Now in its nineteenth year, Free RPG Day for 2026 took place on Saturday, June 27th. As per usual, Free RPG Day consisted of an array of new and interesting little releases, which are traditionally tasters for forthcoming games to be released at GenCon the following August, but others are support for existing RPGs or pieces of gaming ephemera or a quick-start. This included dice, miniatures, vouchers, and more. Unfortunately, due to vagaries of International Customs, Free RPG Day in the UK did not take place until Saturday, 22nd August.
This review is possible due to the generosity of Waylands Forge in Birmingham.
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Secret Wars Expansion Preview is a scenario for the Marvel Multiverse Role-Playing Game which as the title suggests, previews the Secret Wars Expansion supplement. Both scenario and supplement are based the Secret Wars comic and event published by Marvel Comics in 2015. This involved the destruction of the Marvel Universe and various other alternate universes with the Earth of each universe being combined into a Battleworld. The Battleworld for the Secret Wars Expansion Preview is Egyptia. This Egyptian-themed Battleworld gives fealty to the God Emperor Doom, his rule enforced by his cadre of Thors. The action of the scenario takes place in the city of Men-Nefer in the Lower Kingdom of Egyptia, the location of the Temple of Khonshu, dedicated to the Battleworld’s ruler, Baron Khonshu. She has oppressed the mutants in her realm, forcing them to work, building pyramid and other monuments to her, promising retribution upon the ordinary population if they rebel. However, this does not mean that there is no underground resistance and recently, its leader, Mastermind, has learned that Baron Khonshu is holding an important prisoner in her temple—Ra the Sun god. If he can be freed, then he can rally the people and help overthrown Baron Khonshu. As the scenario opens, Mastermind has gathered his best agents—Colossus, Dazzler, Nightcrawler, Polaris, Rogue, and Wolverine—and together they will strike at the temple and free Ra!
The scenario is designed for four or five players, and chronologically takes place before the events of Secret Wars Journal #1. There is some advice on running the scenario, what the Narrator will need, and more, but ultimately, the Narrator will need the quick-start rules (available here) or the Marvel Multiverse Role-Playing Game rulebook, and also the character profiles for the various heroes. There is a little bit of background to the scenario, but not too much and it gets going fairly quickly. It is essentially, a strike and prison breakout mission as the players need to work out how their superheroes are going to cross the city under curfew—when Baron Khonshu leaves her temple to wander the land—and get into the temple. Several methods are suggested with Mastermind serving as sounding board for any ideas put forward by the players and their characters.
Once a plan of action has been decided, the action starts as the Player Characters and Mastermind make their way to the temple, find a way in, deal with guards, and free the Sun god. This is a straightforward scenario, but it includes a few surprises along the way, such as the nature of the guards at the temple, who exactly Ra is, and who the Thors are that the Player Characters will face at the climax of the scenario. Stats are included for Baron Khonshu, Spector, and the Temple Guards. There are suggestions as to what might happen at the end of the scenarios and several adventure seeds too, if the Game Master wants to continue the scenario.
What is interesting about the scenario in Secret Wars Expansion Preview is the chance to play familiar characters from the Marvel Universe of Earth 616 in an unusual situation as alternate versions of those characters. Notably, the scenario’s primary NPC, Mastermind, is actually a villain on Earth 616, but here is a more sympathetic character, even though he is not without his own motives.
Once a plan of action has been decided, the action starts as the Player Characters and Mastermind make their way to the temple, find a way in, deal with guards, and free the Sun god. This is a straightforward scenario, but it includes a few surprises along the way, such as the nature of the guards at the temple, who exactly Ra is, and who the Thors are that the Player Characters will face at the climax of the scenario. Stats are included for Baron Khonshu, Spector, and the Temple Guards. There are suggestions as to what might happen at the end of the scenarios and several adventure seeds too, if the Game Master wants to continue the scenario.
What is interesting about the scenario in Secret Wars Expansion Preview is the chance to play familiar characters from the Marvel Universe of Earth 616 in an unusual situation as alternate versions of those characters. Notably, the scenario’s primary NPC, Mastermind, is actually a villain on Earth 616, but here is a more sympathetic character, even though he is not without his own motives.
Physically, Secret Wars Expansion Preview is well presented. The map is nice and clear and it should be no surprise that the art is good too, given the sources that the designers can draw upon.
The Secret Wars Expansion Preview is a solid scenario, serviceable scenario for the Marvel Multiverse Role-Playing Game and a decent preview of the Secret Wars Expansion.
The Secret Wars Expansion Preview is a solid scenario, serviceable scenario for the Marvel Multiverse Role-Playing Game and a decent preview of the Secret Wars Expansion.
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