A missing scientist. An art deco pharmaceutical conference centre, now used for... other things. Massive bounties. Zero chance things will go wrong. (3 truths 1 lie.)
In The Dose Makes The Poison - a new 3rd party module for Mothership RPG - the PCs are dispatched to Station HS-14, a conference centre turned research lab run by medical giant Hope’s Pharma Inc. Tasked with locating a missing scientist, it quickly becomes clear that things have gone horrifically wrong.
Surrounded by the over-friendly branding of the energy-boosting "Biotonic", Hope’s Serum, the players will uncover layers of corporate corruption, medical malfeasance and a trail of clues (and bodies) leading to a race-against-time final act.
This module functions as a standalone investigative 1-or-2 shot for 3-4 players, bringing the Art-Deco / Streamline Moderne stylings of franchises like Bioshock or Fallout to Mothership.
"Absolutely nails the Bioshock atmosphere. If they hadn't mentioned it as an explicit inspiration, I'd have picked it up anyway." - Ian Yusem, Hull Breach
đź’‰ A 14 room space station - a dilapidated, off-grid research lab that is now being used for something more sinister.
🕵🏻‍♂️ A corporate-espionage mystery, peppered with lethal medical malpractice.
🎠A simple three act design, well suited to new players.
đź« 3 experimental adversaries, in various states of glooping meltiness.
đź’Š Nasty drugs that give hefty bonuses, and hefty side effects.
🎼 The catchy audio jingle for Hope’s Serum Biotonic to use in game - the true horror of this scenario!
The above is crammed into a 12 page zine, which is currently 80% complete including layout and artwork.
If you back at our highest tier, in addition to the zine you'll also get an A4 'doctor's waiting room' poster ad for Hope's Serum, and an "I Was Volunteered!" medical testing name tag sticker.
And that's not all!
Sinceall of the fantastic Mothership Month projects have hit their funding goal, we'll be adding a special bookmark in to all physical (print) tier backers as a thank you for making these projects happen.
So why crowdfund?
Well, firstly, to be part of something as amazing as Mothership Month! But also to cover our costs to date, the design of our additional assets and the print production costs to make the physical zine. But what we really, really want to do is use crowdfunding to expand the module further...
If we hit some of our early stretch goals we plan to add:
🗣️ A suite of professionally acted voice memos to be discovered in game. These digital files will be recorded via analogue 8-track for that authentic cassette-futurism sound.
📖 Additional pages: background on Hope’s Pharma Inc., and the company’s two arch rivals, Health Universal and Suckler Family Pharma. Plot hooks, tensions, rumours, bounties and key NPCs to get the players even further embroiled in an inter-galaxy healthcare industry that only has their best interests at heart!
So, tell your friends about Hope’s Serum. Let them know it's the perfect thing to put some pep back in their step!
**UPDATE **
Below is a summary of all bonus and unlocked stretch goals as we enter the final 48 hours of Mothership Month:
FREE Bonus PDF Pamphlet Module – Timed Release: A high-stakes, against-the-clock one-shot module inspired by Squid Game, The Running Man, and In Time. Available for all digital stretch goal tiers and higher, with a print add-on option for physical tiers.
Digital Audio Files: Immersive in-game voice notes and audio clues, recorded on analogue 8-track to deliver authentic cassette-futurism tape hiss.
Hope’s Serum TV Ad: A fully produced in-game video ad to heighten the atmospheric flavor of your campaign.
Expanded Page Count: The zine now boasts 16 pages (up from 12), featuring:
Expanded background on Hope’s Pharma Inc.
Background on rivals: The Suckler Family and Health Universal.
New plot hooks and bounties for integrating more sinister pharma into your games.
Enhanced Editing: DG Chapman is onboard not just for developmental editing but also for polishing the final draft to ensure the tightest script possible.
Improved Zine Cover: Upgraded to matt anti-scuff lamination for added durability.
FREE Bonus Bookmark: Celebrating all Mothership Month projects hitting their funding goals within 24 hours, every print tier includes a themed bookmark.
Prices are exclusive to Backerkit and RRP may be higher. All pledge tiers include everything from the previous tiers and all physical tiers now include a FREE bookmark:
Andrew C. Manson - Writing / Other Stuff. Andrew is based in Scotland and The Dose Makes The Poison is his first written module. His aim is to create high-quality, accessible content for Mothership, enriched by audio and visual world-building elements. With day job experience in project management and marketing, he’s looking forward to delivering a high quality finished product, on schedule.
Norgad - Layout, Design, and Illustration Norgad is a New Zealand-based graphic designer and illustrator. Fresh off the success of their own Kickstarter-funded project, Dead Weight (which casually funded in 5 hours) Norg is also known for his two standout Mausritter modules, Stragglers and I Miss You Very Much, which you'll find at his Itch page.
D. G. Chapman - Editing Any Mothership fan will recognise Mr. Chapman’s work—he wrote the legendary The Haunting of Ypsilon 14 pamphlet module and contributed to the instant classic Another Bug Hunt, along with numerous other projects. He has a variety of excellent games on his Gumroad store and regularly shares insightful RPG resources and musings on his blog, The Graverobber’s Guide.
PLEASE NOTE:SHIPPING WILL BE CHARGED SEPARATELY at a later date through the Pledge Manager. This is to avoid any pricing issues that may arise due to the sometimes volatile nature of sending post overseas.
We are based in Scotland in the UK, and current shipping estimates are below:
UK: ÂŁ4.5
EU: ÂŁ6.50
USA: ÂŁ8.50
ROW: ÂŁ10
Unfortunately at this time we will not be shipping to the following countries: Afghanistan, Belarus, Bhutan, Brazil, Brunei, Central African Republic, Chad, Cuba, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Iran, Israel, Laos, Liberia, Libya, Mayotte, Miquelon, Mongolia, Niue, North Korea, Papua New Guinea, Reunion (Bourbon), Russia, Saint Pierre, Samoa, Sierra Leone, South Africa, South Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Yemen.
We will be packing and picking all the zines for this project in-house, to retain quality control and keep shipping costs to a minimum.
🚀 Back 5+ projects at the physical level and gain access to the SUPPLY PODS. All Supply Pods are now unlocked, so backing just 5 projects will get you all of the below:
🌟 Supply Pod 1 (Unlocked!): 1 pack of Mothership CHARACTER CARDS. Each pack contains 13 pre-made character cards ready for use as pre-gen characters or NPCs. Each pack comes with at least one FOIL card.
🌟 Supply Pod 2 (Unlocked!): +1 pack of Mothership CHARACTER CARDS, 5 foil campaign project stickers.
🌟 Supply Pod 3 (Unlocked!): +1 pack of Mothership CHARACTER CARDS, +5 foil campaign project stickers, and an exclusive Mothership Month 24 pin!
🌟 Supply Pod 4 (Unlocked!): +1 pack of Mothership CHARACTER CARDS,+11 foil campaign project stickers, and Shadow of a Doubt a brand new "reverse murder mystery" pamphlet adventure by Ian Yusem (Hull Breach, The Drain).
All in: if you back 5+ projects you're getting 4 Character Card packs (an entire deck of cards), 21 foil project stickers, an exclusive Mothership Month 24 pin, and a brand new adventure pamphlet.
Are there more Supply Pods to come? We're looking into it now!
Streams, Interviews, and more!
All month long, we're diving into the void with daily streams, unsettling interviews, and exclusive, heart-pounding reveals. Whether you're a veteran spacer or new to the Mothership, join us in celebrating the universe’s bravest survivors…and those who didn’t make it back.
Thanks for joining us on our first ever Mothership Month! đź‘˝
