This was awesome! Check out my full post in discussions - Recently, I soloed my way through Ghost Planets (59 pages at DriveThruRPG, free/pay what you want). This adventure was designed for Fate Core, but I used Uncharted Worlds (Powered By The Apocalypse system, 178 pages, same place). I added a yes/maybe/no oracle to Extreme Future RPG second edition to make my solo engine. I picked out six characters for this adventure. Here are the highlights. The PCs have already received their mission to study the ancient sites on this planet for sixty days. This includes many research projects and bringing back artifacts from the advanced alien race that vanished with no explanation. On the first day they had several problems to deal with. The NPC Cielo was one of these. She said that she was here with her ship to study the ancient culture (a lie, she is here to steal artifacts). The other problem was with cubots. They look like an alien relic in the shape of a cube. However, when the PCs had trouble accessing some alien doors, they activated. Some came in from outside. Cielo got a call from her ship (they had activated from inside there too). The battle started and seven of the bots were killed. Barb the technomancer was able to turn one of them into a pet. Once again, the PCs tried to open those stubborn doors. Once again, more bots attacked. After the bots were killed, the PCs figured out how to communicate with the devices and the pet using their wristcomps and microwave signals. The PCs spent the night in the dome building and Cielo spent the night in her ship. Well, she was killed by the bots in her ship and her body spent the night in her ship. An hour after midnight, a large device in the dome building activated (loud noises and bright lights). This lasted for five minutes (and happens every night at this same time). On the second day, the PCs started their first research project. At noon, they went over to Cielo’s ship to check on her. Inside, a battle started with the bots. Once again, they had to use med packs to heal each other. On the third day the PCs triggered another signal while they were experimenting. The microwave signal woke up the Dreadnought that was “sleeping” in the mountains. So, as you can see, there was a lot going on with this adventure. On the seventh day the PCs were able to open up a tunnel to another planet using the alien technology. On the ninth day, bounty hunters showed up. This fun adventure will need to be continued at another time. Give this a try!

In space there is no one left to scream - a Mephisto review

In the 23rd century, humanity developed the technology to travel to the stars and cover interstellar distances within weeks. This gave humanity a chance to make a fresh start on distant colonies after the horror and chaos of the 22nd century and made them realize that they were not alone in the universe. In fact, humans found traces of highly advanced civilizations everywhere, but they had all already perished. In many cases, there was evidence of an Omega event, a major catastrophe that destroyed life on the planet. Much more mysterious and threatening, however, is something called a Sigma event. In many cases, the inhabitants of these civilizations seem to have simply disappeared within a very short period of time for no apparent reason. It is now up to the Xenohistory Corps to uncover the background of the Sigma event and, if necessary, prevent it from affecting humanity as well.

The Fate World of Adventure Ghost Planets offers an unusual science fiction setting. The player characters are a team of scientists who travel from planet to planet to investigate the legacies of alien civilizations - always searching for the background of the Sigma event. With faster-than-light travel available to humanity, the entire galaxy is open to the player characters. In addition to introducing the background, the rules are modified in a few places. For example, there are six basic character types that determine the approach to investigations: from analyst to empath to visionary. There are also a few minor changes in the skills, which become more differentiated in research skills. Rules for the research projects with the different methods of the character types and the rule-based handling of these research projects are also an addition.

The game world is presented compactly, as is the level of technology. The background is more detailed where necessary. For example, you will find deck plans and other information about the typical spaceship. Of course, the book is not without an adventure. Here, the player characters must investigate an ancient structure that could offer clues to the Sigma event. I liked both the setting and the gameplay approach of Ghost Planets very much. This world has an exciting background that lends itself well to having the player characters either explore alien civilizations or investigate the mystery of the Sigma event. In addition, the rules focus on the research projects is coherently implemented and offers a rules concept that can be used elsewhere.

(Björn Lippold)

Excellent concept. Mediocre execution. The entire premise hinges on the question 'what happened to the alien life in the universe?' and the book sadly never answers it. in typical FATE fashion it offers several possible solutions, but unlike other FATE products, each answer is both weak and shallow. Hardcore FATE fans might find some enjoyment here, but otherwise I'd skip it as there are much deeper products in the genre even at pay-what-you-want pricing.

Ghost Planets is all about exporation and provides some great mechanics to back this up. Adventures are designed around investigating the ruins of ancient civilizations and trying to solve they mysteries they left behind. You do this by surveying the environment and looking for things the civilization left behind. Here's the cool part: many of the things left behind can be Researched and depending on your success or failure, you can make Discoveries that give you advantages or new information -- or you can have a Mishap which adds complication to the adventure. Mishaps are made more interesting because the type of mishap is related to your character's role. And, of course, this is all going on in parallel to any environmental challenges the characters may be facing. Good stuff!

Great book, nice streamlined setting, with lots of general info, allowing a lot of room for the GM to work with while still giving a solid background on which to build. The basic "templates" - based on the High Concept, gives the game an almost class-like feel, while still allowing characters to pretty much do their own thing.