I can't speak for anyone else, but I'm currently sitting with the book in front of me, bought in Norway from a Norwegian retailer. This is mere days after the book's first appearances in the US, so if the UK hasn't got it yet, something is very different in how books are sent there. 

Thinking about another thread, I wonder if any pdf readers out there can auto translate the text for those wanting books in other languages. I know google can auto translate web pages, so I wonder if the pdf readers can too.

Cryhavok said:

Cryhavok said:

Why are you mentioning pdf's?

PDF is no use to me at all.

signoftheserpent said:

Now you know how we in the USA feel about ordering from Forge World.

PDF would be fine enough for me - I prefer english PDFs for reference (and earlier release), then buy the translated german hardcovers once they come out - usually an ice age or two later.

Buuut… is it, just me, or is SoI actually not even available as a PDF? o.O

Not yet maybe in a couple of weeks it takes about a month from release to get to PDF that is what the standard seems to be.

I have had the book for a few days and have played around with it quite a book.  Overall I am very happy with it.  I have long adapted other RPG random system generators to create systems for my game, and find the book to work well both to make completely new systems and to adapt what I allready have written up.  If anything, I think that it can provide almost too many plot hooks to use in one system.  The colony system seems functional, although a PF sink over the long run.  As my players are more concerned with building up their system than their PF, I don't have a problem with that.  I am working on an Excel spreadsheet to track colony stats, just to make my job easier.  I do like the random item generator, and find that using it to make up an item for a new group of Xenos gives me a good feel for how that race works.  The items traits and quirks then become 'common traits' of the Xeno equipment, which then provides a clue to how the race thinks.

On the issue of PDF vs Hardcover, I generally prefer to have hardcovers of my books.  Probably because I like to have the various books open to the resources I need all at once.  For this book though, I may get the PDF as well.  With all the charts and flipping back and forth it would be nice to have the ability to print out copies of the relavant pages for myself.  FFG does seem a little bit scattered in how their books are deployed, but the game is more than good enough to put up with that quirk.

Well, I'll hope for that month then.

System generation is actually not what I'm looking for - AstroSynthesis works out for me in that regard. Just add some WH40k oddities, and I'm good to go.

How does the colony system work? Are we talking ship-like construction with components? And how is it a PF sink?

Darkheyr said:

I haven't finished reading that section yet, but it seems to be a huge expansion of the colonization Endeavours. The players have to give up a sizeable part of their PF (this can be as much as 10 PF for Industrial or Mining colonies) in order to accquire what they need to start the colony. They also have to create a charter, assign leadership, designate the purpose of the colony, etc. Then they have to find a suitable place to put this colony and actually do so, which could lead to adventures on its own. This entire process is designed so that the players and GM have to build an Endeavour around it, and the success of building the colony then comes from the amount of Achievement Points they get. 

The colony starts out small and can grow over time if it is successful. Eventually it may turn into a gigantic hive city and become a true powerhouse in the Koronus Expanse, but that probably takes time, effort, and a bit of luck. Meanwhile the players will be called upon to participate in the colony's growth, deciding when to use extracted resources for growth and when to keep them for themselves, how to deal with the leadership, and what upgrades to build. Stuff could happen, from Xenos invasions to finding ancient ruins below the colony that are better left alone, and it's up to the players to make sure the colony can survive these challenges. As the colony grows, so does its PF value. 

TiLT said:

In most cases, finding a suitable location for a colony should be the first step. Getting everything going without a target world in sight isn't too wise.

HappyDaze said:

The book implies otherwise. Regardless, looking at the kinds of systems and planets it generates, finding a reasonably suitable place to plop down a colony isn't that hard. Not that there's anything standing in the way of either approach.