So there’s a second edition coming out!? On the one hand, I’m kind of surprised. It seemed to be ticking along at a nice pace. On the other hand, it didn’t register that it was seven years old.
I’m glad it will be backwards compatible with the adventures. I’m a little curious that it’s compatible with everything though - how much can they change and not cause issues with supplements etc?
Any thoughts on it? Any hopes or predictions?
Had to check my emails to confirm. First thought: I’m a bit disappointed that there’s nothing on the webpage and nothing on here. 
Edit:
Found a press release somewhere on the net. I see two possibilities:
First, @Modiphius-Jim saw what @Modiphius-Nathan did with Dune and said: I want that! This would be consistent with the line’s trend towards more leaner, streamlined rulesets. Think of integrating Captain’s Log into the “mainline” STA.
Second, see a second edition of the Core Rulebook, not a second edition of the whole game. The Klingon Corebook and the Tricorder Digest both were updates to the (first) Core Rules, albeit not in name. With especially Utopia Planitia and the Gamemaster’s Guide came enough “Crunch” to update the Core Rules in a meaningful manner that justifies a new Core Rulebook. SNW being quite popular among fans (at least, all the fans I know) is a nice coincidence for re-branding the book so that all those who already own Core Rules, Utopia Planitia and the Gamemaster’s Guide see value in buying a product that “updates” and “refines” more than bringing a brand new game.
I, personally lean heavily towards the second possibility.
We will see in summer, when the next big release of the line is due. I doubt players will buy it if only three months later a new Corebook with a different ruleset (like D&D 3e is different from AD&D) would be released.
Another addendum: Sounds a bit like the artwork will be SNW, but the content will encompass also material geared towards not only Klingons but also Romulans. That could be the pattern of Klingon Core Rulebook & Tricorder Digest, Repeating.
@Modiphius-Jim: Any chance you’re able to tell us whether there will still be Challenge Dice in “2E”?
Eventually all will be revealed.
I believe one of the staff confirmed that the Klingon-Fed War supplement was the last 1e one of that scale. Until 2e comes out, I don’t think we’ll see anything big.
I’m not sure how they can abolish CDs and keep supplements compatible - talents and things revolve around them, so it would definitely stretch the meaning of compatible to abolish them. Unless of course they’re replacing them with something similar - like say, d8s - but I don’t know how I feel about that.
It is strange how low key it is. I haven’t checked today, but it wasn’t on anything official yesterday apart from the email and the lively discussion on the Discord. Just seems odd. Unless they’re trying to manage the negativity towards a new edition? A bit at a time? I don’t know what Modiphius players are like, but D&D is having a rough time.
I want to know about sexy new character sheets!
D&D is also owned by Hasbro, which has made a number of decisions that are transparently designed to wring as much money as possible out of the game. Modiphius doesn’t have the same underlying intent.
I wouldn’t be sad if Challenge Dice went away to be honest. I feel like with Momentum and variable amounts of d20s, there is plenty of chance involved, so you don’t need CD on top of that. Too bad I already have loads of CD at home.
Dune definitely did some good things to the system, like abstracting the rules even further so you can cover any number of scenarios with the same basic principles. It’s a little bit too abstract for me at places (“Move an Asset”), but I think it’s a good fit for STA overall.
I’m mostly looking on the GM side of things, and my wish list would be this:
You’re actually describing The One Ring mechanics. They are good, but do have drawbacks and you do risk losing distinctiveness.
I can see the case for getting rid of CD in general…but I also think it would remove granularity. More to the point though, I’m not sure it’s doable while keeping the “compatible” claim in good faith.
Right now, special effects are integrated into CD. You’d have to, in someway, transfer those to the d20s. Most likely, it would have to replace the crit success range, which blows up that mechanic…or it overlays on top of it which further complicates the system…and either way brings into dispute whether it’s really compatible because a lot of mechanics and in particular Talents are explicitly built around CD. It might improve the game, but the claim that everything is compatible starts becoming less than sincere at that point (of course, perhaps Modiphius has found a solution I haven’t thought of, which is why I’m not being black and white on this, but it is a problem).
I do dislike melee mechanics. Not because it’s contested, which I like, but how it’s so balanced. You’re not so much attacking so much as choosing to initiate it. There’s no benefit from being the aggressor, which usually puts me off because I tend not to invest in Fitness so much. It’s purely the domain of characters that have invested in that type of combat (in a futuristic setting where guns are predominant) and no incentive for those who are not invested in it to use the mechanic voluntarily.
I think that’s an easy fix though - make it a Difficulty 2 Task to defend. That gives the attacker an edge that makes it more viable to throw caution into the wind and suddenly strike them, while still making the appropriate investments valid and useful.
Which is exactly the reasons I asked about it. Omitting the CD is the biggest change both Dune and Captain’s Log did in comparison with STA.
The answer was to be expected, but was frustrating nontheless.
(To be clear: I don’t blame @Modiphius-Jim who is held by NDA.)
Actually, this is pretty high key for Modiphius. The last time I’ve seen something resembling a publishing schedule was seven years ago when the game released and they announced the four quadrant books. One surprise release at a time ever since. Thus, an announcement a few months ahead is actually big.
I see no reason for negativity towards a new edition. Yet, I do not see any reason for a new edition, at all. If there’s brewing any negativity in me at all, it’s because of Modiphius’ communications strategy.
“Hey! There will be A NEW EDITION probably making a whole shelf of (sometimes pretty pricy) STA books obsolete. It will be same but different. There is no more information to get you interested but save your latinum anyway!”
Well. No?
Actually, I hope that there’s virtually no information out there because it’s the reprint of the core rulebook that was due already when the Klingon Corebook and the Tricorder Digest came. Because in that case, all that was released as info is all I need. I’d happily save my latinum.
But that big rebranding to “2E” in combination with virtually no actual information about the product? Doesn’t get me excited, sadly. Sounds more like either the Tactical Campaign or sa(i)d 2E core rulebook was the last STA book I bought. 
I use dice of different colours for crew and ship. So I’m rolling 6 times for a Scale 6 ship. But I get your point.
Tie goes to aggressor. But that is of very limited benefit, so I get your point.
If they are doing this correctly, then they will only change those rules that either do not function or can be streamlined in a way that you can still use 1e source material and missions without any adjustments. So the basic rules must not change and that means that the combat dice must be retained, because they are part of the basic rules of STA and most 2D20-RPGs.
Speaking from a general point of view (IE not specifically about Modiphius or STA), I do. It threatens your previous investment (the talk about removing CD does concern me for example - not just because we spent a lot of money ensuring we had enough, but as mentioned before, it makes previous supplements essentially effectively incompatible, to my view, and that CL did it raises it from vacuous speculation to concerning rumour). It can also be the harbinger of change, which while I can see why it bothers some, for me, it’s not an issue. It could be exciting. Seems like the Modiphius team are set on downplaying this aspect, though. Worth noting that there has been some negativity on the Discord, not that I’ve voiced anything there yet.
That said…I don’t think this is going to be a major change for me. Adventures are pretty expensive (because they’re either sold individually or packaged in with setting books that I’m not keen on), so it’s really just supplements like Klingon Fed War book they just released. I’m more confident now about converting stuff so that shouldn’t be an issue. If I don’t like the new rules…I can easily afford to sit it out if I want. On the other hand, “more streamlined and efficient” doesn’t really excite me? The most appealing part is that it’s got SNW involved (which I’d already committed to buying if Modiphius got the licence).
So I guess I’m in a similar situation to what you seem to be - I’m not very excited but I’m not negative either. Just “high, interesting”. Maybe that’ll change as they communicate more and I get something to form an opinion on.
To be fair, this is an issue I see frequently with companies. D&D has been burned by it and seem to be trying to be more communicative, but before then and, with other companies, even now, it feels like they want to drip feed…with long gaps of silence in between. Perhaps that works well with the public, but I find that it doesn’t work for me. I get excited by the prospects and implications of new stuff and things to sink my teeth into. Perhaps I’ll get more excited when they explain more of what 2e means to them.
Thanks for the clarification.
Yes. If. But IF they’re doing this correctly – then why screaming “2E!!!” all over the place?
Besides, I’ve yet to see the rules that “do not function” (the character advancement rules of the Core Rulebook have long been improved). And the most streamlining I see are the CD.
@Linklite Basically: Everything you said! 
I might add that, until now, @Modiphius-Jim did a hell of a job as line manager and handled the game very, very well. He has a long record of very good decisions. And this is the reason why I see, in principle, no reason for negativity towards a new edition. The odds of a new edition being much better than the old are, judging the previous development of the game, pretty good.
So I shall trust his judgement and eventually see for myself.
For the same reason other RPGs got new editions without huge rule changes. D&D is an exception. In most other RPGs new editions neweditions do not try to be a reinvention of that RPG. No, they only change those things that did not really work in the previous edition or could have been designed better. But one thing is always a taboo: changing the basic rules. This means that the CD should stay. It is part of the basic rules of STA. This also mean that severl rule changes which were originally published in other books will now be part of the core rule book. That’s another reason for a new edition.
I beg to differ. D&D is not as exceptional as you depict it. Especially when it comes to, say, “bigger” games on the market. Take Shadowrun for an example. I had the possibility to see the differences between each edition from 2 to now 6. The only “basic rule” that didn’t change was “you roll two handful of d6” (just like with D&D you still roll a d20 and sometimes every other polyhedral except the sad d12). I have seen very different editions of Traveller, too. I better not start on the World of Darkness (even with the recent shift back to the “old” World of Darkness of late 90ies in the new Masquerade setting there are pretty tough changes). And I’ve never played DSA (if I remember correctly, you will know the abbreviation) but I’ve been told that there have been big changes over the editions.
And regarding Modiphius: Exhibit A – Achtung!Cthulhu. Started with Savage World, now uses 2d20.
Yes. As I mentioned in my first post: Modiphius integrating the “bigger” changes to the ruleset as presented in UP and GMG into the “mainline” STA core is a possibility. And I hope they do so.
Yet this would be a new edition (in the publishing sense) of the core rules not a new edition of the game itself as in “everything brand new, discard all stuff, we’re updating all books we’ve ever sold with the new stuff to sell them again”. So the whole “this is completely new while not being new and we won’t tell you anything else about it” raises my suspicion.
D&D is the most popular example for this. Shadowrun (but only form 3e to 4e), Das Schwarze Auge/The Dark Eye (but not from 2e to 3e), Pathfinder, Traveller and a couple of other RPGs are also well known for this. But most RPGs are not.
Although I know nearly nothing about Achtung!Cthulhu, the case seems to be quite different. Sawage World was at that time a popular alternate rules system used for many settings, including settings which already had their own rules system. I remember that Achtung!Cthulhu also used the CoC rules until recently. I do not know the reason behind the change. Did they lost the licence for the rules? Or did they simply did not want to use them anymore? it does not matter. The fact is that there are a couple of system which are used als alternate rules for quite a few RPG. Savage World is just one of those. It is a very different situation from that certain large RPG punlishers do with every edition.
Probably this as they by that time had developed 2d20 which is imho one of the best mechanics on the market. 
While the changes from 4e to 5e were limited indeed, I experience the changes to 6e (from both, for that matter) to be more than just cosmetic.
Anyway, the point I am trying to make is the following:
“A new edition” in the TTRPG market is often a synonym for “a very new set of rules that renders everything before obsolete”. Essentially: A new game.
Modiphius, obviously, tries to exploit this for the PR of their release. There is a) an announcement at all which is massive for the gameline, b) the “2E!”-branding, and c) a release-date set on the (probably?) biggest nerd-con there is. “All new!” grants you press coverage, which is what you want when you want to sell stuff (and they want to and there’s nothing wrong with it).
Yet apart from this “all new, everything before is obsolete” interpretation prima facie, there is the other possibility, you, @Caranfang, and I probably share: That it’s essentially a reprint of the core rules with all the errata (see what Utopia Planitia did with ships) and some of the extensions (see what the GM Guide did with tasks) integrated in the “main” set of rules.
There are hints in the press-release pointing in this direction; rules are said to “remain fundamentally the same as the first edition” and to be “compatible with 1E supplements and books”.
Yet, from what we know up to this point, I argue that none of these two interpretations can be taken as guaranteed. :shrug:
I am nervous about the word streamlining as I do not care for the no CD games they have published (other than Dune but that is a pretty abstract game)
And for backwards compatibility, if the idea is a guide on how to convert from 1e to 2e. That’s not backwards compatible.
I would say the communication method is poor. I know the idea is to build buzz, but for something this major it should have been a lot more information provided IMO.
That may be true, but that doesn’t mean they’re not seeing the backlash the other companies get and decide to try to manage it.