Conspiracy of Shadows did not spring forth from my brain whole cloth. Every aspect of it, be it the game mechanics, the publishing model, the artwork, or the setting material each was influenced by someone or something. Here you will find an ever growing list of influences that deserve credit for all of those things. It is ever growing because like the things we learn in life, we are not always aware of them in time to appreciate them fully.
Who To Blame
People
The list of people who I have to thank over the years is really, really long. Here is a short list of people I need to thank regarding this project for a myriad of reasons. If I missed anyone, I apologize.
Juan Brachich III, Luke Crane, Paul Czega, Drozdal, Ron Edwards, Neil Goodrich, Kevin Herbon, Timothy Kleinert, Tim "Fancy Pants Lawyer" Koppang, Pat Loboyko, Ralph Mazza, Matt McElroy, Jim Milak, Alexander Newman, Joshua A.C. Newman, Jacob Norwood, Thor Olavsrud, Nathan Paoletta, George Pontikis, Oscar Rodriguez, Jennifer Senkowski, Ellie Senkowski, Rich Senkowski, Mary Senkowski, Neil Senkowski, Linda Senkowski, Joan Sladaritz, Moe Sladaritz, Pete Sideris, Mark Stasiorowski, Matt Synder, Brennan Taylor, Mayuran Tiruchelvam, Monica Valentinelli, Phil Wedel, Matt Wilson.
Artwork
The artistic style of the game is really just my artistic style that has evolved over the years. Prior to diving headlong into the high contrast style found here on this site, I worked in a style more appropriate to late 80's comic books. As my interests and exposure grew throughout the 90's, I developed the mess you see today. So if there is anyone to blame, it is these people.
- Stephen Fabian: When I first found Ravenloft and the moody artwork of Stephen Fabian, it blew my mind. Prior to that, I thought "art" had no place in games. I owe this man a debt of gratitude and so wish I could purchase some of the original Ravenloft artwork to hang on my walls. stephenfabian.com
- Tim Bradstreet: Tim may not know this, but when I was 15, he changed my life. I was young, nervous, and at my first Chicago ComiCon (before Wizard ruined it). I had seen his artwork in the Vampire: The Masquerade books, but did not know who he was. Stumbling upon him in the artist alley, sitting alone sketching, I gathered the nerve to talk to him. He was kind, looked at my work, gave me pointers, and spent more time than he had too. I learned more from him in that hour than I had from any artist previous or since. Thanks Tim. timbradstreet.typepad.com
- Christopher Shy: At some point in the mid 90's I came across the work of Christopher Shy. I had recently had my art submissions rejected by several companies and a bit despondent, considering just quitting all together. As luck would have it, I stumbled on his site, saw the work he was doing on his own, and got inspired. His mixture of photography and painting I have adopted in my own work. studioronin.com
- Frank Miller: If you can't see his influence in my work, you are probably blind. Starting with his work on Daredevil through Sin City, his use of high contrast juxtaposition and his near featureless backgrounds have influenced every piece I have done since at least 1994. He was also a stand up guy when I met him years ago. @frankmillerink
- Mike Mignola: The work of Mike Mignola has not only influenced my blank and white work and writing style, but also my recent return to color work. The craft that goes into Hellboy, B.P.R.D., and basically anything else he has a hand in has strongly shaped my own approaches, both artistically and, more importantly how I go about my business. artofmikemignola.com
Game Mechanics
Everyone and their mother that has developed and/or published an independent, do-it-yourself role-playing game claims the venerable Dungeons and Dragons as their forebear. Lots of them wanted to fix it. Not me. For me it was too games that got me down this path, one I love and one I love to hate: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Call of Cthulhu. The former is a game I love that was my first exposure to role-playing games, and the second is the game I hate because it is a broken mess of nonsense. However, neither really impacted the actual mechanics of the game. For that you can blame these people and their games.
- Luke Crane & The Burning Wheel/Mouse Guard: Considering the latest version of this game is a meshing of Mouse Guard and Conspiracy of Shadows, it goes without saying, Luke's work has had a major influence on me. The combination of reading/playing his games and talking shop with a fellow designer and friend, his stamp can be found in lots of places. burningwheel.com
- Jacob Norwood & The Riddle of Steel: In some ways, the best game ever. Jake's opus opened my eyes to certain narrative elements I hadn't seen before in games. Meeting and befriending him later also had a positive impact on my approach to the latests and greatest (and final) version of Conspiracy of Shadows.
- Ron Edwards & Sorcerer: Demons in Sorcerer, how they are used and how they are constructed has impacted how I use NPC's and what I think is important in games regarding them since day one. Conspiracy of Shadows, in all its forms draws some DNA from Ron's fine game.
- Matt Wilson & Primetime Adventures: I had always run games vaguely like episodic television shows, but Matt's game gave me a language and understanding as to what I am doing. My entire GM section owes him a debt of gratitude for being coherent. dog-eared-designs.com
- Kenneth Hite & GURPS Horror 3rd Edition: I may disagree with Ken on a lot of things, but the man sure knows the language of horror and suspense. His work provided me with a starting point and a language to express my own conception on how horror/suspense games should be run and played. @kennethhite
- George Vasilakos & Conspiracy X: The concept of a Cell of individuals working together with a common purpose to start a game using shared resources came straight from this game. Without my discovery of this game, I am not sure I would have ever of finished this game. conspiracyx.com
Movies
I am a very visual person and I love movies. The following is a selection of films that have inspired and influenced the game at all of its stages..
- The Birds (Movie): This movie's use of the innocuous to generate terror is always how I have felt games, particularly my game, should be played and run. It isn't about the great big monsters, but the turning of something common into something terrifying.
- Guillermo Del Toro (Movies): Blade II, The Devil's Backbone, Hellboy & Hellboy II, Mimic, Cronos, and Pan's Labyrinth have all impacted me. The way he constructs stories and the design of the worlds he creates are something I strive to come close too.
- Conspiracy Theory (Movie): I am pretty sure this movie started me down the path to creating a game about conspiracies. I love how the crazy gets vindicated, and Patrick Stewart is exactly how I picture a pawn of the conspiracy.
- Dark City (Movie): Clearly this mind-bending movie at every level has impacted the game and artwork. It is probably the best representation of the powerful manipulations I envision the conspiracy making.
- The Manchurian Candidate (Movie): If I have to explain this to you then you have problems.
- Millenium (Television): The Millenium group is the type of organization I envision the Cells being a part of. Frank himself is a character I would want to play out in a solo game.
- The X-Files (Television): The sort of double life the main characters have to live combined with the actual, never fully explained conspiracy is what the game should be like.
Web Design
I clearly did not design this website in a vacuum. I have been doing this for a long time, and my tastes and approaches have changed throughout that time. This site's design in particular was dominated by two influences, the online book that is diveintohtml5.org and the Nuremberg Chronicles first published in 1493.
Conspiracy of Shadows has always been as much about my love for history and old books as it is about being a fun game to play. Because of that, I have wrestled with designs for years, trying to bring the aesthetic of illuminated manuscripts to the web, and more often than not failing. It was fortuitous that at the height of my frustration I found diveintohtml5.org.
Seeing that site was like a wake up call. I had gotten lost in the baroque part of design, but missed the core point, to communicate effectively. Taking the site's layout as my base, I have built what you see before you now, and for once, I am finally happy with how things turned out.