FIST: Ultra Edition is a high camp tabletop roleplaying game about paranormal mercenaries doing tough Cold War jobs: stopping disastrous science experiments, infiltrating occult compounds, neutralizing eldritch horrors, and the like. FIST agents tend to be outcasts and misfits with military expertise, but the game isn't about hoo-rah good guys with guns. Players are typically outnumbered, easily killed, and disliked or hunted by most sources of authority. You, a motley crew of underground, underfunded mercenary terrorists, must make ends meet and likely meet your ends fighting this war on an otherworldly front. 

If you work for FIST, you do the missions no one else can do, no one else wants to do, and which no one will let you do undisturbed. You don't have tons of money and gadgets backing you up, just your wits and a few tools. War is hell, and you're one of the little guys. 

FIST is inspired by a slew of classic video games, action movies, and pulp fiction, designed to be simple to play and easy to modify. Primary ancestors include Metal Gear Solid, the A-Team, and Grant Morrison's Doom Patrol. In terms of gameplay, it's its own funky little thing, mechanically descended from John Harper's World of Dungeons, Ben Milton's Maze Rats, and Offworlders, by Chris P. Wolf and Olivia Gulin.

You can browse all previous FIST game jams here:

• FIST JAM OPS (May-June 2022): https://itch.io/jam/fist-jam-ops
• FIST JAM OPS II: MAD SCIENCE (September-October 2022): https://itch.io/jam/fist-mad-science-jam
• FIST JAM OPS III: Zine Month (February 2023): https://itch.io/jam/fist-zine-month-jam
• FIST ULTRA JAM (May-August 2023): https://itch.io/jam/fist-ultrajam
• FIST JAM OPS IV: FINISH LINE (January-February 2024): https://itch.io/jam/fist-jam-ops-iv

FIST: JAM OPS V is here, beginning on Halloween 2024 and lasting until December 21st. You have until then to cook up something extraordinary for FIST, and then until December 31st (New Year's Eve) to peruse the entries and cast your votes.

The theme: FORBIDDEN ZONES. This time, we're looking for material about surreal experiences in cordoned-off areas. Interpretations include:

• Anomalous exclusion zones (e.g. Stalker, Roadside Picnic)
• Non-fictional exclusion zones (e.g. Chernobyl, Area 51)
• Prisons or other areas designed to keep people in, rather than out (e.g. Escape from New York, the Prisoner)
• Dimensions and realms we are not normally meant to access (e.g. inside the psyche, isekai fantasy realms)
• Mythical traps and/or paradises (e.g. the Bermuda Triangle, Big Rock Candy Mountain)
• Anything vaguely related to the restriction of movement or knowledge
• Anything you want, because the theme is always optional!

FIST is licensed under CC-BY-SA 4.0. You can create whatever you want to create with it, no OGL required, and we won't ever stop you or charge you money for it. FIST and homebrew are fast friends. All you have to do is use the same license, so others can chop and screw your work in turn.

• No bigoted content will be entertained. FIST is set in a fantastical version of the 20th century (similar to Wolfenstein, Metal Gear Solid, and various superhero universes), and oppression is part of the subject matter; handle it with tact and consideration for the impact of your narrative, and remember that bigots and warmongers, fictional or not, are always the enemy. 
• Please keep your entry free for the duration of the jam and voting period so everyone can see and rate it. 
• After the jam, whatever you make is yours to sell—you can charge for anything you make that's compatible with FIST, you don't need permission. 
• FIST is licensed under CC-BY-SA 4.0. You can get the game here: https://claymorerpgs.itch.io/fist. Also, if you bought the BLM, Ukraine, Trans Rights in Florida, or Abortion Rights bundles, you already have FIST! 
• The FIST compatibility mark (and an itch.io thumbnail template with the mark included) can be downloaded here: https://claymorerpgs.itch.io/fist-homebrew-resources. You don't have to use this compatibility mark, it's just there if you want to! This link also contains all the source files for every FIST Ultra release and a list of fonts used in the books.
• You can join the FIST Discord sever here: https://discord.gg/4jPNPyfq7c

After the jam is over, everyone who submitted a project will be able to vote for their favorite entry. Each entry can be rated separately for STYLE and SUBSTANCE. Even though it's itch.io etiquette to gives games you like a 5-star rating for that sweet algorithmic boost, rate honestly when voting for jams! 1 star is awful, 5 stars is amazing, and 3 is perfectly neutral. The voting period lasts from 12/21/24 to 12/31/24. 

The winner of the jam will receive a signed physical copy of the new version of MANDELBROT SET (when we finish it)! We'll reach out to the winner for a mailing address and send your prizes along as promptly as we can.

Thanks for reading and we hope to see your project in the jam!

All the best,

CLAYMORE