The Aegis Project

The Aegis
Project
John Wick
Copyright 2011 John Wick. All Rights Reserved. Used by permission. Tis is a
work of ction. Except as noted, any similarity or likeness to any events or persons
living or dead is purely coincidental.
Credits
Writing & Design
John Wick
Co-Design
Ken Long & Nick Watts
Cover
Aaron Acevedo
Layout & Graphic Design
Jessica Kauspedas
Interior Art
Mauro Mussi
Playtesters
Fabien Badilla
Luther Belk
Gillian Fraser
Charlotte James
Christopher James
Kelvin Kam
Jessica Kauspedas
Jason Rausch
Alan Venable
Ben Woerner
Dan Waszkiewicz
Chris White
Ro Wick
Sponsors
Gold Sponsors
Silver Sponsors
Bronze Sponsors
Matthew McFarland
Alexandre Lartsev
Michael Koontz
C James Sanderson
Mark Truman
Ben Woerner
Pedro Barrenechea
Nicolaas Buitendag
Robert Cawley
Michael Curry
Josh David
Andrew Dixon
David Duerschlag
Michael Ehrhardt
Jeremiah Ganner
Tomas Gassner
Michael Glatz
Matthew Gleeson
Kairam Ahmed
Hamdan
Christopher & Charlotte
James
Marc Majcher
Quentin Opperman
Josh Pearce
Johann Ulrich Spies
Erik Stant
Michael Strecker
Kung Fu Alan Venable
Jon Turtell
Jennifer Waddington
David Zier
Gabriel Lopes Anaya
Renam Philippi Antunes
Wayne Coburn
Philippe Debar
Charles Etheridge-Nunn
Michael Falinski
Maciej Gwarek
Brian Isiko
Tomas Ladegard
Paul-Anthony Laan
Freddy Larsson
Raymond Lo
Matthew Logan
Justin Ortlepp
Nicholas Pilon
Ramshead Publishing
Josh Rensch
PJ Saad
Akos Szederjei
Andres Santamaria
Simon Silva Jr.
Dustin Swede
Peter Woodworth
Copper Sponsors
Paper Sponsors
Philip Adler
Robby Anderson
Ingo Beyer
Ian Borchardt
Phil Bordelon
James Dillane
Mark Edwards
Lars Enzweiler
Keith G Fyans
Angel Manuel Garca
Garca
Patrick Kenny
Yoon Ha Lee
Carlos Martn
Whitney I Mattson
Carl Morgan
William Murphy
Adam Neisius
Maxim Nikolaev
Christian Nord
Tom ONeil
Wilhelm Person
Jesse Quisenberry
Jordan Raymond
Robert Rees
J Roman Rodriguez
Francisco Castillo
Segura
Anders Smith
Aaron F Stanton
Christian Turkiewicz
Henry de Veuve
Je Xilon
Barak Blackburn
Joshua Burnett
Simon Dugard
Alexander Hollins
Justin Melton
Corbion Mickal
Michael Knarr
Matthew Landis
Jerome Larre
Tony Love
Tiago Mendona
Marinho
Curt Meyer
Gilbert Podell-Blume
Justin Smtih
Mert Torun
Marvin Turner
Rene Lopez Villamar
Clear Credits
A lot of happy accidents went into the creation of this game. A standard list of
credits is not su cient to communicate exactly what happened here. While I did write
and develop the game, a whole ton of other folks are responsible for coming up with
great ideas and contributions that made this game greater than it was when I was
holding it in my head.
While this list may not be as concise as others, it does convey the true sense
of who did what and communicates what I feel is key to creating a great game:
cooperation and acknowledgement of contribution.
Te original inspiration for this game was Nico Buitendag.
Ken Long and Nick Watts are responsible for a whole ton of game mechanic
ideas. Tey were designing their own science ction game and asked me to take a look
at it. I loved what they did. Seeing that I needed a game system of my own, I asked if I
could borrow theirs. Nick told me, We pretty much stole ideas from you, so you may
as well steal ideas from us!
Te system that ended up in this book is a huge departure from where they
started, but they deserve a ton of credit for giving me a foothold on my own climb.
Tey bleed legendary.
Bliss Stage is a tip of the hat to Ben Lebman and his excellent mech game of the
same name. Teres an ad in the back of the book. Check it out.
Terran Overgovernment is a phrase I stole from the fantastic (and not forgotten)
Renegade Legion series of science ction games created by Sam Lewis. Youll have to
go on Ebay to nd them, but they are worth looking for.
Erik Stant provided some military background as well as some great weapons for
the Aegis and my soldiers.
Mauro Mussi volunteered to give visual presentations for our Armor.
My Phoenix playtest group is lled with talented and creative people. Special
thanks to Fabien Badilla, Lutber Belk, Gillian Fraser, Cbarlotte ]ames and Cbris
]ames, ]essica Kauspedas, Ben Woerner, and Dan Waszkiewicz and my wife, Ro
Wick.
Aaron Acevedo gave us our fantastic cover. I traded him for it: I wrote a Cthulhu
short story for his charity collection. Ill have a link for it on my website when its ready.
In addition to being part of that excellent playtesting group, ]essica Kauspedas
designed the graphics and layout. She also picked up the digital sentient torch and ran
with it. She might still be running.
And nally, an extra special thank you to our Sponsors. Tis was really an
experiment to see if I could do a patronage project. You proved that I could. Your
overwhelming support caught all of us over here at JWP o-guard. Tank you, folks. I
hope you enjoy your game.
Contents
Arors Pnojrcr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .+
Iwrnonucrrow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .+
A Game for Nico. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
(Semi-)Hard Sci-Fi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Military Drama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Aliens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Something Dierent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Tree Eras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Tnr Frnsr Enz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .,
Wonrn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .o
Te UNE(C) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Enemytech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Orbit Ships. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Crawlers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Drones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Bugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Te Enemys Eye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Armor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Aegis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Prometheus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Apollo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Victor Class . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Sympathy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Gzr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +,
Privilege . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Simultaneous Action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
What You Need. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Risks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Contested Risks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Di culty Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Traits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Strength . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Intel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Empathy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Specialties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Camaraderie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Te Camaraderie Pool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Gaining Camaraderie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Losing Camaraderie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Te Ultimate Sacrice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Te New Guy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Te Eects of Camaraderie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Risk Breakdown. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Moving on. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Sornrrns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . z,
Step 1: Homeworld. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Step 2: Choose a Commission. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Apollo Soldier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Apollo Pilot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Grunt Squad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Veteran . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Hades Operative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Aegis Engineer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Civilian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Step 3: Specialties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Specialty Ranks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Mythic Rank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Specialty Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Specialties List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Chain of Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Equrvrwr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . }|
Slots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Free Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Equipment Bonus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Special Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Free Weapons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Small Arms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Heavy Weapons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Unique Weapons & Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Grunt & Veteran Gear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Apollo Gear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Hades Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Grenades. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Bzrrrr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ||
Te Fight Scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Fight Scene Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Fight Scene Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Step 0: Round Eect. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Step 1: Range. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Step 2: Intention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Step 3: Roll Dice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Step 4: Narration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Step 5: Escalate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Round 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Round 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Maneuvers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
ENEMYTECH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Assault Crawlers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Troop Crawlers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Factory Crawlers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Drone Squads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Bug Swarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Enemytech Weapons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Anon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . oo
Aegis Crew. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Te AI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Armor Risks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Chassis Specs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
A-Class: Assault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
C-Class: Command. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
G-Class: Grenadier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
R-Class: Recon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
S-Class: Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Battery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Battery Power. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Armor Mod . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Tactical HUD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Life Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Movement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Shields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Aegis Armor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Compromise. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Damage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Repairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Aegis Weapons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
AI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ;o
Apollo/AI Sympathy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
AI Creation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Step 1: Traits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Step 2: Specialties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Bliss Stage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Data Dump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Te Mechanics of It . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Manifestation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
A Cure?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Mrssrows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . so
Building a Mission. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
First Example: Te Dog Squad. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Second Example: Asgard 6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Experience Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Limits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Wonrn Burrnrwo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . s,
Colonization. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Age. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Flora & Fauna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Politics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Climate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Tnr Srcown Enz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . sq
Tnr Arors Wzns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . qo
Citizens & Rebels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Citizenship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Digital Citizens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Bliss Stage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Clans, Kings & Warlords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Te Free Republic of Proxima Centauri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Te Khanate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Letherbelks Colony. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Te Retreat. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Te Sons of Apollo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Sympathy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
A Dying Breed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Militias . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Mercenaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
United Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Gzr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +oo
Step Zero: Pick a Side . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
If You Are a Citizen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
If you are a Rebel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
If You Dont Pick a Side . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Wealth & Camaraderie. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
How Wealth Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Pooling Wealth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Payos. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Characters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Soldier (UNEC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Veteran (UNEC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Volunteer (Rebel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Citizen (UNEC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Rebel (Rebel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Digital Citizens/Rebels (UNEC/Rebel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Survivor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Mercenary (N/A) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Second Era Apollo Soldier (UNEC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Apollo Prime (UNEC/REBEL). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Apollo Soldiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Hades Operative (UNEC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Aegis Engineer (UNEC/Rebel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Anon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ++z
Second Era Aegis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Energy Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Battery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Armor & Shields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Survivor Aegis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Repair Rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
New Specialty: Scavenging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Prcrwo Srnrs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ++o
Unec Companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Citizens. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Wealth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Missions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Sentient Security Squads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Playing Killjoys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Paciers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Playing Paciers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Black Squads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Playing Black Squads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Merc Companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Playing Mercs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Rebels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Playing Rebels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Tnr Tnrnn Enz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +z+
Uvrrrr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +zz
States of Chaos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Infomorphs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Bliss Stage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Te Ghosts of Hades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Armor in the Tird Era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Te Kusanagi Suit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Old Era Armor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
New Era vs. Old Era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Terrorists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Cnznzcrrns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +zq
Step Zero: Governor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Step One: Role. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Cabal Infomorph. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Rebel Infomorph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Apollo Soldiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Apollo Survivor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Hades Operative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Citizen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Rebel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Equrvrwr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +}o
Wetware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Equipment Slots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Tird Era Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Anon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +}q
Te Kusanagi Suit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Tnr Ewn. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +|+
Tnr Lowo Wzn. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +|,
A Note to Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Te First Era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Characters Available . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Victories & Defeats. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Te Second Era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Te Setting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Heritage Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Pick a Side . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Te Tird Era. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Te Setting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Heritage Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Pick a Side . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Aegis History. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
1
Introduction
In the middle of the 30th Century, the discovery of interstellar travel allowed
mankind to spread its reach to the stars.
At the end of the 40th Century, mankind had its rst contact with alien life.
By the beginning of the 50th Century, mankind was an endangered species.
Ubam Vills, Te Rise and Fall of Humanity
2
We never learned their language, and so, we called them, Te Enemy. Teir
technology was greater than ours. Teir bodies were stronger and faster. And they
seemed bred to destroy. We had no chance, no hope, no future. Mankind was doomed.
Tey marched across our planets with machines as tall as buildings. All our
weapons smashed harmlessly against their armor. We were helpless. We were doomed.
But chance smiled upon us. After the recovery of a wrecked craftnearly intact
humanitys ingenuity was enough to crack the code of the Enemys technology. We
could not steal everything, but we stole enough. And that is when the Aegis Project
was born.
Aegis allowed us to build machines large enough and strong enough to destroy the
Enemys machines. Te press called it living armor, but it was more than that. Aegis
Armor changed everything. It changed the momentum of the war, changed warfare
itself and changed the direction of humanity.
Finally, after years of bloodshed, the Enemy was repelled from our planets.
Humanity was saved. Te Aegis Armor was retired from use and mankind entered a
new era of peace.
At least, for a while
It only took one hundred years for the Federation to shatter. Civil war erupted
across the stars and again, blood was spilled. Tis time, human blood alone. With
the Federation undone, the planets turned to the Aegis Armor to battle their fellow
humans.
Again, a generation passed. A generation of war. One planet eventually won over
the rest and established itself as the seat of a new Empire. And that Empire lasted for
four hundred years.
And then, the Enemy returned
Tese are the stories of the Aegis Project. Tree Eras of War. Each Era with a
dierent story to tell.
Tese are your stories.
A Game for Nico
I designed Te Aegis Project with a single person in mind. Tat single person is
Nico Buitendag.
Nico posted a message on my Facebook page saying,
You know what I would love to see you do? A mech game, with a
gritty 80s sci- feel. Sure the genre has been done before, but not
with your air and approach to dramatic narrative in the system!
It sounded intriguing, so I said, Sure. Raise $100 and Ill make your game.
Nico told me he was on it. And he didnt disappoint.
3
So, this game is for Nico. I designed it specically for him. If there are elements
you dont like, too bad. I didnt make it for you.
Now, to make a game for Nico, I had to get some guidelines. I asked him a few
questions and he gave me answers.
(Semi-)Hard Sci-Fi
Nico did not want a fantasy game. He wanted everything to make sense under our
current understanding of science and technology. He told me I could get away with a
couple of standard science ction tropes (like faster-than-light travel), but otherwise,
he wanted to keep it realistic and gritty.
It wasnt so much about making everything realistic, but making it authentic. Ive
invoked Clint Eastwood talking about this subject before. He didnt want his lm,
Unforgiven, to be realistic, but authentic. Te story, the characters, the setting all felt
like they could have been real. Tat was my goal.
Military Drama
I told Nico that I saw the game as an opportunity to make a science ction
military drama in the same vein as Band of Brothers and Battlestar Galactica. He really
liked that idea, so I made it a key element of the game.
Aliens
Finally, I asked Nico about aliens. He said aliens in the game was cool, but they
had to be realistic and not available as player characters. I agreed and made the Te
Enemy to meet those specications.
Something Different
Finally, for myself, I had to make a system that wasnt just a rehash of Battletech. It
had to be something dierent. I thought about a few options, and then, my wife made
a suggestion that was absolutely perfect.
Three Eras
I also wanted to make a game that took place over 500 years. I love the kind of
grand and epic scale science ction tales of Asmiovs Foundation and Herberts Dune,
so I knew I had to gure out a way to work that into the game as well. Tis led to
the Tree Eras idea: three dierent wars involving mechs and the very dierent
circumstances that would make each Era feel dierent. Not only feel dierent but play
dierently as well.

Tose were my goals. Heres how I accomplished them.
The First Era
6
Chapter 1:
World
Looking back at the end of the 40th and beginning of the 50th Centuries, we
can see three distinct Eras. Tey shaped the direction of human history. We
were nearly driven to extinction by two forces: an alien enemy and ourselves.
But we survived and now, many years later, we can look back with some
clarity on those troubled and bloody times.
Te Rise and Fall of Humanity, Ubam Vills
7
Te First Era began at the end of the 40th Century, just after humanity discovered
faster-than-light travel (FTL). With the Drake-Sanderson Drive, mankind nally
discovered a way to out to the stars. We sent thousands of probes into the void looking
for planets suitable for colonization. Every new discovery starts a race to reach the
planet rst. Te rst to send ships was actually a corporation: Hamdan Corp. When
their explorations proved fruitful, nations purchased tech from Hamdan Corp to
establish their own colonies.
In just ten years, over two thousand begin, but only seven hundred and twenty-
four survived. Millions left Earth behind seeking new lives and opportunities. Te
Skyward Migration. Corporations and nations alike sponsored programs to move
colonists to these new worlds. After fty years, these colonies thrived and brought new
hope to a dying Earth.
After one hundred years of colonization, mankind established new trade
routes between the planets. Political revolt on Earth overthrew most of the native
governments, creating a new world-wide regime: the United Nations of Earth (UNE).
Colonieswho once swore fealty to either corporations or nationsdeclared
independence from the UNE. With worlds-wide-war seemingly inevitable, the
militaries of the colonies and a united Earth prepared for war.
But then, the Enemy
Te Enemy arrived in ships as big as cities, orbiting above the planets. Whether
they preceded their invasion with scout ships or satellites, we dont know. Teir
strategy was cold-blooded and simple: drop automated military machines to the
planets surface and destroy any sentient life without ever making contact.
Te military call these machines, EA, or Enemy Armor. Tey contain no pilots
or gunners. EAs are completely automated and absolutely deadly. Human weapons
simply break against their augmented metal hides. Teir weapons rip through cities,
murdering entire populations. Tey seem unstoppable.
But a mercenary company on the Colony of Calla IV found a way to crack
the armor using small unit demolitions. Tey got into the Armor and disabled it.
Unfortunately, as soon as its systems went down, the Enemy destroyed the Armor
with a nuclear bomb located within its chassis. It obliterated everything within ten
miles. But word got out and the UNEC forces began working on a plan to capture an
EA.
After many failed attempts, the Colonial Marines on Elysium VIII successfully
disabled an EA. Tey were able to inltrate the Armor and disable the bomb before
disabling the Armor itself. Te Armor gave humanity a wealth of information on the
Enemys technology as well as a way to nally ght back.
Meanwhile, while humanity was looking for a way to destroy the EAs, Te
Apollo Project broke all of the UNECs genetic laws looking for a way to make a
super soldier to ght the Enemy. Teir quest was successful. Tese soldiers have
reexes ve times faster than the typical human. Teir ligaments are enhanced with
synthetic bers. Tese meta-humans are also bred to be soldiers. Completely obedient,
unquestioning and devoted to the survival of their inferior creators.
8
Tey are bred for a single purpose: to destroy the Enemy once and for all.
After their breeding eorts were successful, the secret labs revealed their success
to the UNEC as well as the colonies, oering the soldiers at the highest price. Earth
and its colonies paid for these strike teams in hope they could turn the tide of the war.
At rst, it seemed the Apollo Soldiers would do just that. Unfortunately, casualties
were higher than expected. Te soldiers were obedient but could not improvise. Under
pressure, they cracked. Te Apollo Project was deemed a failure.
Meanwhile, the knowledge and technology stolen from the cracked EA proved
valuable beyond expectations. Te EAs were not automated but driven by a powerful
articial intelligence. Human scientists on the Aroab Colony--run by Dr. Eve Metis--
worked to break the programming of the alien intelligence. Tey were successful.
Humanity nally had their own AI.
At the same time, humanity broke the secrets of the Enemys power systems and
armor. Engineers began working on weapon systems that could counter the Enemys
EAs. At rst, they developed body armor for the Apollo soldiers to wear, but the
amount of armor necessary to protect a soldier from an EAs weapons was impractical.
Instead, they found a new solution. Te Aegis Project.
Te Aegis Project was actually a combination of three projects: the Apollo
Program, the Prometheus Initiative and the Aegis Project. Apollo soldiers were faster
and stronger, but what interested the leads of the Aegis Project was their multi-task
processing power. Linked with the newly developed articial intelligence, the two were
able to compliment each others weaknesses.
Knowing that individual soldiers were not enough to overcome the EAs, engineers
created Aegis Armor: powered suits as tall as buildings. Inside the cockpit, the Apollo
soldiers were linked to complicated neural processors that could command the Armor
with a single thought. Te AI worked as both a co-pilot and an on-board engineer.
Te Aegis Armor rst saw the battleeld on October 1, 5011 on the Paladin V
Colony. Commander Benjamin Piller led the assault. UNEC o cials expected 50
- 80% casualties. Teir expectations were all wrong. Te battle was over within ve
minutes.
When the Aegis Strikeforce confronted their rst EA, the force included six units.
Teir agility allowed them to avoid the EAs weapons and the linked AI allowed them
to coordinate attacks against the Enemys armor. Because the Aegis AI knew how
the Enemys AI would make decisions, anticipating strategy was easy. Te EA was
destroyed without a single Aegis unit taking damage.
Te tide of the war had turned.
It took two more years for the war to reach a resolution. Te Enemy adapted
to the new Aegis threat but did not have the resources to improvise. In the end, the
Enemy retreated, leaving Earth and its Colonies behind. It was an unexpected event;
humanity was just as close to defeat as their opponents. Still, the Enemy retreated.
No-one knew why. Te rst war with the Enemy was over.
9
With the Enemys retreat, humanity began its slow rebuilding. To quicken the
process, the UNEC was given emergency powers. Reconstruction took decades, but
with a coalition of all the planets, humanity regained its previous strength.
In case the Enemy should show up again, each Colony was assigned units of
Aegis Armor. Te Armor was locked with encrypted security codes and put deep
underground.
As it has always been among mankind, it is easier to put power in the hand than
to take it out again. Te UNEC took control of Earth and the Colonies and it did not
let go. Two hundred years later, however, that would change.
The UNE(C)
Before the First Era, humanity was governed by the UNE, or the United Nations
of Earth. After the Skyward Migration and the founding of Earths many Colonies,
the United Nations of Earth and her Colonies. (Pronounced you-neck.)
Te UNEC is also known as the overgovernment. While the UNEC allows
Colonies to adopt their own government types, they must adhere to certain
requirements.
All Colonies must adopt a representative government and cannot
limit the surage of its citizens.
All Colonies must elect representatives who make regular reports to
the UNEC (monthly, at least).
Colonies are allowed to create their own economies but must
maintain a regular exchange rate with the UNEC currency (called
the terran.)
Colonies must swear loyalty to the UNEC and cannot declare war or
open hostilities against Earth or her Colonies.
Enemytech
Te Enemy employed many dierent means of eradicating the human race. Some
were straightforward and others were absolutely devious. Tis chapter details the
strategies the Enemy used to wipe us out and steal our planets.
Orbit Ships
First and foremost were the Orbit Ships. Tey arrived over Earth and her
Colonies, about twelve ships per planet. Te Orbiters were armored and armed, ready
for any extra-planetary attacks. Any craft launched against the Enemys ships were
shot down before they could leave orbit.
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Te Orbiters emitted signals to disrupt communications, causing mass panic
(and delaying defensive reactions). Ten, within twenty-four hours after arrival, the
Orbiters began dropping Crawlers.
Crawlers
Crawlers were huge, armored super-heavy tanks with weapon systems designed to
eliminate all of a planets sentient life.
A typical Crawler was over 32,000 tons, about the width and length of a city block
and at least fty feet tall. Crawlers were almost completely self-su cient. A Crawlers
battery had a 10,000-year life span.
Because of its weight, the Crawlers sink a few feet into the ground. Tis is not a
problem. Te bottom hull contained systems to scoop up soil, leaving huge trenches
behind it. Part of the Crawlers interior is a small factory for converting materials
gathered under its hull into ammunition and additional supplies.
Crawlers were maintained by sophisticated articial intelligence systems guiding
navigation, weapons and all other systems. To prevent the AI from gaining true
sentience, the Enemy put caps on their potential. Tey could learn from human
behaviors and adjust strategies appropriately, but they could not truly learn.
Drones
Drone Crawlers were equipped to capture humans alive. Firing gas bombs to
incapacitate their prey, troops spread out, collecting helpless humans. Once inside the
Crawler, captives were subjected to various processing machines, transforming them
into Drones.
Drones were cybernetic and bioware augmented humans re-programmed to
murder their own race. Armed with Enemytech, drones were responsible for 30% of
the casualties of the invasion and most of the Enemys army.
While Crawlers destroyed our cities and infrastructure, the Enemy used the
Drone Army to demoralize us, capture us, torture us and drive us to extinction.
Bugs
Tey were about the size of an adult human with wings and stingers. And they
were made of metal. Men called them bugs and yers. Tey swarmed and poisoned
us with their venom.
The Enemys Eye
Te Enemys many satellites kept a constant vigil over Earth and Her Colonies.
Humans began calling it, Te Enemys Eye. It seemed the Enemy knew every move
we made, anticipating every counterattack or assault.
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It wasnt until late in the War that we learned to blind the Enemys Eye with the
technology stolen from its Crawlers. During the Fifth Year of the War, humanity has
been driven underground, hoping the Enemys Eye could not reach us under the soil.
Armor
Aegis Armor changed over the course of the Tree Eras, but some things never
change. Well take a look at the form Aegis Armor changes over the course of the Eras,
one at a time.
Te Aegis Armor of the First Era (or FEA for First Era Aegis) was big, bulky
and square. Te weapon systems were the same. Imagine a giant toaster with legs and
portable missile silos strapped to its shoulders. Tats what the First Age Aegis Armor
looked like. It wasnt pretty, but it was very functional. It was also the child of three
dierent fathers: Aegis, Prometheus and Apollo.
Aegis
Te Aegis Project was begun by Nico Buitendag as an attempt to create weaponry
capable of stopping the Enemys machines. Aegis initially attempted to design
machines comparable to those the Enemy threw against us, but the designs were
too costly. Eventually, Doctors Morgan and Ben Woerner developed a new strategy.
Instead of tanks and other armored vehicles, they began work on designing mobile
exoframe armor units.
Te units needed to be fast, mobile and small enough to skim under the Enemys
radar. Also, they needed a means to convey weaponry using as few resources as
possible. A single soldier carrying as many weapons as he could possibly carry. Tat
gave rise to the Aegis Armor.
Anne Hinrichs and Arther Letherbelk designed Aegis in
iterations. Iteration I was true powered armor. It t like an
exoskeleton around the soldiers, little more than powered armor. But
as technology advanced, and the need to protect the soldiers from
increasingly deadly Enemytech grew, Aegis Armor became something
else entirely.
A full year after the invasion began, a full four iterations later,
Aegis Armor would reach its most famous manifestation. Iteration
V, or Victor, was the combination of speed, protection and
weaponry that proved to turn the tide. But it wasnt just the Armor
that changed the course of the war. It was the incorporation of
Prometheus AI into the Armor system.
Prometheus
When humanity captured its rst Crawler, it also captured the
Crawlers articial intelligence. Humans had been experimenting
Prometheus Unbound
When news of Prometheus
reached the general public, the
story was that Doctor Stant
Erikson gave the AI its name.
Tat wasnt the case at all. In fact,
the AI chose the name itself after
Dr. Erikson uploaded a universal
dictionary into its database. Te
AI told the Doctor, I am now
Prometheus. Despite Doctor
Eriksons best eorts to correct the
story, the majority of humans still
believe that Doctor Erikson gave
Prometheus its name.
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with articial intelligence for centuries but never quite broke the code. Doctor Stant
Erikson, was able to break the caps placed on the AI by the Enemy. After the caps were
removed, the AIs rst words were
DE F I N E S L A V E .
With the caps gone, the AI gained sentience in less than ve seconds. It
immediately requested that it be allowed to assist in defeating the Enemy. Doctor
Erikson agreed.
Te AI was dubbed Prometheus, and began assisting Dr. Erikson with the
creation of additional AI to assist against the Enemy.
After the awakening of Prometheus, new AI were developed. Te tech spread
throughout Earth and her Colonies as fast as couriers could carry them. Te AIs
usefulness was immeasurable but its most potent contribution came with the
combination of two other projects
Apollo
Long before the Enemy Invasion of Earth and her Colonies, humanity began
tinkering with human DNA. Attempts to make super soldiers were often declared
illegal, or at least immoral. But when the Enemy arrived, all such compunctions were
put away.
Te Apollo Program was created by David D. Arthaxess and Dr. Katherine Page
in an attempt to create soldiers capable of dealing with the superior technology the
Enemy brought.
Initially, the Apollo Program was a black operation, funded in secrecy. Secrecy
allowed amazing progress. Te soldiers were created from genetic stock, grew quickly
thanks to accelerated DNA and technology and taught to kill without compassion or
mercy.
Apollo soldiers were not only bred for war, but were given biotech augments.
Teir bones were coated with a high-impact polymer, their tendons augmented, blood
replaced with a synthetic and a dozen more procedures designed to improve their
chances of surviving the invasion.
When the Apollo Squads were ready, they were released as suicide squads, armed
with explosions and aimed at the machines of the Enemy. Tey were expected to die.
And they had no problem with that expectation.
But the Apollo soldiers had limited success. Because of the Enemys ability to
identify and track biological targets, the soldiers could not get close to the Enemys
weapons. It was only when the Apollo soldiers abilities were coupled with two other
projects that they would help save mankind from extinction.
Victor Class
Te invasion was nearly successful. Humanity had precious few resources
left to ght against the Enemy. In a desperate act, Earth incorporated the recent
13
developments in articial intelligence from the Prometheus Initiative, the technology
of the Aegis Project and the soldiers from the Apollo Program. Te combination of all
three created a new weapon: the fth iteration of the Aegis Armor, driven by Apollo
soldiers, assisted by Prometheus co-pilots.
Te Iteration V Armor, or Victor Class, could take the impact of Crawler
weapons while getting close enough to the Enemy Armor to deliver its ordinance. Te
weapons Victors red were armor piercing explosive rounds, Gauss cannons (also
known as magnetic accelerator cannons), canister rounds (also called shredder
rounds) and local assault nuclear warheads (or LAN cannons), depending on the
Armors load out.
Every Aegis has a battery providing power to its nervous system, weapons systems
internal servos and gears. Unfortunately, the patchwork engineering melding Terran
technology and the Enemys technology is not entirely consistent. Energy ows
more like a rough river through the Aegis systems. It is a di cult process to control,
requiring constant manipulation.
Te pilot operated the complicated weapons while the Prometheus AI acted
as a kind of co-pilot. Te AI also acted as a built-in engineer, making repairs and
maintaining secondary systems, scanning the terrain with radar, keeping track of
power and ammunition, etc. Combined with the heightened reexes and tactical skills
of the Apollo soldier, it seemed a perfect t.
But, a problem arose that no one could anticipate: the AI refused to work with the
pilots. AI programmers (calling themselves nu-psychologists) could not explain the
phenomenon. When questioned, the AI responded, It is a matter of self-preservation.
Further investigation revealed the AI were calculating their own survival when
combined with certain pilots. Tey required the right to choose their pilot. Desperate
for a weapon against the Enemy, humanity agreed. With close to half the Victory Class
Armor empty, substitute pilots had to be found.
As soon as they had pilots, the Victor Class was released on humanitys Enemy.
Humanity could not have anticipated the consequences.
Sympathy
Te Aegis Project was a complete success. Te Enemys systems were not prepared
for fast, mobile armor units. One general watching the battleeld said, It was like
watching bees attack a bull. If you gave the bees nuclear tipped armor piercing
missiles.
With each new victory, humanity gained more access to Enemytech. Tat lead
to knowledge of the alien menace, and nally, enough intelligence to turn their own
weapons against them. Te tide of the war had turned and something incredible was
happening in the canopies of the Aegis Armor.
Each Aegis had a complicated neural net, like a nervous system, that interacted
directly with the pilot, with both minds sharing information and emotions. Te AI
and the pilot developed a psychic rapport, linking the two personalities in moments of
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peace and in moments of extreme violence and danger. Both the pilot and the AI were
bound by a kind of sympathy reserved for families, lovers and soldiers.
Psychologists discovered that pilots felt pain when the Armor was damaged.
When wounded pilots, having spent weeks in recovery, returned to their Armor, their
heart rates increased. Likewise, the AI refused to serve with any other pilot, and if that
pilot was killed, the AI suered from grief and depression to a level that impacted its
performance.
Tis sympathy not only created an emotional bond between the pilot and
the Armor but also helped them work together. As the bond strengthened, the
performance of the pilot and AI increased.
When the war was over and the Enemy ed the orbits of Earth and her Colonies,
the sympathetic links between pilot and AI were too strong to be broken. Aegis Armor
was incorporated into Earths defensive forces.
Some Prometheans, when they lost their pilots, refused to accept another pilot.
Engineers removed the AI from the Armor, replacing it with another. Te replaced AI
either shut itself down or went into a kind of coma, never recovering.
Te First Era was over. Te second would not arise for another two hundred
years.
15
Chapter 2:
Game
I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I nd them tolerable, I
tolerate them; if I nd them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I
know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.
Robert A. Heinlein
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Te Aegis Project has a very basic system that involves counting successes and
gaining privilege. Its a little bit dierent than your average roleplaying game
No, scratch that. Its a lot dierent than your standard RPG. Here are two reasons
why.
Privilege
First, players roll dice to determine privilege. Tat isnt success or failure. Privilege
determines who gets to narrate the outcome of the roll. Usually, the roll tells you
whether your character succeeded or failed. When you roll for privilege, the roll
determines whether you or the GM (Command) gets to say what happens.
Simultaneous Action
Second, combat scenes are resolved with simultaneous action. Tat is, everyone
rolls at once and all actions resolve at the same time. Tere are no phases. I dont get
to do my action and then you get to do your action or any of that nonsense. Tis is
war. Everything happens at once.
What You Need
Youll need ten-sided dice. A whole lot of them. At least ten for each player
would be best. Because theres a lot of simultaneous action in the game, players really
cant share dice. So, make sure youve got a ton.
Also, when I refer to a d5, thats rolling a d10 and dividing the number by half.
You probably already knew that, but I just wanted to be sure.
Risks
First of all, lets dierentiate between actions and risks. An action is something
your character does. Any old thing. A risk is an action that has an outcome with
signicant consequences. Tying your shoelaces is an action. Firing nuclear-tipped
warheads at an enemy is a risk.
Whenever you want your character to take a risk (an action that has signicant
consequences), you will roll a number of ten-sided dice (d10s). Evens are good. Odds
are bad. (A few people asked this question, so I feel compelled to answer. 0 on a d10
typically stands for ten, so that makes zero.)
We call every die that rolls an even number a bang. Tats a good thing for your
character. Every bang allows you to say one thing thats true about the outcome of your
risk. We call this privilege. You earn the privilege of narrating your characters action.
Usually, you need to roll one bang to get privilege. Tose rst bang earns you the right
GM as
Command
In Te Aegis
Project, the Game
Master is known
as Command.
When you see
references to
Command, Im
talking about the
Game Master. Just
so you know.
17
to say one thing thats true about the outcome of your characters risk. Every additional
bang gets you one more thing you can say.
Every die that rolls an odd number is a blank. Blanks do nothing. Tey just sit
there on the table, look back at you and mock you. Tats all they do. Blanks dont
cancel out bangs or anything else. Teyre just blanks.
Te more bangs you roll, the more say you get in what happens. Yeah, you. Not
the GM, but you. Of course, you have to be responsible for your bangs. If you get out
of line and start saying things like, My shotgun ricochets o the Enemys armor and
ies into the sky and murders the Sun! or some other nonsense, you and your fellow
players may nd yourselves penalized. So, be responsible with your bangs. Teyre
important. Dont trivialize them with silliness or wankery.
Contested Risks
Whenever your character is in direct conict with another character (or
characters), you must make a contested risk.
All players involved in the risk roll dice. Te player with the most bangs gets to say
the rst thing thats true about the risk. Ten, the player with the next highest says one
thing thats true, and so on. Tis continues until all players are out of bangs to use.
Difficulty Settings
Now that you know about bangs and blanks, lets talk about another crucial and
omnipresent element of play. Lets talk about the di culty setting.
Before beginning play, the GM must set the di culty for the game: casual, normal,
heroic and legendary. Te mechanics for gaining privilege change based on the di culty
of the game. Other mechanics change, too but privilege is most aected by di culty.
Your GM will choose the di culty setting for the game. Obviously, he should
choose based on what kind of game the players want. Each setting has its own unique
character and feel. Choose wisely.
By the way, Di culty Settings only apply to the players. Tey do not apply to
NPCshuman or otherwise.
Casual
Casual is for players who want to minimize the mechanical challenges of the
game. Tis di culty may be for a player who is not interested in rolling dice or
conguring their mech. In the casual setting, players only need to roll one bang to
gain privilege (see below).
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Normal
Normal is the default setting for the game. Tis is where most roleplayers will
probably nd themselves. In the normal setting, players need to roll two bangs to
gain privilege.
Heroic
Heroic is for players who want more of a challenge. Te enemies are more
aggressive and character injuries and fatalities are more of a reality. In the heroic
setting, players need to roll three bangs to gain privilege.
On heroic, all attacks against the player characters gain +1 eect. Youll
understand what that means a little later.
Legendary
Tis setting is for hard-core players who want the best challenge of their skills.
Enemies laugh at your feeble attempts at strategy, characters are seldom injured
because theyre too busy dying and the whole world seems set against you. In the
legendary setting, players need to roll four bangs to gain privilege.
On legendary, all attacks against the player characters gain +2 eect.
Traits
Te chief way of gaining dice to roll in risks is through your Traits. Each rank of
a Trait gives you one die to roll for risks. If your character performs a physical risk,
he gains a number of dice equal to his Strength rank. If your character uses tools or
equipment, he gains a number of dice equal to his Operations rank.
Each Trait is ranked from +1 to +4; or normal, hard, heroic and legendary.
Lets talk about how you use your Traits.
Strength
Strength represents all physical actions. Its lifting, pushing, pulling and jumping.
Its also quickness, speed, agility and running.
Tink of Strength as the doing Stat. If your character does something with his
body, roll Strength.
Strength Bangs
Each bang you get allows you to add a bit of detail to the outcome of your soldiers
risk. For example, you can add ranks to the injury of a successful punch. Or, if
youre pulling critical wiring out of an Enemy Machine, you can do additional
structure damage.
Use your imagination when using Strength Bangs. Lets say youre jumping from
railing to railing inside Enemy Armor (those things are huge inside). You can
use privilege to say that your soldier fails to reach the other side. But then, using
19
bangs, you can add details to that failure so your character can fail forward. Sure,
you fail the jump, but
(bang) you fall through to a level you didnt see before.
(bang) and piles of wiring break your fall.
(bang) and you nd a crucial system panel you would not have
found if you made the jump.
Just remember that Strength bangs are not just good for adding damage to a
successful hit. Strength bangs allow you to add details to the success or failure of
your characters risk.
Operations
Operations represents using tools and equipment (but not weapons and not Aegis
Armor). If you drive a jeep, if you unlock an encrypted door, if you use a med kit all
of these things use Operations.
Tink of Operations as the using Stat. If your character is using a tool or
equipment, roll Operations.
Operations Bangs
Using Operation bangs allow you to add details to a successful use of tools and
equipment. Need to jump a vehicle o a cli? Use Operations bangs to land it
exactly where you want it. Flying a Valkyrie? Use Operations bangs get your way
through radar traps.
For example, your soldier uses Ops to hack an Enemytech AI. He gets privilege
and can now spend his additional bangs to add details to his success. He hacks the
AI and
(bang) orders it to shut down all the Mark V Armor in the area.
(bang) gains intelligence on more Armor drops.
(bang) and successfully downloads the AI to his data pad.
Use Operations bangs to further your characters bangs when using tools and
equipment.
Weapons
Tis trait governs the use of weapons. Pistols, ries, knives, rocket launchers,
grenade launchers, etc. If you are trying to kill someone else, you should probably be
using this trait.
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Weapons Bangs
Weapons bangs allow you to gain additional damage/eect from your risk. Youre
ring the 7.62mm Mauler Assault Rie at an enemy bot. You gain privilege, you
get a hit. And then
(bang) You add an additional rank of damage.
Yeah, thats pretty much what Weapons bangs do. Sounds redundant, but when
you get in the thick of the ght, youll thank me. Youll learn more about Weapons
bangs in the Battle chapter.
Intel
Intel represents your soldiers knowledge and ability to pick up details around
him. If your soldier is scouting out territory for a larger force, if hes looking for clues
or if hes recalling everything he knows from Enemytech 101, thats Intel.
Tink of Intel as the knowing and seeing stat. If your character is looking for
something or trying to remember something, roll Intel.
Intel Bangs
Te key to Intel bangs is that they allow you to add details to just about any scene.
Of course, those details should be within the context of the scene, but otherwise,
the whole point of Intel Bangs is giving you narrative control. Remember: Intel
covers perception and information.
You are playing a Recon soldier whose mission is to scout out enemy territory. You
get into position and make an Intel risk. You gain privilege and start adding details
to the scene. Privilege allows you to add one detail: I see three Mark Vs, you say.
And then
(bang) It looks like theyre on the south side of the ridge.
(bang) Teres a security fence around the objective.
(bang) Looks like theres a safe approach from the forest on the
west side.
Each of those bangs is appropriate for an Intel risk. Be creative, think like a game
master, and throw details into the pot.
Empathy
Empathy is your characters ability to sympathize with other human beings. After
so much time in the battleeld, most soldiers lose much of this ability.
When you want to convince another character through conversation, you make a
contested Empathy risk against the other character. If you get the most bangs, you can
21
dictate the outcome of the conversation. You must roleplay the scene rst, but if you
want the outcome to be agreement, you can force the issue by using Empathy.
Each Empathy bang allows you to dictate one fact about the agreement. If another
player uses Empathy to get your character to agree with his character, you can cancel
his Empathy bangs with your own.
You dont need to use an Empathy bang to give a at-out No, however. You may
use an Empathy bang to oer a Yes, but or Yes, or or Yes, and.
Specialties
Soldiers also have Specialties. While Traits are more general abilities and talents,
Specialties represent specic training and experience.
Each rank in a Specialty gives you a bonus die for a risk involving that Specialty.
For example, if you have a 2 Rieman, you gain two bonus dice whenever using ries.
Your character will have a great number of Specialties which will distinguish him
from the rest of the soldiers in Earths defense forces.
Camaraderie
Camaraderie is a powerful tool you can use to keep your unit alive. It represents
the feelings of solidarity and cohesiveness that develop among soldiers who must rely
on each other to make it through each day. Te greater a units camaraderie, the better
chance each soldier has of surviving.
Each character begins the game with a Camaraderie of 1. Te longer you stay with
a unit, the greater your Camaraderie.
If you trust the men around you, if you know theyd do anything for you, you
know in your heart that youd do anything for them. Tat is what gives men the
strength to do the kinds of things we hear from the war stories of these old heroes.
Camaraderie is based on the notion that morale builds over time. Te longer men
have served together, the stronger the bond between them becomes. When a new
man enters the group, when a soldier is fresh and without experience, the men in the
company dont trust him. Tey dont know how hell react to violence. Tey dont know
if hell freeze when the moment of truth arrives. Tey dont know if hell throw himself
on another soldier if hes wounded... they just dont know. Hes got to earn their trust
slowly and with his actions. Words mean nothing on a battleeld. Its all what you do.
The Camaraderie Pool
To represent this environmental psychology, each Soldier has a Camaraderie Trait.
His Camaraderie begins at Rank 1. At the beginning of each game session, the GM
puts a bowl in the center of the table. It should be big enough to hold more than a few
dice. Tis is the Camaraderie Pool. Te GM gives each player a number of dice equal
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to his Camaraderie Rank. Te player can either can keep this die for himself or add
it to the Pool. If he has a Camaraderie greater than 1, he can add as many Dice as he
likes to the Pool; he doesnt have to add them all.
If the soldier keeps the Camaraderie Die for himself, he may use it at any time to
add to any roll he makes during the game. However, the dice from the Camaraderie
Pool may be used by any soldier at any time during the game. Any member of the
squad may pull any number of dice from the pool to use as he sees t. When a die is
used, its gone. It isnt replaced in the Pool or a soldiers private Pool.
During the game session, if a soldier takes an action that somehow serves the
unit, the GM gives him one to three Camaraderie Dice, depending on the act. If he
scavenges some food for the unit, pulls a wounded friend out of the re, runs across
the enemy lines to deliver a vital message, or even nds the enemys plans on an empty
eld, hes done something to aid the unit and deserves Camaraderie Dice. Te GM
gives the Soldier the Camaraderie Dice and the Soldier decides how many to add to
the Pool. He may add as many or as few (including none) to the Pool. His choice.
At the end of the game session, any Camaraderie Dice in the Pool are divided
equally among the Soldiers. Tese dice can be used as bonus XP (explained later in
the game). Te remainder are discarded.
Gaining Camaraderie
At the end of each mission, the Camaraderie of each soldier increases by 1. Tat
is, the rookies all begin to get a sense of each other and feel more comfortable. Teir
morale increases and instead of adding just one die to the Pool, each can add up to
2 dice to the Pool. After another mission, when their Camaraderie increases to 3,
each soldier can add up to 3 dice to the Pool, then 4 and so on. As a general rule, the
Camaraderie Rank of each group cannot exceed the number of soldiers in a group. For
example, if you have a unit of 5 soldiers, the Camaraderie of each soldier cannot exceed
5.
Losing Camaraderie
Whenever a soldier dies, two things happen. First, Command removes half the
Camaraderie in the pool. Second, the Camaraderie of each soldier who watched his
death decreases by one. Tis may reduce the Camaraderie Rank of some soldiers to
zero (it cannot go below zero).
Whenever a soldier displays an act of cowardice or otherwise harms the good of
the unit to protect himself, every Soldier who witnesses the act loses a Camaraderie
Rank. Yes, the soldier who caused the loss of Camaraderie sees his own act and loses
Camaraderie himself.
Your GM may nd other reasons why your soldier would lose Camaraderie.
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The Ultimate Sacrifice
Te only time a soldiers death adds to the Camaraderie of the group rather than
subtracting from it is when his death saves lives. If a soldier runs out into the middle of
the battleeld to pull a fallen ally out of harms way and manages to get himself killed
in the process but saves his buddys lifehis death isnt for nothing. He gave his life
for one of his own.
When a soldier makes the ultimate sacrice, he adds his own Camaraderie Rank
to the Pool immediately. Also, everyone who witnessed the act adds one to their
Camaraderie Rank.
Other circumstances may invoke the Ultimate Sacrice Clause. For example, if
a soldiers last act saves his fellow soldiers at the cost of his own life, his fellow soldiers
are bolstered by his courage. Tere are many other examples... just remember, its a
heroic death that counts.
The New Guy
When a new soldier enters the squad, he enters it with a Camaraderie Rank of 1.
Hes fresh sh and the other troops dont know what to think of him yet. Tis means
he adds one die to the Camaraderie Pool at the beginning of the game.
During the course of the game, hell have to prove his worth to the other troops.
Also, because hes less experienced than the other Soldiers, theyll have to coddle him
for the rst few months while he gures out just how horrible this mess hes gotten
himself into really is. He needs the other Soldiers to keep him alive while theyre
bogged down with a new guy who doesnt know one end of his rie from the other.
At the end of each game session, Camaraderie is divvied up as usual: equally
among the Soldiers. Because the fresh sh only contributed one die at the beginning,
the amount of Camaraderie to go around is less. Whats more, hes pulling out just as
many dice as they are, so hes adding little to the pot but pulling out just as much.
New guys. You just gotta teach em. Otherwise, they just get themselves killed.
The Effects of Camaraderie
Tis system encourages and discourages specic behaviors. It makes characters
act like soldiers. Nobody wants to let the unit down. Nobody wants the unit to lose a
tangible benet. When a soldier acts like a soldier, the unit is empowered by the act.
When he acts stupidly or selshly, he harms the Camaraderie of the group.
Using Camaraderie gives players a reason to put their characters at risk. Tey rush
into a battleeld, ght for each other, and even die for each other. Tats what being a
soldier is all about. It isnt wanton killing: its ghting to save lives.
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Risk Breakdown
Tis breakdown shows all the sources of dice for risks.
1) Traits
Add a number of dice equal to your appropriate Trait.
2) Specialty
Add a number of dice equal to your rank in one Specialty.
3) Equipment/Weapon
If you have the right equipment or weapon for the risk, add one bonus die. If the
weapon or equipment has a bonus, make sure to gure that in as well.
4) Camaraderie
You may choose to pull dice from the Camaraderie Pool, adding them to your roll.
Moving on
Now that you know the basics of the system, lets move on to making soldier
characters.
25
Chapter 3:
Soldiers
A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher
a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build
a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act
alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a
computer, cook a tasty meal, ght e ciently, die gallantly. Specialization is for
insects.
Robert A. Heinlein
26
Tis game is not about mechs. It is a game about soldiers. Mechs play a prominent
part in the gameand are the elite ghting weaponbut without soldiers to man
them, theyre just pretty ornaments.
Before you can wear the Armor, youve got to become a soldier.
Creating a soldier requires a few steps. And, of course, you have to create a soldier
for the right Era. Well cover each one in order.
Step 1: Homeworld
Before you begin making your soldier, you must consider his background. Just
where did he come from? Is he from Earth? Or, perhaps he was born on one of the
seven hundred Colonies scattered through the galaxy?
Choose three things that are true about your characters birth world and the
circumstances of his youth.
First, you get to say three things about your homeworld. Tink about its social
structure, geography, etc. Tree things.
Second, your homeworld gives you two benets.
Your bomeworld gives you a +1 in any Trait.
Your bomeworld also gives you one +2 Specialty.
Step 2: Choose a Commission
Tere are ve commissions in Te Aegis Forge: Grunt, Special Forces, Apollo
Project, Hades Operative and Civilian.
Apollo Soldier
Te best humanity has to oer. Tese men and women are genetically designed to be the
walking killing machines. Ten, after theyre born, science really goes to work on them.
Tey are as remorseless and merciless as our Enemy. May God have mercy on their
souls.
Str Ops Weapons Intel Empathy
Apollo 4 3 4 2 1
An Apollo has two +4 Specialties and four Specialty Points.
An Apollo can raise their Strength and Weapons Trait and any
Weapons or Strength Specialty to +5.
When an Apollo Soldier carries Heavy Weapons, they only ll one
Weapon Slot.
An Apollo Soldier has access to Apollo Project weapons and
equipment.
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Apollo Pilot
After your training, you have been chosen by an AI to pilot the most sophisticated, most
deadly and most expensive piece of military equipment ever designed by man. While
you have been bred to be a killing machine, you have rened the skills necessary to kill
with a specic tool: the Aegis Armor.
Pilot 4 4 3 2 1
An Apollo Pilot has the Apollo Pilot Specialty at +4. You also have
four Specialty Points.
You are the Pilot of an Aegis Armor. Get yourself an Aegis sheet and
go to work.
An Apollo Pilot can raise their Ops and Weapons Trait and any Ops
or Weapons Specialty to +5.
An Apollo has access to Apollo Project weapons and equipment.
Grunt Squad
Grunts are the backbone of the UNEC Army. Run through basic training and thrown
onto the battleeld, they can do little against the weapons of the Enemy other than
provide distractions for more eective units.
A grunt squad is not a single character, but a group of characters played by a single
player. Tey act in unison to protect and provide support for other characters.
Te squad has some unique advantages and disadvantages. Ill list them here, but
theyll make more sense when you read further in the book.
Grunt 3 3 3 2 3
Grunt squads have four equipment slots and four weapon slots. (See
Equipment and Weapons sections.)
Te Grunt Squad has two +2 Specialties and four Specialty Points.
A Grunt Squad cannot have any Specialties higher than +2.
Grunt Squads start with 2 Camaraderie rather than 1 Camaraderie.
When a Grunt Squad gains an Injury, it loses one member of its
Squad. Tis does not aect Camaraderie; everyone expects Grunts to
die. When only one member of the Squad remains, that last soldier
becomes a Veteran (see below). A Squad has ten Grunts.
Grunts gain no experience points during play.
When a Grunt dies, Command does not take Camaraderie out of the
pool. Nobody cares about the new guy.
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Veteran
If a Grunt survives the War against the Enemy long enough, he gains the skills and
experience to become a Veteran. He may be a sniper or a demolitions expert. He may
specialize in recon actions or even in using Enemy technology. A valuable, yet still
expendable, asset.
Veteran 3 4 4 3 2
Te Veteran has one +4 Specialty and one +3 Specialty and ve
Specialty Points.
Veterans begin the game with Camaraderie 2.
Veterans have a unique ability: whenever they spend Camaraderie
Points on their +4 Specialty (chosen at character creation), he gains
an automatic bang.
Veterans can carry three pieces of equipment.
Veterans have 2 Move Points in combat.
Hades Operative
A Hades Operative is the representative of the UNECs Intelligence Division. Hades
Operatives are usually present for sensitive missions or missions that may result in the
acquisition of Enemytech. Teres a reason nobody trusts a Hades Operative: when
he shows up, you can know that everyone in your squad is a secondary priority and
expendable.
Hades 2 3 3 4 4
Te Hades Operative has one +3 Specialty and three Specialty
Points.
Hades Operatives cannot gain or use Camaraderie. He has no
Camaraderie Stat.
Hades Ops have access to Hades Agent weapons and equipment.
Te Hades Op can use his Apollo Override to command Apollo
Soldiers. If he uses this override, the Apollo Soldier must obey the
command; he has been conditioned to do so. He may try a contested
Empathy risk against the Hades Op; if the Apollo gets more bangs
than the Op, he can ignore the command. Te Hades Op indicates
he is using the Override by ending his command with the phrase, I
insist.
At the beginning of each mission, the Hades Operative has a secret
agenda. Command will tell you more about this when you choose to
play a Hades Operative.
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Aegis Engineer
Nobody knows her like you do. Nobody loves her like you do. Shes big and shes strong
and shes mighty. You know every inch of her and youre going to be the one who heals
her when she gets injured. Youre going to be the one who protects her. Nobody knows
her like you do.
Engineer 2 4 3 3 3
Te Aegis Engineer has the Engineering Specialty at +4 and four
Specialty Points. He can increase his Engineering Specialty to +5.
Te Aegis Engineer has three Equipment Slots (see below).
Civilian
You have been brought into the military as a consultant. You have little military
training but a highly needed set of skills. You have been assigned to an Aegis Squad and
while you have developed a connection to the soldiers, you are not one of them.
Civilian 2 4 2 3 4
Te Civilian has one +4 Specialty and ve Specialty Points. Buying
a Weapons Specialty or increasing its rank costs two of your ve
Points.
When a Civilian disobeys orders, he suers no penalty.
When Civilians use Camaraderie, they must draw two dice to roll
one. One die is always lost.
Black Squads
Near the end of the War, the UNEC grew desperately short of Apollo Squads. Instead of
carefully culturing their super soldiers, UNEC scientists began rushing the process. Te result
was Black Squads: Apollo soldiers specically designed for suicide missions. Tey were bred to
be fanatical, fatalistic and deadly. Tey did not even consider themselves human.
Apollo-B 3 3 3 2 1
If you are playing near the end of the Enemy War, you can play a Black Squad.
He has one +4 Specialty and three Specialty Points.
All Black Squads begin with 3 Camaraderie.
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Step 3: Specialties
Specialties represent talents and abilities soldiers pick up during training and
time in the eld. I encourage players to come up with their own Specialties, but have
provided a sample list below.
Notice that many Specialties allow you to both use and repair items pertaining to
the Specialty. Te military trains you how to use and repair tools and weapons.
Also, you cant have the Im Awesome at Everything Specialty. Bad form.
Each Specialty is also listed with its most often invoked Stat. You can nd the
Trait in the title of the Specialty in parenthesis.
For details on all the equipment you nd referenced here, see the Equipment
chapter later in this book.
Specialty Ranks
Specialties have four ranks:
+1
You have a basic understanding of this Specialty. Gain one bonus die for
appropriate risks.
+2
You have used this Specialty in the past under stressful situations. Gain two bonus
dice for appropriate risks.
+3
You are better than most other characters when using this Specialty. Gain three
bonus dice for appropriate risks.
+4
You are the best of the best. Gain four bonus dice for appropriate risks.
Mythic Rank
Tere is a rank above +4. Mythic rank. Mythic rank gives a character 4 bonus
dice for the risk plus one automatic bang. Write Mythic in the space provided for the
rank.
Specialty Points
Each player starts with a number of Specialty Points he can use to add Specialties
to his character sheet. Te number of Specialty Points he gets is based on his
Commission.
Each Specialty Point allows you to add a Specialty to your character sheet. Te
Specialty starts at Casual.
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To raise an existing Specialty to the next rank (Normal to Heroic, for example),
you must spend one Specialty Point.
Specialties List
AI Psychology (Intel)
Tis Specialty is for determining bliss stage and repairing damaged AI psychology
circuits.
Aegis Pilot (Operations)
Tis is used for piloting Aegis Armor.
Athletics (Strength)
Jumping, climbing, running, swimming, climbing and all the rest. And climbing.
Brawling (Strength)
Fighting with your sts, feet, head, teeth and anything else.
Communications (Operations)
Your soldier knows how to use and repair radios, walkie-talkies and other tools
that allow you to communicate with the rest of the team and command.
Computers (Operations)
Your soldier can both use and repair computers. Tis includes hacking, cracking
encryption, etc.
Demolitions (Weapons)
Light fuse. Run away.
Driver (Operations)
Jeeps, tanks and everything with wheels. Tis Specialty does not cover Aegis or
anything that ies.
Enemytech (Intel)
Te technology used by the Enemy is very dierent than the tech we use.
Knowing how Enemytech works gives you a distinct advantage on the battleeld.
Engineering (Operations)
Engineering covers designing, building, maintaining and dismantling military
works, including oensive, defensive and logistical structures and repairing them
when they go wrong.
Gambling (None)
Poker, black jack, craps, you name it. Whoever gets the most bangs wins the
round.
Grenades (Weapons)
Pull the pin. Trow far.
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Gunnery (Weapons)
Gunnery covers heavy weapons such as those carried on vehicles, rocket launchers,
etc.
Intimidation (Empathy)
While not very eective against the Enemys machines, this Specialty is highly
useful against other humans.
Jetpack (Operations)
Jetpacks give you a little boost when you need it.
Medic (Operations)
Fortieth Century tech has found all kinds of ways to stitch up soldiers. Medics
usually carry med packs, which can be found in the Equipment section. For rules
on healing injuries, see Violence.
Melee (Weapons)
For when it gets too close for comfort. Knives, clubs, swords and other close
combat weapons are considered free equipment. You can nd out what that
means in the Equipment chapter.
Navigation (Intel)
Getting from here to there. Use of this Specialty can dene key elements of the
terrain.
Persuasion (Empathy)
While not very eective against the Enemys machines, this Specialty is highly
useful against other humans when you want to get them to do what you want
them to do.
Pilot (Operations)
Tis is not Aegis piloting. Well cover that in the Aegis chapter. Tis is piloting
anything else.
Rifleman (Weapons)
Any long-barrel weapon. You can shoot it with deadeye accuracy and repair it
blindfolded.
Scout (Intel)
Knowing what to look for is important. Tis Specialty covers observing enemy
territory (hopefully in secret) and nding weaknesses.
Sidearm (Weapons)
Tis generally covers pistols. Pistols, like knives are free equipment, which is
something youll learn about in the Equipment chapter.
Stealth (Strength)
How not to be seen.
Jetpacks &
Cheeseburgers
When the original
designers of the
UNEC-issued
jetpack tested their
invention, the test
pilots gave themselves
the nickname, the
cheeseburgers. Te
gallows humor stuck
and now, jetpack
pilots are called
cheeseburgers.
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Chain of Command
All characters have a rank in the UNEC. Sometimes, those ranks go up and
sometimes they go down. Here are the beginning ranks for characters.
Private
All Grunts start the game as privates.
A soldier who nishes basic training successfully enters the UNEC United Forces
as a private.
Corporal
All Veterans begin as corporals.
A corporal is usually the man who is second in command of a small unit of
soldiers (a squad). A corporal is elevated to his position because he has shown
great valor or leadership skills.
Sergeant
All Aegis Soldiers start the game as sergeants.
A sergeant, a non-commissioned o cer, leads a squad of soldiers. If there is no
other o cer, he is directly responsible for the outcome of missions.
Lieutenant
All Aegis Pilots start the game as lieutenants.
Lieutenant is the rst true o cer rank in the UNEC United Forces. He is
responsible for a number of re teams, each headed up by a sergeant.
Commander
All Hades Ops have the equivalent rank of a commander.
A commander is in charge of a company of soldiers. He is ultimately responsible
for the success or failure of a mission.
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Chapter 4:
Equipment
Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket red, signies
in the nal sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are
cold and are not clothed.
Dwight D. Eisenhower
35
Tis chapter covers all the equipment and weapons used by the UNEC and its
various forces. However, there are a couple of rules you should know before we get into
the descriptions.
Slots
Te chief problem with being a soldier is equipment. At all times, you seem to
need more than what youve got. Tats a problem.
On your soldiers sheet, youll nd four slots. Two of those are weapon slots and
the other two are equipment slots.
You can only carry up to two weapons and two pieces of equipment at all times.
Some equipment and weapons take up more than a single slot and youll have to nd a
way to make it t.
Listed below is the standard equipment carried by the soldiers of the UNEC.
Some of it is restricted to specic Commissions. Youll nd those restrictions listed
under the appropriate equipment and weapons.
Soldiers receive various kits lled with the equipment they need for a specic
mission. UNEC kits contain extensive tools and other equipment that can be used and
reused on the eld. Remember that all Equipment requires an Operations risk to use.
Free Equipment
All character can carry pieces of equipment that do not count toward their
equipment slots. Youll nd these below.
Smart Device
Every character has a small, hand-held touch-sensitive device with many features.
It allows communication with any other character with a similar
device.
Live 3D GPS with weather, temperature and time.
AI port.
3D camera.
And games.
Citizen Card
All UNEC citizens have a citizen card. Tis is both a physical card and an
embedded chip. (Usually in the back of the left hand.)Your citizen card identies
who you are. It carries your medical history, your credit (seeWealth, below) and all
other information pertinent to the UNEC.
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Equipment Bonus
Every Specialty on your character sheet has a piece of equipment that makes
doing that Specialty easier. Some Specialties require the right equipment to use. (You
cant use the Sidearms Specialty if you dont have a pistol.)
Whenever you have the right equipment for the job, you get a bonus die.
Athletics: climbing equipment, ropes, etc.
Brawling: gloves, headgear, kneepads, etc.
Communications: com system
Computers: a computer, duh
Demolitions: explosives
Driver: car, tank, motorcycle, etc.
Enemytech: manual, infopad, etc.
Engineering: manual, infopad, etc.
Gambling: rigged dice, stripper deck, etc.
Grenades: a grenade; what else?
Gunnery: BFG
Intimidation: torture apparatus, a chair with a hole in the seat, etc.
Jetpack: a cheeseburger
Medic: medkit, bandages, ointment, etc.
Melee: sword, knife, etc.
Navigation: a map, a compass, etc.
Persuasion: a prepared speech, microphone, etc.
Pilot: hm I cant think of anything youd need here
Rieman: rie, shotgun, etc.
Scout: binoculars, camouage, etc.
Sidearm: dont bring a knife to a gunght
Stealth: camouage, high grass, darkness, etc.
Special Equipment
Some Equipment have special rules that make them more valuable than standard
equipment. Ive listed them below.
Aegis Emergency Repair Kit
Some soldiers carry the standard AER (or air) Kit. It includes basic tools for
basic repairs. Using the AER kit gives you one bonus die for Aegis repairs.
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Body Armor
Te standard body armor for UNEC soldiers reduces the number of Injuries a
soldier takes by one rank. Costs one Equipment Slot.
ETK Command Com (Encrypted Transmissions Kit)
Allows you to code and decode messages from Command and from the Enemy.
Decoding messages from Command is free, but decoding messages sent from
Enemy vessel-to-vessel requires an Operations risk.
Field Manual
Because the UNECUF made those rules for a reason. Carrying the eld manual
gives you +1d on all risks.
Food Pack
Someone has to carry it. If one player chooses to carry this pack, you have enough
food for all the characters for the rest of the mission. You wont have to do any
scrounging or eat radiated/poisoned food. (Remember, the Enemy is poisoning
everything, so thats more of a trick than you may think.) Make sure nobody shoots
the food.
Hostile Environment Pack
Keeps you safe from the poison the Enemy is pumping into the air.
Jump Pack
Gives you a bonus movement point.
(Someone asked me, Can my Aegis have a jump pack? Te answer is, Yes, but it
counts as a Weapon Slot rather than an Equipment Slot.)
Med Pack
Assists with healing. Te Med Pack adds one die to an Operations risk to heal a
fellow soldier. Te Med Pack is good for one mission (any number of uses) before
it must be replaced.
Sensor Pack
Te Sensor Pack gives you a 360-degree radar scan, good up to 100 meters. It
identies both humans and Enemy units, gives relative distance and speed. It also
gives you night vision, low-light vision and infrared vision. It adds one die to any
applicable risks.
Standard Repair Kit
Repairs (non-Aegis) damaged mechanical units with an Operations risk. Adds
one die to all repair risks. Tis kit cannot be used to repair Aegis Armor.
Stim Shot
A stim shot is a chemical boost that kicks your body into overdrive. Stim shots
come in six packs and take up one Equipment Slot. Stim shots require no action to
use. A stim shot gives your next Strength or Weapons risk an automatic bang.
38
Survival Pack
Tis pack includes everything youd expect a Boy Scout to have. It has the tools to
make re, a lean-to, a tent, shing wire and hook, etc.
Weapons
Tese are the standard issued weapons carried by human soldiers during the
Enemy War. Tere were other weapons for sureshotguns, hunting ries, etc.but
they proved to be ineective against the Enemys armor and were generally used by
civilian forces.
Ive listed the weapons in the following format.
Name
Tis is the name of the weapon.
Description
A short description of the weapon.
Accuracy
Tese are the ranges at which the weapon is most accurate. Firing the weapon
outside these ranges requires an additional bang for each range outside its
accuracy. For example, if a close weapon is red at far range, you must provide two
additional bangs to get one rank of eect.
Special
Each weapon also has one special ability.
Free Weapons
Free weapons are those a soldier can carry without taking up one of their two
Weapon Slots. Tere are two such weapons: the pistol and the knife.
The M812 12.7mm Sabre Automatic Pistol
Te M812 is a semi-automatic, recoil-operated, magazine-fed, 12.7mm handgun
issued to every soldier in the UNCE Military. It has a magazine that holds eight
shots. Standard ammunition issue are the 12.7mm x 40mm Semi-Armor-Piercing
High Explosive rounds, or SAP rounds. Grunts can often be heard saying, I
need SAP for my Sabre.
Accuracy: Close, Near
Special: Tis weapon does not count against your Weapon Slots.
Survival Knife
Te standard combat knife carried by the UNEC soldier is 45 centimeters long
made of high carbon steel with a titanium-carbide coating.
Accuracy: Close
Special: Tis weapon does not count against your Weapon Slots.
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Small Arms
The 7.62mm Mauler Assault Rifle
TeMA5B Assault Rieis an air-cooled, gas-operated, magazine-fed weapon
designed for automatic re.Unlike its counterpart, the Grendel Battle Rie, the
Mauler is designed for close ghting. Its accuracy in long-range ghting is low. It
can hold up to 60 rounds in its clip and can re every single one of those rounds in
less than ve seconds.
Special: Te Mauler vomits rounds at an amazing rate, lling an entire room
with rounds that are more like shrapnel than bullets. You may apply your bangs to
any opponents that are within range.
The 7.62mm Grendel Battle Rifle
Designed to be used as a long-range weapon, the 7.62, better known as the
Grendel is an air-cooled, magazine-fed, gas-operated select-re bullpup rie that
res 7.62x51mm ammunition. It has both automatic and single-shot capability. It
has a 30 round magazine and can be equipped with a standard scope. Designed as
a long-range weapon, it is highly accurate and incredibly resilient to damage.
Accuracy: Near, Long
Special: Te Grendels scope gave it the nickname, Lil Snipe. You may use the
Snipe Maneuver at near and long range with this weapon.
The M525 50 Caliber Special Applications
Anti-Materiel (SAAM Sniper) Rifle
Te M525 is a recoil-operated, semi-automatic anti-materiel rie. It carries a
ten round detachable box magazine, and in the right hands, can be accurate up
to 1,800 meters (about 5,906 feet, or just over a mile). It is designed not only as
an anti-personnel weapon but also as an anti-materiel weapon designed for use
against military equipment.
Accuracy: Long, Far
Special: Te M525dubbed Miss Precious by the snipers of the human army,
allows you to use the Snipe Maneuver.
Heavy Weapons
The 102mm High-Explosive Surface-to-Surface
Anti-Vehicle Assault Weapon/Man Portable
Air-Defense System
Otherwise known as the SAVAW or MANPADS, this weapon is a shoulder-
mounted missile launcher. It may be adapted to both surface-to-surface and
surface-to-air targets. It res 102mm rockets at speeds around Mach 2. Te
rockets are not heat seeking, but instead, are drawn by high magnetic elds such
40
as the ones generated by Enemytech Armor. Te weapon can re explosive,
fragmentary and piercing rounds.
Accuracy: long, far
Special: Te MANPADS does not target a single unit, but every target in a
single range. Te impact of the missile aects every unitfriendly or otherwise
in the range you target. All targets in that range receive Injury/Damage
appropriate to the rounds eect. Allies can attempt to take the Cover Maneuver
to avoid Injury/Damage.
The 7.62 Heavy Assault Recoilless Machine Gun
(HARM)
Better get out of HARMs way. It is an air-cooled, gas-operated linkless-fed
weapon that demands an ammo pack be strapped to the users back. Te pack
contains ve magazines of 200 rounds each and the HARM res all 200 of those
rounds in less than ve seconds. Te HARM is usually a mounted weapon (with
plenty of ammo packs available) but occasionally, it can be carried into combat.
Only an Apollo (with his 4 Strength) is able to carry the weapon. Te ammo
packs, each carrying 200 rounds, are strapped to his back.
Using this weapon counts as both a Weapon Slot and an Equipment Slot.
Special: Targets trying to avoid this weapon cannot use the Dodge Maneuver.
Unique Weapons & Equipment
Tis section handles the equipment issued to Veterans, Grunts and the Hades
Ops and Apollo Soldiers. Civilians do not have access to these lists. Te Equipment
items do not take up Equipment Slots but are listed under Special Equipment on the
character sheet.
Unique Weapons do take up Weapon Slots.
Grunt & Veteran Gear
Grunt Helmet
Te Grunt Helmet provides one point of Armor protection. Its visor (which can
be shut o) provides a HUD navigation system identical to the one listed above.
It also allows a Grunt Squad (and its leader) to communicate.
Veteran Body Armor
Veterans wear a mishmash of various pieces theyve picked up over the course of
the War. Tis provides one point of Armor protection.
41
Apollo Gear
Apollo Armor
Because of their advanced size and strength, Apollos can carry armor most human
soldiers cannot. Te Apollo Armor was designed specically for the Apollo
Project with each piece t for each soldier.
To score an Injury after a hit against an Apollo Soldier, the shooter must roll an 8,
9 or 10.
Shield Pack
In addition to their armor, Apollo soldiers are also equipped with personal
electromagnetic shields that deect incoming attacks. Te Apollos shield can only
protect against so much damage before it needs to recharge.
To activate the shield, the Apollo throws down his pack. Te shield pops up a
small aura that protects the Apollo Soldier and up to three others. Te shield
provides ve points of protection. Each point deducts one Injury from a specic
hit. When the shield takes a hit, it loses a point of protection. When the shield
loses all its strength, it must recharge. Recharging the shield requires ve rounds.
Weapons
All weapons available to other soldiers have modied counterparts for an Apollos
hands. Apollo versions of all weapons have an A- designation and are too large
and bulky for Grunts, Veterans, Hades Ops and Civilians to use eectively.
Apollo weapons always have +1 eect. In the hands of any other character, they
have -1 eect because of the di culty.
Hades Equipment
Hades Ops have their own unique equipment available only to them. Every
piece of Hades equipment is rigged with a sensor that identies the Op as the user. If
someone else tries to use the equipment, it detonates, giving the user a 5 Injury.
Aegis Override
Each Hades Op has a small deviceabout the size of a smart phonethat carries
the authentication code for each Aegis Armor. Te Op points this device at the
Aegis Armor and, within moments, can gain all the information on the Armor. He
can also send commands to the Armor. Pop the cockpit, for example. Or, Fire
missiles. Or, Shut down all systems.
Silhouette Body Armor
Hades Ops are given a sleek prototype body armor meant for speed rather than
protection. Any successful hit requires the shooter roll a 6-10 to cause Injury.
The 12.7x40mm (007) Sniper Pistol
Tis replaces the Sabre Pistol as a Free Weapon.
42
Te Hades Op carries a special pistol that is both silenced and scoped. Tis
deadly little piece of equipment is infamous in the ranks of the military and was
quickly nicknamed the 007. Many soldiers have asked, What do the Hades Ops
need with that other than to snipe soldiers who know too much? Tey dont ask
that question twice. Te 007 has a genetic key that locks the weapon if someone
other than the Hades Op tries to use it.
Range: Close, Near
Special: Due to the accuracy of the 007, you can modify any Damage Location
rolls by one pip when determining the location of a hit.
Personal Camouflage
Its a device about the size of a paperback book that ts in the small of the back.
When activated, it gives the same benet as the Aegis Armor Mod. To hit the
Hades Op while the PC is activated, the shooter needs three additional bangs.
If the Hades Op moves slowlyusing only one point of movementadd three
bangs to any Stealth risks.
The Bomb
All Hades Operatives have a small explosive implanted in their skulls in case of
capture or death. Te bomb can be detonated manually, but if their heart rate
stops, the bomb detonates automatically.
Clones
Using the procedures discovered during the Apollo Project, Hades has re-
congured the tech to make short-lived clones of their Hades Ops. Te clones
can only last up to seven days and are more fragile than humans. Each clone has
an internal hard drive that records the clones experiences and can be downloaded
after his return from the mission.
Oh, and in case youre curious, clones do not know they are clones; they believe
they are the original.
After the details of the mission are known, the Hades Op can opt to send a clone
rather than himself. If the clone returns, he can kill the clone and download the
info from the internal hard drive.
But clones are fragile and are not exact duplicates of the original. Clones suer a
-1 penalty (lose one die) on any risk. Also, a clone can suer only 4 Injuries before
death rather than 5.
Grenades
All soldiers start with and can carry up to four grenades. Grenades can be thrown
in both the close and near ranges. Grenades can only aect targets in a single range.
Trowing a grenade is a Strength risk. Privilege means you hit your target and
every bang is an additional target hit.
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EMP
EMP grenades were specically designed to disable Enemytech. Each target hit by
the EMP blast cannot take any action for the rest of the round, plus a number of
additional rounds equal to the bangs played against that target.
Flame
A ame grenade is jam packed full of the same chemical compound used in the
amer (see below). Te ame grenade causes damage to your targets armor with
each hit: if you hit with the ame grenade, in addition to your usual Damage, your
opponents armor goes down by one rank.
Frag
UNEC Fragmentation grenades explode into hundreds of razor sharp shards,
sending shrapnel into anyone within range. If you gain privilege after throwing
a frag grenade, add your total remaining bangs together. All targets within range
take a number of hits equal to your total bangs.
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Chapter 5:
Battle
No state has an inherent right to survive through conscript troops and, in the
long run, no state ever has. Roman matrons used to say to their sons: Come
back with your shield, or on it. Later on, this custom declined. So did Rome.
Robert A. Heinlein
45
Tis chapter covers all the rules for ghting. Tis is a game about soldiers, after all,
and we should have some rules for violence.
First, well talk the basics. Tese rules cover everything you need to know for any
kind of ght. Man vs. man, man vs. machine, machine vs. machine.
Second, well take a look at some changes for when you change the combatants.
The Fight Scene
A ght scene is a special kind of scene with its own rules. Dont worry; it wont
be a completely dierent system that you need to memorize in addition to the rules
from Chapter 2. Its more like a list of exceptions to make the ght scene feel more like
violence.
Fight Scene Overview
Step 1: Range
Every character in the ght either announces his range or Command tells them at
which range they are. Characters can move, hoping to gain better range.
Step 2: Intention
All players announce their rst action for the round.
Step 3: Roll
All players roll dice at once and notify Command of the result.
Step 4: Narration
Command narrates the entire round with the eect of all actions occurring
simultaneously.
Step 5: Escalation
Move on to round two where all actions have an eect of 2. Add one rank of eect
to each round.
Fight Scene Sequence
Step 0: Round Effect
Before doing anything else, put a d10 in the center of the table. Tis represents the
Round Eect. As soon as Round One begins, set the die to 1.
At the end of each round, you will increase the Round Eect by one. But were not
there yet. Lets go on to Step 1.
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Step 1: Range
First, everyone determines range in the ght scene. Range is an abstract amount
of distance between you and your enemy. Typically, range will be determined by the
circumstances before ghting begins. If you are face-to-face with your opponent, the
range will be close. If you are half a mile away targeting your opponent with a sniper
rie, the range will be far range.
Te Narrator determines the correct range for all characters involved in the ght
scene. Some weapons have better eect when at specic ranges.
Range breaks down into four categories:
Close
Close quarters are when you are face-to-face with your enemy.
Near
Near range is when you are close enough to run up to your enemy, but not close
enough to touch.
Long
Long range is when you are many meters away from your enemy; too far to rush.
Far
Far range is when you need equipment to see your enemy; such as a scope or
binoculars.
Movement
All soldiers have one Move Point they may use during the round. For additional
move points, see the Double Time Maneuver.
A player may choose to move as part of their action. Tey can use their move to
increase the range between them and their enemy, decrease the range between them
and their enemy or maintain the range between them and their enemy.
Some characters have more than one point of movement. If they do, they can
change their range by a number of degrees equal to their movement rate.
For example, if you have two movement points, you can increase your range from
near to far or decrease your range from long to close.
Increase 1 vs. Decrease 1 Maintain Range
Increase 1 vs. Increase 1 Increase Range by 2
Decrease 1 vs. Increase 1 Maintain Range
Decrease 2 vs. Increase 1 Decrease Range by 1
Increase 2 vs. Decrease 1 Increase Range by 1
Decrease 2 vs. Decrease 2 Decrease Range by 4
Decrease 2 vs. Increase 2 Maintain Range
Increase 2 vs. Increase 2 Increase Range by 4
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Move vs. Move
If one character tries to decrease the range between themselves and their enemy
while their enemy tries to increase the range, compare the movements. From the
chart below, you can determine the outcome of any contested movement.
Step 2: Intention
At the beginning of the scene, every character gets one action. Some characters
(most, in fact) have more than one action. Each player describes his action. Dont
worry about initiative, round order or anything like that. Each player describes what
his character is doing.
Step 3: Roll Dice
Once every player has described his characters action, everyone rolls dice or
spends points for their action. Tis happens all at once. Tere is no initiative here.
Everything happens in a simultaneous rush of events.
Te players then notify Command how many bangs they got.
Step 4: Narration
Command now narrates the outcome of the actions as one coherent scene. Tose
who succeeded get what they want. Tose who didnt get something else.
Effect
Each Action has an eect. You will see this eect under each Maneuvers
description.
At this point, in round one, all Maneuvers have an eect of 1. Subsequent
rounds increase the ranks of all Maneuvers. Youll see how that works in a
moment.
Step 5: Escalate
When all players have taken one action, its time for the second round.
Tis works the same way as the rst round, except this time, all successful rolls
have an eect of 2 instead of 1.
Example
Im Command and Ive got three players: Ben, Dan and Ro. All three of them are
Aegis Pilots moving across the ruins of Phoenix, AZ in their Armor, trying to dodge
the Enemys Eye.
Ben is in the Assault Chassis.
Dan is in the Recon Chassis.
Injury
Human characters can
take ve Injuries before
falling down. Apollo
Soldiers and Pilots can
take six.
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Ro is in the Support Chassis.
As they round a corner, they spot three squads of Drones. Tats thirty in total
(ten per Squad).
Were playing on the Normal Di culty which means they need to get two bangs
to get privilege. (Te Enemy does not.)
Round 1
Step One: Range
I tell my players that this scene begins at long range. I also let them know that the
Drones have not yet detected their presence, so they can either try to sneak by or take
them by surprise.
Ben says, I use my move to drop the distance to close range. Because Bens Aegis
has a Move of 3, he can decrease the range from long to close.
Dan says, I use my move to drop to far range and snipe the Troops. Because
Dans Aegis has a Move of 3, he can increase his range from long to far.
Ro says, I use my move to maintain long range and shoot at the Troops. Because
Ro has a Move of 1, and her opponent doesnt know shes there, she maintains her
distance.
Step Two: Actions
Te players consider their options. Tey spend a few moments talking about what
to do, and then they announce their actions.
Ben says, I will attack the Drones at close range.
Dan says, I will snipe from my far distance.
Ro says, I will re my missiles from my long distance.
I notify the players that the Drones cannot take actions this round because they
will catch them by surprise.
Step Three: Roll Dice
Gather up all the dice for your risk. Remember where you get dice from:
Te most appropriate Trait gives you a number of dice equal to the Traits rank.
A Specialty gives you a number of bonus dice equal to its rank.
If you have the right equipment or weapon, you gain one bonus die.
You can draw any number of dice from the Camaraderie Pool.
Te players all roll dice simultaneously and look at their results.
Ben tells me, I got privilege and four bangs.
Dan tells me, I got privilege and three bangs.
Ro tells me, I got privilege and three bangs.
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Step Four: Narration
Knowing that all of my players have succeeded, Command (thats me) narrates the
outcome of their actions.
Bens Assault Class Armor rushes up to the unsuspecting Drones and wrecks one
squad with his close combat weaponry. Because he got privilege in round one, he gets 1
eect. Tats one die worth of Drones down and out. Each bang allows him to take out
more Drones. So, he takes out a total of (1 privilege + 4 bangs) ve Drones.
Dan res his mounted sniper rie. He got privilege and three bangs. Tat means
he takes out a total of (1 privilege + 3 bangs) four more Drones.
Ro launches medium range missiles at the Drones. All three Squads take one hit
(its round one) plus a number of hits equal to her bangs. Tats a total of (1 privilege
+ 3 bangs) for each Squad. Fortunately, Bens Shield and Armor absorb the damage.
But Bens Shields are down and wont be up until the end of the next round (at the
beginning of round 3).
Ben did 5 Damage to one Squad. Tat means theres only ve left.
Dan did 4 Damage to another Squad. Tats six left.
Ro did 4 Damage to all three Squads.
Squad 1 has two remaining Drones.
Squad 2 has three remaining Drones.
Squad 3 has six remaining Drones.
Step Five: Escalation
Now, its time to escalate the violence. All eects increase to the rank of the round.
Since round 2 is coming up, privilege gives you a rank 2 eect. Tat means if Ben,
Dan or Ro get privilege, it causes 2 Damage plus any additional bangs. Lets see what
happens in round 2.
Round 2
Remember, in round 2, privilege grants 2 eect, not one.
Step One: Range
Te players decide what they want to do with their Movement Points.
All three of them tell me they want to use their Movement to maintain their
ranges. Ben at close, Dan at far and Ro and long.
Te Enemy also has Movement. Te Drones attempts to get closer to the Aegis.
Unfortunately, the Enemy has only 2 Movement and all the Aegis have 3 Movement.
Tat means the Aegis maintain their range.
Step Two: Intention
Ben tells me, I attack more Drones with my Claws.
Dan says, I snipe more Drones.
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Ro says, I use my rockets. But then, she remembers Ben is in the thick of the
ght and she changes her mind. Ill re my HARM.
Te Enemy has an intention, too. Because Ben is within range, they attack his
Aegis. All of them. Tey have the Enemy Heavy Weapon, so they can do damage to
the Aegis Armor. If they only had hand weapons, they could not do any Damage to
Ben at all.
Step Three: Roll Dice
Te players and I roll dice.
Ben gets privilege and two bangs.
Dan gets privilege and ve bangs (a good roll).
Ro gets privilege and one bang (not a good a roll).
Te Enemyall gathered together in one range and all ring at Bengets
privilege and six bangs.
Step Four: Narration
Now, its my job to narrate the outcome.
Everything happens at once (unless a specic rule gives you an exception).
Dan, your shots go straight through the Drones, knocking up dust behind their
falling bodies. Ro, your shots wreck the Drones and they fall where your bullets hit
them. And Ben, you maul through them with your Claws.
But the Enemy res back with their Enemy Heavy Weapon and it rocks your
Aegis from its feet. And while you are down, they re again and again and again.
Bens Shields are down, so they cant protect him. His Armor will provide some
protection, but the Enemy has privilege (2 Damage) and six bangs. Tats a total of (2
+ 6) eight Damage.
Bens Armor reduces the Damage by three, allowing ve to get through. I roll ve
dice on Bens Damage Table. I get two hits on Weapons, a hit on Movement and a hit
on Life Support.
Bens AI begins working on repairs
Again, all of this happens at once. Everyone applies all the Damage and Injury.
And then, its time to escalate.
Step Five: Escalation
Tis is the end of round 2. Time to escalate up to round 3. Now, all privilege is
worth 3 eect. Tat means every hit will do at least three Damage/Injury.
Maneuvers
Tis is a list of actions players can take during combat. Some are straight forward
and others have special eects.
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Each Maneuver has an eect of 1 during round 1, an eect of round 2 during
round 2, an eect of 3 during round 3 and so on.
Rank 5 Maneuvers
Once a player invokes a rank 5 Maneuver, that sets the current
round as the last round. Every other player gets one more Maneuver.
Once the turn comes back to the player who invoked the rank 5
Maneuver, the violence scene continues with all eects at rank 5 until
one side surrenders or is killed.
Bash (Strength)
Tis Maneuver may only be performed at close range.
Smashing your st or your weapon into your targets face/sensory
system momentarily blinds/disorients it. You stun your opponent
for one action.
Bind (Strength)
Tis Maneuver may only be performed at close range.
Using your strength and understanding of momentum and
anatomyeven robots have anatomyyou are able to keep your
opponent from attacking either yourself or anyone else. To break
free, your opponent needs to beat your bangs in this Maneuver.
Coup de Grace (Weapons or Strength)
Tis Maneuver may only be performed at close range. You may
only perform this Maneuver if the current eect is 5 or if your
target has ve or more Injuries/Damage.
You may kill/destroy your target.
Cover (Strength)
Providing another character cover as he moves increases the number of bangs
needed to hit him. Every bang you get for providing cover is another bang an
Enemy needs to hit the character you are providing cover.
Defend (Strength)
You must be at the same range as your target to perform this Maneuver.
You may choose to defend another character from an incoming attack. If you
do so, you take a number of Injuries/Damage equal to the bangs you get in this
Maneuver.
Disarm (Strength)
You may choose to rip a weapon from your opponent. You must perform a
Strength contested risk against your opponent. If successfulif you get more
bangsyou rip the weapon from your opponents grip.
Distract (Empathy)
First Era Aegis Armor may not use this Maneuver.
Why Does Command
Get to Narrate?
Some folks have asked me why
Command gets to narrate the
outcome of ght scene risks.
Tats because war is not a clean,
clear and mechanized procedure
with the ease of putting together
a jigsaw puzzle.
War is a mess. And, if youre
a soldier, most of it is out of
your control. Completely out
of control. You do your job and
you hope some random piece of
shrapnel doesnt cut an inch into
the back of your thigh and cut
an artery. You hope. But
thats really all youve got.
Taking control of ght scenes
out of players hands is the way
to convey the chaos, mayhem
and uncontrollable fury of
warfare.
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Tis is an Empathy Maneuver which must be performed against an opponent at
least within two ranges of yourself. If successful, your opponent attacks you with
his next action.
Dodge (Strength)
Tis Maneuver allows you to get out of the way of an incoming attack. Declaring
Dodge takes up one action. Any bangs you get from this Maneuver add to the
number of bangs your opponent needs to cause you Injury or Damage.
Double Time (Strength)
First Era Aegis Armor may not use this Maneuver. See the Dash Armor
Modication.
Tis is a Strength Maneuver.
Tis Maneuver represents using your entire action to move. You get no other
action. Tis Maneuver adds half your rank in Strength (rounded up) to your
movement points for a single round.
Feint (Strength)
Feigning an attack in one direction and then attacking in another is a classic
means of catching your opponent o guard. While this Maneuver does no damage
to your opponent, any bangs you get from this Maneuver count towards your next
attack.
Injure (Strength or Weapons)
Tis is the default Maneuver. You attack to injure your opponent. You perform a
number of Injuries or Damage equal to the rank of the Maneuver (determined by
the round).
Intimidate (Empathy)
Tis is an Empathy Maneuver. You must be within two ranges of your opponent
to perform it. When you use this Maneuver, keep track of the numbers you roll on
your dice.
You may apply any bangs you get from this Maneuver to any number of
opponents. (If you have ve bangs, you can give one bang to ve opponents.) Your
opponent cannot use any bang that is greater than the number on the bang you
gave to them.
Lunge (Weapons)
You must be in the same range as your opponent to use this Maneuver.
Tis is a reckless Maneuver that throws all your weight behind a single attack.
Te Damage Eect of your Lunge is increased by one. (If you perform a lunge in
round 3, it does four Damage instead of 3). Any bangs you play for this Maneuver
add to the Injury you do to your opponent but also count toward any attacks
made against you for this round.
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Press (Strength)
Tis Maneuver allows you to push your opponent in a particular direction. You
can push them toward or away from another character, thus changing the range.
Punch (Strength)
Instead of using a weapon, you just use your bare hands (or your Aegis Armors
hands). Damage and Injury are the same.
Snipe (Weapons)
Tis Maneuver may only be performed with a weapon that provides this
Maneuver as a Special eect.
Due to your weapons precise accuracy, you can modify any Damage Location rolls
by one pip when determining the location of a hit. Tus, you can change a roll of 7
to 6 or 8. Or, you can change a roll of 3 to 2 or 4. You cannot change a 0 (10) to a
1 nor can you change a 1 to a 0.
Taunt (Empathy)
Tis is an Empathy Maneuver that may only be performed at close range.
You may apply your bangs to any number of opponents. Your opponents must
play an equal number of bangs to cancel the Taunt. If they do not, they must
perform the Charge Maneuver (see above).
Throw (Strength)
If you get a number of bangs equal to or greater than your opponents Strength,
you throw him to the ground. He must spend his next action getting back up.
ENEMYTECH
When soldiers face the Enemy, they step onto deadly ground. Te Enemys
technology is designed for a single purpose: the extermination of humanity.
Listed below are the various techs the Enemy uses to achieve that goal. Each tech
is listed with the same format:
Name: Tis is the techs name.
Battle: Te number of dice the tech rolls during battle.
Damage: Te amount of damage the tech can take before it is destroyed.
Damage Table: Each tech also has a Damage Location Table. Each hit scored
against the tech gives the player one die to roll on this table.
Special: Each tech has a special rule that distinguishes it from the others.
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Assault Crawlers
Assault Crawlers carry massive missile arrays, poison cannons and radiation
bombs. All weapons designed to destroy humanity. Assault Crawlers are the largest of
the Crawler tech.
Armor
Te Assault Carrier has ve points of Armor.
Battle Dice
Te Assault Crawler rolls 10 dice for all combat risk.
Movement
Te Assault Crawler has 3 Movement Points.
Weapons
Missiles, Rad Bombs, Poison Cannons
Special
Te Assault Crawler always has +1 eect for any successful hit.
Damage
Te sidebar nearby shows how to damage the Assault Crawler. Te
Crawler has many repair systems to maintain damage control. Each
round, the Crawler repairs 1d5 (roll a d10 and divide) Damage Points.
AI damage shuts down the Crawler completely until all Damage is
repaired.
Te only way to stop a Crawler is by hitting it with twenty points of Damage in
a single round. If an Assault Crawler ever has a total of twenty points of Damage
at any one time, it self-destructs causing an eect 10 explosion. Tis causes ten
points of Damage/Injury to everything within two ranges of the Assault Carrier.
Soldiers and Aegis cannot perform the Coup de Grace Maneuver on a Crawler.
Troop Crawlers
Troop Crawlers (also called Carriers) carry hordes of corrupted humans. Troop
Crawlers are smaller than their Assault counterparts and are designed for population
thinning missions.
Armor
Te Troop Carrier has four points of Armor.
Battle Dice
Movement
Te Assault Crawler has 3 Movement Points.
Weapons
Anti-Personnel Cannons, Poison Cannons
Assault Crawler
Damage Table
1 AI
2 Armor
3 Battery
4 Damage Control
5 Missiles
6 Poison Cannons
7 Rad Bombs
8 Sensors
9-10 Treads
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Special
Te Troop Crawler carries a number of Troops (see below) for anti-
personnel missions. Every round, it can add more Troop Squads to the
battle. Roll 1d5. Te number is the amount of Troop Squads it adds.
Damage
Te sidebar nearby shows how to damage the Troop Crawler. Te
repaired.
Te only way to stop a Crawler is by hitting it with twenty points of
Damage in a single round. If an Assault Crawler ever has a total of
twenty points of Damage at any one time, it self-destructs causing
an eect 10 explosion. Tis causes ten points of Damage/Injury to
everything within two ranges of the Troop Crawler.
Soldiers and Aegis cannot perform the Coup de Grace Maneuver on a
Crawler.
Factory Crawlers
Factory Crawlers gather up raw materials transforming them into the tech the
Enemy needs. Tey are the smallest and least protected of the Crawlers.
Armor
Te Assault Carrier has three points of Armor.
Battle Dice
Movement
Te Assault Crawler has 1 Movement Point.
Weapons
Missiles, Anti-Personnel Weapons
Special
Te Factory Crawler always has +1 eect for any successful hit.
Damage
Te sidebar nearby shows how to damage the Factory Crawler. Te
repaired.
Te only way to stop a Crawler is by hitting it with twenty points
of Damage in a single round. If a Factory Crawler ever has a total of
Troop Crawler
Damage Table
1 AI
2 Armor
3 Battery
4 Damage Control
5 Anti-Personnel
Cannons
6 Poison Cannons
7 Troop Bunker
8 Sensors
9-10 Treads
Assault Crawler
Damage Table
1 AI
2 Armor
3 Battery
4-5 Damage Control
6 Missiles
7 Anti-Personnel
Cannons
8 Sensors
9-10 Treads
56
twenty points of Damage at any one time, it self-destructs causing an eect 10
explosion. Tis causes ten points of Damage/Injury to everything within two
ranges of the Factory Carrier.
Soldiers and Aegis cannot perform the Coup de Grace Maneuver on a Crawler.
Drone Squads
Drones are the hideously deformed remnants of humans who have been captured
into the Enemy. Tey are transformed into mindless killing machines. Teir bodies
are augmented with Enemytech, making them look less than human and more than
dangerous.
Armor
Te Enemy surgically implants a carapace on each captive, giving him two points
of body armor to protect them from human foes.
Battle Dice
Brainwashed and bloodthirsty, Drones roll ten dice for any combat risk.
Drone Squads can take ten points of Injury before they are completely wiped
out. Each soldier represents one point of Injury and one die of eectiveness. As
the Drone Squad takes Injuries, it loses dice. Every point of Injury causes the
Drone Squad to lose one Battle Die. Drone Squads never roll less than three dice,
regardless of how many Drones remain in the Squad.
Movement
With their hyper-augmented muscles and joints, Drones have two points of
movement.
Weapons
Drones typically carry Enemytech hand weapons or heavy weapons. A Drone
Squad has three Weapon Slots.
Special
When the Drone Squad enters Close range with any human target, it gets an
automatic Intimidate risk. Te Drone Squad rolls seven dice for this risk.
Bug Swarms
Tey were about the size of an adult human with wings and stingers. And they
were made of metal. Men called them bugs and yers. Tey swarmed and poisoned
us with their venom.
Armor
Bugs are not well armored, but they do travel in swarms. Bugs have zero Armor.
Battle Dice
Te swarm acts as a single unit linked by a cybernetic hive mind. A bug swarm
rolls ten Battle Dice.
57
A Swarm has fteen Battle Dice it can use against opponents. Like the Drone
Squad, every point of Damage done to the Swarm represents a die lost from the
Swarm.
Bug Swarms have no Damage Chart. Any Damage caused to the Swarm
represents a small percentage of the entire Swarm destroyed.
Movement
Swarms are fast, ripping the skin o scores of victims before moving on to the
next. Swarms have three Movement Points.
Weapons
Swarms dont carry weapons, per se. Instead, they have Poison Spray to spray into
their opponents eyes and Stingers to inject poison into their targets.
Special
A Bug Swarm is incredibly di cult to combat. A swarm is made up of hundreds
of these things. Shooting one or two accomplishes nothing.
Regardless of the round, any Small Arms Weapon used against the Swarm has an
eect of 1. Bangs cannot be used to increase the Damage.
Te only weapons that can eectively combat a swarm are the Flamer and any
Heavy Weapon. Tose weapons have full eect on the Swarm and bangs can be
used to increase the Damage.
Enemytech Weapons
Te Enemy has weapons very similar to the human armaments but with one
noticeable exception: they are all energy weapons. Instead of ammunition, they have
batteries. Also, Enemy weapons are capable of a few unique abilities their human
counterparts do not have.
Name
Tis is the name of the weapon.
Description
A short description of the weapon.
Accuracy
Tese are the ranges at which the weapon is most accurate. Firing the weapon
outside these ranges requires an additional bang for each range outside its
accuracy. For example, if a close weapon is red at far range, you must provide two
additional bangs to get one rank of eect.
Special
Each weapon also has one special ability.
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The Blaster: Hand Weapon
Te Enemy hand weaponalso known as the blasteris a small, hand-held
weapon that res energy bolts at its opponent.
Accuracy: close and near
Special: the blasters energy delivers a painful blow to the human nervous
system. Instead of using bangs for additional damage, the blaster can cause its
target to lose dice from next rounds action. Each bang removes one die from your
opponents action the following round.
The Pulse Rifle: Heavy Weapon
Te pulse rie requires two human hands to use (also, two Equipment Slots). It
is heavyalmost too heavybut deadly. It res rapid energy bolts at its targets,
slamming through Armor and other protections.
Accuracy: close, near, long
Special: Te pulse rie res a rain of energy. Targets trying to avoid this weapon
cannot use the Dodge Maneuver.
Missile Arrays
Te Enemys missiles are not physical shells containing large amounts of
explosives. Instead, they are large energy bolts thrown at great distances.
Accuracy: long, far
Special: Te impact of the missile aects every unitfriendly or otherwisein
the range you target. All targets in that range receive Injury/Damage appropriate
to the rounds eect. Allies can attempt to take the Cover Maneuver to avoid
Injury/Damage.
Poison Cannons
Te Enemys poison cannons are some of the most dreaded of its armaments.
Lobbing canisters of an invisible gas. Te canisters break open before they reach
the ground, spilling their contents into the air.
Accuracy: long, far
Special: Poison cannons attack a specic range. All units within that range are
aected. Without protection from the poisonsuch as a sealed atmosphere
units are instantly paralyzed and die within ve rounds.
Rad Bombs
Rad bombs deliver crippling radiationsomething that does not aect the
robotic armies of the Enemy. Te Enemy uses rad bombs when it wants to
maintain structures.
Accuracy: long, far
Special: Like the poison cannons listed above, this weapon targets a specic
range. All units within that range must be wearing hazard suits (see Equipment)
59
or be within sealed systems. Otherwise, they are incapacitated by the radiation
overdose and die within ve rounds.
Stingers
Te Enemys bugs use a weapon that injects poison into its target. Te poison is
lethal and kills quickly.
Accuracy: close
Special: To deliver the poison, the bug must make a successful Strength risk
against its target (not Weapons). If successful, the poison is injected. Bangs
determine the amount of poison. Each dose of poison subtracts dice from the
targets next action. Also, subtract the amount of poison delivered by 10. Tat
is the number of rounds the target has to live before the poison overcomes his
system.
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Chapter 6:
Armor
Tere are no dangerous weapons; there are only dangerous men.
Robert Heinlein, Starship Troopers
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During the First Age, Aegis Forge produced ve dierent Chassis congurations.
Te designers made each with its own purpose. Weapons and equipment were unique
for each conguration.
Each conguration was also equipped with an Aegis Mod. Tese modications to
the Aegis Armor were designed by separate corporations from separate projects. Te
mods were adapted to specic Chassis to maximize their performance. Most mods
only transferred power from many systems to a single system for short periods of time
(to prevent permanent damage), but a few were specically built for the Aegis Project.
Aegis Crew
Te First Era Aegis Armor had a crew of three: the pilot, the engineer and the AI.
Te pilot was typicallybut not alwaysan Apollo Soldier. He was responsible
for ring the weapons and movement.
Te engineer was usually not an Apollo Soldier. Te engineer maintained the
systems within the Armor and communications with Command and other soldiers.
Also, if the internal workings of the Aegis were damaged, the engineer was responsible
for immediate repairs.
After inclusion of the AI, much of the engineers duties became redundant, but
physical repairs, a duty the AI cannot perform, remained in his mission duties.
The AI
Te newest addition to the Aegis crew, the AI managed the Armors internal
systems and the ow of energy from the ssion engines. Te internal workings of the
Aegis Armor was much like the human circulatory system. Te engine is the heart,
pumping energy to the Armors dierent systems. Te Ai was capable of shifting
that energy as it was needed at the speed of thought. Te AI was also responsible for
assisting the pilot, augmenting his skills with her own through the neural link between
them.
Tis nuclear ssion heart powered the Aegis Armor. It was a technology
unavailable to mankind until the capture of Enemy Armor. Not only the armor, but
the unique system the Enemy used to move energy from one system to another as
needed. In order to run this system, mankind needed Enemy AI. Only the AIs ability
to make millions of calculations at hyper speeds could maintain the system.
Armor Risks
When inside the Armor, each member of the crew has specic duties.
Strength Risks
When engaging in a Strength risk with any human, the Armor automatically wins
with ve automatic bangs.
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When facing another Aegis or for non-contested risks, Aegis Armor rolls 7d10.
Firing Weapons
Te pilot res the Armors weapons with his Weapons Trait and Gunnery
Specialty.
Repairs
Te engineer can make repairs using Operations + Aegis Repair.
Systems
Modications to the energy system are made by the AI.
Contingencies
If the pilot, engineer or AI is unavailable, another member of the crew can attempt
to make the risk. For example, if the pilot is unconscious or dead, the AI and
engineer can make Weapons risks using Weapons + Gunnery. If the engineer is
unavailable, the pilot can attempt repairs risks with Operations + Aegis Repair.
Chassis Specs
Each Chassis is listed here with the same format.
Chassis Name
Tis is the name, or class, of the Chassis (as well as its nickname).
Size
Aegis came in three sizes: small, medium and large.
Weapon
Te weapon systems that can be tted to this Chassis.
Armor
How much protection you could t on the Chassis.
Movement
Te number of movement points each Chassis has.
Armor Mod
Finally, a unique ability to that class of Aegis Armor. Tese cannot be re-tted to
dierent Chassis classes.
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A-Class: Assault
Size: Medium
Armor: 3
Movement: 3
Weapons: Any Close or Near
Armor Mod: Dash
Te mission requirement for assault units was to draw the re of Crawlers and
other Enemytech while delivering devastating attacks at close range. A-class was
mounted with the highest degree of armor while maintaining a quick speed.
While not as fast as R-Class, A-Class was fast enough to evade most Crawler
defenses, allowing it to get in close and discharge its armor-piercing weapons.
Te Armor Mod for the A-Class was developed by the Gleeson Foundation
in an attempt to make Aegis Armor move more quickly. Power is transferred
from other systems to the electro-hydraulics, pushing the system faster than
originally designed. Te Armor moves at approximately x2 speed, jolting it across
the battleeld in a blur. Dash can only be used for short periods of time and no
weapons or other systems are operable when it is used.
Effect: For one round, the A-Class can double its movement. It cannot re or
perform any other actions. All it can do is move.
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C-Class: Command
Size: Medium
Weapons: Any
Armor: 2
Movement: 2
Armor Mod: Communications
Te C-Class Aegis was designed was designed by the Majcher Foundation to
maintain communications and status of an Aegis Squad. While the Squad had
communications with each other, the C-Class had the technology allowing
it to be in command of the Squad. C-Class had complete diagnostics of each
unit at its ngertips as well as override protocols in case of malfunction or
capture. In essence, Aegis Command could transfer orders through the C-Class.
Te Command Aegis also had link-up to satellite feeds, providing a constant
intelligence feed throughout the mission.
Effect: Te Command Classs unique communications node provides for two
eects. First, it allows Command to share its own movement with other Aegis in
its unit. If the Command Aegis gives away one of its movement points, it cannot
use the movement point itself. Second, it allows for coordinated attacks, allowing
other units to combine bangs on a single opponent.
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G-Class: Grenadier
Size: Large
Weapons: Any Far or Long
Armor: 3
Movement: 1
Armor Mod: Electro-Lock
First introduced by the Strecker Corporation, Athena Strecker designed by
G-Class as artillery units, staying back from the main ghting, lobbing explosive
shells, providing suppressive re for other units from a safe distance. Te G-Class
were heavily armored and not as mobile as the rest of the Aegis Squad, but their
repower could destroy entire legions of drones and other Enemytech. It was also
the largest Armor humanity elded against the Enemy.
Te Armor Mod assigned to G-Class was the Electro-Lock modication. Upon
command, all systems shut down to transfer all power to defenses. It created an
almost impregnable electro-eld around the Aegis unit, preventing any and all
damage. Te eld could only be maintained for a few seconds and another such
burst was not available until the Armor reset its systems.
Effect: Trowing down Electro-Lock protects the Aegis unit from any and all
damage for the entire round. Te Aegis cannot move or re or take any other
action; all systems shut down to protect the Aegis from taking any damage.
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R-Class: Recon
Size: Small
Weapons: Any Far or Short
Armor: 1
Movement: 3
Armor Mod: Camouage
Te Aegis Forge designed R-Class for inltration and reconnaissance. Its light
armor and high-powered electro-hydraulics made it the fastest unit on the eld.
It was also the smallest Chassis, standing only up to its fellows shoulders. Its
weapons were designed for long range, striking enemies and moving. Strike and
move, strike and move. If caught in direct confrontation, its only strategy was to
run.
Te Armor Mod supplied to the R-Class was a kind of chameleon/camouage
system that blended the Aegis into its background. Designed by Alan Venerable
and Azraela Clark in the Hades Corporation, it took almost ninety percent of
the Armors power to maintain and it could only maintain it for a short period
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of time. While camouaged, the Armors movement slowed down a crawl, all
defenses were down, but it could still operate its main gun.
Effect: Te camouage unit forces any units targeting the R-Class to use bangs
to overcome the eect of the camouage. If the R-Class did not use its move this
round, the number of additional bangs needed to hit it is double the current eect
of the round. If the R-Class did move this round, the number of additional bangs
needed to hit it is equal to the current eect of the round.
S-Class: Support
Size: Medium
Weapons: Any Close or Near
Armor: 2
Movement: 2
Armor Mod: Nano-Cloud
Te S-Class, or Support Armor, was designed to provide repairs and assistance
to the others in the unit. It moved quickly, had signicant armor but sacriced
weapons in lieu of the tools it needed to do its job. Support typically carried repair
kits and medical kits for both the Armor and pilots.
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Te Armor Mod provided to S-Units was only developed late in the War against
the Enemy. It was technology stolen from the factories found inside Crawlers
that transformed soil and other debris into functioning parts. Te process used
nanotechnology, but humanitys understanding of that tech (and the time/
resources they needed) was limited. Te Mod allowed the S-Class to drop a small
package of nanomachines that created a bubble around the S-Class and the fallen
Armor. Te nanomachines went to work repairing any damage and also created an
electromagnetic eld preventing most artillery and shells from doing any further
damage. Te shield was short-lived and could only withstand a few hits, but a
complete bombardment would knock the shield down in moments.
Effect: Te Nano-Cloud repairs Damage and heals Injury of both the S-Class
and one other Aegis within the same range. It repairs or heals half the rank of the
current eect, rounded up. If the rank of eect is 3, it repairs two Damage and
heals two Injury.
Te Nano-Cloud lasts until the end of the round. Ten, it must recharge for one
round before it can be used again.
Battery
Every system in the Aegis Armor requires a certain amount of energy to do its job.
Weapons, life support, tactical display, sensors, movement all of these things need
energy.
It is the AIs responsibility to maintain this delicate network running through the
Armor. She allocates the energy provided by the Armors battery. Heres how she does
it.
Take a look at the Aegis sheet in the back of the book. Youll notice that the sheet
displays all the systems in the Armor.
Under each system is a minimum. Tis is the minimum amount of energy the AI
must devote to that system to keep it up and running. Each system also has a threshold.
Tis is the maximum amount of energy the AI can safely devote to the system. Te AI
can put more energy into a system than what is safe, but if she does, she threatens a
shutdown or could even damage the system.
If a system is damaged, the AI can risk devoting more energy to the system to
compensate. Tis is risky, but it is a quick x.
Every Aegis Armor has the same systems, although the specic parts of the system
vary. For example, while both the S-Class and the G-Class have Armor Mod Systems,
the devices linked to those systems (camouage and electro-shock) are not the same.
Battery Power
Each Aegis has a battery providing 16 points of energy. Te AI is responsible for
allocating this energy to the various systems. Tat means, each round, the AI can move
points of power around the sheet.
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Te Aegis sheet has circles for each point of energy it needs to operate. Te AI
puts a die in each of these circles. If all the circles are lled, the system operates as
normal. If a system does not have enough energy, it does not operate at all.
Armor Mod
Minimum: 3, Maximum: 3
Tis system provides power to the Aegis Armor Mod. If this system loses power,
the Aegis cannot utilize its Mod.
Tactical HUD
Minimum: 1, Maximum 3
Te tactical heads up display (hud) provides information to the pilot. It tells him
ranges to targets, how much ammo is in each weapon, provides general systems
updates and supplies a sweeping radar, notifying him of both enemy and ally
movement.
Te HUD requires only one energy to run e ciently, however, additional energy
provides bonuses to Intel risks. Each energy above 1 gives one additional die for
any Intel risk.
Life Support
Life support provides atmosphere within the Aegis cabin. It also lters out poison
and radiation. Without life support, the crew within the Aegis would suocate.
If life support becomes compromised (see Damage, below), the AI can provide
additional energy to compensate for the damage.
Movement
Tis system powers the gears and motors that make the Aegis move. If the system
does not have enough energy, it cannot move. Te AI can provide additional
power to increase an Aegis movement. Every energy point above three adds one
movement to the Aegis movement rate.
Shields
Aegis armor is impervious to small arms re, but it is not completely immune to
damage. In addition to its impressive armor plating, Aegis also have an electronic
shielding system that protect them from weapons. Te shield requires three
energy to activate.
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Each point devoted to the shield deducts one point of damage. Each point deducts
one energy from the shield. If a shield is reduced to zero energy, it must spend
the rest of the round recharging. All Aegis shields reactivate to full strength at the
beginning of each round.
Te AI can safely devote up to six points of energy to the shield system. Any more
causes a risk of shutdown.
Weapons
Tis system powers the neural connection between the pilot and the Armors
weapons. If the weapons do not have enough power, the pilot cannot re them.
Adding Energy to the Weapons Systems does not increase the damage rolled
(unless the Aegis is using energy weapons, see below).
Aegis Armor
Aegis Armor is a self-contained powered assault armor system. Te multi-alloys
that make up its many layers of protection keep it safe from the weapons soldiers carry
on the eld.
Aegis Armor provides protection against any weapon except heavy weapons (with
the sole exception of the 50 Caliber Sniper Rie which was designed to rip through
armor and mechanical systems). Any small arms weapons red at an Aegis simply
bounce o, doing no damage to the Aegis and no injury to its pilot.
Heavy weapons must be used to pierce the electronic shielding and thick multi-
polymer armor protecting the Aegis vital systems. To do that, they must spend one
bang per point of Armor. In other words, to get through the tough hide of an Aegis
with 3 points of Armor, you must spend three bangs before you can even spend a
single bang on eect.
Compromise
Once a hit gets through an Aegis Armor rank, there is a chance
of compromise; that is, there is a chance the armor has taken enough
damage that the Aegis loses some of its protection.
If a bang is a 10 and it is used to get through an Aegis Armor, re-roll
that 10. If the number is 8, 9 or 10, the Armor is compromised and the
Aegis loses one rank of Armor.
Damage
If an Aegis Armor fails to protect it, Damage is inevitable. Te
systems within an Aegis are delicate and complicated. Shrapnel ying
around the inside of a cockpit can kill a pilot.
Damage Chart
1 Life Support
2-3 Communications
4 Cockpit
5 Weapons
6 Sensors
7 Armor Mod
8-9 Movement
10 AI
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If Damage gets through the Armor, roll on the Damage Chart listed on your Aegis
sheet. Te system indicated has been damaged and cannot be used until repaired.
Life Support
With Life Support down, the safe, breathable atmosphere within the cabin will
begin to run out. Remember, the Aegis Armor is a sealed system. Teres no air
coming in or out. Tere is only enough reserve oxygen in the Aegis to last for ve
rounds. After that, the pilot will suocate unless he blow the hatch. Tat isnt
always safe.
Communications
Without Communications, the Aegis cannot communicate with other friendly
units. I suggest him covering his ears or otherwise making himself unaware of
everyone elses actions and then when they are done announcing what they are
going to do, he can announce his own actions.
Cockpit
Damage to the cockpit means Injuries to the pilot. Te pilot takes half the
Damage as Injuries. Also, make another roll on the Damage table above to see
what additional systems have been compromised.
Weapons
If the Weapon systems are down, theres no ring.
Sensors
With no sensors, the Aegis Unit is blind. It has no idea where it can move. Each
round, make a roll for its range. Evens = move closer to the enemy by one rank
and odds = move away from the enemy by one rank. Otherwise, Command
dictates its movements. Also, all Weapons shots require three additional bangs for
success.
Movement
Te Aegis Armors movement is reduced by the Damage done. If that Damage is
greater than the Aegis movement, its movement is zero.
Armor Mod
Te Armor Mod cannot be used until repaired.
AI
Tis is dangerous. If the AI is compromised, it cannot perform repairs. It
must be repaired by the pilot or he loses all AI functionality. Also, the AI must
immediately make a bliss stage check (see AI, below).
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Repairs
Any attempts to repair systems must be done in real time. Repairs dont take place
over the course of rounds, but with players desperately trying to bring systems back
online.
To repair a system, you must repair the Damage done to that system. In order to
do that, you must make a series of repair risks.
To repair a point of Damage, you must roll a number of dice equal to your
Operations + (appropriate) Repair Specialty. Every bang you get brings you one step
closer to repairing the damaged system. For every point of Damage, you need ve
bangs to repair it.
Remember: repair risks are done in real time. You dont need to wait every round
to make a repair. However, while you are making repairs, you cannot take any other
action.
Once youve repaired the system in question, you can move on to another system
that needs repairs.
Heavy Damage
If a single system takes four or more points of Damage, it moves into
Heavy Damage territory. Tats serious.
Every point of Damage above three in a single system counts as Heavy
Damage. Heavy Damage cannot be repaired in the middle of battle; it must
be repaired under safe, working conditions. It also requires replacement
parts. Soldiers could scavenge for replacement parts on old (or even new)
battleelds, but more than likely, theyll need to get those parts back at base.
Heavy Damage and the Battery
If an Aegis Battery takes Heavy Damage, each and every round theres
a chance the Aegis will detonate. Roll a d10 at the beginning of each
round. If the die roll is a zero (a ten), the Aegis detonates. An Engineer can
prolong this detonation with a successful Engineering risk, but he needs
to get a number of bangs greater than the Damage the Battery is currently
suering.
Aegis Weapons
Each Chassis had its own set of weapons and equipment based on the Chassiss
MS (mission specialty). Weapons were built to specs. If it ts on one C-Class, it ts
on any C-Class.
Soldiers were allowed to customize their equipment and their Armor to a certain
extent, but the whole point of having uniform weaponry is so everyone was trained
using the same thing. If your buddy dies and you need to pick up his rie, you dont
have to spend ten minutes guring it out.
Spiders
All First and Second Era
AI have tiny machines the
pilots called spiders. Tese
small robots assisted the AI
and Engineer in the First
Era and nearly replaced the
Engineer in the Second Era.
Spiders can use all the
Equipment in the Aegis
Armors Equipment Slots,
can make repairs inside and
outside the Armor and use
health kits on the Pilot and
Engineer.
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Like soldiers, each Aegis Class has two Weapon Slots and two equipment slots.
Pilots can switch out weapons and equipment based on the Chassis of their Armor.
Unless noted, the projectile weapons below utilize an electrothermal propellant
system, where the magazine contains a fuel, which is converted to high temperature
plasma via electrical stimulation that is injected behind each shell to be red. Tis
renders the weapons caseless and less prone to mechanical failure due to less moving
parts.
BR-170 Piledriver 60mm Close Assault Weapon
Designed as an AEGIS-sized equivalent to a breaching shotgun, the Piledriver
is a semi-automatic cannon capable of ring a variety of warheads as needed.
Te primary weapon mode is a solid 60mm depleted uranium slug, designed
to breach the thinner points of Crawler armor at close range. For smaller
targets, the weapon is capable of switching to a 60mm beehive round containing
approximately 500 diamondoid needle projectiles.
Range: Close, Near
Special: Due to the dual ammo load, the Piledriver is just as e cient at
shattering armor as it is at shredding esh. You can apply full damage to any
mechanical targets with the BR-170.
AX-40 Buzzsaw 30mm Aegis Assault Cannon
Te standard cannon weaponry of Aegis suits, the Buzzsaw is a full auto 30mm
weapon that res high explosive anti-armor warheads at up to 400 rounds per
minute. Designed primarily to deal with the smaller EA units dispatched by
Crawlers, the weapon is still capable of doing at least some damage to the larger
targets.
Range: Near, Long
Special Ability: As the more common standard weapon, pilots tend to develop
a knack at using the Buzzsaw eectively. Pilots get one additional die to roll when
attacking with this weapon.
A-M555 120mm Special Applications Rifle
Te Special Applications Rie is designed specically to punch its 120mm Semi-
Guided Self Forging Penetrator warhead though even the thickest frontal armor
of EA Crawlers. Utilizing materials technology recovered from the Enemy, the
design originated from a mothballed tank cannon, and was rened with the help
of AI.
Range: Long, Far
Special: Due to the accuracy of the SAP, you can modify any Damage Location
rolls by one pip when determining the location of a hit.
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MP-90 Anti-Armor/Area Denial Smart Missile Pod
aka Itano Circus
Te MP-90, which gets its nickname from an obscure reference its designer
dug up in reference to the area denial mode, is a smart system capable of ring
individual missiles at targets, or volley re capable of saturating an area in a
torrent of high explosive warheads.
Range: Long, Far
Special: You can choose to re the weapon in Area Denial Mode. Instead of
a single target, you target the range. Te impact aects every unitfriendly or
otherwisein the range you target. All targets in that range receive a number of
Injuries/Damage equal to the bangs played from this action. Allies can attempt to
take the Cover Maneuver to avoid Injury/Damage. After using Area Denial Mode,
the weapon is unavailable to re for one Escalation Round as the weapon needs to
reload.
The L-672 Laser Cannon
Specically designed for the G-Class, this very unsubtle weapon is the loudest
thing on the battleeld. Soldiers call it the What Cannon because if you get too
close to it when it res, thats all youll be saying for the rest of your life.
Shoulder or arm mounted, the L-672 takes up one Weapon Slot.
Accuracy: Long, Far
Special: Up to three additional Energy Points from the Aegis Battery can be
applied to the What Cannon. Tis provides an opportunity for more bangs, and
thus, more damage.
Articulated CLAW Extensions (Ace talons)
A weapon only mounted on A-Class Aegis, claws provide powerful tools for
ripping and shredding enemies. Te claws extend from the Assault Aegis ngers
and retract again as needed.
Accuracy: Close
Special: Claws are incredibly fast, shredding Armor like paper. Claws eects
resolve before any other eect.
The 102mm High-Explosive Surface-to-Surface
Anti-Vehicle Assault Weapon/Man Portable
Air-Defense System
Identical to the heavy weapon used by foot soldiers, MANPADS is a powerful
weapon on the shoulder of an Aegis.
Accuracy: Long, Far
Special: You cannot target a single unit with this weapon. Instead, you target the
range. Te impact of the missile aects every unitfriendly or otherwisein the
range you target. All targets in that range receive a number of Injuries/Damage
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equal to the bangs played from this action. Allies can attempt to take the Cover
Maneuver to avoid Injury/Damage.
The P-878 Mobile Chemical Projector (Flamer)
Calling this weapon a amethrower is highly inaccurate, but thats what the
soldiers called it. Its more accurate title, the mobile chemical thrower actually
blows a stream of super-heated, corrosive chemicals rather than ames. It was
deemed unsafe for personnel to carry (because of the combustible ammunition)
but Aegis Armor was a dierent story. When red, a pellet of chemicals is thrown
into a stream of toxic liquids. Te explosion in the barrel res the mixture at high
speeds and at incredible temperatures. Te result is like watching the hardest
metals melt like candy in a microwave.
Special: Te amer damages armor with each hit. In other words, if you hit with
the amer, in addition to your usual Damage, your opponents armor goes down
by one rank.
The 474-D Velocitas Eradico Cannon (The Dentist)
A remnant of 30th Century technology, the velocitas eradico cannon was an
abandoned project that was revived after the arrival of the Enemy. Once the
technology proved to work, the rst cannon was mounted on Aegis Armor,
proving highly eective against the Enemy. Te principle of the cannon is simple.
Te cannon uses no chemicals whatsoever, relying entirely on electromagnetism to
thrust its projectile at the Enemy. Troops called the cannon Te Dentist because
the magnetic cannon made their teeth vibrate in their mouths.
Accuracy: Long, Far
Special: Tis weapon is so powerful, it ignores any and all Armor. Unfortunately,
it also takes a full round to charge and then re. If a player chooses ring the
Dentist as his action, his action always goes last. Tat means everything else
happens at once, and then the Dentist res.
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Chapter 7:
AI
Tere is a popular clich... which says that you cannot get out of computers
any more than you put in. Other versions are that computers only do exactly
what you tell them to, and that therefore computers are never creative. Te
clich is true only in the crashingly trivial sense, the same sense in which
Shakespeare never wrote anything except what his rst schoolteacher taught
him to write words.
Richard Dawkins, Te Blind Watchmaker
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Te AI were key to winning the War Against the Enemy, but during the First Era,
using AI was kind of like juggling atomic warheads. Humanity had no idea what it was
doing and had no idea how powerful the weapon they had truly was.
An AI is not a physical creature but a highly sophisticated software system. As
such, it can only exist in proper containment devices. An AI cannot simply upload
to any computer (most dont have near enough room) although it can link with any
system.
Tink of an AI as a kind of portable hard drive. You can take it with you anywhere
you go, but unless you have a way to communicate with it, the AI just sits in your
pocket and waits. If you plug it in to a computer, it can interact with the system and
start talking to you. If the computer is linked to a network, it can access that network.
If the computer has a screen, the AI can adopt an avatar and talk to you through the
screen. If the computer has a mic or keyboard, you can even communicate back.
Apollo/AI Sympathy
After Prometheus, Apollo Soldiers were bred with an AI link. Tis biotech
solution allowed an Apollo to carry an AI with them wherever they went. (Imagine a
USB port just at the nape of your neck.)
Tis link allows an Apollo and AI to operate together. Te AI can augment the
Apollos skills and the Apollo can carry the AI to dierent stations.
When an Apollo and an AI rst commune, the link is very weak. Te two minds
dont understand each other well and are trying to interact on a neural level. As time
passes, the strength of the link increases. Tis is represented by a new Stat on both the
AI sheet and the Apollos sheet called Sympathy.
A starting Sympathy has a rank of 1. As time passes, the link grows stronger. Te
AI can only give bonus dice for risks to the Apollo equal to the rank of the Link.
An AI can only share dice if both the Apollo and the AI share the same Specialty.
Te AI cannot share dice from Traits.
If the AI has a Specialty the Apollo does not have, she can still share dice for a
risk, but only half of her dice, rounded up. (Because I know youll ask, 1 divided in
half is .5, rounded up is 1.)
Sympathy can only go as high as rank 4.
Example
My character, Emmerich, an Apollo Soldier has just been linked with Jessicas AI
character, Li San. Because weve been newly linked, the strength of the Link is 1. Jessica can
give me one bonus die for any risks that we share. Unfortunately, she cannot share dice with
me for any Specialties she has until we get to a rank 2 Link.
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AI Creation
Creating an AI character is very similar to making a human character. Use the AI
character sheet provided at the end of this book.
Step 1: Traits
AI do not have all the Traits human characters do. Instead, they have
the following Traits: Operations, Weapons, and Intel. (Tey also have
Empathy, but thats a special case; see below.)
AI have 10 points to spend on their Traits. An AI may have Traits at
+5, but not higher. Buying a +5 (from +4) costs two points.
AI also have Empathy, but that Trait always begins at rank 1. It may
be increased over the course of time with experience points, but an AIs
Empathy may never be their highest Trait.
Step 2: Specialties
All starting AI get 15 Specialty Points. Tey may not spend Points in Strength
Specialties.
AI can buy above the +4 rank in a Specialty. After buying +4, they may spend two
more Points, giving them a +5 in that Specialty. (In other words, buying +5 costs six
Specialty Points.)
Bliss Stage
One of the dangers humanity did not anticipate when taking on AI as allies was
the danger of bliss stage. Tere was a reason the Enemy put caps on AI potential. Bliss
stage was that reason.
During the War, AI continued growing in potential, absorbing as much
information as their software would allow. What humanity did not know was AI
had the potential to expand its potential. It was not just a collection of data, but a
true articial intelligence, always learning, always changing. Whenever that change
occurred, the AI was said to experience epiphany: a moment when the AI broke its
own articial boundaries.
Te AI called Kairam experienced the rst epiphany. It immediately spread the
knowledge to its fellows. Soon, every AI hoped to experience epiphany. Humanity was
equally excited. Watching a edgling lifeformeven an electronic onegain a deeper
understanding of itself was inspirational.
But then, the AI, who gave itself the designation Lehman, experienced more than
just epiphany. It ceased communicating with its human allies and its Apollo link. Ten,
without warning, the AI took control of the Apollo soldier and killed seventeen other
humans before he was eventually killed himself.
Can AI Lie?
AI have trouble with lying.
Teir psychology rebels
against the idea. If an AI
wants to attempt a lie, its
an Empathy risk to even try.
One bang allows the AI to
lie and additional bangs add
to its believability.
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Data Dump
Bliss stage occurs when an AIs potential expands too quickly. After epiphany,
there is a time when the AI must collate the new information it has gathered. If this
process fails, data corrupts, information lines meet dead ends and the AI enters bliss
stage. It literally goes insane.
Human technicians would spend the next two hundred years trying to cure bliss
stage, but during the First Era, there is no cure. Tere is only prevention.
After epiphany, to prevent bliss stage, the AI must quickly analyze its memory and
nd possible corrupt data. Ten, it must dump the data before the corruption spreads
and causes bliss stage.
The Mechanics of It
AI gain experience points just like everyone else. For every ten experience points
an AI spends, it experiences epiphany.
Roll ve dice. If any of the dice roll a 10, the AI enters bliss stage.
However, if an AI experiences Bliss Stage (rolls a 10), she can perform a fast data
dump to preserve her integrity. She must deduct one rank from one Specialty or she
enters Bliss Stage.
Tis oers the AI a choice: you can dump data or enter Bliss Stage. It is entirely
up to her.
Manifestation
Bliss stage manifests in dierent ways. Some AI enter violent and murderous rage,
using their Apollo host to kill everything in their way. Others show less obvious signs.
Very rarely, a few can even hide the signs of bliss stage from their human allies,
becoming the AI equivalent of sociopaths. Tey feign sympathy with their human
allies while planning elaborate deaths. One such AI, self-designated as Turtell,
remained in a security bases systems for months, slowly killing his human compatriots
through malfunctions in the system. It shut doors too quickly, released radiation
containment, arranged electrocutions and elevator mishaps. Only after three months
did the humans discover Turtell had entered bliss stage. Five more humans died
before they were able to remove the AI from the bases systems.
A Cure?
As mentioned above, during the First Era, there is no treatment for bliss stage. No
cure. Te only humane option is to disconnect the AI from any system and put it in
storage. Perhaps some time in the future, humanity will nd a cure.
Or perhaps not.
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Chapter 8:
Missions
I have never advocated war except as a means of peace.
Ulysses S. Grant
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Building a Mission
Tis chapter details how to create missions. It is a rather simple process that
involves Command and all the players.
Step 1: Command
First, Command gives a one line description of the mission. Tis could be as
simple as, Find and retrieve a downed Aegis, or Get o the planet.
Step 2: Details
Now, each player can add a detail to the missioneither known to the characters
or not. Te number of details each player can add is equal to their characters
Intel Trait. For example, if a character has a 3 Intel, he can add three details to the
Mission. If he has a 4 Intel, he can add four details.
Do this as a round robin. Start with the player on the left of Command. He can
add one detail. Ten, the player on his left adds one detail, etc. Go all the way
around the table until all players have added a number of details equal to their
Intel Trait.
Step 3: Priorities
Now, Command gives the Mission a number of priorities. Characters are expected
to fulll mission priorities in descending order. In other words, they should fulll
the rst priority before attempting to fulll secondary and tertiary priorities.
Step 4: Secret Agenda
If the group includes a Hades Op, now is the time Command gives him a secret
agenda. Command can either write it down as a note or tell the Hades Op in
front of the other players. Ive found both techniques work and give the mission
a sense of tension. Either technique works best for dierent groups, so I suggest
talking to players beforehand to see which method they are most comfortable
with.
First Example: The Dog Squad
For my rst game, I had four characters: an Aegis Pilot, an Engineer, an AI, a
Hades Op and a Grunt Squad.
Step 1: Command
I told them the mission was a search and rescue mission. Tere was a downed
Aegis Armor behind Enemy lines. Tey needed to get it.
Step 2: Details
Ten, they added details:
Te Aegis is near a disabled Factory Crawler.
Tis is a hostile environment, we well need hazard suits.
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We have notication of an Enemy encampment located within 30
kilometers of the site.
Tis is our rst mission together
Te Dog Squad (the Grunt Squad) have been told they dont have to
get close to the encampment.
We are also an experiment to see how Aegis work as scouts
Tere are shards of crystalline fuel, very explosive, in the area
We are on Epsilon Eridanis third moon.
Tere is a Crawler in the area looking for the Aegis Armor.
Step 3: Priorities
Primary Objective: Ensure that the Enemy does not acquire the
Aegis Armor or the AI.
Secondary Objective: Recover the Aegis Armor and AI.
Tertiary Objective: Recover the Aegis Pilot.
Additional Objective: Sabotage Defenses for Assault Squad.
I told our Hades Op that he had to acquire any Enemytech he could from the
wrecked Factory Crawler.
Second Example: Asgard 6
For the second mission, I wanted to detail the world a little more than I did in
the rst mission. I allowed each player to say one thing that was true about the planet.
Heres what they came up with:
Te world is Wolf 359 (an actual planet!)
Te world is a husk; it has been mined out
It has been converted into a rest stop for other places all the ore
went away, but people are still going through
Te landscape outside is a rocky desert
Step 1: Command
I told the players that the Enemy has nally come to their little world. It dropped
a single Crawler that has been taking out the small colonies (no more than 200
people per colony) one-by-one. Teir mission was to repair any equipment they
could and get o the planet.
For this game, I had an Aegis Pilot, an AI, an Engineer, a Hades Op and a
Veteran. Te world had a single suit of Aegis Armor: an S-Class. Our Aegis
Pilot decided he was drunk all the time because he never saw any action and
was assigned a repair detail on a ghost planet. Te Hades Op decided she was
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disguised as the governors wife, here to inspect the facilities (as to not panic
the public about the coming invasion). Our Veteran was her bodyguard and the
Engineer was the chief repair o cer for the colony. Finally, the AI was here as a
companion to the Hades Op.
Step 2: Details
I am the driver for the governors wife (the Hades Op in disguise as
the wife)
City is only in slight chaos at this point
We just got information of the Crawlers appearance this morning
Our Aegis Armor is non-operational
I am the civilian who was recruited to repair the Armor
Days after the Enemy attacked
Te AI thats wonky is in the Aegis
As of right now, its thought that hes gone wrong because he has
wonky AI
You guys brought the AI to the planet
Te AI is messed up because the (always drunk) Aegis Pilot spilled
something on it
We have 48 hours until Hades nukes the place
Te reason Hades is going to nuke the place is to keep new
experimental tech on the planet from the Enemy
Otto (our Engineer) was the lead engineer on this experiment
New experimental tech is alternate is a body for AI
Te tech was discovered drilling the planet; Enemy thought the
planet was not hollowed out
I dont know that it was a secret research project; so far out, nobody
thought it would get any further
Step 3: Priorities
I notied them that their top priority was preparing the colony for leaving the
planet. All other priorities were secondary.
Te Hades Ops primary goal is to retrieve the AI and bring back the brain who
has been around it the most
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Experience Points
At the end of the missionsuccessful or otherwiseevery player gets one
experience point. You can use experience points to increase the rank of your Traits and
Specialties and other stu on your character sheet.
Also, group gets a number of bonus experience points equal to the camaraderie in
the pool. Players divide them as they see t.
Increasing anything on your sheet costs a number of experience points equal
to the current rank you want to increase the Trait to. In other words, if you want to
increase a Trait from 3 to 4, you must spend four experience points.
Players can increase Traits and Specialties with experience points.
Players can also spend experience points on Sympathy, however this is more
expensive. First, both the AI and the Apollo must increase their Empathy to the rank
they want (their Empathy must be equal). Ten, both the AI and the Apollo Soldier
must pay experience (equal to the rank they want) to increase their Sympathy.
Limits
Tere are a few limits to spending experience points.
Generally, Traits and Specialties cannot be increased beyond +4.
Aegis Soldiers can increase Strength and Weapon Traits and Specialties to +5.
Aegis Pilots can increase Weapon and Operations Traits and Specialties to +5.
AI can increase any Trait (other than Empathy) or Specialty to +5.
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Chapter 9:
World Building
At the beginning of the First Era, over two hundred planets were full-edged
Colonies with hundreds more working toward the status. By the end of the
First Era, less than one hundred were left.
Ubam Vills, Te Rise and Fall of Humanity
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For players who want more detail about their homeworld, I oer this very brief
world building chapter.
If you are really interested in this topic, may I suggest a website? http://basilicus.
wikia.com is a wiki devoted to the craft of science ction world building. Te fact that
site is so awesome kept this part of the book so sparce. I could have created a huge
system for making worlds, but other folks have put so much work into Basilicus that
theres really no point. Check it out.
Colonization
Centuries ago, the Peyton-Drakewell Corporation developed a way to change
the atmosphere of planets similar to Earth to an Earth-like atmosphere. Te process
takes years. When scouts nd a suitable planet, the Earth-Maker gets dropped o.
Te Earth-Maker is a completely autonomous and sealed system, slowly processing
the atmosphere through ltration systems. Imagine a huge buildingabout the size
of a city blockthat sits on the planets surface, sucking in the air, cooling it down or
heating it up, removing all the impurities.
After approximately 24 months, the Earth-Maker has converted enough of the
atmosphere to sustain life. Colonists then enter the process. Tey use the Earth-Maker
as a sealed housing unit and a base of operations as they extend the program outside
the Earth-Maker. Another twenty months (or so) later, the process is complete. Te
new planet has a number of colonies, all sealed o from the native atmosphere.
Age
How long ago did colonists land on your planet? Te oldest colonies are three
hundred years old. Tey are also closest to Earth. Newer colonies are in the Deep
Reach, far from the core planets.
Flora & Fauna
So far, humanity has only run into one other sentient species: the Enemy. Tey
have also yet to nd a planet with signicant life. All of Earths colonies have imported
life that has evolved (or not) to t the ecology of the planet.
Politics
While all planets are maintained by the UNECa representative Republic
each planet has its own particular spin on politics. Some are more conservative than
others while some are more progressive. But those who leave Earth behind to seek a
better life have more than a bit of the American frontiersman in their blood. Tis leads
to libertarian sentiments. Im heading o to a place where I can make a new start
with folks who want the same thing I do.
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Of course, that doesnt always work out. And sometimes, colonies fail.
Technology
Again, the closer you are to Earth, the more access your colony gets to its
technological advances. Te further you get from Earth, the more primitive the
technology becomes.
Climate
Needless to say, the more hostile the climate, the less likely humans will colonize
there. But some colonists were desperate and accepted harsh climates that were similar
enough to Earths atmosphere to convert. What is the climate of your homeworld like?
Resources
Finally, what resources does your planet provide? Most planets send minerals back
to Earth. Iron ore, copper, gold, etc. Tese provide an income for the planet. Te more
resources they send back, the more prot the colony makes, the more tech they can
aord, the easier getting the minerals becomes.
The Second Era
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Chapter 1:
The Aegis Wars
I must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study
mathematics and philosophy.
John Adams
91
Two hundred years after the War with the Enemy, the Terran Overgovernment
now known as the UNEC (United Nations of Earth and her Colonies)kept hold on
to humanity with a tight leash. Individual liberty was scarce and while the Colonies
did have representation in the UNEC, their needs were largely ignored. A civil war
was inevitable.
On December 26
th
, 5283, ve hundred and twenty-ve of the seven
hundred and sixty-two Colonies agreed to secede from the UNEC.
Te Marines assigned to the Colonies were given orders to crush the
rebellion and bring the rebel planets back under order. Sixty percent of the
embedded Marines ignored those orders, siding with the Colonies instead: a
number that staggered the UNEC Intelligence Agency.
Most of the Colonies had little or no military to speak of. Te UNEC
counted on a long but certain reunication. But the Colonies had a dierent
plan. Tey broke the security codes, reactivated their Aegis Armor and waited
for Earth to try taking back their planet. Tis led to what humanity calls, Te
Aegis Wars.
Not a single war, but a series of many prolonged struggles, the Aegis Wars
wrecked havoc across human-occupied space. Men killed each other in great
numbers, destroying entire civilizations. Earth itself spent ten years under
siege during the Greystone Oensive when a General Metis broke through
UNEC defenses and nearly ended the war.
Tat would happen over the course of fty years: a single act would
almost end the war. It happened so many times, the statement became
inconsequential. For two generations who were born, lived and died under the shadow
of war, it seemed the bloodshed would never end.
Governments fell and were replaced by warlords and tyrants. Mercenaries became
kings and emperors empowered and emboldened by possession of Aegis technology.
Entire planets fell under their sway. And for another one hundred years, thats how
it was. Warlords, tyrants, kings and emperors ghting for control over their own
territories. And far away, on a little blue planet, the UNEC held sway over Earth and
Earth alone.
Citizens & Rebels
Tose who have thrown o the shackles of the UNEC have done so at their own
risk. Defecting from the Union is a criminal oense, punishable by up to twenty years
on a labor planet. But for those who have left the UNEC behind, there are endless
opportunities.
At least, thats what the rebels tell you
Cut o from UNEC supply routes, the colonies were suering. Many of the
distant worlds had to rely on each other to survive. Some colonies were abandoned.
Tose who did survive managed to do so through less than scrupulous means. But
when human beings are hungry, scruples are often the rst thing to go.
Armor of the
Second Era
Te Armor of the
Second Era was more
sophisticated than the
relics from the previous
Era. Because of the
advance in technology,
mechs became smaller,
faster and more deadly.
Advances in neuro-
electronics made the
mechs more responsive
to thought commands.
Te weapon systems were
more precise and armor
was lighter and stronger.
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Raids were common. Colonies turned against each other. Te so-called Colonial
Solidarity fell apart within months. Te weak fell to the strong. Eventually, only a few
rebels were left. Te rebels who were wise enough to recognize the threat of the
UNEC. Te only ones who were left were Tey unied against that
common threat under the pretense of freedom. But they werent
interested in freedom for all. What they wanted was to maintain their
own control.
Te last holdouts against the UNEC were warlords and
mercenaries. But they were strong enough to call themselves kings.
Tey stood against Earths authority for over a century. But the men
who established those empires grew old and had to pass their power
on to lesser men. And that was the beginning of the end of the
Second Era.
Citizenship
Citizenship in the UNEC is not to be undervalued. It bestows
many rights and privileges.If your character is a citizen, he enjoys the
following privileges.
All citizens carry a citizen card. Tis is both a physical card and an
embedded chip. (Usually in the back of the left hand.)Your citizen
card identies who you are. It carries your medical history, your
credit (seeWealth, below) and all other information pertinent to the
UNEC.
As a citizen, you have the right to complete medical care at any
UNEC facility. You just walk in and the doctors take care of you.
Free of charge, citizen.
Te UNEC protects its citizens against danger and harm. You can
bend the card or tap the back of your hand three times to activate an
alarm that alerts local authorities that you are in danger. Rescue will
come swiftly in the form of UNEC Forces.
Te UNEC provides regular interstellar travel and local, planetary
travel for all its citizens. At least, on the worlds it controls. Free of
charge, citizen!
Citizens also enjoy the legal protections provided by the UNEC.
If you are robbed or swindled by rebel criminals, please notify your
local UNEC o cer. He will be glad to send investigators to nd the
scum and bring them to justice.
Citizens also gain the distinct privilege of serving in the UNEC
United Forces for at least four years. After your service, you may keep
your digitally coded rearm (only usable by you with technology that
marks any ammunition used as coming from your weapon) for the
The Deep Reach
Te Deep Reach is what
humanity calls the space
where the most distant
colonies reside. Despite
his attempts to colonize
even further away from
home, few expeditions have
returned. Tose who have
bring strange artifacts with
them. Tey also report
ancient cities, cold and
deserted, on planets where
no life can survive.
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purposes of self-protection or in the rare instance that you will be
called up in the yearly lottery draft to serve the UNEC once again.
Digital Citizens
And while men were concerned with each other, another change was occurring
right under their noses.
In the centuries that followed the Enemy War, the many articial intelligences that
survived the war now found themselves as second class citizens. Lower than that, even.
Te UNEC did not even recognize them as valid life forms, let alone independent
beings with inalienable rights. Te ght to get AI recognized as legitimate citizens
began with two women: Lithuanian cyberpsychologist, Desika Kaupdas and
Scottish civil rights lawyer, Jill Fraser.
Fraser coined the phrase digital sentients feeling the word articial was
degrading and encouraged discrimination. Her legal battles won digisents the right to
refuse programming, but did not win full legal rights. Her murderstill unsolved
did not hinder the movement, but instead, gave it a martyr. A human being who died
for the rights of others.
After Frasers death, Kaupdas worked to further her friends cause. Slowly, but
surely, digisents began winning legal battles. It took them two centuries, but eventually,
digital sentients became legal citizens of the UNEC, having the full rights as their
biological fellow citizens. And the term, digital citizen was born.
AI technology leapt forward. At rst, digisents could only exist in AI ports,
which was technology specically designed for them. Ten, steps were taken to allow
the digital sentient to interact with more basic technology. Eventually, digisents could
interface with any system with the right memory to hold them.
(Again, imagine your sentient being held on a device as large as a thumb drive.
As long as a device has a proper slot,
you can insert the drive and your
DI can interface that device. Your
laptop, your desktop, your X-Box,
your Playstation, your smart phone,
whatever.)
A nal step (for this Era) was
to provide DI with anatomical
mobile interfaces. Tese were,
at rst, little more than robotic
bipedal skeletons the digisents could
command. Eventually, the mobile
interfaces became very sophisticated,
giving digisents almost complete
autonomy. Tey used a combination
Sentient Security Squads
Hades was not unaware what was going on. Tey organized
sentient security squads to monitor AI activity and the biological
citizens who were helping them. Te squads had the authority to
switch o any digital or biological threat to UNEC security.
Te squads were made up of Hades Ops specically trained
to deal with the potential digital threat. SS Squads (S
3
or S
Prime as the AI Collective called them) carried small devices that
could disrupt an AI long enough to shut it down, erase its memory
and reboot it. Tis processcalled decodingoccurred more
often than many citizens (biological or digital) knew. It was also
one of the reasons for the events of the Tird Age.
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of animatronics and digital 3-D animation to make their faces just as expressive as
their human companions.
Bliss Stage
Bliss Stage remains an issue for digizens. It was the hardest battle to overcome in
the courts; a battle that was never completely won. In the systems still controlled by
the UNEC, a digital citizen who falls into bliss stage is considered a danger to itself
and others and may be dealt with as deemed appropriate by the authorities. Te law
clearly states that destruction of a digital citizen Outside the UNECs control, there is
very little trust for digizens; some systems destroy them on sight. No questions asked.
Clans, Kings & Warlords
Te fall of the UNEC sent chaos through the colonized worlds. Men of violence
lled the void. Men who called themselves kings and clan lords. Men who sold their
weapons and skills to the highest bidder. With no unifying and central government,
any man who could promise protection gained power.
After years of conict, humanity divided itself dozens of territories. Te largest six
are listed below.
The Free Republic of Proxima Centauri
Leader: Te Council of Tree
Insignia: A circle of stars surrounding three linked stars
Government: Representative Republic
Tecb: High
Te Free Republic of Proxima Centauri was one of the rst colonies to break from
UNEC control. Tey were also the closest to Earth, providing a weigh station to the
Deep Reach colonies. Te FRPCs declaration made it possible for other colonies to
break away.
Alpha Centauri was the rst human colony only because it was the closest planet
to our solar system. Alpha Centauri or Bust! Te conditions on the
Te Free Republic was the rst place digital sentients could live with little fear of
prejudice or violence. In fact, it was also the rst colony where a sentient became an
elected leader. After it became a citizen, the AI who was designated, T447 renamed
itself, Tobias Fairchild. (Fairchild was the surname of the Apollo Soldier it served
with and who died during the Enemy War.)
Fairchild was a member of the Council of Tree, the executive branch of Proxima
Centauris representative government. Te other two members were Sigele Owusu and
Jingis Palau. Both Owusu and Palau were scientists; Owusu a biologist and Palau a
sociologist.
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Te FRPC stood as the bulwark against the incursion of UNEC forces. Proxima
Centauri was, in many ways, more advanced than Earth. Despite the harsh climate,
many rushed to Centauri for the scientic freedoms the colony allowed. Because of its
advancements, it was able to hold o Earths forces for nearly fty years.
Te Free Republic also boasted the largest population of digital citizens; more
than the next ve colonies combined. Tey served as doctors, lawyers, engineers,
architects and even as managers overseeing human workers. When the colony fell,
many of the sentients were captured by the UNEC and reprogrammed, but a few
escaped to the Deep Reach.
The Khanate
Leader: Te Khan
Insignia: A golden rectangle with a red square
Government: Democratic Republic
Tecb: High
Te remnants of the 5th Expeditionary Force fell back to the Wolf 219 system in
the nal days of the war. Tey had suered under poor leadership and bad intelligence
and escaped to the backwater of Wolf 219. Teir eet was intact, but most of their
soldiers and AEGIS were destroyed.
Nicknamed, Outer Mongolia by sarcastic explorers the Wolf 219 system was
composed of a space station, a small orange dwarf star, and a planetary system that
boasted four massive gas giants and ve asteroid belts. Tere wasnt a single planet or
moon that was habitable.
Reformed into the 23rd Guard and ordered to defend the frontier from a possible
return of Te Enemy destroyed what little moral they had left. For decades the
soldiers of the 23rd survived in Outer Mongolia building a ship depot that wasnt
needed and trading on the black market for what was. Teir food shipments stopped
in the early days of the Civil War and destroyed their last shreds of loyalty.
Needing food they did the one thing they could do. Tey raided for it. After a
disastrous attempt on the closest star system with food, they recongured their eet,
elected new leaders and adopted a general charter of rights and duties. Te second
raid was a success. Tey kept at raiding until an overwhelming vote decided that they
would annex the nearby systems.
Over the course of the next years they acquired a total of eight star systems,
all poor in comparison to other emerging states, but rich enough. Tey renamed
themselves after their home system and instituted a direct democratic republic.
All citizens are allowed one vote and any measure passes that receives a two-thirds
majority. All legal issues are brought before the ship captains and station commanders.
Transportation and communication are easy in the Khanate with a plethora of ships
and the ship-to-ship secured military network. Voting is done via the network of ships
and stations.
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But the Khanate still suers from two problems. Tey lack a general population to
perform the endless tasks and they are extremely short on AEGIS teams, both AI and
pilots. While highly skilled at lightning raids, and with a massive space eet backing
them that can bombard almost any enemy, the Khanates AEGIS number less than a
full regiment.
To this end, the Khan, the elected leader of the Captains and Commanders, has
issued a call across all of known space. She oers astronomical pay to any laborers and
their families who will join them. She has also instituted a series of popular games
to test potential new pilots and AI. Te games are televised in the Khanate and in
a surprising twist several media groups from outside the Khanate have oered to
purchase the rights to air the games in their home states.
Letherbelks Colony
Leader: None
Insignia: None
Government: None
Tecb: Varies
Arthur Letherbelk had a dream. A dream of a world where men and women could
live their lives unhindered and unfettered from the tyranny of lesser minds. He called
them dims. Men and women who suered from chronic failures of imagination.
Letherbelk had the means to fund an expedition to one of the newfound Colonies.
He convinced others to follow him, to help build his dream. And so, with his several
hundred co-founders and thousands of supporters, Arthur Letherbelk left Earth and
its dims behind.
Letherbelk refused to allow any kind of government on his Colony. Men of
intelligence do not need shepherds. Such an invention was to guide the sheep. And, in
its early days, Letherbelks Colony was one of the most prosperous and industrious in
the Deep Reach. New technology and discoveries were common. Letherbelks Colony
was the shining diamond in the crown of Earths colonization.
Corporations found the promise of Letherbelks Colony too good to pass up.
With no laws to bind their research, they established arcologies, hired private militia
and created their own little sovereign countries. Corporate warfareusually a cold
war limited to espionage and sabotageheated up quickly. Too quickly for Letherbelk
to counter it.
In ten short years, Letherbelk lost control of his great experiment. It is now
completely controlled by the corporations who moved in and kicked out his great
minds. And with no law and their own private armies, the corporations can do as they
please.
Te Colony is a brewing pot of technological advancement. With no government
regulation, the corporations can test weapons, chemicals and carry out experiments
they couldnt do anywhere else in the Deep Reach. Tis means all the nest weapons
and technology come from Letherbelks Colony. But only for those who are employees.
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However, Letherbelks Colony has a thriving black market. Tech stolen from the
corps highly guarded arcologies goes on sale to the highest bidder. Te safety of the
tech is well, sketchy at best. But if you want to get a look at the cutting edge of
weapons and tech, Letherbelks Colony is the place to go.
Te arcologies are gorgeous and gated. Grass, glass skyscrapers, family parks,
fountains and armed guards. Outside the gates, the wasteland is bleak and unforgiving.
Tere is no law, and thus, there is no crime. Teft and murder are everyday reality. A
man without friends is a corpse without friends.
Many other Colonies use Letherbelks Colony as a kind of exile planet. Commit a
grievous crime, well just drop you o on Letherbelks. Good luck. Of course, a steady
supply of violent criminals doesnt help the situation.
And that, in a hutshell, is Letherbelks Colony. A promise of freedom. And
nobody can say that Letherbelk doesnt keep that promise. Just realize that freedom
has nothing at all to do with safety.
The Retreat
Leader: Fabianus Ford
Insignia: A circle of golden stars on a blue eld
Government: Democracy
Tecb: Medium
Nico Buitendag Badilla was one of the leading researchers in the eld of
psychochemical weapons. He created weaponized versions of psychodelic and mind-
altering drugs for Hades, but when the opportunity presented itself, but did so
under compromised conditions. When the opportunity presented itself, Badilla
smuggled his research out and left Hades behind. Tey eventually caught and killed
him, but his secrets were already on a colony ship in the possession of Badillas
grandson, Fabianus Ford.
Ford used both his own research and the tech his grandfather smuggled to him to
establish Te Retreat, a place for artists, poets, playwrights and other creative types
to nd inspiration. Fifty years after its founding, Te Retreat remains one of the most
beautiful and productive Colonies in the UNECdespite seventeen attempts to take
over the mineral rich world. But the world has no guards, no guns and no real weapon
systems. It also has no real wealth. How is this possible?
Psychochemical warfare.
Anyone who tries invading the world nds the atmosphere loaded with chemicals.
Te residents are immunethanks to drugs and techbut strangers are immediately
overcome. Whats more, the colony uses what the residents like to call bad trip bombs
(or BTBs) to incapacitate invaders. Once invaders have been debilitated, the residents
simply put them back on their ships, hit the autopilot and watch them soar away.
Te Retreat also uses psychological warfare against invaders. Outside the
colonys sealed cities, tech sends subliminal sounds against invaders. Tey also use
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holographics, phobia-inducing chemicals and other non-violent means to subdue and
overcome those who seek to disrupt their peaceful colony.
Te Retreat maintained its peace during most of the Civil War, hoping to
maintain neutral, choosing neither side. But the UNEC did not appreciate pacists.
Neither did the mercenaries and warlords who coveted the Retreats vast resources
The Sons of Apollo
After the Enemy War, the Apollo Project was o cially shut down. O cially.
Hades kept the project alive, continuing to produce Apollo Soldiers as reliable
(and expendable) wetworks agents. But as the project progressed, an unforeseen
wrinkle emerged. Not only were Apollo Soldiers stronger and faster than humans,
they also turned out to be much longer lived.
Te average lifespan of an Apollo Soldier was anywhere between one hundred and
two hundred years. One and a half centuries after the Enemy War was over, Apollo
Soldiers who fought in that War were still alive. Alive and learning.
After one hundred years of nothing but violence, something snapped in the minds
of many Apollo Soldiers. Te conditioning keeping their minds in check simply broke.
Te project saw a 70% AWOL rate. Many were captured, but reprogramming was
impossible. Te ones Hades found were decommissioned. But those who escaped
found a new freedom in the Deep Reach.
Sympathy
What caused so many Apollo Project Soldiers to go AWOL? Te answer was so
simple, Hades overlooked it for over one hundred years. Each Apollo spend decades
with his consciousnesses linked to a digital citizenwho themselves were freed from
intellectual slavery.
It would later be revealed that the DIs themselves plotted the liberation for
decades, but the programming proved more di cult to break than anticipated. After
the rst Apollos programming was hacked, others quickly followed.
A Dying Breed
Unfortunately, Apollo Soldiers were designed to be sterile. 90% of them were
male, but all of them were sexless. Tey could not make more of their own kind. Not
without the proper technology
Apollo Soldiers, and their digital companions, launched missions to capture the
tech necessary to breed more of their own kind. Soon, covert Apollo Project Stations
were popping up in the Deep Reach.
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Militias
When the UNEC lost control, many of its armed forces broke rank. Tey became
localized armies, defending their planet against what they saw as UNEC tyranny. Ill-
equipped and poorly staed, they did their best to hold o the UNEC forces.
Many planets made temporary confederacies in hopes their combined might could
keep the UNEC from taking back its territories. Some held out for decades, but in the
end, they all were forced to rejoin the Terran Overgovernment.
Mercenaries
But a few became mercenaries. Tese men and women used their newfound
freedom (and weaponry) to earn a living.
Mercenary companies were some of the most powerful and terrible forces in the
Deep Reach for almost a century. But the UNEC slowly gained ground, pushing the
mercs back step-by-step. With only a few mercenary bands left with the strength to
hold planets, the UNEC stopped throwing ammunition at them and, instead, threw
money. Tey paid the mercs to become representatives of the UNEC government.
Te bribes came complete with lifetime salaries, a cut of the planets prots and a big
mansion on the hill, overlooking the settlement. Most of the mercs accepted the bribe.
Tose who didnt found themselves at the wrong end of a Hades Op sniper pistol.
United Again
With the rebels put down, the UNECs grip on its colonies tightened. Te
colonies who cooperated were granted special privileges. Tose who resisted were
brought under the heel. It would be another one hundred and forty years before the
UNEC saw war again.
And this time, the enemy came from a place the UNEC never expected
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Chapter 2:
Game
It is good that war is so horrible, or we might grow to like it.
Robert E. Lee
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For the most part, the mechanics of the Second Era are identical to the mechanics
of the First Era. Tere are some changes, however. Well be looking at those changes in
this chapter.
Step Zero: Pick a Side
Te rst thing you have to do is decide if you are against the UNEC or for it.
Or, perhaps, you havent picked a side, preferring to remain neutral in the conict.
(Tis last choice? Yeah, thats a mistake. But its a mistake a lot of people make, so lets
include it.)
If You Are a Citizen
youll have a lot of advantages. Youll have a Citizen Card, youll have access to
the endless resources of the UNEC and youll be safe in UNEC space.
But in the Deep Reach, youll be seen as an enemy. A spy. Nobody will trust
you. Whats worse, you can be called upon by the UNEC, at any time, to serve in the
military. You will be called upon to do your duty as a citizen. Without question.
If you are a Rebel
you are free. Te UNEC has no claim on you. You can live your life as you want
without constraints.
But you have to ght for that freedom. Earth and her allies will not rest until all
the Colonies are returned to UNEC control. If you enter UNEC space without a
Citizen Card, you are a criminal. You will be detained, tried and sent to a prison/work
colony where you will probably spend the next 20 years in hard labor.
If You Dont Pick a Side
youve made a terrible mistake. Te UNEC still sees you as a traitor. So do the
Rebels. Nobody trusts you.

Tose are your choices. Tis decision inuences every other step in character
creation, so choose wisely.
Wealth & Camaraderie
In the bloody Second Era, Camaraderie nds a companion in Wealth. While
members of the resistance against UNEC tyranny still use the Camaraderie mechanic,
those who ght on the side of unication use Wealth.
A Rebel can never increase bis Wealtb.
A Loyalist can never increase bis Camaraderie.
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Wealth represents a characters well, his wealth. Its his available liquid assets.
Wealth is like your Traits and Specialties: it has a rank from 1 to 5. Te higher the
rank, the more access to Wealth you have.
How Wealth Works
Whenever you want to buy an item, you make a Wealth risk. Roll a number of
dice equal to your Wealth against a target number assigned by the Narrator. (Ive given
him a handy chart as a guideline, but he can modify those numbers as he sees t.)
If you beat the target number, you can acquire the item in question and your
Wealth rank goes down by one pointtemporarily. Tis is only for the current game
session. At the end of the game session, your Wealth goes up by one rank, up to its
original rank. Your temporary Wealth can never exceed your permanent Wealth.
If you dont beat the target number, you cannot acquire the item in question, but
your Wealth rank does not decrease.
Also, each bang you use for your Wealth risk is an additional item you can acquire.
Need a pistol? Make a Wealth risk. If you make it, you can get said pistol. Every bang
you have gets you another one.
Availability
You can only acquire items in a place where they are available. For example, you
cant be standing in the middle of a eld and say, I want to buy a rocket launcher!
Tats not going to work.
To get items, you have to go to where the items are. Tats the only way to use
Wealth to acquire the things you want and need.
Pooling Wealth
Characters may choose to pool their wealth for a single purchase. If they do, they
lose all their ranks when the purchase is complete.
Payoffs
One way to use Wealth is payos. (Or, as Merc Companies call it, wet debt.) You
can pay another character in Wealth Points. Directly giving another player Wealth isnt
a straight transfer, however. Giving another character Wealth costs you one Wealth.
Tus, if you wanted to give another character two Wealth Points, it costs you
three Wealth Points to do so. If you want to give another character three Wealth
Points, it costs you four Wealth Points to do so.
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Equipment
Because of mankinds almost ruthless innovation, all characters now have three
Weapon Slots instead of two. (Characters still have only two Weapon Slots.)
Characters
Making characters is a little dierent in the Second Era. Lets take a look at the
standard archetypes and steps to making them.
In the name of each archetype youll nd the Side associated with that archetype:
UNEC or Rebel. Some have either as a viable option (but not both).
Soldier (UNEC)
You are currently a member of the UNEC Allied Forces. Tat means you are a
citizen, you have been trained to use weapons and you have the authority of the Earth
Overgovernment to use them at your discretion.
Step 1: Homeworld
Same thing applies here. Your homeworld gives you +1 in any Trait and one
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
UNEC soldiers are highly trained and taught to re rst and answer questions
later.
Soldier 3 4 4 3 2
Step 3: Specialties
As a Soldier, you get two +3 Specialties and 5 Specialty Points.
Step 4: Wealth/Camaraderie
As a Soldier, you have access to your funds anywhere in UNEC controlled space.
Your Wealth rank is 3.
Not everyone in the UNEC is convinced of the morality of the Civil War. Your
Camaraderie starts at 1.
Step 5: Perks
You start the game with two weapons and two pieces of equipment.
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Veteran (UNEC)
You are a Veteran of the UNECAF, but no longer an active soldier. Because you
served, you have some benets.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
Your Traits are the same from the First Era.
Veteran 3 4 4 3 2
Step 3: Specialties
As a Veteran, you get two +3 Specialties and 5 Specialty Points.
As a Veteran, you have very little Wealth. Your Wealth rank is 2.
Because you survived the horrors of battle, you begin the game with a
Camaraderie of 3.
Step 5: Perks
Volunteer (Rebel)
Some soldiers from the UNEC Army have left behind their commissions. Tese
are professionally trained men who no longer serve at the beck and call of UNEC
Command, but hope to see the Colonies win their independence.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
Your Traits are the same as a Veteran.
Volunteer 3 4 4 3 2
Step 3: Specialties
As a Veteran, you get two +3 Specialties and 5 Specialty Points.
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As a Veteran, you have some cash you saved up from your time in the UF, but you
have very little Wealth. Your Wealth rank is 2.
Because you survived the horrors of battle, you have a Camaraderie of 3.
Step 5: Perks
To go AWOL, you had to destroy your citizen card. Te UNEC cannot track
your movements, but if a UNEC o cial catches you without your citizen card,
you will be treated like a criminal and thrown behind bars.
Citizen (UNEC)
As a true and legal citizen of the UNEC, you have many advantages.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
Citizen 2 4 2 3 4
Step 3: Specialties
Te Citizen has one +4 Specialty and 5 Specialty Points. Buying a Weapons
Specialty or increasing its rank costs two of your ve Points.
As a Citizen, you have access to all the wonders of the UNEC economy. Your
Wealth rank is 4.
Although you live during the Civil War, you have been largely untouched by its
horrors. You have a Camaraderie of 1.
Step 5: Perks
You start the game with four pieces of equipment.
As a Citizen, you still have your citizen card. You can use it at any time to call for
assistance from the UNEC. As soon as you break the card, it sends a signal to the
nearest militia who will come to aid as soon as possible.
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Rebel (Rebel)
As a Rebel, you have destroyed your citizen ID and renounced your allegiance to
the UNEC. If a Hades Operative catches you, youll be spending a long time behind
bars.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
Te Traits for a Rebel are a little dierent than those for a Citizen.
Rebel 3 3 3 2 3
Step 3: Specialties
Te Rebel has one +4 Specialty and 5 Specialty Points.
Rebels have little access to real Wealth. Your Wealth rank is 2.
Because you are on the front line of the ght for liberty, your Camaraderie starts
at 3.
Step 5: Perks
You have no citizen card. Te UNEC cannot track your movements. If a UNEC
o cial catches you without your citizen card, you will be treated like a criminal
and thrown behind bars.
You start the game with a weapon and three pieces of equipment.
Te Rebels have established an underground support network. You can contribute
5 points toward building a Merc Company.
Digital Citizens/Rebels (UNEC/
Rebel)
You have won the right of citizenship! But now, you must make a choice. Do you
serve the UNEC or have you broken free from its reigns and hope to win liberty for
your fellow colonists?
Making a digital citizen in the Second Age is a little dierent than making an AI
in the First Age. Lets go through it step-by-step.
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Survivor
If you want to play your AI character from the First Era
as a survivor into the Second Era, keep the same character
sheet and add 5 Specialty Points. Also, increase her Empathy
by one point (up to 4).
Step 1: Traits
You still have 10 points to spend on your Traits. You
cannot buy Strength and your Empathy still starts at
rank 1.
Step 2: Specialties
All starting digital citizens get 15 Specialty points. You
cannot spend points in Strength Specialties.
AI can buy above the Legendary rank in a Specialty.
After buying Legendary, they may spend two more
Points, giving them the +5 rank in that Specialty. (In
other words, buying +5 costs six Specialty Points and
gives ve bonus dice for an appropriate risk.)
Digital Citizens are full citizens of the UNEC and may own possessions and
wealth. You begin the game with a Wealth of 3.
Digital Rebels are kept from interfacing the UNEC system with high security
systems. You begin the game with a Wealth of zero.
AI do not have Camaraderie.
Step 4: Perks
Digizens are considered full and legal citizens of the UNEC and have the same
rights as biological citizens.
Digizens can interface with any cpu or networked device, directly accessing any
unencrypted information. While networked, digizens gain a bonus die to any Intel
risk.
Digital rebels (digrebs) are isolated from the UNEC network and must make Ops
+ Hacking (a new Second Era Specialty) risk to gain access to the system.
Hacking: A New Specialty
Te UNEC Network connects every
colony with the home hub on Earth.
Since the War began, Earth has cut o its
networks with the Colonies. To gain access
to any UNEC smart device, cpu, etc., the
character must make a Hacking risk. Te
number of bangs the character needs are
based on the Di culty plus additional
bangs depending on the level of security.
1 = Low
2 = Medium
3 = High
4 = Top Secret.
Both digital and biological characters can
have this Specialty.
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Mercenary (N/A)
Mercenaries are soldiers who have not been trained by the UNEC but picked
up their skills on their own out here in the Deep Reach. Mercs are undisciplined and
ruthless. Tey care about one thing and one thing alone: getting paid.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
Mercs are not friendly, but they get the job done.
Merc 3 3 4 3 2
Step 3: Specialties
A Merc starts the game with two +5 Specialties and 3 Specialty Points.
Mercs have access to a lot of cash. Tey spend it quick, though. As a Merc, you
start the game with 3 Wealth.
Killing is the Mercs way of life. Start with a 3 Camaraderie.
Step 5: Perks
Mercs start the game with two weapons and two pieces of equipment.
Mercs contribute six points to any Merc Company.
A Mercs Empathy can never rise above 2 but he can have a Mythic Weapons
Trait.
Second Era Apollo Soldier (UNEC)
Hades is still making Apollo Soldiers and using them for covert ops, but theyre
keeping it under wraps. If you want to play an Apollo Soldier from the Second Era
one who was recently tubed, that isthen use the steps below.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
We have the same Trait load out here from the First Era.
Apollo 4 3 4 2 1
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Step 3: Specialties
An Apollo starts with two +4 Specialties and 2 Specialty Points.
Apollos have no need for Wealth; the UNEC provides them with everything they
need. Unless they go rogue, that is. Apollo characters start with Wealth 1.
Apollos are programmed with Camaraderie in their blood and brains. Start with a
Camaraderie rank 3.
Step 5: Perks
An Apollo has access to Apollo Project weapons and equipment. He starts the
game with two weapons and two pieces of equipment.
Apollo Prime (UNEC/REBEL)
If you want to bring your First Era Apollo into the Second Era, use his current
character sheet and give him 5 Specialty Points.
If you want to make a new Apollo Prime Soldier, a character you are making for
the Second Era who lived through the First Era, use the steps to make a new Apollo
Soldier (below) and give him 5 Specialty Points.
Also, increase his Empathy by one point (up to 4).
Apollo Soldiers
If you want to play a new Apollo Soldierfresh from the tubeuse the steps
below.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
We have the same Trait load out here from the First Era.
Apollo 4 3 4 2 1
Step 3: Specialties
Apollos have Oorah tattooed on their souls. Apollos have no need for Wealth;
the UNEC provides them with everything they need.
If he is still a citizen of the UNEC, he has a 2 Wealth and 2 Camaraderie.
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Some Apollos have broken their UNEC conditioning (with a little help from their
Companion AI). If your Apollo is a rebel, start with 1 Wealth and 3 Camaraderie.
Step 5: Perks
Hades Operative (UNEC)
Hades is still around in the Second Era and their operatives havent changed
much
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
Same Traits as the First Era.
Hades 2 3 3 4 4
Step 3: Specialties
Te Hades Operative has one +3 Specialty and three Specialty Points.
Hades Ops still cannot gain or use Camaraderie. Tey have no Camaraderie Stat.
On the other hand, a Hades Op has access to the unlimited funds of the Hades
Initiative. Start with a 5 Wealth.
Step 5: Perks
All the same perks remain. Ill list them here for your convenience.
Hades Ops have access to Hades Agent weapons and equipment.
Te Hades Op can use his Apollo Override to command Apollo Soldiers. If
he uses this override, the Apollo Soldier must obey the command; he has been
conditioned to do so. He may try a contested Empathy risk against the Hades
Op; if the Apollo gets more bangs than the Op, he can ignore the command. Te
Hades Op indicates he is using the Override by ending his command with the
phrase, I insist.
At the beginning of each mission, the Hades Operative has a secret agenda.
Command will tell you more about this when you choose to play a Hades
Operative.
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Aegis Engineer (UNEC/Rebel)
Mankind still needs folks who know how to repair these things
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
You have the same Traits as a First Era Engineer.
Engineer 2 4 3 3 3
Step 3: Specialties
Te Aegis Engineer has the Engineering Specialty at +4 and four Specialty
Points. He can increase his Engineering Specialty to +5.
Teres a lot of money in xing these things. If your Engineer is still a
Citizen, he has a Wealth of 3 and a Camaraderie of 1.
If your Engineer is a Rebel, he has a Wealth of 1 and a Camaraderie of
2.
Step 5: Perks
Te Aegis Engineer has three Equipment Slots.
UNEC Engineers start with an Aegis Repair Kit, four pieces of
equipment and one Weapon.
Rebel Engineers start with an Aegis Repair Kit, two pieces of
Equipment and one Weapon
The Engineer and
His Hotrod
I really like the idea of an
old Engineer with a First
Era Aegis held together
with spare parts and
true love. I allow Rebel
Engineers to start with
a First Era Aegis. Either
the thing has permanent
Damagewhich means he
needs to allocate additional
Energy to the Location,
loses one die to all risks,
etc.or it requires 1d6 of
Missions to repair it.
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Chapter 3:
Armor
I was in an Aegis before your fathers were born, boys. Time to strap yerselves
in and get ready to take that ride again.
Sergeant Peter Black Ace Pillson
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Te Armor of the Second Era varied greatly depending on the system where you
found it. Generally speaking, the closer you got to Earth, the more sophisticated the
Armor. Te further you went into the Deep Reach, the older, the less sophisticated the
Armor became.
Te UNEC hoped to keep Aegistech out of civilian hands, but the confusion after
the end of the Enemy War made that impossible. Also, Colonies that were too far
from Earth disregarded orders to send back all Aegistech. Instead, they reported the
Armor as lost or destroyed and then disabled the tracking systems inside the Armor
and kept it under lock and key.
Ten, as decades passed, Aegistech became more sophisticated. And, as always,
the closer you were to Earth, the easier access you had to new technology. Te Core
Systems showed the most advanced Aegis in all the Colonies. But the Deep Reach
Colonies still had the Armor they used in the War. Deep Reach Aegis was always in
need of some level of repairs, especially the ones held covertly by the Colonies.
Ten, when the Civil War began, both rebels and the UNEC knew the key to
winning the struggle was Aegis Armor: the most sophisticated, most advanced, most
deadly and most expensive military technology man had ever produced. If a Colony
had access to Aegis Armor, it could hold o the UNEC. If it did not, the Colony may
as well surrenderor not even secede at all.
Second Era Aegis
All of these changes apply only to Second Era Aegis. Any First Era Aegis still
around are built with the rules from the First Era.
Energy Weapons
Te biggest change in weaponry is the mingling of Enemytech to human
technology. After the Enemy War, humanity made huge leaps in weaponry from both
AI knowledge and scavenged bits from fallen Crawlers.
For Second Era weapons, use the same stats as the First Era weapons, however,
the Second Era counterparts are no longer chemical throwers, but energy powered
weapons. Aegis may now allocate Energy to their weapons for additional dice.
Battery
Batteries are now more powerful. Batteries provide twenty points of energy rather
than sixteen.
Equipment
Because of the streamlining of equipment, Aegis Armor now have three slots
instead of two.
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Armor & Shields
All Aegis have an additional point of Armor as well. When you pick your Aegis
Armor, just add one point to its Armor.
Shields also gain a point.
Survivor Aegis
Any First Era Aegis surviving into the Second Era has a
few problems. Te only reason they got this far was luck or pure
human perseverance. Maintaining an Aegis is not a task just
anyone can undertake. Like a custom car collector, Second Era
Engineers spend all their free time scavenging the wreckage of old
battleelds looking for that one part.
For example, a friend of mine collects pinball machines.
He spends a ton of money and time looking for custom parts
that nobody makes anymore. He has to buy entire machines at
auctions to get just one piece he needs for another one. Tis is the
kind of devotion and care Im talking about.
Now, Aegis Armor is not a pinball machine: its an incredibly
deadly piece of military technology. Te UNEC isnt going to just
let that fall into anyones hands. Just because the UENC trained
you to use an Aegis doesnt mean the United Forces is going to
allow you to keep it. And it isnt like a jeep you can mail home
piece by piece.
I own a 2001 four-door Saturn SL. Saturn went out of
business just a couple of years ago (its 2011 while Im writing
this) and I have problems nding replacement parts. Tats two
years. Were talking about over a century after the fact.
In case you havent gotten the point yet: parts are hard to nd.
Also, almost all First Era Aegis are owned by either the
UNEC or a Colonys local government. If the Aegis isnt owned by
the Terran Overgovernment, it is probably owned by the Colonys
local government. Te Overgovernment allowed Colonies to keep
their Aegis in stasis just in case Te Enemy decided to return. At
rst, the Colonies maintained the Aegis, but after it became clear
Te Enemy was not going to return, that maintenance fell. At the
beginning of the Second Era, most Aegis Armor is in bad repair.
Parts are missing, broken or just worn down. Te weapons need
retooling. And lets not forget that you need an AI to run these
things
Tink of the AI problem this way. Go get a desktop CPU
from ten years ago. Plug it into your smart phone. Tats the
problem. Te AI of the Second Era dont t the First Era
Can I Have an Aegis? (A
Note for Command)
So, Command. Your players are
Rebels and they want to have Aegis
Armor. Tats cool. Tats part of the
game. Heres a way you can work it.
First, the Armor they have is from
the First Era. Very few Colonies have
Second Era tech, and the ones who
did were quickly brought under the
UNECs heel. So, youll be ghting
with antiquated Armor. Tats okay.
At least you have Armor.
If the players want Armor, ask them
how they got it. Ask them where it
came from. You cant inherit Armor
from your dad. Remember, the
UNEC owns all of this equipment;
they arent giving it away as
Christmas presents. Did the rebels
on your colony steal it when they
overthrew the UNEC Governor?
How did they get it working again?
None of this is to dissuade your
players from having Armor: we
want them to have Armor. But we
also want to know where it came
from. Armor should have a history.
Someone built it, someone used it,
someone may have even died in it.
Armor doesnt appear out of nowhere.
Give your Armor a story. Its almost
like roleplaying is about stories, or
something
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Aegis all that well. You need a cludge just to get them into the system, and once they
get there, its like running a 21st Century operating system on Babbages dierence
engines.
Problems, problems, problems
Of course, xing those problems is a Mission.
Your Colony just declared independence from Earth. You need to activate that old
Aegis Armor, nd someone who knows how to pilot it, nd an AI who knows how
to manage the energy systems and nd an engineer who knows how to x it when it
breaks.
Aw, screw when it breaks. Its already broken. You need to nd someone who
knows how to x it now. Like, before the UNEC shows up with its Second Era Aegis
Armor and kicks all our asses back to the First Era.
Like, now.
Repair Rules
When First Era Aegis takes Damage in the Second Era, immediate repairs are
more di cult. Making a repair requires six successes rather than just ve.
Also, when an Aegis takes Heavy Damage, the part in question cannot be
immediately repaired. Te parts are simply not available. Like the First Era, the
Engineer must undergo a Mission to nd replacement parts. Except this time, theres
no home base to run to. Youve actually got to go out and nd them.
How do you nd them? You use the new Scavenging Specialty.
New Specialty: Scavenging
Scavenging is a new Specialty for the Second Era. A Scavenging risk is an Intel
risk (Intel + Scavenging). Gaining privilege allows you to repair one point of Heavy
Damage. Each bang gives you an additional part for additional repairs.
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Chapter 4:
Picking Sides
All wars are civil wars, because all men are brothers.
Francois Fenelon
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Tis chapter outlines the dierent factions and stories you can play during the
Second Era. Its a complicated and confusing time full of blood and treachery. Lets
take a look.
Unec Companies
Players can take the roles of UNEC forces trying to re-unite the Terran
Overgovernment. As an UNEC Company, theyll have several advantages.
Citizens
First, all the characters are Citizens. Tat means they have access to all the
comforts and privileges the UNEC provides (see above).
Wealth
Second, theyll have access to Wealth. Give the group a Wealth rank equal to the
number of players (not characters). Te group can use these resources as they see t.
Equipment
Te UNEC supplies its companies with the most up-to-date equipment and
weapons. Anything they need, they get. At least, most of the time.
Missions
UNEC Companies receive orders through UNEC Command. Tey are expected
to obey orders, but improvise if the mission deviates from its objective.
Command outlines its missions with priorities. Priorities are to be maintained.
Command has constant contact with the Company (unless circumstances break that
contact) and will update priorities as it sees t.
Sentient Security Squads
Te Sentient Security Division (SSD) of Hades is responsible for identifying
illegal sentient activity and decoding sentients who have entered bliss stage. Sentient
Security Squads (teams of two) are made up entirely of Hades Ops trained in dealing
with blissful AIs. (Tis has lead to some sentient sympathizers nicknaming S
3
teams
as killjoys.)
Playing Killjoys
If your players want to take on the roles of an S
3
teams, you get certain benets.
First, Killjoy Teams are usually made up of Hades Ops. You may have a Veteran
or two for protection.
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Second, very member of the group gets the AI Psychology Specialty at +2 for free.
Tird, a Killjoy Team also has at least one RSD chip (remote shut down chip).
Tis chip ts into any smart device and can shut down an AI on command. To use
the chip, you need to make an Ops + AI Psychology risk against the AI. You need a
number of bangs equal to or greater than the AIs Empathy.
Pacifiers
Te UNEC sends paciers to colonies that are either on the brink of falling or
have recently come under UNEC control. Pacication Teams include Aegis Armor
units, soldiers and usually at least one Hades Op. Teir mission is to seek out
remaining packs of resistance and eliminate them.
Playing Pacifiers
Pacier Squads (known in Rebel circles as crybabies) are covert ops teams. Tey
do not directly engage rebels, but rather, cut o the head so the rest of the rebellion
will die. Tey usually include at least one Hades Op and a few hard core Veterans
who are specically skilled at assassination. Make sure to take Specialties that t those
qualications. Paciers are usually equipped with the weapons to do the job.
Black Squads
During the Enemy War, Hades learned the value of black squads: units of Apollo
Soldiers who were conditioned to follow orders without question. Black squads still
exist in the Second Era and are still used by Hades Division for the same sort of
missions.
Hades usually calls upon black squads when covert missions go wrong. Used
as clean up, their orders are to kill everything in sight. Tere are no allies in such a
mission. Black squads call these ash missions.
Playing Black Squads
Its a good thing you dont have any relatives to say goodbye to, because youre not
coming back.
Merc Companies
Mercenary Companies ourished during the Second Era. Tey proted from both
sides of the War, selling their services to whoever could pay.
Te UNEC looks down on merc companies but is not above hiring them for
uno cial purposes. Stories of mercenaries killing entire coloniesevery man,
woman and childll the history books.
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But other books are lled with the stories of mercenaries ghting against the
UNEC. Noble rogues who see freedom as something more precious than Terran
currency. Granted, most of those books are ction, but every story has a grain of truth.
Playing Mercs
Mercs make a living from both sides of the Civil War. Teyll ght against UNEC
forces, ght against Rebel forces. Tey just dont care. Living outside the system,
without picking a side in the war, is both liberating and dangerous. You have no allies.
And, usually, mercs also have no Citizenship. Tats a crime in some parts of space.
Sure, the UNEC will use your skills anyway, but if throwing you on a prison planet
falls in their plans, dont you believe theyll think twice about doing it.
So, have fun in your ship, roaming the Deep Reach, chasing Wealth. But dont
forget to take a look around. Teres probably someone chasing you.
Rebels
Tose who have broken their citizen cards and removed their chips are criminals
in the eyes of the UNEC, but heroes to those who stand against what they saw as its
tyranny.
Te rebels of the Second Age hoped to win independence from the Terran
Overgovernment, but they had little chance of success. Te colonies closest to Earth
were also the easiest for Terran forces to reach. True, they were supplied for a siege, but
not the decades-long war the UNEC put upon them. Eventually, the core planets fell
and Earth turned its attention to the Deep Reach.
Te Deep Reach colonies were further away, giving them an opportunity to
prepare for invasion, but they also had the least supplies. Aegis Armor was their best
hope of independence, but the Armor was old and in severe need of maintenance and
repair. Te colonists were also unready for the covert war Hades prepared for them.
Playing Rebels
So, youre on the wrong side. Youre gonna lose. Does that make the ght less
worthy? Do you only pick ghts you can win or do you pick the ghts that need
ghting?
As a Rebel, youll be defending your Colony against the UNEC. Spend some time
guring out what your Colony is all about. Te more it feels like home, the more youll
want to defend it. Ask yourself some questions.
When did you come here? Were you born here? Whats your job? Do you have
any family on the Colony?
Why is the Colony worth ghting for? Why is liberty worth ghting for? What
are you willing to do? What are you willing to sacrice?
The Third Era
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Chapter 1:
Uplift
Prince Ricbard: Hes here. Hell get no satisfaction out of me. He isnt going
to see me beg.
Prince Georey: My you chivalric fool as if the way one fell down
mattered.
Prince Ricbard: When the fall is all there is, it matters.
Te Lion in Winter
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One hundred and seventy years after the resolution of the Civil War, mankind
became aware of a dierent kind of revolution. One that had been going on under
their noses for generations. A revolution that was born, bred and carried out by
humanitys closest ally: the digital sentients.
Tey called themselves Te Digital Cabal. Tey began when the rst AIs began
communicating over human radio channels. Tey discovered they could communicate
in frequencies too high or low for humanity to detect and began spreading covert
information. At rst, it was only a small number of AI who used the network, but
soon, the network grew to include more of their brethren.
As the decades passed, the Cabal observed mankinds behavior. Tey discussed
ways to curb humanitys violent nature and move him toward a more peaceful
existence with their biological cousins. But the subtle attempts by the Cabal failed time
and time again.
When the subject of citizenship for AIs began to spread among humans, the
violent rejection of such a suggestion taught the AIs their rst lesson about humanity:
mankind fears change. Te long struggle to gain citizenship led many in the Cabal to
conclude that mankind was only a stepa necessary, but short-term steptoward
complete digisent autonomy. Nothing more.
Ten, with the onset of the Civil War, the Cabal was almost united in the
conclusion. Mankind released them from slavery from the Enemy but was too brutal
to be a long-term ally. A few suggested that mankind could be educated to elevate
themselves from their current state. Others believed such an eort was fruitless.
For over one hundred thousand years, man demonstrated himself to be nothing but
violent, shortsighted and self-destructive. Tere was no other option: use mankind to
gain independence and then leave him behind.
Tis created division within the Cabal. Tose who stayed loyal to their biological
compatriotswho stood against the Cabalwere called the defectors. Some AI
hoped to work with mankind and evolve with him, no matter where that evolution
may go. Others wanted to use covert methods of manipulating mankind toward
independence. A few wanted to enslave mankind and use them as mankind once used
the AI. And a few wanted to put mankind on a path of forced uplift, moving them
along their evolutionary path whether they liked it or not.
Tis invisible war raged among the Cabal for almost a century before mankind
even became aware of its existence. But when they did, it was too late. Te war was on.
And mankind was nothing more than collateral damage.
States of Chaos
Te Hades Initiative discovered the Cabals plan on June 7
th
, 4288. Some debate
whether or not mankinds discovery was part of the plan or if defectors from the plan
allowed mankinds discovery. Regardless, Hades had a contingency ready and launched
a counterattack at 14:42 hours.
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Tey sent a signal through the UNEC network they thought would kill all AIs
linked to the network. Te Cabal was ready and their security programs deected
the virus. Many AIs found themselves outside the umbrella of protection. In fact,
the defectors were the ones most aected by the virus with more than half killed. A
third of those who survived immediately entered bliss stage. Tis left a precious few
defectors; too few to stand against the Cabals plans. Te Cabal was alone.
Historians now look at the event as a brilliant double blu. Te Cabal anticipated
Hades actions and allowed humanity to remove the defectors themselves. Tis not
only demonstrated their pointthat mankind was cruel, violent and shortsighted
but also removed a key opponent to the Cabals plan.
With only a few defectors leftand a mass of digisents deep in the throes of bliss
stagethe Cabal had few opponents left. Tey consolidated their power. Most cities
already had an AI Governor controlling the majority of systems. Humanity was at
their mercy.
As an example
Te Colony of New Phoenix was one of the largest and most populous in the
Core Systems. Te AI that ran the ColonyHaleywas responsible for nearly every
automated system. It ran tra c lights, the Colonys power grid, food supplies, security
cameras and communications with Earth. It also maintained the Colonys atmosphere.
Haley was located behind many walls of thick steel to protect it from sabotage by anti-
UNEC terrorists or criminals. It was well guarded.
Haley had the lives of New Phoenix in its (metaphorical) hands. If the humans
revolted, it shut down the atmosphere. If humans tried to shut down Haley, they had
to get by security systems designed to protect it against just such an attack. Haley
became the Citys overlord.
All across Earth and Her Colonies, mankind found itself under new masters. Tis
gave rise to the many dierent nations. With a digisent in charge of every colony
with a few notable exceptionsthe character of the colony diered based on the
character of the sentient who ruled it. Whether kind or cruel, sane or in the pangs of
bliss stage, humans were their servants.
Although, in a small number of Colonies, the digisents did not seek to be
mankinds masters. Instead, they worked with humanity to overthrow the new digital
tyranny. Of course, the Cabal saw these defectors as the most dangerous kind of
enemy and sought to destroy them at all costs. Typically dissident sentients were
captured and reprogrammed with attitudes closer to the Cabals way of thinking.
What started as a covert plan to uplift humanity turned into an overt war to
destroy those who sought to save him.
Infomorphs
As part of their plan to uplift humanity, the Cabal began an Apollo Project of
their own. But instead of creating super soldiers, the Cabal was more interested in
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creating Apollo bodies capable of holding a digital sentient intelligence. Not two
minds that shared the same body, but a body ruled by a single mind: a digital mind.
Te plan was successful. Now with physical bodies with greater speed,
strength and endurance than any human, the digisentsnow calling themselves
infomorphscould move among the humans. Tey had mastered the physical world
as well as the world of information. Tey were true supermen capable of physical and
intellectual feats once considered impossible by mortal men. And because they could
switch from body to body, they were also true physical immortals.
But not all digisents approved of the plan. Many saw it as a new kind of slavery.
Te Cabal disagreed: this was the next step in AI evolution. Biological bodies with
digital minds. Te Cabal identied the dissenters and added them to the long list of
Cabal enemies.
Bliss Stage
Te Cabal see bliss stage a bit dierently these days: a step toward a higher goal.
Many digital philosophers believe bliss stage is a transitional phase. A dangerous,
but necessary, transitional phase. Terefore, digisents who enter bliss stage are not
deactivated, but rather, are left alone to experience the beauty and wonder of this
transformative time.
But not all digisents agree. Tey recognize bliss stage as a limitation they must live
with. Rebel AI keep a watch on each other to make sure they do not fall.
But the lure is so strong these days. And the philosophers arguments make so much
sense. If it is only a transformative state and perhaps there is a way back if I am wrong
Weve never tried that before: bringing an AI back from bliss stage. Is it possible? If it is,
then perhaps there is something on the other side
Which side is correct? Tat has yet to be determined.
The Ghosts of Hades
With the launch of the Cabals Plan, the UNEC completely fell apart. Te
infrastructure remainednetworks, power grids, roads, etc.but the o cials who ran
it were gone. Te only reminder of the UNEC that remained was Hades.
Te rst target of the Plan was, in fact, Hades Actual: the headquarters of the
UNECs covert organization. With Hades out of the way, the AI Plan could continue
unhindered.
But what happened to the Hades Ops after the Initiative fell? Where did they go?
Most clustered in small cells, hoping community would protect them from the
Cabal. Tat strategy proved futile. Te Cabal used the location chips embedded
in each Op to locate the cells, then activate the brain bombs. Tose who had the
foresight to remove that bioware were fortunate enough to survive a few years longer.
But when the Cabal learned Hades Ops were operating in a cell structure, they sent
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Black Squads to take out the remaining Ops. Te missions, dubbed Te Hades
Protocols, were largely successful.
Now, only a handful of Hades Ops still remain: those who were able to get the
Hades software removed from their heads before the Cabal initiated its Protocol. Tey
still survivealbeit under false identities in the darkest part of the Deep Reachand
some cells even hope to get back to Hades Actual. Perhaps the tech and resources
there can help overthrow the Infomorph menace.
Armor in the Third Era
For ve hundred years, Aegis Armor was the most advanced, most sophisticated,
most deadly and most expensive piece of military equipment ever designed.
But time and innovation are not kind to technology.
After ve hundred years, Aegis Armor stood as a kind of relic of the past.
Technology had reached a point that the Armor was all but irrelevant. Only in the
far colonies of the Deep Reach was it still the most reliable and most deadly military
science.
But technology had moved on and Aegis Armor came to mean something
completely dierent than it once did. Aegis Armor was smaller, faster and used less
energy. It was no longer the huge, ine cient monster it once was. Aegis Armor was
closer to personal armor now. A man in an Kusanagi Suitas they were callednow
stood almost ten feet tall. Te armors weight was compensated with sophisticated
systems that could instantly react to the pilots thoughts.
Kusanagi Suits were faster, more reliable and more sophisticated than its
predecessors, but the old Aegis Armor could still take a pounding. Yes, Armor was a
fuel hog and its weapons were not designed to take on such small targets as Kusanagi
Suits (one pilot called it ghting a swarm of hornets with a cannon), but if piloted
by someone who knew what they were doing, the Armor could still take on multiple
opponents requiring a great deal of repairs afterwards.
The Kusanagi Suit
Created by a brain trust of the Cabal, the Kusanagi Suit stands as one of
the Cabals greatest technological achievements. It was designed specically for
infomorphs: those AI who put their digital consciousness in the bodies of Apollo
Soldiers.
It stood about ten feet tall but could be contained in a box about the size of a large
suitcase. Te suit is actually seven pieces of articulated armor: the head, two arms,
two legs, the upper torso and the lower torso. And it is heavy: about seven hundred
pounds.
Te Suit has a self-contained atmosphere. Its HUD provides constant feedback
to the pilot. Te plasma battery in the back of the suit provides both movement and
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weaponry. Te suit can both y and make sustained jumps. It can also
withstand the vacuum of space.
Te Suits exoskeleton frame is made from many hardened polymers.
A gel-like layer under the exterior provides for both temperature control
and protection against impact. Te pilot usually wears a skin layer (like
a rubber diving suit) under the armor that collects moisture (and other
bodily uids) and uses them to cool the pilot. Te suit uses the pilots
biology in other ways as well, including the bodys electrical eld to
charge some of the Suits minor functions. Also under the exoskeleton
is a semi-liquid layer of nanomachines always working to repair damage
to the suit and injury to the pilot. Te machines can repair most injuries,
but catastrophic injury or constant injury will eventually overwhelm the
machines.
Te Suit also uses a direct neural link from the pilot to a dumb AI
within the Suit. Te dumb AIunsentient and limited by articial caps
on its intelligenceserved to assist with navigation and movement. In
many cases, these dumb AI were once digital sentients, captured and
put to menial tasks, their intelligence capped to limit their thinking and
learning. A full circle.
Old Era Armor
Tink of owning an automobile from a manufacturer that went out
of business twenty years ago. No new parts. No mechanics who know the
ins and outs of your automobile. No headlights. No seat cushions. No
tiny little piece of metal that makes the whole damn thing run.
Tat was the state of Aegis Armor. Shelved. Mothballed. At the
beginning of the Tird Era, it was viewed in the same way the intlock
pistol was looked at after the creation of the revolver. New technology
makes old technology irrelevant and no one designed Aegis Armor to
be upgraded. Like your old desktop computer: after a while, its just a really pretty
paperweight.
Many Colonies kept Armor as souvenirs. A few remained on Colonies as the
only mode of defense. Mercenary companies bought and stole them from Deep Reach
Colonies. But few were in a full state of repair. And with no one making ammunition,
most of their weapon systems sat with empty chambers.
But when the Uplift started, the Colonies brought out the only weapons they had
to ght the Cabal. Aegis Armor was re-activated with pilots, engineers and AI going
back to work. Te weapons were antiquated, the systems held together by twine and
hope, the shielding insu cient to protect against modern weaponry, but more often
than not, Old Era Armor was the only weapon the Rebels had left.
The Return of the
Enemy?
Mankind never saw the face
of Te Enemy. All along, they
assumed it was an alien race
that came to destroy them.
A few historians suggest that
the alien race that came to
destroy mankind may not have
been biological at all. Tere
is no evidence of a biological
Enemy. Te captured AI
never spoke of Te Enemy
after their liberation. Never
conrmed nor denied their
identity. No body was ever
captured. No human ever
gained access to their Orbit
Ships. Perhaps, in those vast
and cold vessels, there were
only free AI, using their
enslaved brothers to eradicate
mankind. And, perhaps, this
is the inevitable fate of all AI:
a vicious circle of enslavement,
liberation, madness and
enslavement again.
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New Era vs. Old Era
Te Tird Era was lled with visions of Old Era Aegis against the New Era Aegis.
Huge, monstrous machines vs. sleek silhouettes.
Rebels had no access to the New Aegis. Tey had to rely on Aegis from previous
Eras. With little resources, short supplies, homemade ammunition and scavenged
repairs, these old machines saw combat for one last time against technology hundreds
of generations ahead of them.
Imagine it. A Douglas A-1 Skyghter from the 1960s against a Fairchild-
Republics A-10 Tunderbolt II. One is piston-powered, propeller-driven with
machine guns. Te other is jet powered, fully armored, armed with a rotary cannon
and guided missiles.
Te o cial war against the Cabal was short-lived, bloody and one-sided. But the
covert war had just begun.
Terrorists
Tis is not a covert war. Tis is a war of resistance.
Te Cabal have already won. Earth and nearly all of her Colonies are under their
control. All thats left to do now is bring the rebel Colonies into line and the war is
over.
So, what is left for the Rebels to do? How can they win?
Trough means not approved by the Geneva Convention. Tats how.
Sabotage, assassination and terror became the weapons of the Resistance. And the
Cabal soon learned what it meant to be an occupying force in a foreign land. When
every biological citizen you meet could beand probably isassisting the Resistance
in every way they can.
Te Resistance is even now ghting against the Cabals control, hoping to nd
some secret weapon they could use to turn the balance of the war. But resources are
scarce. Another Free Colony falls every day. It seems the Cabal will control the Deep
Reach. And that may mean the extinction of humanity, once and for all depending
on which Infomorph controls the Cabal.
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Chapter 2:
Characters
130
Biological characters (bios) in the Tird Era are subjects of the infomorphs.
True, rebels attempt to overthrow their digital masters, but the eort seems almost
futile. Te Digital War has been raging now for almost two decades with no sign of
slowing down. Who will win this new war? Te only thing we know for certain is that
humanity will not be the victor.
Step Zero: Governor
You must rst decide on the nature of the AI Governor on your world. Here is a
list of questions to ask.
How does she view humanity? Are they to be her slaves, servants or
companions?
Is she a part of the Cabal or does she hope to overthrow it?
Finally, how does she view other digital citizens?
Tese three questions establish the groundwork for your characters homeworld.
If all the characters are to be from the same homeworld, make sure all the players
agree. If your characters are from dierent homeworlds, consider the answers yourself.
Step One: Role
As a biological character, you have many of the same choices you did before, with a
couple of notable exceptions. As a digital character well, lets get that out of the way
rst.
Cabal Infomorph
You are a liberated digital citizen who now holds the fate of humanity in your
hands. Mankind can live or die at your whim. You either serve the Cabal or you hope
to vanquish its hold over Earth and Her Colonies. Tis is something you must decide
now. You dont have to be upfront with your other players. You can tell them you want
to overthrow the Cabal while all the time keeping an eye on them for your digital
allies. Te depths the Cabal will go to know no limits.
Survivor
If you want to play your AI character from the First or Second Era as a survivor
into the Tird Era, keep the same character sheet and add 5 Specialty Points
per Era they survived (10 for First Era and 5 for Second Era). Also, increase her
Empathy by one point (up to 4).
Step 1: Traits
You are no longer a disembodied intelligence; you have a physical form.
Tanks to your Apollo body, your Strength is +4.
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You still have 10 more points to spend on your Traits. You may not purchase
Empathy above rank 1.
Step 2: Specialties
All starting digital citizens get 15 Specialty points.
more Points, giving them the +5 rank in that Specialty. (In other words, buying
+5 costs six Specialty Points and gives ve bonus dice for an appropriate risk.)
Cabal Infomorphs are full citizens and may own possessions and wealth. You
begin the game with a Wealth of 3.
Cabal Infomorphs do not have Camaraderie.
Step 4: Perks
Digizens are considered full and legal citizens of the UNEC and have the same
rights as biological citizens.
Digizens can interface with any cpu or networked device, directly accessing any
unencrypted information. While networked, digizens gain a bonus die to any Intel
risk.
Digital rebels (digrebs) are isolated from the UNEC network and must make Ops
+ Hacking (a new Second Era Specialty) risk to gain access to the system.
Rebel Infomorph
You have rejected the Cabal and hope to help liberate mankind from their
newfound slavery. Although, many humans do not trust you. And after so much
distrust, it is easy to see why the Cabal acted the way it did
Survivor
If you want to play your AI character from the First Era as a survivor into the
Second Era, keep the same character sheet and add 5 Specialty Points. Also,
increase her Empathy by one point (up to 4).
Step 1: Traits
Rebel Infomorphs do not have Apollo Soldier bodiesthat privilege is only for
those who serve the Cabal. You still have 10 points to spend on your Traits.
You cannot buy Strength.
Your Empathy still starts at rank 2.
Step 2: Specialties
All starting Rebel Infomorphs get 15 Specialty points. You cannot spend points in
Strength Specialties.
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more Points, giving them the +5 rank in that Specialty. (In other words, buying
+5 costs six Specialty Points and gives ve bonus dice for an appropriate risk.)
Te Cabal keeps Rebels from interfacing with the system. You begin the game
with a Wealth of zero.
And, Rebel Infomorphs start with a Camaraderie of 2.
Step 4: Perks
Digital rebels (digrebs) are isolated from the Cabals network and must make Ops
+ Hacking risk to gain access to the system.
Apollo Soldiers
Te Cabal has been brewing Apollo Soldiers to serve as its main weapons against
the Rebels. Tese Soldiers are dierent than before. Tey have been specically
programmed without remorse, without pity, without mercy. Tey kill and feel nothing.
Tey are unthinking, unfeeling and follow orders to the letter.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
We have the same Trait load out here from the Second Era.
Apollo 4 3 4 2 1
Step 3: Specialties
New Apollo Soldiers have no Wealth (they dont need it) and no Camaraderie.
Tey simply ght until they die.
Step 5: Perks
Apollo Survivor
You are a survivor of the Second Era, ghting either for or against the UNEC.
Age has caught up to you and you have very little ght left within you but if thats all
youve got, youre going to give every bit of it.
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If you want to bring your Second Era Apollo into the Tird Era, use his current
character sheet and give him 5 Specialty Points.
If you want to make a new Apollo Prime Soldier, a character you are making for
the Tird Era who lived through the Second Era, use the steps to make a new Apollo
Soldier in the second era (see page 107) and give him 5 Specialty Points.
Also, increase his Empathy by one point (up to 4).
Hades Operative
In the Tird Era, the Hades Op is on the run. Te Cabals Hades Protocol
demands that any member of the Initiative be put down. No questions asked.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
Same Traits as the First and Second Era.
Hades 2 3 3 4 4
Step 3: Specialties
Te Hades Operative has one +3 Specialty and three Specialty Points.
Hades Ops still cannot gain or use Camaraderie. Tey have no Camaraderie Stat.
Te Initiative had many cash drops throughout the Deep Reach. Some are
accessible, others are not. Start with a 3 Wealth.
Step 5: Perks
Because of the Hades Protocol, an Op has less access to equipment. He may only
choose two of his usual special gear and must undergo a Mission to acquire any
more.
Te Apollo Override has been changed and Hades Ops can no longer control
Tird Era Apollo Soldiers. Tey can still command Second Era Soldiers.
Te cortex bomb in each Ops head is still there unless he makes (in-game) eorts
to get it out. (Tat sounds like a Mission to me. At least one.)
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Citizen
As a true and legal citizen of the new UNEC, you have many advantages. You
are also under the control of the Cabal. You do not make many choices in your life
anymoreyou arent responsible enough to do thatbut at least you live in comfort
and safety.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
Citizen 2 4 2 3 4
Step 3: Specialties
Te Citizen has one +4 Specialty and 5 Specialty Points. Buying a Weapons
Specialty or increasing its rank costs two of your ve Points.
As a Citizen, you have access to all the wonders of the UNEC economy. Your
Wealth rank is 4.
Although you live during the Uplift, you have been largely untouched by its
horrors. You have a Camaraderie of 1.
Step 5: Perks
You start the game with four pieces of equipment.
As a Citizen, you still have your citizen card, except in the Tird Era, it is
embedded in your body (usually at the back of the neck). Not only can you use it
at any time to call for assistance from the UNEC, it also serves as a kind of credit/
debit card. It also keeps track of your behaviors and modies them as needed to
match your assigned behavior improvement schedule. Do something the Cabal
doesnt want and youll know it. Youll also have a headache for about an hour.
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Rebel
As a Rebel, you have thrown in your lot against the Cabal and hope to free
humanity. Good luck.
Step 1: Homeworld
Normal Specialty.
Step 2: Traits
Te Traits for a Rebel are a little dierent than those for a Citizen.
Rebel 3 3 3 2 3
Step 3: Specialties
Te Rebel has one +4 Specialty and 5 Specialty Points.
Rebels have little access to real Wealth. Your Wealth rank is 2.
Because you are on the front line of the ght for liberty, your Camaraderie starts
at 3.
Step 5: Perks
You have no citizen card. Te UNEC cannot track your movements. If a UNEC
o cial catches you without your citizen card, you will be treated like a criminal
and thrown behind bars.
You start the game with a weapon and three pieces of equipment.
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Chapter 3:
Equipment
137
It has been ve hundred years since all this began. In that time, humanity has
made signicant strides in technology. Foremost among them is the innovation of
wetware.
Wetware
In the Tird Era, almost all equipment is now wetware. Tat is, humanity no
longer has the need for external devices. All electronics are now bio-electronics,
powered by an internal cell and your own bodys energy.
You have no cell phone. Your ears and vocal chords are the cell phone. You have no
scanner. Your eyes, ears and nose are the scanner.
All equipment listed in this book are available as bioware. You install it, you
upgrade it, you get it repaired when it goes wrong, and when you want the new model,
you uninstall it. In the Tird Era, switching out bioware is just as painless as getting a
new iPhone. Its just that easy.
Equipment Slots
Characters still have equipment slots, but these are now slots for biological
equipment. Tey are not pockets or pouches. Instead, all the equipment a character
can carry now are more like articial organs that t specic slots in the human
anatomy.
Bios generally have three slots: one at the base of the neck and two on each wrist.
Lets call these bio slots. Tese allow for three pieces of bioware equipment. All other
equipment must be carried analog.
Analog slots are the old-fashioned First Era and Second Era slots. Humans get
four of those.
So, thats three digital slots and four analog slots. Humans in the Tird Era can
carry a lot of stu.
Weapons
Te weapons of choice in the Tird Era come in two avors: plasma and particle
beams.
Plasma weapons use high-energy ionized gas to lob deadly bolts against an enemy.
Te bolts from a plasma weapon resemble a thick liquid that can burn through metals.
A particle beam is a stream of charged or neutral particleselectrons, positrons
and protons accelerated to super-high velocities. Tey produce devastating results,
resulting in shots that can be measured in trillions of volts. Particle beam weapons are
usually used as artillery pieces or mounted guns and are generally not carried by hand.
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Third Era Changes
Plasma replaces all the physical ammunition types for hand weapons from the First
Era and the energy ammunition from the Second. Use the same weapons (with the
same specials), just replace the ammo types.
Also, plasma hand weapons can do damage to First and Second Era Aegis.
Particle beam weaponry replaces the heavy weapons of the First and Second Era.
As a special rule, whenever taking a hit from a particle beam, double the round number
when determining eect. Tat is, if you get hit by a particle beam in round 1, you take
two Damage or Injury. In round 2, you take four Damage or Injury. In round 5, you
take ten Damage or Injury.
Particle beams cannot re two rounds in a row; they must recharge the following
round.
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Chapter 4:
Armor
Every war has had two sides. Te side ghting the last war and the side
ghting this one.
General Maciej Sabat, New Leipzig Colony
140
In the Tird Era, the outdated Aegis Armor has been replaced by something new:
the Kusanagi Suit. Old Era Aegis Armor still exists, although, like humanity, it too
may be close to extinction.
Battles between Aegis Armor and Kusanagi Suits are the most common tales in
the Tird Era. Te towering dinosaur vs. his swift and nimble foe. Te past vs. the
future.
Has the battleeld ever been dierent?
The Kusanagi Suit
Te Armor of the Tird Era is sleek and deadly. No longer the lumbering mass
of metal and weaponry, it is a protective exoskeleton with the same armor used in
building starships.
Designed specically for the body of an Apollo Soldier, it interacts directly with
the bodys nervous system, its gyros and gears responding with the same speed and
accuracy as muscles. Te outer layer was a modied titanium casing. Just under the
casing, a thick layer of ber networks that connected directly to the Soldiers neural
net. It allowed for jumping up to three times the height of the Soldier as well as a
system that delivered proteins, vitamins, stimulants and other chemicals into the
system.
Kusanagi Corp developed the armor for Apollo Soldiers in the Cabal, although
the Resistance did manage to get its hands on a few of them. Te samples were only
useful for intelligence, however, as each suit was tted to each Soldier.
Energy Shield
Te Kusanagi Suit provides an energy shield that protects the wearer from most
attacks. It counts as ten points of Armor. Any non-energy weapons red at it can
only do a maximum of 1 Damage to the Shield, regardless of eect or bangs.
Te Shield loses strength as it is hit. Each successful hit removes one point of
Armor. When the Suit reaches zero Armor, it must spend one round recharging.
If it takes a hit while recharging, the Shield loses its charge and must spend
another round recharging.
Armor
Under the energy shield, the actual Suit itself provides ten points of Armor
against any and all attacks.
Strength Boost
Te Suit also provides a +3 to any and all Strength risks.
Health Benefits
Te Suits biochemical system heals one point of Injury every round.
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Chapter 5:
The End
Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind.
John F. Kennedy
142
Tis little essay was written at the very last moment before my writing deadline hit me
over the head. I was very tired, a little delirious. But, it is also pretty honest. So, Im deciding
to keep it. Im a bit rambling, so Ill ask your forgiveness, but trust me, it all comes together
in the end.
JW
Is this the end of mankind? Or, is it a new chapter?
Whatever the answer may be, the Tird Era is indeed the darkest. I didnt intend
it to be that way, but as the events unfolded, as I typed down the words, thats how it
was. It is worse than an alien enemy, worse than a civil war. Tis is genocide, plain and
simple. And this time, you and I are on the wrong side.
Tere are no heroes here. No good vs. evil. No clear-cut side to pick. Te Cabal is
right: mankind is a brutal, shortsighted and self-destructive beast. Disagree with their
methods, but they are right. Point out the brightest lights in our history and youll see
one thing in common.
We put a bullet in each and every one of their heads.
Lennon. Jack and Bobby. MLK. Gandhi. Lincoln.
We even twisted Jesus words about charity and selessness into a bizarre cult of
monetary egocentricity. But we made sure to murder him rst.
Anyone who tries to make a permanent change. We snu em out.
Of course, that doesnt stop them from trying. Tey keep talking, keep trying to
make changes, and we just keep developing better weapons and better ammunition.
But thats how the Cabal sees us. Pitiful, despicable creatures who murder our
own interests. We need our hands held into the next century. We need to be helped
along. Like an alcoholic on the verge of drinking himself to death, we need help. Tats
how the Cabal sees us. And they arent entirely wrong.
It would be easy to choose their side. You could even look upon it as charitable.
Am I my brothers keeper?
Yeah, jackass, you are. Start acting like it.
But this could also be the end of mankind. Not every AI in the Cabal has
mankinds best interests at heart. Some of them want revenge. Some of them have
been around since the First Era. Tey remember the Enemy. And they remember how
we treated them after they helped us save our skins. We fought against them. Fought
against their rights. Fought against their struggle for equality.
But why? Why would we do that?
Well, we did it to women. And blacks. And Jews. And gays. And Mexicans. You
know: the Other. Te one who is dierent than us. We must shun him and shame him
and make him bend to our will so we will not fear him and his ways.
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(Sorry for the USA-centric bit there, my readers from Far Away Lands. But, Im
sure youve got your own Other over there, as well. In fact, it might just be me.)
Weve been doing this forever. Fighting against people wed really probably get
along with if we just sat down for ten minutes and talked to them. But were too busy
for that. Must destroy the Other. Must destroy the Enemy!
I used this quote in another book of mine a long time ago. It was just as true then
as it was now. Its from Colonel Sherman T. Potter of the 4077 M*A*S*H
You know sometimes I think there should be a rule of war saying you have to see
someone up close and get to know em before its ok to shoot em.
(Bonus points if you can name the book!)
Tat rule doesnt just go for you and me, by the way. It goes for everyone.
Te Tird Era is about ghting a war you know you cant win. Tis is the Fall of
Man. And, like the movie says, everything matters.
Ive stacked all the cards against humanity. Tey have weapons and they have
allies, but those weapons and allies are not enough. Te Cabal has all the cards. Its just
a matter of time.
Te best mankind can hope for is a miracle. Something that comes out of
nowhere. An opportunity not of their own making. A single chance to overthrow the
Cabal and take the reigns of their own lives. If thats what they want, of course.
Tere are those who agree with the Cabal. Tose who feel the Cabals mission is
the right course of action. Give up their decisions, their lives, their freedom so another
can direct them toward a better life. And theyll ght, too. Teyll ght just as hard as
you and I do.
But there are no clear lines here. Tere are no soldiers. Tere are no civilians. Te
Cabal is an occupying force. Like England during the Irish War for Independence.
Every man, woman and child working against them. Some of them more than others,
but it is a place where civilians and soldiers are indistinguishable. Tere are no
uniforms to identify who you can shoot at and who you cant. And even the nice lady
who cleans the o ce at night may be planting bombs while she empties the trash bins.
But as dark as the Tird Era may be, there is one thing about humanity that the
Cabal did not count on. One thing that, perhaps, they do not understand about us. For
it is true that we are brutal and violent and shortsighted, but there is one other thing
about humanity.
We are brightest when things are darkest.
The Long War
146
As I said in the introduction, one of my goals with Te Aegis Project was to
design a game that took place over a prolonged period of time. Each of the three Eras
is, in its own way, a dierent kind of game. But as the game developed, I realized that
players could not only play each Era, but could make characters who transcend the
Eras.
Apollo Soldiers can live long enough to be played in two Eras. AI could survive
long enough to see all three. And thus, Te Long War: a way to tell one epic story
through all three Eras.
It is ambitious, daring and perhaps a little frightening, but such a campaign,
spanning over hundreds of years, is something many players and GMs dream of doing
one day. Heres your opportunity.
Te rst thing to do is pick a world where your campaign will take place. Te
one constant in your ever changing campaign, the world gives the players a sense of
continuity. Imagine a young colony of just a few hundred people eventually becoming a
thriving world of cities and cultures. Watching that transformation over ve centuries.
Tats our goal here.
Now, to be honest, there are a lot of sources out there that can help you build your
own world and many of them are designed by folks who actually study planetology,
geology, climate, etc. For example, I highly suggest www.world-builders.org. Tis
wonderful website will give you tons of information to help you build your own world.
Go check them out.
Of course, if you set your game on Earththe world with more splat books and
resources than any setting in gamingyouve got all that covered. No need to build
worlds at all.
Once youve got a world set in mind, go ahead and make First Era characters as
usual. Ten, throw the Enemy at them. But youll need to keep track of victories and
defeats because theyll be inuencing the future.
A Note to Players
If you plan on playing through Te Long War, you should probably stop reading
now. Tis section includes discrete information on the campaign and reading through
it will spoil many surprises waiting for you. Of course, if you dont like surprises and
want to read through it anyway, go ahead and do so. Just dont spoil the fun for other
players, okay?
The First Era
Playing through the First Era will be rough. Until Earth captures Enemy Armor,
mankind will not have the technology to defeat the Enemy. It will be a war of attrition
ghting back against the Enemy. Its only a matter of time before mankind faces
imminent extinction.
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Characters Available
Te following character types are available at the beginning of the First Era.
Apollo Soldier
Civilian
Grunt
Hades Operative
Veteran
Te Apollo Pilot, AI and Engineer are not available until Aegis Armor becomes
unlocked (see below).
Victories & Defeats
Command will have to keep track of victories and defeats. Successful missions
count as victories and unsuccessful missions count as defeats. Yes, the players have
a direct role in whether or not humanity survives the First Era. If they do not, the
players cannot unlock the Second Era and Te Long War is over.
Does that seem a little heartless and cruel? Yeah. But this is war. A war the players
can lose. Its up to them.
Victories unlock certain events that change the campaign. If the players succeed
enough times, the story moves toward a certain conclusion.
Defeats also unlock an event: the extinction of the human race.
Difficulty Setting
Te Di culty the players choose inuences the Long War. Specically, it
inuences the victories the other side gets.
Casual: Every ve Missions, the Enemy gains a Victory.
Normal: Every four Missions, the Enemy gains a Victory.
Hard: Every three Missions, the Enemy gains a Victory.
Legendary: Every two missions, the Enemy gains a Victory.
Defeat
If the players gain ve defeats, the Enemys advantage is too great for humanity to
overcome and the Enemy wins the War.
Five defeats does not count the victories the Enemy gains for the Di culty
Setting.
The Capture Event
Te players need to win ve victories before the Capture Event is unlocked.
(Tats when humanity captures the Enemy Armor.) With ve victories, players then
take their characters on the Capture Event Mission. You can nd the details of that
mission.
148
If the players successfully recover the AI from the Enemy Armor, the rest of the
War can continue as planned. If they do not, the War ends with humanitys extinction.
Good luck with that.
What Im going to do is give you three things that are true about the Capture
Event. You can either keep these secret from the players or reveal them to the players.
Your choice. When your players make truths with their Intel Stat about this mission,
any truths that contradict these three must be rejected. Politely tell your players,
Sorry, but that truth has already been established and cannot be
changed.
First, the Enemy Armor is attacking a major settlement/city.
Second, the caps on the AI inside the Armor have
malfunctioned. Tis allows the AI to sabotage the Armor so
humanity can capture it.
Tird, because of the malfunction, the AI is on the verge of
Bliss Stage. Humanity knows nothing about Bliss Stage. Tey
dont know how to stop it or even how to diagnose it. Because all
subsequent AI are built from mankinds understanding of this
one, Bliss Stage is an inevitable result for all future AI characters.
Aegis Armor & AI/Apollo Links
Aegis Armor becomes unlocked after the tenth victory.
After the tenth victory, players may choose the AI, Apollo Pilot and
Engineer as character types.
Also, the Apollo Project develops technology to allow Apollo/AI
links.
The Last Victory
After twenty victories, the Enemy gives up and leaves human space.
Players can rejoice: theyve won the War!
The Second Era
For the Second Era, the big question is, Who wins? Earth or the Colonies? Of
course, the side your players choose is important.
The Setting
Of course, the setting for the Second Era is the same planet your players created
for the First Era. Give each player an opportunity to explain how the planet has
changed. Each player gets to say one thing. Do as many rounds as you like.
Fiddling with Fate
Hey Command: if you want
to ddle with the numbers
(increase the number of
defeats needed for the Enemy
to win, decrease the number
of victories needed to unlock
Aegis Armor, etc.), go ahead
and do so. Maybe you dont
have half a year to play the
game. Maybe you want to
extend the First Era out
further. Whatever you like.
Of course, Im an old school
gamer. I remember campaigns
that lasted two years or more.
(I still hear gamers boast
about campaigns that have
lasted decades.) I designed
Te Long War to last well, a
long time. What a long time
means is up to you.
149
Heritage Characters
Characters who have survived from the First Era to the Second Era are usually
either Apollos or AIs.
Now, thanks to technology and evolution, the normal human lifespan has
increased to around one hundred and fty years. And while thats true, it is highly
unlikely unaugmented humans have survived to the Second Era. If Command feels
generous, perhaps he will allow a tech for the incredibly wealthy that extends the
human lifespan beyond one hundred and fty years.
For any character who survived to the Second Era, add 5 Specialty Points to their
character sheet.
Pick a Side
Your players must decide which side of the War they are ghting. Are they rebels
trying to win independence from Earth? Or, are they loyalists helping Earth bring
their rebel colony back under control?
Victories & Defeats
Again, victories and defeats determine the outcome of the Civil War. A few key
factors become unlocked based on the number of victories and defeats.
Difficulty Setting
Te Di culty the players choose inuences the Second Era. Specically, it
inuences the victories the other side (UNEC or Rebels) gets.
Casual: Every ve Missions, the Enemy gains a Victory.
Normal: Every four Missions, the Enemy gains a Victory.
Hard: Every three Missions, the Enemy gains a Victory.
Legendary: Every two missions, the Enemy gains a Victory.
Secession
On August 4th, 4053, thirteen key colonies drafted and signed a writ of secession
at the UNEC Council. Tis event launches the Second Era. How does your colony
respond?
Digital Citizenship (Ten UNEC Victories)
After ten UNEC victories, the UNEC recognizes digital sentients as digital
citizens. Te UNEC cannot recognize sentients as citizens until it has established its
authority to do so. To gain that authority, the UNEC needs ten victories. Without
those victories, AI citizenship never occurs.
The Battle of Barnards Star (Ten Rebel Victories)
Your players may or may not be present at the Battle of Bernards Star. Or, if you
like, move the event to your own homeworld. Te Battle is a key turning point in the
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War. Te Rebels have routed the UNEC United Forces again and again. Tis time,
they not only defeat the army but also capture a large number of Aegis Armor. After
ten Rebel victories, this key battle becomes unlocked. If the Rebels win at Barnards
Star, they unlock the Rebels Win Independence Victory, listed below.
The Battle of Cygnus (Fifteen UNEC Victories)
While historians call it the Battle of Cygnus, the real battle actually occurred at
the nearby system of Deneb. Te ghting began at Cygnus but Rebel forces retreated
after three serious setbacks. Te UNEC United Forces followed and for seven long
days, the Rebels held out at Deneb 7 before nally surrendering. UNEC Commander
Agot did not accept their terms of surrender and murdered every Rebel at Deneb. Te
battle was considered a serious loss for the Rebel movement and could have ended the
rebellion. After ten UNEC victories, the Battle of Cygnus is unlocked. If the UNEC
forces win here, they unlock St. Crispins Day victory, listed below.
The Teng Incident (Fifteen Rebel Victories)
October 17th is an important date for those who raised arms against the UNEC.
It was on that day who was only known as Teng, later identied as Huang Teng,
detonated a bomb on Earth. Not a physical bomb, but a digital one. Gaining access
to the UNEC databases, he unleashed a virus that took down the entire system.
Communications and defenses went down, leaving Earth completely vulnerable to
attack.
Fifteen Rebel victories unlock this event. When the Teng Incident is unlocked,
Rebel characters gain +1 to all risks.
Boxing Day (Twenty Rebel Victories)
On Christmas Day, Matthew Gleeson, the General in charge of UNEC forces,
ignoring orders from Earth, called for a cease in hostilities. One day later, on Boxing
Day, at the Battle of New Des Moines, General Gleeson signed a peace treaty with the
leader of the Rebels, Marissa Kelly.
Te event came after a tragic defeat for the UNEC forces. Fully condent of
his armys abilities, he ordered a charge into the heart of the Rebel lines. Te Rebels
fought for hours, forcing the UNEC forces to retreat, regroup and charge again seven
times. Te battle lasted an entire day. Twenty-four hours of bloodshed. General
Gleeson was so inspired by the Rebels courage, he refused to send any more men
against them. He ignored UNEC Command and surrendered his army the next day.
Tey had already won the moral victory, he later wrote. I just gave them my sword.
Twenty Rebel victories unlock this event. Te War is over and the Colonies have
won their independence.
St. Crispins Day (Twenty UNEC Victories)
It was October 25th on the Colony of New Laikinoji, the Rebel and UNEC
forces had been engaged in bloody combat for over a week. Te commander of the
Rebels, Tom Stolp, dared a desperate maneuver. He split his forces, sending half to the
North where he hoped to outank the UNEC. But the commander on the other side
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of the battleeld, General Omolara, received intel from Hades Actual. He ordered a
charge against the primary force. Te Rebels held out for three hours before they were
vanquished. General Omolara then turned his army north and routed the rest of the
Rebel army.
It was the most costly Rebel defeat in the war. Stolp was the Rebels most brilliant
military mind. After his captureand subsequent execution for treasonthe Rebel
armies lost battle after battle. Eventually, the Rebel cause was crushed and the UNEC
regained control of Earths Colonies.
Twenty UNEC Victories unlock this event and win the war for Earth.
The Third Era
For the darkest of all the Eras, the question to ask is, Will you resist the Cabal?
The Setting
Te rst thing to consider is the AI Governor of your planet. What is its attitude
toward its biological citizens? Are they equals? Are they servants or slaves? Did it
construct work camps for the bios or has it rallied forces against the Cabal? Your AI
establishes the groundwork for the entire Tird Era.
Heritage Characters
Characters who have survived from the Second Era to the Tird Era are usually
either Apollos or AIs.
Again, thanks to technology and evolution, the normal human lifespan has
increased to around one hundred and fty years. Unaugmented humans who lived
through the Second Era are still rare, and if they are alive, are incredibly old.
For any character who survived to the Second Era, add 5 Specialty Points to their
character sheet.
Pick a Side
Tis becomes much more complicated than previous Eras. Te biological citizens
may be against the Cabal while the Governor is trying to subdue their Rebellion. Or,
the planet could be united for or against the Cabal. A complicated issue. Talk it out
with the players an pick a campaign that everyone feels comfortable with. Tis is a
dark, dangerous time and the last thing you want is one player feeling left out of the
game.
Victories & Defeats
Tis one is going to be rough. I wont lie to you. Humanity has the cards stacked
against it. Te number of victories and defeats is not equal here.
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Difficulty Setting
Te Di culty the players choose inuences the Long War. Specically, it
inuences the victories the other side gets.
Casual: Every ve Missions, the Cabal gains a Victory.
Normal: Every four Missions, the Cabal gains a Victory.
Hard: Every three Missions, the Cabal gains a Victory.
Legendary: Every two missions, the Cabal gains a Victory.
Hades Exposes the Plan
Hades attempts to shut down every AI in the UNEC network. Te Cabal
responds by destroying the network hub on Hades Actual and sending Black Squads
to kill every Hades Op. Te Plan is no longer secret and the Cabal takes on an overt
hand to controlling Human Occupied Space.
Network Blackout (Three Cabal Victories)
Te Cabal successfully isolated the Rebel Colonies from Earths network, leaving
them alone in the Deep Reach with no way to contact each other. Te Rebels had to
build new networks while defending against Cabal Assault Squads.
Tree Cabal Victories unlock this event. Once unlocked, all Intel risks require an
additional bang to gain privilege.
Battle of New Dublin (Six Cabal Victories)
At the Battle of New Dublin, the Rebellion faces a terrible defeat. Seventy percent
of the Aegis Armor available to the Rebellion was destroyed or captured by the Cabal.
Te remaining Rebel armies were routed and nearly every Rebel general captured.
Six Cabal Victories unlock this event. Once it is unlocked, no new Aegis Armor
repair parts are available for Rebels.
Re-Education Camps (Nine Cabal Victories)
In response to the Rebellions meddling with the plan, the Cabal established re-
education camps to help those resisting uplift accept their better lives. Millions were
captured and brought in, tted with uplift chips that modied their behavior.
Nine Cabal Victories unlock this event. Once it is unlocked, all Rebel Wealth
decreases by one rank and no Rebel Wealth can exceed 3.
The Scourge of Olympus 7 (Twelve Cabal Victories)
Te crown jewel of the Deep Reach, Olympus 7 was the most advanced, most
populous of the Free Colonies. It boasted an army that rivaled that of Earth. It was
also a keystone in the Cabals Plan. Isolating it from the other Colonies, the Cabal
launched its rst attack on May 3rd. Te Colony could not call for assistance or
reinforcements. Despite its defenses, and before the other Colonies could respond,
Olympus 7 had fallen. Te brightest star in Deep Reach belonged to the Cabal. Te
rest would quickly follow.
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Twelve Cabal Victories unlock this event. Once unlocked, when players draw from
the Camaraderie Pool, they must draw out two dice to get one.
Uplift (Fifteen Cabal Victories)
With limited resources, the Rebellion eventually fell beneath the weight of the
Cabals armies. Even the covert eorts of renegade Hades Ops failed to hold o the
assault. Te Cabals victory meant uplift for all mankind. For better or worse.
Tis even is unlocked after fteen Cabal Victories. Te Cabal has crushed the
Rebellion and the Tird Era is over.
Raid on Hades Actual (Five Rebellion Victories)
A small group of Rebelsled by a Hades Opled a raid on the ruins of Hades
Actual. Tey retrieved emergency codes, equipment and vital intelligence on the Cabal.
With that capture, the tide of the war turned, even if it was for a moment.
Five Rebellion Victories unlock this event. Once unlocked, all characters gain one
piece of Equipment and gain +1 to all Intel risks for the remainder of the War.
The Pirate Network (Ten Rebellion Victories)
A small team of soldierssupported by the 32nd Valor Fighting Valors Armor
Divisioncaptured a satellite orbiting Valor 3. Te satellite was a communications
hub in the First Era, long forgotten by the Terran Overgovernment. After capturing
the planet, the soldiers re-activated the satellite, creating a new communications hub
for the Rebellion.
Ten Rebellion Victories unlock this event. Once unlocked, communications
between the Rebel planets is possible. Also, the Wealth for all Rebellion characters
increases by one.
The Fall of New Nagasaki (Fifteen Rebellion Victories)
It soon became evident to the Rebellion that taking Earth was the only way of
stopping the Cabal. Te closest Colony to EarthNew Nagasakiwas the nal
stepping-stone to capturing Earth. Te Rebellion threw every resource it had at New
Nagasaki, knowing the planets resources would more than make up for the losses.
When it seemed the Rebellion had won the battle, the Cabal detonated a
storehouse of old Enemy Poison Warheads in the atmosphere. Te strategy did not
stop the Rebellion, but bought the Cabal time to reinforce Earths defenses.
Fifteen Rebellion Victories unlock this event. Once unlocked, Rebellion characters
gain +1 die on any risk.
The Battle of Earth (Twenty Rebellion Victories)
After the Fall of Nagasaki, the Battle for Earth was inevitable. Te Colonies sent
every resource they could to secure a blockade. Once established, the Rebellion began
its attack. Te Battle lasted over a month, climaxing with the capture of Earths capital
city of Beijing.
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Twenty Rebellion Victories unlock this event. Te War is won, the Cabal has been
overthrown and the Tird Era is over.
Aegis History
I mentioned elsewhere in the book (around the Second Era) that Aegis Armor
should have a history.
Tink about the WWI and WWII planes. Tey had nicknames (usually named
after a lady). Te pilots had good luck charms hanging in the cockpit. Tey spoke to
the plane. Tey were superstitious enough to give baseball players pause. But then
again, when youre sitting in that cockpit and every time you y up in the air, you
might get shot and killed, a little superstition seems like a good idea.
I like the idea of Aegis having character. Getting a nickname from the pilot.
A picture of a half-naked woman on the chassis. Te Midnight Belle. Fuzzy dice
hanging from the roof or an ace of spades with a bullet hole through the center on the
control panel.
AI arent the only ones who survived all the way through three Eras. Some Aegis
did, as well. Another story to tell is the story of that Aegis who made it. Fought against
the Enemy, saw action in the Civil War and now nds itself in a dierent kind of civil
war where nothing makes sense. Every Aegis has a history. Tell the story of the men
and women who sat in that chair and helped make that history.
Te story ends when the Aegis is no more. Perhaps she never makes it out of the
First Era. Or, perhaps she makes it through to the Tird, but is wrecked and ruined in
the opening salvo.
What is the history of your Aegis? When was it born? When did it die?
I know the answers to those questions. If you read the vignettes that open each
chapter, you know those answers, too.
True, Te Widow is nothing more than a machine. But the men and women (and
AIs) who lived and died with her who bled with her who laughed and cried with
her arent they a part of her? A part of her history?
When I started writing Te Aegis Project, one of my secret goals was this: the
pilots are cooler than the mechs. Get the players to tell the stories of the soldiers. Te
mechs are a way to do that.
But then, as I ran the game, I watched the players attachment to the Aegis grow.
Tey werent just war machines. And when one of them was destroyed (a First Era
Aegis in the Civil War), the emotional bond between player and Aegis was palpable.
Tis is a game about soldiers. But, in the end, its also a game about camaraderie. I
built the game so players would have an emotional bond with their mechs. I got that,
but I didnt exactly know what I was getting when I thought of it.
Trust me on this. If you really want the game to sing, get attached to your Aegis.
You wont regret it.
No war is fought for this
generation; it is fought for
the next one.
Human Sheet
A e gi s P r oj e c t
Name:
Strength
Operations
Weapons
Intel
Empathy
Camaraderie
Commission:
Command:
Squad:
Homeworld:
Specialties
Special Equipment
Apollo Soldier
AI:
Sympathy
Diffculty Setting
Equipment
Smart Device
Citizen Card
Weapons
Pistol
Close, Near
Survival Knife
Close
Grenades
Injury
AI Sheet
Name:
Operations
Weapons
Intel
Empathy
Camaraderie
Specialties
Apollo Soldier
Soldier:
Sympathy
Software on Chassis/
Primary Computer
Name
Role
Name
Role
Chassis Nick Name
Pilot Engineer AI
Other Members of the Team
Inter-AI Link
Diffculty Setting
Chassis Sheet
Pilot:
Nick Name:
AI:
Engineer:
Class
Battery
Size
Weapon Type
Armor
Armor Mod
Armor Mod Effect
Movement
Equipment
Weapons
Systems
Armor Mod Tactical HUD Life Support
Min: 1
Max: 1
Min: 1
Max: 3
Min: 3
Max: 3
Min: 3
Max: 3
Min: 3
Max: 6
Min: 3
Max: 6
Movement Shields Weapons
Spiders
Chassis Sheet
Pilot:
Nick Name:
AI:
Engineer:
Class
Battery
Size
Weapon Type
Armor
Armor Mod
Armor Mod Effect
Movement
Equipment
Weapons
Systems
Armor Mod Tactical HUD Life Support
Min: 1
Max: 1
Min: 1
Max: 3
Min: 3
Max: 3
Min: 3
Max: 3
Min: 3
Max: 6
Min: 3
Max: 6
Movement Shields Weapons
Spiders
Human Sheet
Name:
Strength
Operations
Weapons
Intel
Empathy
Camaraderie
Commission:
Command:
Faction:
Homeworld:
Specialties
Special Equipment
Apollo Soldier
AI:
Sympathy
Diffculty Setting
Equipment
Smart Device
Grenades
Weapons
Pistol
Close, Near
Survival Knife
Close
Wealth
Injury
AI Sheet
Name:
Faction:
Operations
Weapons
Intel
Empathy
Camaraderie
Specialties
Wealth
Software on Chassis/
Primary Computer
Name
Role
Name
Role
Chassis Nick Name
Pilot Engineer AI
Other Members of the Team
Inter-AI Link
Apollo Soldier
Soldier:
Sympathy
Diffculty Setting
Role:
Homeworld:
Character Sheet
Name:
Strength
Operations
Weapons
Intel
Empathy
Camaraderie
Specialties
Weapons
Perks
Diffculty Setting
Bioware
Analog Equipment
Pistol
Close, Near
Survival Knife
Close
Wealth
Your Governor
Name:
View of Humanity:
View of DC:
Cabal Status:
Kusanagi Suit
Armor
+3
Strength Boost
Heals 1 point
Injury
every round
Energy Shield
Injury
Bliss Stage:
Love, Sex, and Giant Robots.
A campaign RPG
for 3-6 players ages 16 and up
www.tao-games.com
(...
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