Rapture: The Wargame With No Downtime | Essen Spiel Interview
How many times in a wargame have you had to wait 15 minutes for your opponent to finish their turn? “Downtime” can kill the energy of a game. The team behind the Rapture wargame set out to solve that. They’ve designed a skirmish game where you are always engaged and making tactical decisions.
At Essen Spiel, our CEO Bart sat down with the developers to find out how this “zero downtime” system works, what its asymmetrical missions are all about, and why its lore is a wild mix of angels, aliens, and human history.
Our Interview with the Rapture Team
Zero Downtime: The Action-Reaction System
Bart – Head of Studio:
I’m creating content for our followers about less mainstream wargames, beyond those like GW. Having visited your booth, I believe your miniature wargame is a perfect fit! Could you briefly describe your game and highlight the key differences between your skirmish and others, such as Infinity?
Rapture:
So, basically, we have specialized units. Each unit has its own abilities, its own skills, and no unit is alike. We also have an action and reaction system where you can always act if something happens to your miniatures in some way or another. So you’re always focused on the game and you have almost no downtime. For example, if somebody comes into close combat to you, and you have a ranged weapon, you can shoot at him beforehand. Or you can dodge in close combat, you can hit back in close combat, or if you’re being shot at, you can search for cover, for example. So, all the time through the game, you are always engaged.
Asymmetrical Missions: Killing Isn’t Everything
Rapture:
You have to look closely what your opponent does, especially with the missions, because we have asymmetrical missions where each player has its own objectives scattered on the map. And you always have to check if you have more victory points than the opponent, because defeating the opponent doesn’t necessarily let you win. So, even if you disable all opposing units, you might lose, if you don’t check your victory points. So sometimes it’s better to disrupt your opponent with his missions than doing your own, for example.
A World of Angels, Aliens, and History
Bart:
Your wargame’s world, as depicted in the art, presents a fascinating blend of styles, from Egyptian to sci-fi. Could you elaborate on its essence?
Rapture:
So, it’s actually set in the year 2049 in our world. The story is literally spanning millennia. We start the story in 3512 BC. The key point is that in the year 2047, a big extraterrestrial civilization is harvesting the Earth’s population, and there are about 5 to 10% of the humans left. So a lot of organizations or secret organizations which were hiding underground now come into light and try to get their share of the new world, while the Angels are trying to cleanse and purify the Earth from humans.
We work with a lot of myths, a lot of legends, our own history of mankind, and a lot of… not a lot of, but some conspiracy theories, and a lot of questions “What if?”. What if the events we know in human history have a slightly different origin? Like the Atlantis faction, they were humans once, and they were attacked by the Angels around 3 and a half thousand years before Christ. Then they went to Egypt, helped build the civilizations there, and 2,000 years ago they decided, “You know what, let’s go under the seas,” genetically modify ourselves and become the Atlantians we know today.
Game Size, Time, and Terrain
Bart:
What is the typical game size, and how many models are there per side?
Rapture:
About four to six units. So units may differ in single models or warbands, which consist of two or three models, and troops, which are always squads of three models.
Bart:
Is it closer to 10 or 20 models per side?
Rapture:
No, more like ten. I think ten at most, yes.
Bart:
For a casual player, what is the average game length?
Rapture:
About an hour. If you’re used to it… the rules entry level are very easy to grasp. The complexity comes with the different units, different abilities. Each faction plays differently, each faction has unique special rules only for that faction.
Bart:
So, what about the terrain? Your display boards are quite dense. Do players need a lot of terrain?
Rapture:
This is, of course, just for the show, but I’d suggest since you’re playing on a 3×3 foot board, something like three or four bigger things like houses, and like five smaller things like hedges, fences or barricades.
Cards, Balancing, and Future-Proofing
Bart:
Do you utilize data sheets or cards for your units, and if so, how does that system operate?
Rapture:
We use cards. You don’t need any data sheets. If you are a bit used to the game, you don’t even need the rulebook at all, and you just play with the cards.
Bart:
Are the game rules and cards accessible online for players?
Rapture:
The PDF rules are available for the players to download. I even made a YouTube video section about our rules.
Bart:
Are the cards part of the model sets?
Rapture:
The cards are in the sets. Yes, they’re not online.
Bart:
What happens when an FAQ is created or a card is changed due to being overpowered?
Rapture:
We put it online as a PDF file which you can print out with the card layout. We’re developing this game since 2014. We launched it successfully on Kickstarter in 2020. Since this time, we released the rulebook once and had some errata, but the rulebook… we adjusted some sentences because they are a little misreading. It’s not like that we changed half of the rulebook.
We, of course, we had errata on some units, and we uploaded them. And we now release an errata card pack. It contains 24 cards, I think, and if you go, you’re up to date. So, of course, you can download for free the errata cards on the website, but you can also get the official cards printed professionally and you don’t need to worry that these cards will be out of tune in half a year because we don’t work like that.
Game Modes: PvPvE and Creature Expansions
Bart:
So, the game’s primary mode is 1v1 Player versus Player, but it can accommodate up to four players. Are there any other modes available, such as PvE or cooperative play?
Rapture:
The basic game is 1v1 or 1 versus many, since you can easily play up to four players with the regular rules. But we, of course, have different scenarios where you can make also group games like 2v2, and also different game modes. Also, we have some add-ons, like our Creature Expansion, which adds some kind of NPCs to the game. Those are in three different categories: Friendly, Neutral, and Hostile. They move with a special die made by us, and then they go through something like a scripted event. So we have NPCs which lure units to them to attack them, or to spread like a curse, and also neutral units which you can catch for a victory points or friendly units which you can trade with.
Models, Production, and Future Plans
Bart:
What materials are used for your models? Are they 3D prints, resin, CO casts, or hard plastic?
Rapture:
It’s resin cast. It’s CO cast, but they improved CO cast. And some are also 3D printed with Amera Labs resin.
Bart:
So, it’s a mix?
Rapture:
It’s mixed, yes. We outsource the production because we have some very fine detailed miniatures which you cannot cast anymore, and some parts need to be 3D printed, like on the newest faction of the Prowler, which will be released end of November. You’ve got a biker with a flail, and the chains on the flail are so thin, you can’t cast that.
Bart:
What are your key plans for 2026?
Rapture:
To release additional miniatures for our existing factions for the Prowler, of course, and for the Ignus. And also a new unit for the Constantinople Mercenary Faction.
Bart:
So, the Mercenary Faction is new?
Rapture:
It’s a new faction which we will announce. So, you can play them separately. We will always focus on the old factions to not go to waste, and but we will also focus on new factions. We already have like around eight factions playtested as a whole, and 11 factions anchored in the story art.
Bart:
Are there any plans for a major crowdfunding or Kickstarter campaign to promote the game?
Rapture:
We already did a Kickstarter campaign. It was enough to fund our game, and we won’t be making another. We are completely bootstrapping the business. We as creators are doing this part-time. We have our regular 9-to-5 jobs, and this is completely part-time in our free time. So we don’t have any investors who are pressuring us, and we don’t need to release things that we think are not finished yet.
Bart:
Finally, are you satisfied with your Essen experience this year?
Rapture:
We honestly exceed our own expectations every year. Our revenue is going up. Our releases are going better and better. It grows exponentially, and we are very happy about that.
How to Start and Connect with the Community
Bart:
What’s the best way for new players to learn your game? Is there a Discord server they can join?
Rapture:
Probably the Discord channel because we are in the Discord channel. You can directly talk to us. Also all our beta testers are in there. We, of course, have Facebook groups, a YouTube channel to learn the rules, and we have our Instagram page. The best way to start is just to get a single starter box for the faction you like. Everything you need and you want is included, and you can play straight out of the box.
Bart:
Do you currently work with any suppliers in the United States?
Rapture:
Well, the thing is, the best way to buy our game in the US is probably contact us beforehand. So we can make a special deal with the shipment cost. Like, if you’re a gaming club, and a few of them decide, “Okay, let’s ship in on Rapture,” and we place an order for 200, 300, 500 bucks, contact us, and we can always talk about the shipment costs. We don’t have a distributor in the US yet. But if you can divide the shipment cost or we can discount some items, it’s more worth it to buy as a group.
Bart:
Thank you for your time.
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