Recently, I decided to alter some of the way Exoworld presents its player character options.

In particular, I got rid of the Reaction as a playable faction (which makes sense both mechanically and narratively). One advantage of this is that it made things a lot easier because I don't have to account for such a divergence in power type (not necessarily power level, since the drones that get sent out are weird rather than conventionally strong).

It also gives me more room to think about how character creation works.

Character Creation

What I've decided to do is use a package-based system for character creation followed by an amount of discretionary XP that can be used to either catch characters up to an existing party's power level or set a "difficulty" for the game.

This means that character creation is both relatively simple for novices, since I'll be able to set up packages so that the characters go through a relatively simple process of development that guarantees no terrible options and selecting a character involves a handful of branching choices rather than the full and unbridled force of the full system.

With that said, there are two parts of this that are still pretty fluid.

Attributes

First, I base the attribute system on a distributed array. This means that all the core attributes are essentially equal (albeit distributed differently) between characters, and attributes don't come from any of the character packages. All characters start on an equal footing, and the attribute system helps to spotlight their strengths and weaknesses.

I might include some pre-made suggestions for these, but they will simply be guides (e.g. if you wanted to play a combat-focused character versus a social-focused character) rather than have any mechanical differentiation (I think of, for instance, Eclipse Phase or Degenesis, where choosing the wrong starting attributes could have ramifications down the line because of how attributes got handled in the system and a difference between character creation and character advancement cost different amounts).

The Attributes Text

All characters in Exoworld have attributes that determine their rolls' thresholds. Typically, this involves adding two relevant attributes together, though additional factors like gear and difficulty may alter this process.

Characters have seven attributes: Sturdiness, Reflex, Presence, Awareness, Cunning, Skulduggery, and Education. They may distribute their points between these in any way they see fit.

An array of numbers is used to determine a character's starting attributes. Each number in the array may be used only once, but it may be assigned to any attribute.

The array is: 4, 4, 5, 5, 6, 7, 8

This means that a character will have one attribute with a rating of 8 by the end of this process, and two attributes with a rating of 4. Bear in mind that all rolls involve two attributes.

During this stage of character creation, you have not yet selected your Backgrounds, so you do not have a Special Attribute. Your Special Attribute will start at a rating of 6.

Factions

I've already mentioned that the change to have just three main "factions" has made things more open for other parts of the setting to be developed.

In particular, I feel like the Originals have had too much of an identity crisis. While they're definitely distinct as opposed to the Exemplars and the Spurned, they don't have anything internal to differentiate themselves, and that creates the feeling of a much smaller universe. After ~400 years of colonization (though there's exponential growth as far as the process of reinstantiating colonists goes), that doesn't really hold up.

However, the system that I'm using for the Originals will also be applied to the Exemplars (who get castes as sub-factions) and Spurned (who get phenotype packages).

I won't go in depth into the various mechanical elements of the subfactions here, but I'll give a brief outline of the starting options. These will help inform the creation of traits and other game elements.

These also aren't final. They're more of a mockup of what I'd like to eventually have in the game with a sense of scale. There are some obvious (to me at least) issues with overlap and diversification that need to be sorted out during playtesting.

Exemplar Castes

All Exemplars gain a common package of traits (enhanced vision and the ability to operate certain technology that requires Exemplar genetic codes), then choose from one of the following castes:

Agent

Agents are middle-caste direct action operators designed for combat proficiency. Although not physically reinforced like the Regulators or able to pass as baseline humans like the Surveyors, Agents have heightened combat reflexes that make them perfect for stealth, piloting, or general purpose fighting.

Inquisitor

Inquisitors are middle-caste enforcers who specialize in rooting out social threats. While they cannot pass for human and as such see limited use outside the Exemplars' territory, they have an uncanny ability to figure out what people are thinking and store and collect information to unravel webs of lies.

Node

Nodes are lower-caste technical and scientific experts. Although not designed to take great initiative, they have exceptionally sharp senses and intellects that are combined with cybernetic implants to give them incredible communication and research abilities.

Regulator

Regulators are middle-caste brawlers with incredible durability. In addition to the standard Exemplar implants, Regulators have protective carapaces and heightened regenerative abilities that let them survive when any other person would die, including in extreme weather conditions and vacuum.

Shaper

Shapers are lower-caste walking pharmacies. Typically trained as field medics if they are deployed to Exile, they have glands that allow them to synthesize chemicals and drugs if provided with precursors or generic biomass.

Surveyor

Surveyors are lower-caste infiltrators and saboteurs. Able to pass for ordinary humans without a medical examination or technological devices revealing their true nature, they move around Original society and manipulate it to bring about the Exemplars' desired ends.

Technician

Technicians are middle-caste engineers and researchers. They work effortlessly when confronted with mathematic or technical problems while possessing skills and implants that help them quantify and assess information.

Original Factions

The Original factions are representations of the various political entities that emerged on Exile or were carried aboard the Icarus.

Unlike the Exemplar castes, the different factions here have little effect and it is the sub-faction that has the largest mechanical impact on a character. For instance, a USCG character doesn't get anything by merit of being a USGC character.

However, they have A: and B: type subfactions. A character chooses one of each to get various backgrounds.

The current B: drafts are going to be consolidated down into generic patterns and specific ones, but during this drafting stage I'm going to keep them as distinct units to give myself more inspiration when the time comes to begin working on the traits that characters can take.

United System Continuation Government

The USCG devolved into a majoritarian bureaucracy almost immediately after planetfall. As a consequence, it has some of the greatest social division and many people who live within its nominal borders do not consider themselves members of the ruling faction's government.

A: Citizen

The favored progeny of the USCG's old guard, they blend Expertise with an increase of starting resources that permits them to buy almost anything on the market.

A: Old Guard

Old Guard come from the Icarus' stasis pods with cybernetic implants that they purchase at the cost of their Expertise attribute's starting rating.

A: Resident

Residents are the USCG underclass. While nominally protected under its laws, they have to become good at what they do to survive in the complex political and bureaucratic systems.

B: Careerist

Careerists are skill-oriented. Applying their Expertise to multiple non-combat tasks, they rise above the average person's level of skill and become invaluable for their contributions to society.

B: Envoy

Envoys are the privileged functionaries of the USCG. Although their membership is nominally open to everyone, one needs to have a keen eye for detail and mind for intrigue to be considered for any significant role.

B: Operator

Operators occupy a role in the military or paramilitary forces fielded by the USCG. They can include both directly employed soldiers or members of security contractors. What they lack in genetic engineering they make up for with discipline and equipment.

B: Scout

Scouts, spies, and explorers make up a significant portion of the USCG's budget. While many wind up on land surveys or other long-term low-risk projects, others gather information about hostile and unexplored territory and uncover the secrets of Exile.

Titanian Concession

The Titanian Concession was created by the Exemplars to be a counterpart to the USCG. Founded by people dissatisfied with the USCG's internal divisions but willing to subordinate themselves to the Exemplars, it has a top-down autocratic system that answers to the Icarus.

The Concession operates through an inner council of political elites and quasi-independent syndicates. While the Concession claims ownership over the syndicates and can exercise unlimited control over their assets, it rarely exercises this privilege.

Although sister branches of the Titanian Concession exist in Miranda, Ariel, and Oberon, they are widely regarded as little more than rebranded outposts of the Titanian Concession. The Concession is considered a protectorate of the Exemplars, though its day-to-day operations are often entirely independent.

A: Optimate

The Optimates are the Exemplars' favored faction within the Concessions. Made up of a small cadre of former oligarchs and their immediate associates, they pursue power with a cunning eye to soft force. As a reward for their loyalty, they receive technology and genetic engineering from the Exemplars.

A: Syndic

A syndic has official status within a syndicate as a representative of its interests. While their compensation and social rank ultimately depend on the skills they bring to their job, they have much better opportunities.

A: Contractor

Contractors signed on with a syndicate as employees or to skip the colonization queue. While many have non-terminable contracts with a fixed duration, others are free to move about and pursue roles with other syndicates or to leave the Concession outright.

B: External Affairs

A syndicate's external affairs depend on bureaucrats and negotiators, and form an internal hierarchy of their own right. External affairs typically function as the pipeline to further development both within the syndicate and as part of the Concession's outward-facing diplomatic staff.

B: Frontier Department

As part of the Concession's mission, most syndicates operate in the frontier regions of Exile, setting up new colonies. Frontier department personnel have to operate without the comfort of settlements and explore the unknown.

B: Operations Contractor

The operations department manages logistics and transportation, as well as overseeing day to day function of a syndicate. Contractors handle the lower-level logistics and operate the transports that keep the syndicate functioning.

B: Security Department

The security department of the Concession is less geared toward military action than the equivalent of other factions, since the Exemplars guarantee the Concession's protection. Instead they combine a focus on monitoring contractors with rapid response teams that defend syndicate property in emergencies.

Red Octobrists

A neo-communist group, the Red Octobrists claim territory across Exile but do not actually operate any outposts.

Technically illegal in the Concession and the USCG's territory, the Red Octobrists have persisted from the early settlement days to the current time by suborning institutions and the work of daring ideologues.

A: Agitator

Being an open Red Octobrist is dangerous, but coded language and careful tradecraft mean that Octobrist agents hide in plain sight, recruiting others to their cause.

A: Sleeper Agent

Sleeper agents are undercover, working as part of another operation. Choose another A: package from a different faction. The sleeper agent has an identity that matches that, though they do not gain its traits.

B: Guerilla

Guerillas specialize in hit-and-run tactics and rapid deployment. Rather than fighting toe-to-toe with superior forces, they operate in small and autonomous units without the aid of cutting-edge equipment.

B: Infiltrator

Infiltrators work their way into institutions, then siphon information and resources to support the Red Octobrist cause.

B: Saboteur

Saboteurs carry out direct actions against the Red Octobrists' enemies, using confusion, misdirection, and fear as their greatest weapons.

Homesteads Confederation

The Homesteads Confederation arose after a series of small conflicts between the USCG and the Concession led the Exemplars to loosen its policy for colonist settlement. With increased self-determination for individuals, politically unaffiliated settlements sprang up in Oberon, Umbriel, Miranda's outlying islands, and Ariel. While Titania remains the sole territory of the Concession, the Homesteads gave each person waking from their slumber aboard the Icarus an opportunity to join a smaller political entity.

The Confederation was a response to encroachment upon small homestead settlements, and offers membership in exchange for nominal contributions in-kind.

A: Isolate

The Isolate homesteads represent the interests of small settlements. Its nexus of power is in Ariel, where the small and piecemeal settlements struggle against the harsh environments.

The Isolates are poorer and exert less political power than the Urbanite faction, but make up for it with self-reliance, dedication, and discipline.

A: Urbanite

The Urbanites represent the city-state homesteads in Oberon, Miranda, and Umbriel. Sleek, professional, and metropolitan, most new arrivals to Exile choose to live in one of these homesteads.

B: Freebooter

Operating on the boundaries of the law, freebooters provide security for homesteaders and collect tariffs and fees from outsiders. Sometimes this crosses the line into overt banditry, especially in war-torn or frontier regions.

B: Gatherer

Gatherers focus on a productive task within a settled colony, such as growing food or maintaining devices.

B: Pioneer

Pioneers specialize in living on the edge of civilization, with a skill-set that helps them survive the hazards of Exile.

Planetborn

Children of Surveyors, planetborn are rejected by the Exemplars as potential threats. Others view them with distrust, as Surveyor operatives often claim to be planetborn to provide cover.

However, it has been centuries since the first Surveyor infiltrators settled planetside, and the planetborn have become part of every Original society.

From a gameplay perspective, planetborn merge the special traits of the Exemplars with the playstyle of the Originals, though they're only allowed to have the universal Exemplar traits and none of the caste-specific ones.

A: Exclavist

Exclavists have settled outside Original settlements, choosing to create new civic structures instead of adopting those of baseline humans. While this can sometimes create (or be the result of) tension in and of itself, Exemplar culture and political thought have odd impacts on the Exclavists, who often create arbitrary distinctions between themselves and their neighbors and maintain a superiority complex.

A: Assimilationist

Assimilationists are the progeny of Surveyors who were born into or chose to become part of an outside faction. They choose a B: option from another faction and gain its effects. They may be viewed with mistrust in their positions.

B: Civilian

Life on Exile is tough for anyone, but planetborn need to develop unique skills. Resilient and hardy, what you lack in focus you make up for as a jack of all trades.

B: Vanguard

You are the first contact between your community and outsiders. Blending the basic diplomatic skills needed to avoid blows and a rough readiness to start fights, you walk the fine line between peacekeeper and guardian.

B: Icon

You are an elite specialist and the truest remnant of the Exemplars among your community. Whatever sub-branch you're involved in, you've demonstrated particular charisma and intellect to rise to the top.

Spurned

The Spurned have phenotypes that vary based on their biomes. I'm not going to go into detail on them here because this post is already long, but they predominantly focus on the starting traits and gear for each character.

However, there might also be a couple role-specific Spurned character types. I'm torn on this, because it overlaps too much with the feel of playing an Exemplar or an Original, but there's some advantage there if players are trying to aim at an all-Spurned party.

Another consideration here could be to have Spurned gain bonus adaptability via selected attribute bonuses, but that seems mighty sketchy in the final balance. Maybe there should be extra small traits for Spurned?

I want them to feel distinctive and powerful, and perhaps even to move away from gear reliance unlike the other factions' characters.

Wrapping Up

There's lots of places I'm going to be taking Exoworld's setting as I get into doing the final writing pass on that part of the book, but first I really need to get working on the mechanics.

One reason for this is that I need to get playtesting. This is going to turn into a massive project in terms of consuming my time and energy, and while I'm fine with that up front there needs to be some realistic timeframe to get stuff out or the whole creative process is futile (since the point is to eventually have something to show for it).

The other reason is that I like to think about showcasing mechanics as much as I can. While I've gotten starts on four pieces of chapter introduction fiction for the book that all cover predominantly setting elements, it would be nice to hit a point where the game mechanics are playing a role.

I've also been thinking about crafting some sort of reputation system, perhaps as a part of the economic functioning. I don't think it would be reputation-as-currency (e.g. Eclipse Phase), but perhaps something more like reputation-as-gatekeeper during the gear acquisition process.