John Carter of Mars RPG (Kickstarter)

Edgar Rice Burroughs was a man who was very much a product of his era, but he was also an author well ahead of his time. He started writing out of disdain for the pulp magazines of the time, and Rudyard Kipling once wrote that Burroughs “wanted to find out how bad a book he could write and ‘get away with’, which is a legitimate ambition.” He revolutionized everything from publishing to marketing, and his creations continue to influence western culture over a hundred years after their conception.

Ray Bradbury may have summed it up best when he said “Edgar Rice Burroughs never would have looked upon himself as a social mover and shaker with social obligations. But as it turns out, and I love to say it because it upsets everyone terribly, Burroughs is probably the most influential writer in the entire history of the world. […] By giving romance and adventure to a whole generation of boys, Burroughs caused them to go out and decide to become special.”

Now, 78 years after his death, Burroughs’ influence is again being felt with Modiphius Entertainment’s imminent release of the John Carter of Mars RPG game. Billed as “Adventures on The Dying World of Barsoom[/Mars]. A planetary romance tabletop roleplaying game from the mind of Edgar Rice Burroughs” players will have the opportunity to play many of the characters from the Barsoom series or build their own, and explore the wonderful cultures, history, and secrets, that Burroughs’ Red Planet holds.

In just a few days between the Kickstarter launching and writing this spotlight, it has already blown away its goal and initial stretch goals, and there’s more content coming.

Honestly, there is already something for just about everyone here. They have lower PDF only pledges, just the core book, and a set of books in a slipcase. The basic core book is printed in a landscape format which will look great but may be a bit hard to put on your bookshelf, but the slipcover set is designed to hold the books for a standard portrait format look to match the rest of your RPG library (because we all know I’m not the only person who has that).

Not really into RPG games, but love to collect and paint miniatures? They have both individual sets and a complete set of 32mm scale sculpted minis available alone, or they can be added onto another pledge. The prototype sculpts of these minis are absolutely gorgeous, and almost makes me wish I enjoyed painting that sort of thing.

There’s more to come with this campaign, but don’t let that stop you from pledging now. You can always adjust your pledge later.

John Carter of Mars can be backed on Kickstarter until February 10, 2018. 

You can visit Modiphius Entertainment online at www.modiphius.net or on their Facebook Page, facebook.com/Modiphius