A Review of the Role Playing Game Supplement Infinite Futures, Infinite Threats 5

Infinite Futures, Infinite Threats 5 by Robert Hemminger and A J Kenning is published by the Avalon Game Company and is a supplement for their Infinite Futures 2.0 system and the Fringe setting. Infinite Futures 2.0 is a science fiction game based on the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game; consequently, it is covered by the Open Game License and some of it is therefore Open Game Content.

The supplement is available from RPGNow as a watermarked PDF at the regular price of $4.99, but this was purchased at a reduced price of $1. Infinite Threats 5 is a 17 page PDF, with one page being the full colour front cover, one page the front matter, one page the Open Game License and one page an advert for other Avalon products.

Infinite Threats is a series of supplements for the Fringe setting that is effectively a bestiary addition; there are other supplements for the system and setting as well that cover other material. The first two pages of the supplement have a section on Beast, Droids, and Humanoids of the Fringe, then Threat Level, Beasts, Droids and Humanoids. These two pages are common to other supplements in the Infinite Threats range, and duplicate content found in other supplements.

Beast, Droids, and Humanoids of the Fringe gives an overview of the three types, with longer spent on Droids. Threat Level is an addition to the Pathfinder Challenge Rating, as it is based on the Technology Level of the creature. Threat Level is a variable based on the comparative Technology Levels of two beings or creatures, and the formula for calculating it is in this section. The three section on Beasts, Droids and Humanoids then give a more detailed overview of these creature types.

The supplement then covers five different creatures; Gortho (the sea pig), Turitsi (the hydrafly), Xi’huket (the monocede), KDK-Warrior (Koros soldier) and Cranthax (the reef leviathan). These are laid out in a fairly standard bestiary format, with the addition of their Tech Level. The last of these, the Cranthax, also has a section on Character Creation. Each creature is associated with a specific world or, in the case of the droid, a government, within the Fringe setting.

Infinite Threats 5 in Review

The PDF lacks bookmarks and, although it is quite short, these would have been useful for each of the different creatures covered. Most of it follows a two column format, but the final page, which admittedly has little content and a lot of page fillers, is only single column. There are a couple of minor errors in the text, but nothing major.

The bestiary has four creatures and one hostile droid, with one of the creatures being a possible character type. All of the creatures have colour illustrations; four of these are professional in appearance, but the fifth, the droid, sticks out by comparison being completely different in style, as it was done by a different artist, and does not really match the others.

The various creatures in this bestiary are specific to the Fringe setting and Infinite Futures 2.0, but they could easily be adapted to other settings and, with a bit more effort, to other Pathfinder games. As four of the creatures basically do not use technology, they could be adapted to almost any setting; the droid would require a bit more work. At the full price of $4.99, Infinite Threats 5 is a little on the expensive side, but at the $1 paid it was definitely worth it.