Alternity

The last RPG from TSR

In 1998 before T.S.R went bankrupt it released a generic rules set for science fiction role playing game. It was written by Bill Slavicsek and Richard Baker. Characters would be created by a points system for six statistics Strength, Dexterity, Constitution,Will and Personality and take on roles such as Combat Specialist, Tech Operator and DIplomat. Using a dual dice mechanic of rolling a control die , a d20, and other dice such as d4's but dice size could change due to circumstantial modifiers to as much as a roll of 3d20. The aim being to roll low to get a success under a target number such as a skill then working out what degree of success or failure occurred.

Despite being a nicely illustrated book, having good reviews and a well presented rule book it had little in the way of actual sales. There were several backgrounds sold for it which even included a pen and paper version of the Starcraft PC game by Blizzard. The product line was discontinued but settings such as Dark Matter survived onto D20 Modern. Wizards of the Coast axed the product line and instead focused on 3rd edition Dungeons and Dragons.