Most people remember those really great discoveries with their toys. Recall the discovery that while Barbie couldn’t actually stay in orbit on your model rocket, she still had a great ride into the stratosphere. Or what about the first time the heads on two different toys could be swapped to create two entirely new and different critters. And lastly, who can forget the size of hole a matchbox car could make in the sheetrock.

Toypocalypse came about a lot like those happy childhood accidents. Trevor and I had been working diligently on The Locus, our first role playing game product. We were very excited about Trevor’s dice system. Josh was giddy to be developing a world in conjunction with a game. And we were both pumped to be arming dwarves with guns. Despite all the positive energy, though, we seemed to be at an impasse. We were slogging through some of the great feedback we had received from early play tests. We were making progress, but it was slow.

In short, we needed a short break.

Enter rpggeek.com. Josh all ready spends more time than is healthy browsing the parent site, www.boardgamegeek.com, but on a blustery winter day, he happened upon the 24-hour RPG contest.

Then, in passing, he mentioned the contest to Trevor.

That was all it took. Trevor caught fire. Josh was too sadistic to discourage him, and so our lead designer set aside a 24 block on the next Tuesday, and worked his guts out to produce the little appetizer we are so proud to be bringing to everyone.

Sapient toys in a post-apocalyptic world free of humans. If you dig closely into the text, you can see where the toxins really started to reach Trevor’s brain, at about hour 20.

We hope you enjoy it as much as Trevor enjoyed creating it.

The next class in our preview series is the Magi, master of the mystical arts.

A Magi is a powerful spell caster who takes the emotional essence that seeps into Illume from Earth and weaves it into powerful spells. The first powerful magi of Illume discovered their ability to channel these forces at the sites of disasters. While taking advantage of their abilities in a myriad of ways, many of them used their talents to seize political power over those less gifted.

Over time, these early Magi became ruling oligarchs of some of the largest nations of Illume. Some nations, such as the Dwarven Unions, still resist these fascists, but the battle grows desperate as the most powerful magi of Illume have begun to find more pure sources of mystical energy. Should they succeed in their plans to harvest these fuels, the balance of power will shift irreparably in favor of tyranny. Not all Magi are thirsty for power at the expense of others. Many have embraced the more tender emotions to fuel their magic and fight along with the forces of good to stave off the wave of oppression coming in from ruling powers.

Because of the history of magic in Illume, much is misunderstood about the nature and abilities of even the most common of man. Early mages were able to bring fire into being with nothing more than a thought, or strike men dead with a wave of their hands. Deeds such as these filled the less talented masses with a justifiable fear of magic and its more powerful practitioners. As a consequence, much study was given to these paths, while other, less obviously powerful magics were investigated only by those well attuned to them.

The Magi understands essence. The Magi practically breathes essence. They are able to weave spells of incredible power. Their very presence can inflame tense emotions in a room to the breaking point. The most powerful Magi are able to level cities, bring men back from the brink of death, and change the destiny of Illume forever.

Our next class preview will be the Guardian, templar dedicated to the protection of the borders of Halvair.

Over the next few months we will be doing some class previews of playable classes within The Locus. The first class we would like to preview is the Hunter.

The Hunter is one part gadgeteer, one part rascal, and one part marksman.

A laborer long honored by Dwarven tradition, Hunters are men & women expert at finding problems, and solving them. Hunters roam the barren lands of the Dwarven Union, keeping menaces such as Trollkin at bay. Recently, some Dwarven Hunters have taken human apprentices, and after a period of training, send them back to their homelands to eliminate problems there. Once a Hunter is on your trail, it is said that you are already dead.

Technomancy is a craft that many dwarven artisans use to increase productivity, simplify their lives and defend their union. Hunters are adept in the use of Technomancy, this dwarven art harnesses magical essence and uses it to fuel magnificent contraptions. Their use of magical essence in fueling their devices make them hated and reviled by most magi and truthfully the feeling is mutual.

A few more progressively minded members of the Union have within the last few decades opened the door for humans to learn and practice the Technomancer's craft. A human Technomancer must pay for and maintain a license for Technomancy with the Technomancers Guild. These are usually the rare but hard-nosed Hunters in the Human race.

Players will find a diverse realm of craftable and customizable gear within the Hunter class to outfit their character with. They will also find a varied skill set that allows them to hunt down and find their prey in the seediest of locations. A Hunter is not your typical fantasy ranger, instead he is the fantasy equivalent of a modern day bounty hunter.

Our next class preview will be the Magi, masters of the mystical arts.

Top Rope Games is pleased to announce their flagship role playing game The Locus.

In The Locus players explore Illume, a fantastic world in a parallel universe to our own, where magic derived from emotion is woven by powerful mages and sword wielding warriors defend truth and justice. Lost on Illume are people from Earth sent there by an unknown force looking to unbalance the power which connects the two worlds. Armed with the knowledge of the Lost's true source the players must find them and help them return home before their very presence empowers evil sorcerous tyrants who wish to enslave both worlds. Explore ruins of bygone civilizations, discover powerful mystical creatures, and gain insight into their own personalities.

You must find the Lost. Return them to Earth. Do whatever it takes to keep them from falling into the wrong hands.

The Locus features:

- A simple flexible character creation and advancement system that allows you to get into the game quickly

- A unique attribute system that invokes not only the characters physical prowess but his emotional strength as well

- A magic system that allows custom spell creation to deal with any situation that presents itself

- The Variable Dice Pool system where increased skill provides increased consistency and increased chance of critical success, while reducing the chance of critical failure

- A rapid and easily tracked initiative system to streamline combat

The Locus is scheduled to be released 2Q 2011.