A Review of the Role Playing Game Supplement The Zero Gravity Olympics

The Zero Gravity Olympics by Joseph Mohr is a role playing game supplement published by Old School Role Playing for use with Cepheus Engine. As such, it is covered by the Open Game License and some parts are considered to be Open Game Content as a result.

The supplement is available as a 35-page PDF for free from DriveThruRPG. Two pages are the front and rear covers, three pages are the front matter and three pages are the Open Game License.

The opening paragraphs explain that every ten years an event is held in the Sonora Sector (in the Frontiers of Space setting, though this isn’t stated) which brings visitors from across the galaxy. The event is the Zero Gravity Olympics. The events are dangerous and deaths are common, and that doesn’t consider deliberate attacks or sabotage. The characters are hired to deal with threats to one of the teams.

Game Master Note explains that, with the normal Olympics likely to be cancelled, this is a game version.

Complications details all the problems. For once the patron is not lying to the characters about anything, but there are multiple groups with various agendas.

The Olympic Events has a schedule of events and a description of these. These are pure fluff, as characters are not participating in any, even if disguised as athletes.

Potential Contestants are people who may be competing and who could be met on the space station where the events are being staged.

Specific Contestants are two people who have plans.

Station Security Personnel have the stats for security.

Event Security has stats for more guards.

Participating Worlds in the Zero-G Olympics has a list of the competing worlds and groups along with a simple method of determining who won an event.

Olympic Station is a key to the station where the event is held, with more stats.

Olympic Spectators has stats for people who will be watching.

Special Spectators are those who have a nefarious purpose.

Patron is the characters patron.

Bombs/Explosions Aboard the Station explains that any explosion aboard the station would be highly likely to cause total decompression. Because whoever designed it was an idiot who made large parts open plan and had never heard of emergency bulkheads.

Conditions for Success has how the characters can succeed.

Finally, there are maps of each level of the station.

The Zero Gravity Olympics in Review

The PDF lacks bookmarks and is long enough that these would have been useful. Navigation is poor. The text maintains a single column format and a few minor errors were noticed. Bar the maps, which unfortunately don’t come in a player-friendly version, there are a couple of stock images. Presentation is below average.

More than anything, this adventure comes across as an endless list of NPCs. Yes, the events are described, but the only role they play is a description. The GM can say an event is taking place and what it is, but they by and large have no relevance to the story. That feels like a missed opportunity. Coming up with rules for all the events might have been trickier, but given that the characters might be disguised as athletes, it would seem to make sense to have them able to compete. If they do, the GM is going to have to decide what happens. Having the station so utterly and unbelievably vulnerable to sabotage, or being hit by almost anything, is rather bizarre. It’s hard to imagine anyone would design a station so poorly. The Zero Gravity Olympics is a nice idea, but the execution feels off, and it can be found by clicking here.