Vajra Enterprises
Vajra Enterprises is a small role-playing game publishing company founded in 2001.[1] Vajra's games have a reputation for taking the conventions of more traditional genres and turning them around, into something familiar yet different. For example, at the beginning of Fates Worse than Death there is a page-long list of features differentiating it from traditional cyberpunk. Vajra strives to create very specific and detailed game settings, as opposed to many other companies which strive to create generic settings with wide appeal.
Game System
All Vajra Enterprises releases are based on the Organic Rule Components system, also known as ORC. The publisher offers free licenses to use the ORC system on approval of the subject matter by Vajra Enterprises.[2] The ORC game mechanics have been criticized by reviewers as being too "crunchy".[3] [4] When used in a game system review, the term "crunchy" indicates relatively complex and number-driven game mechanics. [5]
Game products
Vajra Enterprises' releases include published books and several games available for download as pdf files.
- Fates Worse Than Death[6], is a cyberpunk game set on island of Manhattan in the year 2080. Behind the Eyes of Madness[7], is a supplemental book for the Fates Worse Than Death game world which contains special rules for characters with mental illnesses.
- Tibet[8] is a historical fantasy game set in Tibet circa 1950. Tibet was translated into Catalan and published under the name Tibet: El Joc de Rol[9] with new artwork in 2008 by the Spanish publishing company Maqui Edicions.
- In Dark Alleys[10] is a modern psychological horror game set in Los Angeles.[11]
- KidWorld [12], features a post-apocalyptic setting in which children are the only fully functional humans left on Earth.[13]
- Hoodoo Blues [14] is set in the modern day Deep South, which includes Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, and parts of Florida and Texas. Game play may include flashbacks to earlier decades of the characters' lives. Players will typically take on the role of a minority character (usually African American) who has found away to stave off death for decades.[15] The game universe is based on the premise that voodoo and hoodoo philosophies and magic are real, and that minority groups have learned to harness these powers to resist the effects of struggles including discrimination, slavery, and the Civil War. Hoodoo Blues has been praised for the "depth and vitality" of the setting [16] and history section in particular. [17]
Fates Worse Than Death
FWTD takes place on a fictional Manhattan in the year 2080, where decades of global crisis and war has crippled the city's economic and social structure.[18] [19] The city is plagued with poverty, crime, diseases, and corruption, making it one of the most dangerous ghettos in the world. Players take role of characters belonging to a new generation of people, characterized by the belief that no one but themselves are willing to save them. Tired of wasting their lives in fear, this group aims toward] forming new communities and testing new technology to make the city a better and safer place to live. Even though this group's fights and accomplishments help the city get better, often its members also have to deal with their own personal problems, usually related to drugs, violence, or mental illness.
In Dark Alleys
Like the roleplaying game Kult, In Dark Alleys has a gnostic cosmological backdrop. A game scenario for In Dark Alleys was included with the Free RPG Day materials in 2007. [20]
References & notes
- ^ "About Vajra Enterprises". Vajra Enterprises. http://www.vajrapublishing.com/aboutvajra.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-19.
- ^ "Licensing Organic Rules Components". Vajra Enterprises. http://www.vajrapublishing.com/orc/useorc.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-19.
- ^ Wakefield, Raistlin (2010-06-21). "Review, Hoodoo Blues the Role Playing Game". DriveThru RPG. http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_reviews.php?products_id=80520. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
- ^ Pookie (2007-09-03). "Free RPG Day Review #4: Little Boy Lost". RPGnet. http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/13/13277.phtml. Retrieved 2010-08-14. ""...some may find the mechanics clunky.""
- ^ "RPGLexica:ABC (Crunch)". RPGnet Wiki. "2. Slang for the relative complexity of a particular ruleset. A crunchy ruleset is more complex."
- ^ St.Claire-King, Brian (2004). Fates Worse Than Death. Vajra Enterprises. ISBN 0-9713095-0-7. http://www.fatesworsethandeath.com/!FWTD/index.htm.
- ^ St.Claire-King, Brian (2005). Behind the Eyes of Madness. Vajra Enterprises. ISBN 0-9713095-2-3. http://www.fatesworsethandeath.com/!FWTD/index.htm#beom.
- ^ St.Claire-King, Brian (2004). Tibet: The Roleplaying Game. Vajra Enterprises. ISBN 0-9713095-1-5. http://www.tibetrpg.com/!Tibet/index.htm.
- ^ St.Claire-King, Brian (2008). Tibet: El Joc de Rol. Maqui Edicions. ISBN 978-84-935248-2-1. http://www.maqui-ed.com/.
- ^ St.Claire-King, Brian (2006). Behind the In Dark Alleys. Vajra Enterprises. ISBN 0-9713095-4-X. http://www.indarkalleys.com/!IDA/index.htm.
- ^ Vandereyken, Dirk "Review of In Dark Alleys" [1] RPG.net Dec. 15, 2006
- ^ St.Claire-King, Brian (2006). Kid World. Vajra Enterprises. ISBN 0-9713095-5-8. http://www.vajraenterprises.com/!kidworld/.
- ^ "Pen & Paper Database Entry (Vajra Enterprises)". http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showpublisher&publisherid=297. Retrieved 2007-01-28.
- ^ St.Claire-King, Brian; Warner, Carl (2010). Hoodoo Blues. Vajra Enterprises. ISBN 0-9713095-6-6. http://www.indarkalleys.com/!hoodoo/index.htm.
- ^ Deal, John (2010-06-10). "Review, Hoodoo Blues the Role Playing Game". DriveThru RPG. http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_reviews.php?products_id=80520. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
- ^ Deal, John (2010-06-10). "Review, Hoodoo Blues the Role Playing Game". DriveThru RPG. http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_reviews.php?products_id=80520. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
- ^ Cash, Anthony (2010-06-10). "Review, Hoodoo Blues the Role Playing Game". DriveThru RPG. http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_reviews.php?products_id=80520. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
- ^ Musgrave, Sean "Review of Fates Worse Than Death" [2] RPG.net Feb. 6, 2004
- ^ Black, Ezekiel "Review of Fates Worse Than Death" [3] RPG.net June 9, 2004
- ^ Pookie "Review of Little Boy Lost" [4] RPG.net Sept. 3, 2007
External links