With the launch of the Kickstarter for Æthermancy, we’ve had a few questions come out from the community about where this puts Ingenium. Because Ingenium is a fantasy game, and Æthermancy appears to be a fantasy product for a different system, there’s some confusion as to which system you should be playing if you want to play a Silver Gryphon Games fantasy game.
The answer’s pretty simple: Ingenium. The explanation of why, however, is more complicated.
The question of Æther
Æther works very well for a fantasy game. It’s particularly good at low magic settings, since up until Æthermancy’s release, there’s not much in the way of magic support in the rules. The rules in Æthermancy are a LOT of fun, and it completes the game in a very real way for people who want supernatural powers in their games.
It’s completely possible, and enjoyable, to run a fantasy game using Æther. If I’m saying this, then, why would I unequivocally state that Ingenium is the better choice?
Ingenium is fantasy at its heart
Ingenium holds at its core not just set of rules but an ideal: that fantasy is uniquely suited to flights of imagination and not strict adherence to codified instructions. I myself as author and designer of the system deviate from the printed rules when it feels right to do so. There is much in both editions of the game that is left to the players’ imaginations and creativity. That’s something that a universal system can’t duplicate.
While it’s true that our support for the game with supplemental products has been lacking over the past two years of its existence, that’s because we’re a very small company with very limited resources. To date, we’ve chosen to put those resources towards Æther and, especially, Savage Worlds. The business reason for that is to build our capital in order to produce and support Ingenium and two other projects we have in the forge.
What is Summerfort Sundays?
Summerfort Sundays is my attempt to support the game even when we’re unable to produce actual products for it. The archives for Summerfort Sundays contain a wealth of setting information and adventure ideas, and it’s all freely available here on the web. Special tools for Ingenium like the Challenge Level calculator are also announced via Summerfort Sundays.
Summerfort Sundays and our dedication to the trade city as a setting and as a symbol are equally rock-solid. They’re here to stay. So if you want a fantasy game, I highly recommend Ingenium. If you want urban fantasy with gangsters alongside spellslingers, Æther is likely more your speed.
Next week we’ll be announcing a new project for Ingenium, and it’ll happen right here, in Summerfort Sundays. See you then.
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