BEOWULF. a|state. Maskwitches. Cold City:Hot War. FiveEvil
We know that the new editions of Cold City and Hot War will be presented in a handsome slipcase. We’re delighted to share the design of that slipcase by Paul Bourne. We all want one, and we hope you do too. Sign up to be notified of the campaign launch here.
You can now sign up to play test Cold City Hot War, and be notified of the campaign launch.
head to this link:
Cold City and Hot War second editions are twin RPGs that explore hidden agendas, trust, and relationships during an alternative Cold War and its terrifying ultimate conclusion.
In the divided city of post-World War II Berlin, terrors hide in the darkness. The legacies of war, suffering, and fringe science lurk beneath the surface, feared and desired by former allies and defeated enemies. Those that seek out these horrors are riven by suspicion, mistrust and political ambition. The four occupying powers of Britain, France, the USA and the USSR all have their own agendas. In Cold City, characters are defined not just by who they are and what they are like, but by the views of the other characters and the trust that they have in them.
London. Winter. 1963. It is a year since the Cold War went hot. This was not just a nuclear war, as darker weapons with their roots in World War II’s suffering and fringe science were deployed. Survival and re-building are all that matter now. But human nature and the breakdown of society mean that everyone has their own ambitions. Into this maelstrom steps a motley band of women and men tasked with the jobs too dirty or dangerous for anyone else. They have to deal with relationships, loves, hatred, and hidden agendas in a collapsing, ravaged, horror-strewn Britain.
Revised and reimagined from their first editions that appeared in 2006 and 2008 respectively, Cold City and Hot War keep all that was great about these critically-acclaimed RPGs while bringing fresh ideas to the texts and the mechanics. Both books hold up a mirror to – and reflect upon – the Cold War era’s real history to help readers and players better understand the games and their settings.
Designed and written by Malcolm Craig, now a senior lecturer in Cold War history at Liverpool John Moore’s University, with art and graphic design by Paul Bourne of Handiwork Games, Cold City and Hot War will be presented as two books in a beautiful slipcase.
Grab 31 pages of insights and inspirations free on DrivethruRPG in the Cold City Hot War Reports.
Cold City/Hot war creator Malcolm Craig is playtesting the upcoming new edition. Here’s his report of the second session with his new play test group:
Content Warning: Self harm
If you’ve read the first blog post about playesting the revised version of Cold City, you’ll know how things are starting. If you’ve not read it, then follow the link!
For this session Harvey was sadly absent because of unforeseen circumstances. However, Connor and Amy decided to press on regardless (incorporating the absence of Harvey’s character Edward Richthofen into the story. Nice work).
We got through six significant scenes before the act’s conclusion. We open with a chase by Amy’s character Dr Julia Whitely into the U-Bahn and the capture of a mysterious man (who had a stolen document that gave them some insights into who they might be looking for – a mysterious, though-to-be-dead-in-1945 Nazi scientist called Karl Geissler). Then we had a flashback scene to how the chase started and Connor’s character Kyril Kantarin being left in an apartment with a dead body.
Continue reading “Cold City Play Test Two”In the fifth free Cold City Hot War Report, designer Malcolm discusses the fruits of the first playtests of the new edition, and the history of the so-called “Malayan Emergency”.
These regular free reports bring you behind-the-scenes info, extra historical inspiration, and ideas on things to read to learn more about the Cold War period: the setting for both Cold City and Hot War.Â
These reports are also available for free download at DrivethruRPG.com, where they will be added to your DrivethruRPG cloud library at no charge, for easy access from all your devices.
Cold City/Hot war creator Malcolm Craig is playtesting the upcoming new edition. Here’s his report of the first session with his new playtest group:
1: Situation and Character Creation
Cold City – an RPG of trust, hidden agendas, and monster hunting in early Cold War Berlin – is changing a little. That’s why we’re (re)playtesting a game that came out a long, long time ago. Well, there’s that and the fact that some mechanical elements have changed significantly.
The first thing you do in any Cold City game is decide on the situation. This involves nailing down the tone, who the antagonists are, what the characters are doing, scenes everyone would like to see, and so on. I’ve been very lucky to be accompanied in this playtest by three of my students: Amy, Connor, and Harvey. They all enthusiastically volunteered to playtest the game.
Continue reading “Cold City Play Test One”
In this fourth free PDF, Cold City/ Hot War author Malcolm discusses the “Bren Gun Effect” and the Strath Report.
Originally published in their first editions in 2007 and 2008, we’re honoured and delighted to announce our plan to publish new editions of both Cold City and Hot War in 2024.
These won’t just be new editions of these cult UK indie games: designer Malcolm Craig, now a senior lecturer in history at Liverpool John Moores University, will be working with Handiwork Games as an integral part of his research work into the history of nuclear war in roleplaying games.
The third slice of Cold City Hot War Report is out!
In this free PDF, author Malcolm Craig takes a look at upcoming changes to the mechanics of the game, as well as a look at the technology of the Cold War era in which these two RPGs are set.
Following last month’s Episode Zero, we bring you Episode One of History in Games, Games in History. Following Malcolm and Jon’s successful talks at UK Games Expo and Liverpool John Moores University, we decided to bring the same themes to a more widely-accessible format, and make it a series.