Hello Cool Cats,

I'm going to be sharing previews from one of our stretch goal rewards over the next several months, as we track the various stages of our projects.  Here's our first of several sneak peeks at the upcoming Jumpstart.

Here’s Nerma von Korat, converted to the latest edition, as part of the Curious Cats of Mau Jumpstart!

History: Nerma was always temperamental. He joined the Korat army at the behest of his mother, who thought the service would give him a good outlet for his rage. When his mother died, Nerma’s rage became too much to handle, and his outbursts led to his discharge. Now Nerma sells his sword to make ends meet, doing the bidding of any who can afford his rage and withstand his temper.

Roleplay Tips: Nerma is gruff and angry, though he has a soft spot for the helpless.

Description: Nerma is tall, muscular, and imposing. He has light-gray fur with dark stripes and spots. A small patch of brown fur decorates his snout, and he has deep blue eyes. He wears lacquered armor in dark red and a black cloak.

Personality:
Drive: I am an excellent cat because I protect the weak.
Secret: No one knows about my love for my dead mother.
Weakness: No matter what, I just can’t control my temper.

Brute Strength: The cat with this trick gains a boon on Might checks involving lifting or pulling something.

Fighting Style: Two-Weapon: When wielding two light weapons, add the cat’s attribute and experience bonus to the damage roll. This counts as one attack (i.e., you are attacking with both weapons at once, instead of making two separate attacks), but the attacker can decide which weapon and damage type is used for the damage roll.

Rank Has Its Privileges: The cat can gain access to friendly comrades-in-arms, as well as gather common information and rumors from among the rank and file (not secret military plans, for example). Fortune: If the player spends fortune, she can declare that a previously unknown non-player-character soldier or other military official is an old friend or companion on good terms with the cat.

Simple Weapon Aptitude: Cats with this trick can add their experience bonus to attack and damage rolls when using any simple weapon. This includes clubs, daggers, darts, javelins, maces, quarterstaves, shortbows, sickles, slings, small axes and crossbows, spears, and unarmed punches, kicks, and bites.

Martial Weapon Aptitude: Using martial weapons requires practice and dedication — a cat without this trick always attacks with such weapons with a hindrance. Cats with this trick, however, can use martial weapons well, and can add their experience bonus to attack and damage rolls using them.

Light Armor Aptitude: The cat with this trick can wear light armor effectively, giving her a Defense of 11 + her Agility.

Medium Armor Aptitude: The cat with this trick can wear medium armor effectively, giving her a Defense of 13 + her Agility. Further, the cat’s Agility checks (not attack rolls) have a hindrance.

Heavy Armor Aptitude: The cat with this trick can wear heavy armor effectively, giving her a Defense of 16 (no Agility is added). Further, the cat’s two-legged and four-legged speeds are reduced by five feet, and her Agility checks (not attack rolls) have a hindrance.

Shield Aptitude: The cat with this trick can use a shield effectively, giving her +2 to her Defense. However, she only has one free paw and cannot use weapons or objects with the two-pawed quality. Further, the shield offers no benefit against attacks that the user cannot actively defend against (such as attacks from behind or spell effects that go around corners).

If you need to review your information or pledge status, you can return to your survey by clicking the link in your survey email or requesting your survey link under "Lost your survey?" on our BackerKit project page at https://curious-cats-of-mau.backerkit.com/

In addition to redemption links for distibuted digital rewards, all backers have received a link to the compiled draft manuscript. This link can be found in your BackerKit digital rewards page (See the link above for Claiming Your Digital Rewards if you need a refresher). Again, this isn't a new manuscript, it's just all of the pieces we shared during the campaign put together in order.

You can read Onyx Path's most recent monthly summary, covering all projects and their status up to that point here: <September 2024 Project Status Summary>

You can find the weekly Monday Meeting blog updates <here>, which note any projects with status changes since the previous Month End summary. The project statuses listed are current as of last Monday, so do check it out each Monday night to see if anything may have progressed!

I will continue to post regular updates everymonth until the final reward has gone out.

If you've got questions about the rules or setting, or just want to discuss this game with other fans (as well as the Onyx Path writers and developers!), you can check out these Onyx Path discussion zones:

FINAL WEEK

 CURSEBORNE is now live, but only for 7 more days!

Curseborne is a game about being unapologetic monsters in a world where being monstrous is the least of your worries. In Curseborne, you play as Accursed, descendants of monstrous lineages lurking in a modern world that closely resembles our own. You rebel against the ancient feuds between these entwined families, as well as against the web of curses that bind you, while fending off inhuman antagonists seeking to claim — or reclaim — your power.

The world of Curseborne is full of intrigue, magic, and things that go bump in the night. It’s just like our world, except the reason that things don’t go your way or that bad things happen is that the people are literally living in a world of curses. Some people are cursed more than others, and these are our Accursed characters. They have a particularly large curse that hangs over their heads and makes them more prone to bad things happening to them and around them. The nature of this curse also makes them magical in nature. They have a sense of the thing holding them back, and they can manipulate it in ways that normal people cannot.

This book is comprised of two main parts. The first part is the setting of Curseborne, as well as more about the Accursed themselves through the view of the characters. It shows how they see themselves, their world, and their place in that world. Lineages represent five broad categories of Accursed: The Dead (ghosts and spirits), The Hungry (vampires), The Outcasts (angels and demons), The Primal (shapeshifters and werewolves), and The Sorcerers (magicians).

The second part of the book are the instructions on how to use this book to play a game. You’ll find the chapters on how to play the game using the Storypath Ultra system, how to create a character, all the cool powers those characters have, and information on how to run a game of Curseborne.

With 7 days left in the campaign, we've passed 500% of our initial funding target and unlocked several Stretch Goals - including three new supplements that will be added as bonus rewards for backers of this project!

Want to know more about the Curseborne RPG?

PREVIEW MATERIAL: You can find information from the numerous previews Onyx Path has shared.

DRAFT MANUSCRIPT: Over the course of the campaign, backers will receive access to chapters from the current draft manuscript of Curseborne. By the end of the campaign, backers will be able to read the entire book as it stands now, before any pledges are processed or payments collected. No secret curses with this campaign - you'll know exactly what you're supporting with your pledge. Read the manuscript and make sure the project is right for you.

Come Join In and Become an Accursed!