Exile
Exile is an SF Space Opera RPG by Mark Rein*Hagen. It was written in 1996 as a new game for White Wolf, with the intention that the rights be
transferred to a nonprofit, the Null Foundation, so that it would not be ruined by crass commercialism and could be guided by an enlightened community of
artists and writers. In a striking demonstration of the wisdom of letting artists and writers run things, Rein*Hagen promptly got into a slap-fight with his
colleagues and left the company, taking Exile with him. It was replaced with Aeon/Trinity. Other ill-fated creative endeavours using the same setting
include Z-G, GURPS Exile, and an Exile MUD.
Two of the early drafts survive, 1.0, which is a confusing mass of setting information and notes instructing the artists on what to draw, and 1.7, which is
shorter and unlike 1.0 contains rules, apparently being intended as a playtest draft. They can be considered seperate books rather than different iterations
of the same document.
Rein*Hagen wrote:
"Exile is the science fiction game I always wanted to play, but no one ever wrote it. I've been working on this setting for over a decade, but it was only
a year ago that we finally figured out how to make it work. I love high adventure and dark peril, but I also wanted a realistic, dynamic and complex setting.
I love suspense and drama, but I also wanted a touch of horror and a shadow of the strange. I love space opera, but I wanted it to be hard-core and gritty.
Exile is all that and more."
"So here's the bottom line, I am in love with this game, it is everything I ever wanted out of science fiction when I used to dream of Lensmen, Martian
Chronicles, Jedi Knights and the Future Histories. I hope you will love it as well, because it's going to be the best work I've ever done, and if everyone
hates it, it's going to ruin my life."
System
Basics
Exile uses a percentile system with extra 'successes' granted for every 10 points you roll under your skill. Character advancement resembles a combination of
Storyteller and Call of Cthulhu, with an experience point granting a variable amount of skill gain depending on whether you manage to roll over your current
skill or not when spending it.
Skills are divided into six categories according the the ability they are based on: Coordination, Vigor, Presence, Expression, Reason and Intuition.
Character Generation
One of the first things you do when creating a character is to determine his relationship with Syndics, the factions of the setting. You must be highly
regarded by one, a member of another, be disloyal to a third, an enemy of a fourth, and have contacts within a fifth. This system would seem to lend itself
to characters tightly entwined within the politics of the setting.
Each such relationship grants you a certain number of points to spend on equipment (indulgences), skills and abilities related to that Syndic. Your Syndics
also determine which memes you have (personal beliefs which grant you bonuses in certain situations). You also determine your three drives: Temper, Passion,
and Pride, which are used to resist (or fail to resist) seduction, intimidation, fear and other social or emotional effects. Finally a character has logos,
which is a form of karma or fate points allowing a degree of narrative control.
Gameplay
Combat takes place upon a hex map. Each character declares an action and rolls the appropriate skill. If they succeed they spend their successes (plus three
free successes) on initiative, movement, damage, defense, called shots and so on. If they fail the roll they still get to spend the free successes on
movement and defense.
Social conflict consists of making a skill roll to force your target to roll against his or her Drives. They can resist using other drives. For instance, if
you try to seduce someone who is far too good for you, you might roll Charm, they would then have to fail a Passion roll to resist your advances. If they do,
they might still be able to resist by rolling Pride.
Setting
Exile is set in a distant future where the location of earth has been long forgotten after mankind departed it to escape the fury of the 'old gods' - who may
be real supernatural entities, or may be a metaphor for the stifling effects of old religions. In either case, these gods did not follow manking into space.
The players are exiles from the core worlds of the Hegemony, where humans live an Eloi-like utopian existence. Beyond the core worlds lie the lawless worlds
of the Grange. Here PCs must fend for themselves on the outskirts of a corrupt and uncaring government, among undersupplied colonies and deadly raiders. In
many ways it's very similar to Firefly without the cowboy theme.
The Hegemony is an empire in decline, corrupt and decadent, formed of an association of Syndics. A Syndic is simply any organised group with sufficient
political clout - the military, the civil service, the underworld and ethnic blocs all count as Syndics. A list follows:
Exotic Syndics
- Androgyne - Hermaphrodite sex-slaves turned politicians and media stars.
- Sark'Saron - Reptilian supersoldiers.
- The Starborn (Reisir) - Vacuum adapted humans.
Career Syndics
- Armada - Officers and navy, very honourable.
- Vanguard - Ground troops & mercenaries, not honourable at all.
- Diplomatic Service (Interior Ministry) - Spies and assholes.
- Consortium - Big business.
Faction Syndics
- Bak'Sakusa - Weeaboos.
- Common Weal - Conservative mannerly aristos, basically exist to hate the Pax Republica.
- Pax Republica - Revolutionaries in the murderous French mould.
Sect Syndics
- Zae Zarandt - Obsessive Go players.
- Voidians - Space worshippers.
Underworld Syndics
- The Cartel - Space mafioso.
- Trancers - Basically the Hollow Ones from Mage, only ravers instead of goths.
In a situation reminiscent of the fall of Rome, the Hegemony is locked in constant warfare with the Horde, a catch-all term for the barbarians at the gates.
The Horde are extremely savage, probably because anybody out there who wasn't extremely savage has already been killed or conquered by the Hegemony. Other
threats include the Cthulhoid Anathema and the rogue nanotech parasite known as the Scourge. Other than the Anathema there are no true aliens in the setting,
all life being human or genetically engineered from lower forms.
Humans are served by the Artifex, a networked race of robots who provide everything man needs - save for weapons. The Artifex follow Aasimov laws, forcing
humans to turn them off before going into battle - a clever way of keeping the focus on the PCs. Artifex can produce new Artifex, but they are similar to the
technology of Warhammer 40k in that humans no longer fully understand how they work. The few devices which work without Artifex brains (Lodes) are called
Machina. Weapons are the most obvious form of Machina, although others exist.
Exile on /tg/
This very obscure setting has only recently been mentioned on /tg/.