A New Future for RuneQuest!

We are delighted to announce our agreement with Issaries Inc, allowing The Design Mechanism to produce a new edition of RuneQuest and supporting supplements. You can read the full Press Release by clicking on the link to the right.

The way all this will work is as follows:

• The Design Mechanism will be producing the sixth published edition of RQ for an early 2012 release.
• We will be publishing the core rules and all future supplements in partnership with Moon Design. This allows us to call upon their resources for a wide range of things that would be too costly for us to develop singly.
• Working with Moon we also have access to Glorantha, meaning that RuneQuest material for both Second and Third Age Glorantha will be not just possible, but a reality.

Work on the 6th edition of the rules has begun but the hard work will be between September and December as we prepare for the release. More information on the actual release date will be given nearer the time.

We're anticipating RuneQuest fans will have a lot of questions, and so we've prepared an FAQ sheet that should address most queries - see the 'RQ FAQ' PDF document link on the right. However, we also have our discussion Forum here at thedesignmechanism.com and will be establishing a dedicated RuneQuest forum over at Moon Design. 

RuneQuest Preview 1

The first preview of RuneQuest is now available for viewing.

These preview pages are pre-publication images so there are still page references to be finalised, but here you can see the style and scope of content RuneQuest will be offering.

Will RuneQuest Be OGL?

One question we're anticipating is whether or not third party publishers can use RuneQuest for their own games and supplements and, if so, how?

The short answer is Yes, we will be sanctioning third party support for RuneQuest. It will not be OGL (Open Game License) but will use an exclusive RQ Gateway agreement that we're currently developing. The RQ Gateway will allow companies to produce settings and supplements based on RuneQuest 6th edition rules, display their compatibility and refer back to the core rules.

Exactly how RQ Gateway will work is still being developed but full details of the license will be published here once finalised along with a summary of what the agreement entails and how it can be used.

Playtesting

We are no longer recruiting playtesters. The response has been incredible and we've very quickly attracted a very good, strong, diverse group that will meet our needs.

If the position changes, we'll keep you notified via this page, the News page and the Forums. So, apologies if you were considering applying and hadn't done so, but keep an eye out for future opportunities.