.18]

 

 2008 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 - top

 
2008 Convention Dates & Game Schedules:
Updated AD 2008.04.02

Origins Game Fair 2008
ORIGINS GAME FAIR 2008
Greater Columbus Convention Center, Columbus, OH; June 25 - 28, 2008
GAMA

Why yes, it does look as though Aetherco and Bionic Zombie will be at Origins this year. At least to demo.

DEXCON 11
DEXCON 11
East Brunswick Hilton, East Brunswick, NJ; July 16 - 20, 2008
Double Exposure

Where America Comes to Play.

 

 2007 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 - top

From 2006 to 2011, news was posted in our Forums at yamara.com, which are currently down. [2012.06.18]

 

 2006 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 - top

Information  Manui & Adams and Fooden on Gentile, April 13
  Updated AD 2006 April 07.
 

The Lou Gentile Show has invited us to discuss time travel and other salient topics on his paranormal-themed radio show. Tune in at 8 PM Eastern, April 13th; streaming is available right off the Lou Gentile site.
 

 

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2nd Annual CºNTINUUM Championship
 

AD 2005.07.14
Somewhere between Wisdom and Charisma, there lies...
 

Dexcon 8
Dexcon 8
East Brunswick Hilton, East Brunswick, NJ; July 13 - 17, 2005
Double Exposure

Where America Comes to Play.

Dexcon 8 is hosting the second annual US NATIONAL CºNTINUUM CHAMPIONSHIP!

NªRCISSIST and Oh My God! There's an Axe in My Head games are also planned! We look forward to seeing everyone there!

Schedule is posted at Dexcon 8 website!

 

 2004 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 - top

First CºNTINUUM™ Champion
Crowned

Iwanow Plays Dreamer Character Through Three Ranks of Span

AD 2004.07.30
Alexander Iwanow: From Novice to MasterThe CºNTINUUM Championship was held earlier this month; a three-round elimination in which players portrayed the same characters through three ranks of Span. The winner: Alexander Iwanow playing the Dreamer character Raina Hart, through three aliases and 33 years of Age.

Alex has sent us this picture of himself, with his trophy, since no functional digital camera was available there, when he received it. He writes: "Thanks again to Chris for running such a tight and interesting game, one of the most novel and compelling con games I've played in my many years of munchkin-slaying... Take care, and hope to play Narcissist and Chi-Chian at the next con..."

As for the elimination scenarios themselves, the first involved the novice characters in an old altercation of their mentor's. In the second round, the Span Twos focussed on a narcissist's attempt to seize an important and unique fraternal record. The final round took the players across decades and trackless miles of ocean as Span Threes after an innocuous object– that is present for some forbidden events.

Alex also walked away with the first prize of all CºNTINUUM products: the main rulebook, FURTHER INFORMATION, and SPANBOOK. (We still owe him a pie.) Second Place winner Ed Moretti took home a copy of CºNTINUUM, too.

Our special thanks go out to Vinny Salzillo, Martha, Becca, Avie, and the whole crew at Double Exposure for this great opportunity– and for providing that cool trophy!

 

First CºNTINUUM™ Championship
comes to Dexcon 7

3-Round Elimination Covers 3 Ranks of Span

NEW YORK - AD 2004.05.19
The First CONTINUUM U.S. National Championship at Dexcon 7, July 14-18, AD 2004

DEXCON 7 The CºNTINUUM time travel RPG has earned, since its inception in the 1990s, critical praise and a core of loyal followers. Called “unusual” by the Sci-Fi Channel, and “unique and painfully satisfying” and “very cool” by player-reviewers on Amazon.com, CºNTINUUM has broken new ground by logically solving every time travel conundrum, and actually made a civilization of time travellers outrageously playable.

This year, for the first time, players will be able to play the same character through three ranks of Span– growing from novices who are limited to a year’s worth of travelling time, to ones who can travel a century in a single thought.

The challenges will be commensurate with each rank of Span– Span Ones will have domestic villains and each other to watch out for. Span Two prefinalists will have to meet the goals of their time-travel Fraternities while not messing up their rival players’ goals! And at last, the finalists will face the responsibilities of Span Threes who answer the call to battle in a last round so deadly serious that... further information is not available here.

Two elimination rounds and a final Championship round will be played over the course of Dexcon, so anyone entering should keep open space on Saturday evening and Sunday– but survivors of each elimination will be calculated immediately after each game so you can get on with your schedules.

Victory points will be awarded based on roleplaying skill and achieving scenario goals– but a sharp memory and teamwork attitude can earn individual players extra points. Players from all nations are welcome to seize the U.S. National title for themselves!

Tournament Rules unique to the Championship, including how victory points are awarded, and the prize to the winning player will be posted at aetherco.com/continuum/. To sign up for the CºNTINUUM mailing list, send a blank message to:

continuum-rpg-l-subscribe@topica.com

SPECIAL OFFER. $10.00 Off admission to Dexcon 7 when you enter the 1st CONTINUUM U.S. National Championship! Simply register online for the con at dexposure.com, and enter "Adams" into the Special Discount Code field, and "10.00" into the Discount field.

This official Tournament is sponsored by Aetherco/Dreamcatcher; they can be contacted at:yamara@earthlink.net.


For upcoming conventions we'll be at, visit The Con Game page.

 

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Memories of AD 2003, to be posted soon
 

 

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Gencon 2002
AETHERCO / DREAMCATCHER
Game Track

NEW YORK - AD 2002 07.25

Gencon It's the last year in Milwaukee for Gencon (August 8 - 11, 2002), and this time we're in in Booth #846.
 
SPANBOOKTM Automated Time Travel Diary will make a big part of the experience for 2002, as will CHI-CHIAN The Roleplaying Game!

OUR 2002 GENCON GAME TRACK:

One War At A Time by Chris Adams
Thursday August 8, 5 PM; 3 hrs 45 min; 1 round
Characters Provided. # Players 2-8. Mature players. Complexity: Hard. Experience: Some experience with CºNTINUUM required.
CºNTINUUM v. 1.1
Someone of Antony's experience should never have fallen for narcissist lies. But you have to stop him, and prevent Britain from declaring war on Lincoln's America. Our first scenario for Span 4 characters.

The Malodorous Seven by Dave Fooden
Three Different Slots:
Friday, August 9, 10 PM; 3 hrs 45 min; 1 round - Dave Fooden GM
Saturday, August 10, 12 NOON; 3 hrs 45 min; 1 round - Dave Fooden GM
Sunday, August 11, 10 AM; 3 hrs 45 min; 1 round - Ron Goldberg GM
Characters Provided. # Players 2-8. Mature players. Complexity: Average. Experience: Newcomers welcome.
CHI-CHIAN The Roleplaying Game
THEY are the elite– Mimitsu's finest security force– searching for the City's most valuable relic. YOU are a motley pile of freaks, giant Cockroaches, homeless robots, and problem children. Stop THEM, or become plunk. Yes, that means dead.

The First Thing To Go by Chris Adams
Friday, August 9, 5 PM; 3 hrs 45 min; 1 round
Characters Provided. # Players 2-8. Mature players. Complexity: Average. Experience: Newcomers welcome.
NªRCISSIST Pre-release
A dimensional fugitive wielding a tremendous power source is targeted by the destructive Quicker– your Yrnean King wants you to get to her first. Against other time-travelling dimension-crashers, "first" is mighty tough to achieve.

Alpha by Barbara Manui and Chris Adams
Sunday, August 11, 12 NOON; 3 hrs 45 min; 1 round - Barbara Manui GM
Characters Provided. # Players 2-8. Mature players. Complexity: Average. Experience: Newcomers welcome.
DREAMER Alpha Demo
Aetherco/Dreamcatcher's upcoming game of the Dreamtime. Why wait to learn how to travel time or to other worlds– the doorway is in your very mind. Nothing stands in your way... except the tortured vanities of a hundred trillion souls.


For upcoming conventions we'll be at, visit The Con Game page.

 

 2001 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 - top

Relevant Blogger Selections
from the Aetherco Main Page

[9/12/2001 4:02:01 AM | Chris Adams]

Woke up Tuesday morning, and I panicked.

I looked at my watch, and while I didn't have my glasses on, I could tell it read 8:45 AM. There would be trouble, big trouble.

I had left my van at a meter, and there was no parking there between 8 and 9.

I scrabbled into clothes, hoping to get down there and avoid the inevitable ticket. But once I was nearly out the door, I checked my watch again.

It read 7:50.

Thank God! I must have mistaken the second hand for the hour hand somehow. I relaxed. Everything would be all right.

With condolences to all families and innocent victims,

Chris Adams
Aetherco
New York City
2001.09.11
3:50 PM ET

PS Barbara also woke up early, thinking it was around nine, and that she had overslept. Both of us are fine. David Fooden boarded a plane Monday night bound for Seoul, and from there to Vietnam. Since it was an 11:00 PM plane out of JFK, his would not have been one of the hijacked aircraft.

PPS May justice guided by cooler heads prevail.

--

Yes, I am ok and trapped in Alaska for at least 24 hours due to the airports closing. Pray a moose does not eat me. There are lots of bugs here and it's chilly.

Holy shit, I still can't believe it, saw the news footage a little while ago. We're all in shock here.

~ Dave

 

[7/26/2001 9:35:03 PM | Chris Adams]

Visit us at Gencon 2001 at BOOTH #1046! Looking forward to seeing everyone there.

TIMELINKS' Obscure page is reposted, and more CºNTINUUM scenarios are slowly being made available. Enjoy.

Cheers,

Chris

 

[7/18/2001 3:08:58 AM | Chris Adams]

Gencon 2001 is just two weeks away-- please follow the links under CONTINUUM *news* at left for our complete game track.

Also, check out pg. 5 of our Summer catalog for our upcoming products, now in the works. Hit *catalog* at left, and expect 364k of PDF goodness to download.

Cheers,

Chris.


Gencon 2001
CºNTINUUM and NªRCISSIST
Game Track

NEW YORK - Uploaded AD 2001 07.17

GenconGencon is is just weeks away (August 2 -5, 2001), we'll be there in Booth #1046, and we're looking forward to showing off a demo of our forthcoming SPANBOOKTM Automated Time Travel Diary! See our Summer catalog for a teaser [364k PDF].

Plus, we have all-new scenarios ready to bend the minds of the gaming public. Save a few slots, spanfans, because we have offerings every day of the con:

Used Time Machines -- Online Auction -- $AVE!!!! by Chris Adams
Thursday August 2, 5 PM; 3 hrs 45 min; 1 round
Age: Ages 12 and Up; Rules Complexity: Average; Experience Required: Level 2 - Newcomers welcome
NªRCISSIST v. 0.7.3
Hey, a previously-owned time machine will help you escape! Speedy Delivery, would time travel with again! A++++! Uh, but suppose it doesn't work properly before the Swarm comes to Frag your butt? Talk about leaving negative feedback. For NªRCISSIST.

Latter-Day Spanners by Dave Fooden
Friday August 3, 2 PM; 3 hrs 45 min; 1 round
Age: Mature; Rules Complexity: Average; Experience Required: Level 2 - Newcomers welcome
CºNTINUUM v. 1.1
The West is Yet to be won– but which west? History dictates the United States' manifest destiny, but some narcissists insist on making the Mormon dream of a nation of Deseret an eternal reality. Choose your allegances carefully in this AD 19th Century setting for CºNTINUUM.

Assassinations by Dering Sprague with Chris Adams
ROUND 1 - Saturday August 3, 10 AM; 3 hrs 45 min; 2 rounds, auto advance
ROUND 2 - Sunday August 3, 2 PM; 3 hrs 45 min
Age: Mature; Rules Complexity: Average; Experience Required: Level 2 - Newcomers welcome
CºNTINUUM v. 1.1
Conspiracy buffs can take a joke: Lincoln had a secretary named Kennedy, Kennedy had one named Lincoln, etc. The assassinations are separated by 98 years; even paranoiacs dismiss any genuine connection. Until they realize that time travel is real. For Span 2 or 3 characters.


Aetherco/Dreamcatcher Developing
Automated Span Card

CºNTINUUMTM Accessory Available This Summer

AD 2001.05.08
Aetherco/Dreamcatcher's first foray into computer gaming will be a program based on the Span Card from their CºNTINUUM time travel game that allows players to keep track of their trips through time. "It's a small but decisive step," explains Aetherco VP Chris Adams. "It's an element we always wanted to have available to gamers."

The companies have always hired outside artists and writers to bring their visions to life, but this is the first time they have hired a programming engineer. "Also, we don't deem this a step away from book-based games or products, but an expansion into the digital realms," explains Adams. "We know people are playing CºNTINUUM by email, and since they're at their monitors already, we want to give them every opportunity to play the game with minimal burden in doing the chorework of adding and subtracting calendar dates. It might be difficult to create an Everquest-like environment for CºNTINUUM, but that doesn't mean abandoning the digital markets to the limiting definition computer game manufacturers have put on the term 'RPG'. It's time to put gamers in charge of roleplaying again."

Decisions as to whether the initial release of the application will be shareware or freeware are pending, but should not hinder the timing of the release itself. Features will include automatic Age and Duration calculation, and expandable room for a time traveller's running diary– all notable advantages over the paper Span Card. Additional functions are to be determined as the programming process advances.


Genericon and JerseyDevilCon
The best little East Coast cons you're not attending– but should

NEW YORK - Uploaded AD 2001 04.27

GenericonGenericon is an anime and game con held every year on the campus of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy NY, outside of Albany. It's not terribly close to its train stations; RPI is at the top of a mind-bogglingly steep cliff that rises above the only national-chain hotel within a mile or so, and since it's held in winter (January 19 - 21, 2001), the effort to approach the festivities seems insane, even inside a shuttle bus. Why load for bear and do a forced march through snow just to watch some cartoons in a foreign language?

For one thing, this engineering school has more than half a dozen huge screens to play anime on. Classrooms become widescreen theaters– which is perfect, since America is still getting used to the idea that animated movies can capture an adult, cinema-going audience, and many of these films were made for the big screen in Japan.

They also don't weigh down the con with any kiddie stuff, which they refer to as "PokéMoon Z" and openly disdain: Genericon radio ad [648k mp3]. The best, the bizarre, and the blue of the Japanese art form is shown round the clock, all subs no dubs (or at least we heard no dubbing going on).

Since the anime rooms are in real life lecture halls, scheduled panels have a great venue. Dave Fooden and Chris Adams were able to hold forth on a number of the issues that shaped the CºNTINUUMTM game, and they felt professorial every moment.

The first organized Cowboy Bebop party (that we know of) was held at Genericon, thrown by Aetherco's own Barbara Manui. Since food and lack thereof plays an intrinsic role in the series, we collected as many of last-morsel foods the crew of the Bebop had to stomach, and forced them on a willing convention: shiitake mushrooms, chocolate souvenirs, dog food, and even an entire basketfull of boiled eggs, this last secured through the last-minute problem-solving of our hosts, the future geniuses of RPI. Seeing Bebop on the big screen while partying down was one of the high points of our time.

CºNTINUUM and NªRCISSISTTM games went quite well, as the engineering students took to Span cards like bits in a graphing calculator. But they've insisted since they've had no problem showing others their use, and are spreading the CºNTINUUM gospel even as we type.

A couple of lockers full of boardgames were available in the main area, with several open gaming tables; the game event schedule was light, but well-attended from what we saw. Essentially, if you're an otaku into gaming, this is your con. If you're a gamer into anime, you won't be disappointed either.

And realistically, the accommodations aren't half bad. There are some eateries and other basic shops within walking distance of the hotel, and an on-campus food service while at the con itself. Being treated well as guests helped a lot, but we got the impression that Genericon is a beloved institution at RPI, always struggling to share its gifts with the outside world. Think of it as an anime Rivendell that brigadoons once a year, and make the hike to see it.

 

And you need JerseyDevilConYou probably haven't gone to JerseyDevilCon because it's only occurred once so far (April 6-8, 2001) but it's already off to a roaring start. Founded by Steve Yoder, the mastermind behind Hurricon, this new convention is filling the long-standing void of Not Enough Cons on the East Coast.

For a small, brand-new con, JerseyDevilCon had a lot going for it. Panels ran on a wide variety of SF subjects, the dealer room had a good selection of wares, and gaming was well represented among ourselves, the World Tree RPG, and someone trying to get a Magic tournament going. The staff was harried but efficient and friendly, and while the hotel wasn't too easy to find, it was happily surrounded by restaurants and services (malls on all sides: it's New Jersey, after all).

Dave Fooden was a panelist on a Future Weapons panel, although he pointed out he was not a professional Future Weapon designer, but still an interested party, as he gets to paint these things from time to time. Chris Adams sat on panels regarding the accuracy of the futures SF portrays, and a time travel discussion. Both of us had a great time.

The scheduled gaming was very light but more than adequate for the gamers discovering the new vistas of CºNTINUUM and NªRCISSIST. Copies sold briskly even with the first-year attendance of around 200+, and with the friendly competition from the World Tree RPG designers, who also did quite well. Our thanks go out to the many young players we befriended for their effort and input! (See a review of CºNTINUUM from one of them at Anathema's Domain.)

Next year, a Big Name Author is confirmed as guest, so the hotel will be a larger one, to contain all his fen, and Steve has promised to doublecheck to make sure his con isn't scheduled on a Jewish (or any other) holiday weekend again. With a new location and some positive word-of-mouth, this should become one of the hot new cons for the '00s.

Steve also invited us back again as guests, and we'll just take him up on that.

 

I-CON 20We also visited I-CON (March 30 - April 1, 2001) for the first time this year, and found out why so many of you are attending it: For one thing, the LIRR out of Manhattan stops right at the campus at Stony Brook. Another is, it's been running a long while, and has some really cool media guests.

One of these was actor Brad Dourif, to whom Chris put the tough question about the upcoming LotR movies. Pointing out his unique perspective in having acted in adaptations of the seminal 20th Century works Dune and The Lord of the Rings, we asked him during a stage appearance whether he felt that LotR was faithfully adapted? He decisively answered that no book is like its motion picture counterpart, and "what you'll be seeing is Peter Jackson's 'The Lord of the Rings'." At another point in his appearance, he pointed out that he was satisfied with the production of LotR, but was dismayed with how Dune was handled in 1984, saying "it should have been two movies". Chris left him with the comment that of the entire cast list, the pairing of Chris Lee as Saruman and Brad Dourif as Wormtongue was something everyone was looking forward to seeing, to which much of the audience nodded and murmured approval and agreement.

We only stayed for the day, since Chris had to run home and nominate some Hugos. Certain editions of Cowboy Bebop were eligible under the rules, and justice had to be served.


For upcoming conventions we'll be at, visit The Con Game page.
For convention listings around the world, check out Jenga's pages at go.to/conventions

For the best SF series you're not watching, see Sunrise/Bandai's Cowboy Bebop.
Rated a rare "A" by SciFi.com, Cowboy Bebop is, despite the anime-ish name, better than Trek, B5, and nearly every episode of Buffy and FarScape. Give it 5 episodes (subbed not dubbed!), and you cannot escape.
 

 

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WORLDCON 2000
Seminar and Game Track

NEW YORK - Uploaded AD 2000 08.18

ChiconAetherco/Dreamcatcher was invited at the last minute to create a brief seminar on the maturity of current SF roleplaying games. Apparently, there's a movement under weigh to create a Hugo for Best Game– not a bad idea, since the Best Dramatic Performance has been absorbed by motion pictures for years. Seminars are not something we've done before, but doubtless one's GMing skills can help keep the attention of a room and even get a point or two across.

All events listed below are tentative, due to the eleventh hour prep.

Seminar (8:30 AM Fri):
SF, Roleplaying Games and the Coming of Age
H.G. Wells not only penned "The Time Machine" he also invented the first published wargame. Since one paved the way for a major genre within science fiction, and the other led to modern roleplaying games, it seems strange to some that gaming is still treated as the annoying little brother of fandom. SF and comics have had to struggle all century for recognition as mature art forms-- is it gaming's turn to come of age?
Hosted by Chris Adams of Aetherco, publishers of the CONTINUUM time travel RPG.

Worldcon Gaming Track:

Thurs 9pm
Plum Pudding and Other Such... A CONTINUUM Scenario.
Charles Dickens is having writer's block, and only days to write a Christmas story. What's worse, he's starting to hallucinate... is it fatigue or is someone trying to end his career halfway through? It's up to your local Continuum corner to find eliminate the threat! Characters and snacks provided. Presented by Aetherco.

Fri 9pm
CONTINUUM Beginners Scenario - Title TBA
Come learn this fascinating new time travel game from Aetherco/Dreamcatcher. Described by the SciFi Channel as "Unusual" and causing Beyond Adventure magazine to state, "Asimov and Herbert would have been proud to have the Continuum book on their desks" for its insight and thoroughness, CONTINUUM demonstrates a civilization of people who can span time at will, existing throughout spacetime. Let's make history.
Characters provided, or learn to design your own. Snacks provided. Presented by Aetherco.

Sunday 9pm
The Big Bang - A NARCISSIST Scenario.
The sequel game to CONTINUUM, now in prerelease, presents the viewpoint of the Continuum's enemies, the narcissists. Calling themselves "crashers" they may have many opinions, but most agree that there is more than one universe-- and that the Continuum "Swarm" is cold, inhuman, and monstrous. Strike a blow against them at MIT in the fifties, and crash free to new worlds.
Characters provided, or design your own. Presented by Aetherco.

 


Gaming Outpost Launches CºNTINUUMTM Forum

AD 2000.06.21
The Gaming Outpost, one of the leading online games support site, is now host to the official CºNTINUUM Forum.

In keeping with Gaming Outpost's mission to create tools to benefit gamer and publisher alike, the official CºNTINUUM Forum can be accessed without leaving this site. Or, you can visit the Gaming Outpost, and browse their entire range of forums.

You can sign up for full participation in a matter of seconds. Membership is free, but Gaming Outpost limits membership in the forums to people thirteen years or older. Sign up here!

Other CºNTINUUM-related material on Gaming Outpost include:

Interview with the authors. Graveyard Greg had an online chat with the creators of CºNTINUUM very early in the year. Some material is dated, but notable is the "Death Match" wherein Greg makes the main authors of CºNTINUUM invent how certain contributing authors of CºNTINUUM (now publishers themselves) would try to kill each other in the ring...

NªRCISSIST 0.5 Glossary. This had been absent during Gaming Outpost's recent server switchover, but is again available; it is identical to the one here onsite. Check out what the Continuum's enemies think is going on. PDF format. Get Acrobat Reader.

Aetherco/Dreamcatcher will be posting various announcements on the Forum as we approach GenCon 2000 and beyond. And yes, it will be news about our much-delayed products. (Good news, too– at least, that's what the Scribes are hinting...) Our thanks to Ed Healy an everyone at Gaming Outpost for this splendid service.

 

Other Online Resources

John Kahane of Basilisk Dreams has also created an unofficial CºNTINUUM Forum at WebRPG.com. Thanks, John!

S. Ben Melhuish, owner of pile.org has set up an unofficial CºNTINUUM mailing list for fans. Anyone interested in signing up may do so by sending a blank message to continuum-rpg-l-subscribe@topica.com

 


CºNTINUUM™ and NªRCISSIST™
GENCON 2000 Game Track

NEW YORK - Updated AD 2000 05.12

As promised in ad copy in the GenCon pregistration book, here are the CºNTINUUM and NªRCISSIST games we're scheduing in Milwaukee August 10 - 13. The following have not been assigned codes, nor have times been confirmed yet by Wizards, and we are planning addiitonal events. Gamemasters that wish to write and/or run events at GenCon should contact us ASAP. And please stop back, as we are updating as we know more!
Download the prereg event listings at Wizards! (766k PDF)
NOTE: The prereg book contains no CºNTINUUM event listings; all such events will be posted here:

Thursday August 10

5:00 PM 3 hrs 45 min
The Big Bang: Crashers
(Round 1 of 2)
Description. You've defeated the Swarm corner at 1950s MIT– even captured one. Now you get to play nice to the people you killed as you set up a corner in the same area of spacetime... The dreaded Quicker are undoubtedly around trying to destroy you while you prepare to receive a Prince of Yrnë to lead and guide you. For his goal is the most noble of all: Expose the lies of the Swarm to their very agents, and unravel their tyranny throughout Time. Beginning characters (provided). First of two rounds.
Game system: NªRCISSIST / CºNTINUUM cross-over

9:00 PM 3 hrs 45 min
The Big Bang: Quicker
(Round 1 of 2)
Description. You're prt of the elite of the elite– the Quicker, the Continuum's causality-masters. The local corner in the 1950s Cambridge has been overwjelmed by narcissists– that's bad, since the MIT physics lb and its many discoveries must exist. It gets worse: word comes Down that a Prince of Antedesertium is involved– and that one of you has treason in your Yet. Span 2 characters (provided). First of two rounds.
Game system: CºNTINUUM / NªRCISSIST cross-over

Saturday August 12

10:00 AM 1 hr. 45 min.
Plum Pudding and Other Such
1 Round
Description. Charles Dickens has writer's block– and as if that weren't dangerous enough, he really is seeing ghosts! Make sure he survives to publish his greatest works, while ferreting out other hazards to the timeline in 1840s England. And discover why Christmas in August makes perfect sense to a time traveller. Beginning characters (provided).
Game system: CºNTINUUM

Sunday August 13

5:00 PM (4 PM?) 3 hrs. (or 3 hrs. 45 min)
The Big Bang: Final Round
(Round 2 of 2)
Description. The two teams plot their mutual destruction! Is there only one universe– or an infinite number of them? More important– can you survive against other players' nefariousness!?
Game system: CºNTINUUM / NªRCISSIST cross-over

 


FURTHER INFORMATION
Still In The Yet

NEW YORK - Updated AD 2000 04.29

Ed. note: FURTHER INFORMATION has enjoyed a debut printing at Gencon 2000, is now going to press for a regular print run. -AD 2000.08.18

The release date of FURTHER INFORMATION, the first supplement for CºNTINUUMTM, has been further delayed. Co-designer Chris Adams explains: "Our layout-meister says it's another two weeks from reaching press. FURTHER INFORMATION is different from the ordinary supplement as it has had to reinvent and demonstrate on every page how the Continuum perceives the last 14,000 years. All the same, I take responsibility for the delay, as I should have seen the complications ahead of time, and scheduled more carefully. Apologies to fans and distributors alike for the postponments."

"FURTHER INFORMATION is designed to allow CºNTINUUM gamemasters an edge on their ever-inventive players. "It contains a lot of the stuff we wanted in the main book, but couldn't fit since it was already crammed to bursting," says Adams. "But this way we have a separate book of GM notes and adventure hooks along with plenty of Big Picture information to make the GM's high-Span NPCs sound more authoritative about what lay in the depths of time." Most of the book is devoted to exploring some of the forgotten peoples and civilizations the last 16,000 years holds, as well as the means for players to design their own.

For all interested parties, here are the stats:

FURTHER INFORMATION: A Gamemaster's Treasury of Time 96 ppg. perfectbound US$15.95 ISBN 1-929312-01-6

"I knew naming it after the phrase 'Further information isn't available here' would produce weird karma," comments Adams. Layout is nearing completion, and it will be announced on this page when the book reaches the press.

Impact on NªRCISSIST Debut

FURTHER INFORMATION is the only Aetherco/Dreamcatcher book scheduled to release before the sequel game NªRCISSIST: Crash Free, and time spent on it has impacted the time spent so far on NªRCISSIST. It's still scheduled to debut at GenCon 2000, but stay tuned to this page and the NªRCISSIST pages for updates as we approach summertime.

 


Beyond Adventure Features CºNTINUUMTM

Other CºNTINUUM Features Springing Up Around Net

AD 1999.12.27 Revised AD 2000.02.12, 06.21
Beyond Adventure, the online recreation magazine, featured CºNTINUUM as its January 2000 cover.

As the Spotlight of the "MIND" half of Beyond Adventure, CºNTINUUM was reviewed, an authors' interview was posted, as was a special exclusive sneak peek from the upcoming FURTHER INFORMATION: details on one of the Continuum's many ancient societies– the Maihur Riki of 10000 BC.

Other magazines and fans are also contributing interest to the CºNTINUUM lines of games:

John Kahane seems to have posted the first fan site for CºNTINUUM; he has also convinced WebRPG.com to open a CºNTINUUM Forum on their site

S. Ben Melhuish, self-described "dilettante gamer" and owner of the pile.org website has set up an unofficial CºNTINUUM mailist for fans of the game. Anyone interested in signing up may do so by sending a blank message to continuum-rpg-l-subscribe@topica.com.

Purple Dragon, a German review site, gave away a copy of CºNTINUUM in an online contest.

And Pyramid magazine made CºNTINUUM a Pyramid pick in November. Our thanks goes out to all the fans, pros and critics that made 1999 our best year to date!

 


Bring the Jubliee

NEW YORK - AD 1999.12.31

Late last week, the bishop of Rome, John Paul II, set about opening special ceremonial doors of four churches in his care, in celebration of an important anniversary. The papers reported how he has looked forward to this task since his election in 1978. This should come as no surprise– while his tasks and travels around the globe have been his calling, the work of this new year is his job.

A year ago, a year and many many thousands of miles from here, I wrote of the advent of 1999. While the end of the 1900s has long been pictured as a horrific fin-de-siecle, the twenty-hundreds have fought a rude battle with the imaginations of writers and futurists. Mary Shelley saw a plague annihilating mankind by 2100, while many others like Clarke believe if we survived past 1999, we were home free, we would be star-children at last. We know the debates will come, debates of the absolute power over all life and death we possess, and none of us know the result. A coauthor on our games, Dave Fooden, is going to go around to parties in a silver jumpsuit, explaining, "Everyone in the year 2000 is supposed to wear silver jumpsuits." All this only proves our paucity of certitude, our unwillingness to become the future. We really have no uniform expression for 2000. Our checks are more blank. Each and every merchant and media has its own logotype, its own playful reworking of the number, creating a market indifference despite the efforts of so many to cash in. We have no name for the coming decade.

We welcome the milestone, but we are in danger of standing by it too long. It's become hard to voice our next destination.

John Man points out in his Atlas of the Year 1000 how the last millennium was perceived as such by only a fraction of mankind, and mankind managed along without worrying. Muslims have and yet count their years from the Hegira, lunisolar requirements have long determined the Hebrew year, Asia has dozens of different calendars, as did the Mayans, Aztecs, Celts, and on and on. Over the past several centuries we've endured leap-year fixes, Revolutionary Calendars that vanish as fast as they are invented, and the promulgation of the era by scientists otherwise disdainful of the religion from which it came. Over the last several years, academics and curators have been ever busy trying to make the calendar safe for a multicultural audience, with "Common Era" and "Before Common Era" instead of AD and BC. We have been indulged with calculations over the past year, on the calendar list, and by Stephen Jay Gould and other sage pundits, carefully and amusingly explaining it all to us, again and again. And tied to the celebrated millennium bug are a host of solutions, from patches for Windows 95, to the advent of Greenwich net time to help us amalgamate toward the collective conscious. There's even our own styling of the year as the "Aquarian Cusp". Yet none of these have anything to do with what the number actually means.

These two thousand years only count the years that Christ has reigned. It doesn't matter that the era only came into wider use after its own 800s. It doesn't matter that Exiguus and Bede missed the timing of their liege lord's birth by months and years. As much as people's feelings matter, in peace and in war, tweaking the name of the era is of no real consequence, because it still counts only one thing. It doesn't matter whether Jesus "is born again at different times into every world", as Manu Eleihu describes the theory. It doesn't matter what day he was born, any more that it matters what day he died. It doesn't matter whether you have pure Christian faith, livid hatred of that faith's old oppressions, or the daily shrug. The number count is only of the years his subjects accept as his rule. They are anno domini. They are the regnal years of a king. That's all it means, that's all it stands for. And that's all it ever truly will.

So in going forth from here, we can choose to focus on events of the last century or even the last decade, to see man's progress or regress; to make some modern sense of all things. But those numbers are still there, and they're on the same string as that two-thousand. We sit here at an end of days, and begin judging ourselves.

But it's not just about Karol Wojtyla, rushing around, doing last-minute work for his boss. Nearly every human, certainly every sane one, wants that number to keep ticking up. For their children, and for all their grandchildren.

Long Live The King.

 

–CHRIS ADAMS
  NEW YORK
  December 31 AD 1999.

  with love to Elizabeth
  O X2K

 

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Alliance Distribution Picks Up CºNTINUUMTM

AD 1999.12.27
Alliance Distribution has picked up Aetherco/Dreamcatcher's line of time travel games.

In keeping with their policy of having every game on the market in stock, Alliance contacted Aetherco/Dreamcatcher earlier this year to ensure that their regular customers would receive the releases of our CºNTINUUM and NªRCISSIST rulebooks in the most timely fashion. We're delighted to be carred by Alliance, and we trust this makes it even easier for the growing number of retailers around North America to carry our lines.

Retailers can contact us directly for any pre-release products or support, and can obtain CºNTINUUM from Alliance, or any of our other fine distributors.

 

CºNTINUUM is a Pyramid Magazine Pick of the Week

AD 1999.11.08

Pyramid, the online magazine published by Steve Jackson Games, has made CºNTINUUM a "Pyramid Pick" for the week of November 5 - 12, 1999.

"Rarely are there games with both brilliantly original worlds and mechanics to match. Continuum... is one such game."

This latest Pyramid review not only praises the game, but provides a thoughtful and concise picture of the CºNTINUUM universe and its game mechanics.

Describing various elements of CºNTINUUM as "brilliant" and "just cool", reviewer Micah Jackson wrote, "Rarely are there games with both brilliantly original worlds and mechanics to match. Continuum... is one such game. ...Manui, Adams, and Fooden have come up with a compelling and internally consistent description of time travel and its implications."

A subscription to Pyramid is necessary to read the entire article, but a sample of the review can found here.

 

Fan Sets Up Unofficial CºNTINUUM Mailing List

AD 1999.11.08
S. Ben Melhuish, self-described "dilettante gamer" and owner of the
pile.org website has taken it upon himself, unasked, to set up a CºNTINUUM mailist for fans of the game.

While the mailing list is unofficial, (Aetherco/Dreamcatcher, naturally, take no responsibility for any of its use, security, functionality or content,) it may prove useful to new players to voice opinions, complaints, ideas and questions to one another.

S. Ben writes: "What I envision is something like what exists for Atlas Games' Unknown Armies, where the list is independent of the company, but the company's site has info on it and the designers lurk about and post occasionally on their design goals and rules interpretations and upcoming releases and the like." Some of the designers are already lurking, as is Continuum spanners' wont when information is involved.

Anyone interested in signing up may do so by sending a blank message to continuum-rpg-l-subscribe@topica.com. Aetherco/Dreamcatcher extend our thanks to you, S. Ben. Official emailings will be going out before Christmas to everyone who has joined the Playtesters' Fraternity over the past year.

 

CºNTINUUM Officially Released In October

NEW YORK - Originally posted AD 1999.10.12   Reedited AD 1999.11.08
CºNTINUUM: Roleplaying in The YetTM the new game of genuine time travel, releases this month to markets across the United States and the United Kingdom.

Aetherco and Dreamcatcher Multimedia have teamed together to create a product unique to gaming, and new to even to the avenues of science fiction. A cumulative 26 years of time travel gaming experience went into the creation of CºNTINUUM, along with extensive research and playtesting.

CºNTINUUM entered the month of October with fresh critical praise on rpg.net, anotheruniverse.com and a Spotlight in this month's Previews from Diamond Distributors.

Planned support includes free scenarios available online, a player's fraternity, convention demos, and products, extending the line of books. These latter include a gamemaster's guide entitled Further Information, due out in February 2000, and a sequel game, already in the works, entitled NªRCISSIST. The sequel centers on the Continuum's mortal enemies from their perspective, and will debut in August at GenCon 2000. Aetherco/Dreamcatcher are also planning a line of inexpensive supplements to be produced throughout next year. A complete current catalog is available online.

CºNTINUUM has been available in various beta-test versions since May 1998, and the final version had a special preview debut at GenCon, in August 1999. It was first announced at SciFi Channel's online convention in October 1997.

Aetherco is a New York entertainment company that has been in business since 1987. It's best known for the fantasy gaming satire Yamara and now the CºNTINUUM time travel game. Dreamcatcher Multimedia is a new company based in New York; CºNTINUUM is its first major product.

 

WINNERS!

NEW YORK - Originally posted AD 1999.10.12
A drawing was held late last month for the winner of free admission to
GenCon 2000: That winner is Tom Alane of Dousman, WI. Congratulations, again, Tom: You're getting in the door free.

Another recent winner is Brian Gilman who attained his free copy of CºNTINUUM at Shorecon by being the person closest to 9:09:09 PM on 9/9/99 to ask the authors, "What time is it?" Ironically, another attendee had purchased a copy of the rulebook precisely on the moment, but didn't know the secret password.

 

Free Scenario Now Available Here Online

NEW YORK - Originally posted AD 1999.07.21
A complete scenario for CºNTINUUMTMis now available online in PDF format.

While password protected, members of the Playtesters' Fraternity will shortly be receiving the password via email; others must await the debut of the book at GenCon, or until it reaches stores later this year, as the password appears in version 1 of the CºNTINUUM rulebook.

Space limitations required that the "Death Hand of Saint No-One" be dropped from the final work, "something we didn't want to do," says Chris Adams, a co-author. "But with the web available to more and more people, it seemed a ready solution. The CºNTINUUM rulebook is complete without a scenario, and details of how to get 'Death Hand' free, even without web access, are in the book."

The PDF file is 16 illustrated pages, complete with maps and background material, and is less than 400k in size. Other support material for the adventure, such as player character sheets, are available online, too.   Death Hand

 

DiTerlizzi Contributes Interior Art

NEW YORK - Originally posted AD 1999.04.06   Edited & Amended AD 1999.07.21
Tony DiTerlizzi, the artist renowned for his work on such roleplaying games as "Planescape" [TSR], "Changeling" [White Wolf] and the visionary behind projects like the upcoming "Jimmy Zangwow's Out-of-This World Moonpie Adventure" [Simon & Schuster, Spring 2000] has created seven original drawings for the CºNTINUUMTM project, as one of its leading contributors.

"Tony's pretty excited about it," says art director and co-author Dave Fooden. Editor/co-author Chris Adams commented:

"What Tony DiTerlizzi is bringing to the book is his distinct vision, and we're mighty thrilled. He'll be contributing the frontispieces to each of the book's sections, which will set the tone and pacing for the entire piece. CºNTINUUM, being a game of travelling time at will, calls for a very esoteric layout, and I can't think of any artist more esoteric than Tony."

The CºNTINUUM RPG is set for a summer 1999 debut.

DiTerlizzi Visit the DiTerlizzi website at www.diterlizzi.com

Stop back soon; more news is always around the corner...

 

Version 0.7 Ships

Originaly Posted 1999.01
[Version 1 is now available -CA 1999.08.15].

Against all delays and obstructions, the new version of CºNTINUUMTM is complete, and has been shipped to everyone who's ordered it in the past three months.

The big surprises in Version 0.7 are the further hints about the ancient Narcissists and a major revelation regarding the Inheritors. But what makes 0.7 distinct is the simplified Combat system, a completely detailed Time Combat example-- and a scenario to try it out on.

"The Death Hand of St. No One" has been our most successful playtest to date, and now all feasible notes on the scenario have been included in the rulebook. Those that didn't fit are being compiled now in our new Scenarios Section. This area will include downloadable character sheets, extra GM handouts, and links to further information around the web, relevant to our published scenarios.

Stop back soon; more news is always around the corner...

 

All things come...

Originaly Posted 1999.01.01
[Version 1 is now available -CA 1999.08.15].

The creators of CºNTINUUM would like to thank everyone who ordered version 0.7 and/or joined the Playtesters' Fraternity over the past few months– for their patience.

We have an enormous amount of input from many sources- playtesters, fans, and professionals– and we decided, even as SCIFI.CON went under weigh and the holidays approached, to incorporate the best of what we'd learned into version 0.7. We took the step of pouring all our copious notes into a new, comprehensive whole, rather than just amending 0.5.2 with extra bells and whistles.

Being mere mortals, the pressures of the holiday months have been trying on us. But the results, we hope, will justify the extra time spent. We've made the dice even simpler: Most stats will now be based on 10 rather than 100. We've also been authorized to include insight into the Inheritors. And the dozens of players who experienced all or part of the "Death Hand" scenario at cons this year will be able to share it with their friends, as it is included in its entirety.

So when will it ship? We have a playtest scheduled in mid-January at the Compleat Strategist, and our efforts are bent to have in on the rack on that day. Naturally, it will ship at the same time. Shortly thereafter, we can print the rest of the Playtester's Fraternity stuff, and get it out to everyone.

 

Winners!

Posted 1999.01.01
We have two winners in our recent
CºNTINUUM contests:

Ian Flockhart has won a CºNTINUUM watch in a random drawing from everyone who signed up for the Playtester's Fraternity at WorldCon and GenCon last year.

Carter Eberly has won the free copy of CºNTINUUM v.0.7 during our email "spot the Narcissist" email contest during SciFi.Con 3.0. For more details on the progress of 0.7's shipping, see below.

Congratulations you two! It must have been destiny...

 

1999.
  Posted 1998.12.31

As we post this, the last year of the1900's has begun in the Pacific and is moving over Asia.

1999 is the mythic year of post-medieval Western civilization. Much, even too much has been written about it. Pundits and grandstanders will be puffing out bad speeches, collector items and poetic doggerel for the next twelve months, and 25 years from now their books and outmoded recordings will be clogging antique shops and earning politely annoyed stares from aging customers.

But this was inevitable. For this year isn't here to be populated only by heroes, or anti-heroes, or scientists, or communists, or devils, or angels. We only expected it would.

This is the gift of these years, these next three years with the awesome reputations. We get to live them. They are ours, despite a trillion prayers from our ancestors bombarding us. To them, our every common move and breath will drip with glory.

And when they are done, the confetti swept up on January 1, 2002, they will be ours ever after. The books of prophecies will close, and find themselves in the back drawers and recycling bins of mankind. All the expectations will be unmade. We will emerge out from under the burden of our own presumptions like the predestined serf discovering his free will.

The future will finally belong to us all.

Auld Lang Syne.

–CHRIS ADAMS
  NEW YORK
  December 31 AD 1998.

 

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Aetherco/Dreamcatcher Comes to SCI-FI CHANNEL'S SCIFI.CON 3.0

Posted: AD 1998 09.23   Edited: AD 1999 04.08
Over Halloween weekend, SCIFI CHANNEL hosted its third annual online convention.

They requested all-new original CºNTINUUM™ material, and we had the means and the goods. Our site includes Span 3 Rules, exclusive to scifi.com, along with further information on spanning, the Fraternities, the Societies™, narcissists, Antedesertium, and a whole lot more.

 

New CºNTINUUM Scenario Premiered at SHORECON '98

Posted: AD 1998 08.31; Edited & Amended: AD 1998 09.23
We were there, at the Hilton Cherry Hill NJ; September 17-20, 1998, demonstrating an all-new CºNTINUUM scenario, "No Such Thing As Ghosts". We had many repeat players, anxious for a fresh adventure. Set in Harrisburg, PA, the characters soon discovered that disasters of the past can never be left behind by a time traveller... Thrills, scares, new CºNTINUUM devotees and bookie odds over who had to die were created that weekend.

In addition, Aetherco held a bang-up YAMARA™ party in their hotel rooms, celebrating our halfling's tenth anniversary. (Of first publication. Not of her marriage to Ogrek, thank heavens.) Thanks to everyone who made it mad and special.

SHORECON

 

Aetherco/Dreamcatcher Comes to SPECTRUM
Manui Sweeps DRAGONCON

Posted: AD 1998 08.31; Edited: AD 1998 09.23
Over Labor Day weekend, we repeated the experiment, and again appeared in two places at the same time.
At SPECTRUM, Double Exposure's new event, Dave Fooden and Chris Adams will were at Dave's booth demonstrating CºNTINUUM to some of the best gamers on the East Coast. Attendees to SPECTRUM enjoyed our full-length game demos of the "Death Hand of St. No-One" scenario.

Meanwhile, Barbara Manui, president of Aetherco, was at DragonCon holding forth, keeping her promise of "talk[ing] CºNTINUUM, or to have big power money talks with people in bars." Contact her if you missed this opportunity to dealmake and help her conquer the world.

SPECTRUM       DRAGONCON

 

WORLDCON LVI
Bucky the Crab © Derrick Dasenbrock
CºNTINUUM Thrills Worldcon

Posted: AD 1998 08.31
 In two play sessions and countless conversations at this year's Worldcon, CºNTINUUM has made a remarkable impression on science fiction fandom.

While explaining the background of the CºNTINUUM universe, fans were startled at the innovative concept of time travel we were proceeding from. The societal nature of the Continuum was what kept these hardcore sf fanatics interested. Even elder fans racked their brains to find similarities to other stories: while a few came up, time travel tales at all like our game seem very few indeed.

Chris Adams confesses that bribery made have played a small part in influencing the actual gamers, as Aetherco borrowed a card from Double Exposure's deck in providing free munchies to the Hilton's game room throughout much of the con. But the food was merely the hook: the real addiction was the challenge of the game itself.

"The first demo ran a little long," he recounts, "so we decided to play the last, critical battle at the booth the next morning at 10 am. For the first time in years, I seriously overslept, and didn't get there till noon! I missed the players, but apparently they woke up that early in the morning after a night's worth of play just to wrap up the game. The folks manning the Steve Jackson booth next door told me they had hung around for awhile, wondering where I was. F&#@!* Narcissists sabotaged my alarm..."

The second demo went swimmingly, with the largest-ever crew of spanners engaging in Time Combat. Eight players of widely different attitudes and ages all enjoyed a complete round of "Death Hand" complete with questions about the CºNTINUUM universe, false starts, and riotous mishaps. But when Time Combat came around at the end of the scenario, by working together their sheer numbers and flawless execution made mincemeat of an antagonist 100 times more powerful than any one of their individual characters.

Each bought a copy of the book, one bought two. At least two onlookers also purchased copies.

By the end of Bucconeer, Chris had only one copy left on the table, though he eventually found a couple more stashed back in his room. A near sell-out. And the fact that dozens of non-gamer time travel fans found CºNTINUUM unique and intriguing has encouraged us to pursue avenues of writing narrative fiction based on the universe. Write Aetherco for complete Writer and Artist Guidelines for game scenarios and fiction.

Our thanks goes out to everyone who made our Worldcon experience a success! Stay tuned as Barbara Manui and Dave Fooden recount their adventures at this year's GenCon.

 

Rousing Success at CºNTINUUM Compleat Strategist Demo

Posted: AD 1998 07.26
 July 25, 1998, 1:00 PM at the store at 11 East 33rd St in Manhattan was the time and place of our latest CºNTINUUM demo! Much was learned from watching the same scenario unfold through time in an entirely different way, but mainly great fun was had in abundance.

 "The Death Hand of St. No-One" played again to a more RPG-oriented crowd in Compleat Strategist's "secret room". The Time Combat demo went by smoothly and with great excitement on the part of all the players. And one player expressed his delight at the speed of the DreamcatcherTM Physical Combat System: "One roll, his hand comes off! I like that." The unfortunate character in question also immediately went into shock, the realism of which was applauded by the playtesters.

Co-author Dave Fooden reports that one outlet of the Strategist has sold out of CºNTINUUM, and that all are asking for more copies, including the King-of-Prussia store. Restocking is under weigh, even as the team revises and updates the rules for the next version, and prepares for the big conventions.

 

CºNTINUUM Demo'ed in June at New York Neutral Ground

Posted: AD 1998 06.18 Edited: AD 1998 06.29
 Neutral Ground hosted the premiere of a new CºNTINUUM scenario, "The Death Hand of Saint No-One", on June 21st and 28th. Set initially in the rave scene of the early nineties, this intro was written to appeal to the more... smash 'n grab gamer, while getting across the basics of Combat, Time Combat, and using Skills.

 Each demo resulted in sales of the game, and smiles of satisfaction. Our thanks goes out to all our recent players, and we hope to see you all around the table again soon!

 

PYRAMID Magazine Praises CºNTINUUM

"It's Time Has Come" Says Reviewer

Posted: AD 1998 06.18
 Steve Fritz, in his biweekly article for Pyramid Magazine, lauded the CºNTINUUM game and its authors by saying, "what's impressive is how well all three have thought out their entire universe".

 This after an interview with two of the authors of the game, Barbara Manui & Chris Adams. The interview revealed certain secrets about the nature of the CºNTINUUM world, and the production schedule of the game that are available nowhere else.

 Steve Fritz is also responsible for the Steve Jackson Games gaming track at Worldcon this year.

Read the review.

 

CºNTINUUMTM First Went On Sale at Our East Coast Game Faire Booth

AD 1998 03.27 Edited 05.25
 It's PRE-RELEASE v.0.5 and "It's all good," according to co-creator Dave Fooden. "It's been a strange, strange road," says co-creator Chris Adams. "Mostly doubling back on itself. But that works..." "Tempus fugit," says producer Barbara Manui.

After five months of intensive design, playtesting and inventive arguments, enough game existed to put it in front of the world. So come East Coast Game Faire, May 8-10, 1998, there was playable CºNTINUUM product for sale at the Aetherco/Dreamcatcher booth.

CºNTINUUM was already getting a buzz for its realism, its daring and its scarily likely take on time travel. We worked our dice system down to a single throw in most cases, and made the ease-of-play issue our #1 priority. Of course the background of the CºNTINUUM universe was introduced, and its coolness factor was our #1 priority.

Sometimes two things occupy the same place at the same time.

We looked to hold the first-ever CºNTINUUM two-part mini-tournament at the Faire: what turned out to be more feasible was several demo games of a new scenario, "Society and the Leap Year Girl". All players received a free copy of CºNTINUUM v. 0.5. Feedback was largely positive and thoughtful-- time travel attracts all the most intelligent gamers and designers.

Additionally, we are looking into other venues such as Worldcon and SPECTRUM- your suggestions as to good east coast conventions this year would be very welcome!

 

CºntinuumTM Demo'ed Again at Gamer's Con

AD 1998 03.26
 Our latest stop playtesting CºNTINUUM was Multigenre's Gamer's Con IV, March 20-22, AD1998, in Cherry Hill, NJ. The scenario was "Open Agenda", first played at Dreamation, earlier this year. Co-creators Barbara Manui, Chris Adams, and Dave Fooden re-honed the original, and studied the reactions and feedback from two more demo sessions.

Thanks to everyone who playtested with us in in Cherry Hill!

 

 

Dave Fooden Art at White Wolf Site

Original Work for Sale

Ongoing; Posted: AD 1998 03.08
 CºNTINUUM co-creator Dave Fooden has many of his best works for the World of Darkness on display and on sale at the White Wolf Games website.

www.white-wolf.com   Fooden Gallery   Write Dave for details.
 

 

CºntinuumTM Playtest Success at Dreamation

AD 1998 03.04   Edited.

 Co-creators Barbara Manui, Chris Adams and Dave Fooden presented an advance peek at CºNTINUUM, the time-travelling roleplaying game. Our first playtest was a big hit at Dreamation, and we're planning more for this Spring at cons on the East Coast.

 Positive reactions to how we handled time and paradox in the game system were encouraging, which we intend to refine further for the next con. Criticism was limited to our first draft of a physical combat system, which Dave is currently overhauling. Our thanks go out each and every player, and I hope we see all of you at the game table again!

 Our first brave Continuuati:

  • Dan Adinolfi
  • David Bierce
  • Pete Henderson
  • Michele Kelley
  • Jason Schneiderman
  • Dering Sprague
  • James Taylor


 

All contents Copyright ©1998-2012 Barbara Manui & Chris Adams, and David Fooden, except as noted.
CONTINUUM™ is a trademark of Aetherco and Dreamcatcher Multimedia for their time travel game. All rights reserved.
NARCISSIST™ is a trademark of Aetherco and Dreamcatcher Multimedia for their alternating history game. All rights reserved.
 
AETHERCO™ and the book-and-branch logo are trademarks of Aetherco. All rights reserved.
 
Other trademarks appearing herein belong to their respective owners. This site contains some content of editorial or satiric intent.
 
Updated 2023.08.07