Exalted Introductory Kit.pdf

Free

Introductory

Kit

O PEN YOUR EYES .

T HE R EALM IS IN CHAOS .

T HE D RAGON -B LOODED ’ S

W YLD H UNT IS IN SHAMBLES .

T HEY CAN HOLD US BACK

NO LONGER .

A THOUSAND YEARS AGO , WE RULED THIS WORLD TOGETHER .

O UR MIGHT WAS SUCH THAT WE SLEW THE FOES OF THE GODS

WITH OUR BARE HANDS . A ND FOR OUR SERVICE , THE HIGHEST

AMONG THE GODS , THE U NCONQUERED S UN , GRANTED US

E XALTATION .

W E ARE THE E XALTED .

W E CHANNEL E SSENCE , THE POWER OF THE COSMOS , THROUGH

OUR FINGERTIPS , OUR FISTS , OUR FEET . O UR BLADES ARE CAST

OF ORICHALCUM AND SET WITH HEARTHSTONES , AND THEY

NEVER DULL .

Y ET OUR ENEMIES ARE MANY . A LTHOUGH THE E MPIRE OF THE

D RAGON -B LOODED IS DISTRACTED BY INTERNAL CONFLICT , ITS

SOLDIERS ARE STILL POTENT FOES . A ND THE OTHERS ARE

WORSE . D EATHKNIGHTS RISE FROM THE U NDERWORLD FOR

GODS KNOW WHAT PURPOSE . T HE F AIR F OLK SEE THAT THE

R EALM IS IN TURMOIL AND WAIT WITH COVETOUS HEARTS TO

UNDO C REATION ON THEIR MERCURIAL WHIM .

J UST THE WAY WE LIKE IT .

O UR TIME HAS COME AGAIN .

C HAPTER O NE • S ETTING

Exalted

Introductory

Kit

T ABLE OF C ONTENTS

I NTRODUCTION — W HAT IS E XALTED ?

S ETTING — T HE W ORLD OF E XALTED

T HE S OLAR E XALTED

O THER E XALTED : T HE L UNARS , S IDIREALS , AND T ERRESTRIALS

T HE T HRESHOLD AND ITS D ANGERS

C HARACTER C REATION — E XALTATION OF A S OLAR

T RADITIONS — T HE C ASTES

T RAITS — P OWERS OF THE E XALTED

H EALTH AND E SSENCE — P OWER B EHIND THE P OWERS

R ULES — P LAYING THE G AME

C OMBAT — P HYSICAL AND M AGICAL C ONFRONTATION

S TORY I DEAS — E XALTED A DVENTURE S EEDS

Because of the mature themes involved, reader discretion is advised.

Based on the Exalted game created by Robert Hatch, with Justin Achilli, Andrew Bates, Dana Habecker,

Sheri M. Johnson, Chris McDonough, Richard Thomas, Stephan Wieck. Phase 2 design by Geoffrey C. Grabowski,

Based on the Exalted game created by Robert Hatch, with Justin Achilli, Andrew Bates, Dana Habecker,

Sheri M. Johnson, Chris McDonough, Richard Thomas, Stephan Wieck. Phase 2 design by Geoffrey C. Grabowski,

with Ken Cliffe, Richard Thomas, Stephan Wieck. Developed by Geoffrey C. Grabowski.

F OR A FREE W HITE W OLF CATALOG , CALL 1-800-454-WOLF.

C HECK OUT W HITE W OLF ONLINE AT WWW . WHITE - WOLF . COM ,

ALT . GAMES . WHITEWOLF AND REC . GAMES . FRP . STORYTELLER .

places and text herein are copyrighted by White Wolf Publishing, Inc. The mention of or reference to any company or product in these pages is not a challenge to the

trademark or copyright concerned. PRINTED IN CANADA

E XALTED I NTRODUCTORY K IT

Do not believe what the scientists tell you. The

natural history we know is a lie, a falsehood sold to us by

wicked old men who would make the world a dull gray

prison and protect us from the dangers inherent to free-

dom. They would have you believe our planet to be a

lonely starship, hurtling through the void of space, barren

of magic and in need of a stern hand upon the rudder.

Close your eyes to their deception. The time before

our time was not a time of senseless natural struggle and

reptilian rage, but a time of myth and sorcery. It was a time

of legend, when heroes walked Creation and wielded the

very power of the gods. It was a time before the world was

bent, a time before the magic of Creation lessened, a time

before the souls of men became the stunted, withered

things that they are today.

This is the story of that time.

This is the story of the Exalted.

Within the Realm, this is the stuff of myth and legend.

Even the tales of the Celestials’ greatest feats have been lost

to the common folk. The majority of the Realm’s inhabit-

ants believe only in what they see — the semi-mythical

Anathema, who lurk at the edges of Creation, the Terres-

trial Exalted, called the Dragon-Blooded, who rule, and the

mortal men, who are born to strive and die.

But the Celestial Exalted were real, and they had the

power to make the world tremble at their passing. And

now, they are returning. In the mad scramble for their

empire’s vacant throne, the Dragon-Blooded have failed

to maintain their age-old purge of the Celestial Exalted.

Now, the children of sky are surviving long enough to

realize their vast powers.

P OWERS OF THE E XALTED

The primary difference between human and Exalted

— Terrestrial or Celestial — consists of the ability of the

Chosen to channel the fundamental force of the universe,

called Essence. The power of the Exalted depends on both

their skill at manipulating Essence and having adequate

Essence to work with. Although humans are composed of

Essence and are ruled by its ebb, flow and vicissitudes,

they are unable to command its nature or direction

consciously. The power an Exalted has corresponds di-

rectly to the strength of her connection to the Essence

around her. A young and inexperienced Exalted may

seem like a moderately talented magician, capable of only

a few practical tricks or simple feats of sorcery. Older,

more experienced Exalted who have a greater under-

standing or command of Essence are like unto the Incarna

in their ability to shape the world.

The abilities of the Exalted are constrained, how-

ever, by the amount of Essence available to them. Without

Essence to command, even the greatest of the Exalted is

little more than human. Essence exists within all facets of

the natural world and flows through all healthy living

beings. Exalted typically breathe in the ambient Essence

that flows through the world, storing it up until they need

it. The amount of Essence an Exalted can hold within her

body at any one time is determined both by her magical

ability and her force of personality, and it is an important

measure of her strength.

The Essence powers of the Exalted take three forms:

innate abilities, Charms and sorcerous spells. The innate

abilities are talents that the Exalted exercise simply by

flooding their animas with Essence. For example, a Solar

Exalted of the Dawn Caste can use her anima to appear to

be a fearsome warrior, so terrifying that enemies literally

cannot bear to look directly at her.

Charms refer to the ways in which Exalted can

imbue their own actions with Essence. With the aid of

Charms, the Exalted uses Essence to empower her oth-

erwise normal skills or talents, thereby making them

W HAT IS A S TORYTELLING G AME ?

Storytelling is a sophisticated way for adults to play

make-believe. Rather than playing soldier or house and

running around in your backyard or the alley behind

your apartment, you and your friends sit in a comfortable

room and describe the heroic feats that your characters

accomplish. To help make sure that you all share the

same vision of what’s going on, a mediator and narrator

(the “Storyteller”) describes events and keeps the story

moving. In order to prevent arguments of who did what

first and whether an action is possible, there are rules

that describe what your character can and can’t do. In

order to prevent bitterness over someone beating some-

one else in a fight, the characters are usually allies against

imaginary opposition that the Storyteller tries to portray

as even-handedly as possible. In order to prevent jaded

adult imaginations from being bored quickly, the setting

is much more intricate and complex than most people’s

childhood fantasies.

T HE E XALTED

The Exalted command the fundamental forces of the

Tellurian. Additionally, their life spans are greatly length-

ened; the Dragon-Blooded live hundreds of years, while

the life spans of the Celestials are orders of magnitude

longer than those of humans. Some Celestial Exalted

even retain memories of the First Age.

The time when the Exalted embodied virtue was

called the First Age, and it was a golden age of peace and

wonder. But the virtue of the Celestial Exalted — those

Exalted who had been taught to harness the power of the

heavens — waned. It was eaten away by their decadence

and powers and, some whisper, by a terrible curse laid on

them by the enemies of the Five Elemental Dragons. They

became twisted, mad things — the Anathema — and they

were destroyed or exiled for the good of the world.

C HAPTER O NE • S ETTING

extraordinarily powerful. For example, an Exalted who

was a blacksmith can forge amazing weapons, an Exalted

warrior can perform mighty feats in battle, and an

Exalted leader can command anyone and expect to be

obeyed.

Spells are the most difficult and powerful means of

channeling Essence, and they can be devastating. When

an Exalted casts a spell, he manipulates Essence with his

words and gestures, according to the laws and principles

of magic, and in so doing, he reweaves reality itself.

S OLAR E XALTED

The Solar Exalted are the mightiest of the Exalted,

and during the First Age, they were the rulers of the world

and the leaders of the Exalted. Their great enlightenment

was intended to be a beacon and inspiration to all of

humanity — they shine brightest who are meant to be

seen by all. Their power flows from the sun, and the day

belongs to them. Logic, heroism, inspiration and nobility

are their spheres of influence.

The Dragon-Blooded murdered the Solars at the

fall of the First Age. Although a few continued to

reincarnate again and again, they were always dispatched

quickly by the forces of the Realm. Only since a year or

two after the disappearance of the Empress have the

Solars been reappearing in significant numbers. With

newfound numbers and the Realm beset by foes and

instability, the emerging Solars have an opportunity to

make their power known.

D AWN

Dawn Solars are fierce warriors, yet their ferocity

does not make them bloodthirsty or stupid. Of those who

have been recently Exalted to this caste, there have been

bloody-handed killers, but none who were without re-

deeming characteristics. Others are scholar-generals,

hard-bitten militiamen who fought to protect their homes,

monks who practiced the martial arts for spiritual reasons,

pit fighters, street warriors who led gangs rather than

armies, even heroic city guards who carried out their own

war on the corrupt officials and criminal parasites who

infest the cities of the world.

Dawn Castes are universally skilled in all forms of

fighting. They are natural masters of the bow, the sword

and unarmed combat. When they channel Essence to

manifest their anima, they seem to become terrifying

giants — harbingers of destruction with eyes like molten

gold, whom only the bravest of warriors can bear to

regard directly.

Z ENITH

The Zenith Castes are the priests and mystics of the

Exalted, and in terms of personality, they are the most

varied of the castes. Many were once shamans or priests of

the Immaculate Order, while others were simply passionate

individuals with a thirst for righteousness. Although they

are priests, Exalted of the Zenith Caste are more mission-

aries, evangelists and rough-jawed crusaders for justice

than self-righteous scholars or pretentious theologians.

Zenith Caste Solars excel in public speaking and

persuasion, but that is not their only forte. They are also

incredibly durable, able to resist immense hardship and

pain and to survive in the wilds as they pursue their

missions. By channeling Essence through their animas,

Exalted of this caste can cause fire to consume the bodies

of dead foes, so that those foes’ souls can reach the afterlife

rather than rising as hungry ghosts or walking dead. Also,

the Zenith Castes are fierce enemies of demons and the

undead, and they may channel Essence through their

auras to scorch and repel these horrors.

T WILIGHT

The Twilight Exalted are learners and doers, adven-

turer-scholars, warrior-mages and meddlesome cunning

men. Most Twilight Caste Exalted were learned before

their Exaltation, yet they are by no means all scholars.

Storytellers, architects, merchants and engineers have all

been Exalted to this caste. While there are a certain

number of bookworms in this caste, most of them are

durable enough to endure the hardships of campaigning

and the stress of life as powerful public figures.

The Twilights excel at sorcery, but they are more

than simple scholars. They are learners, meddlers, doctors

and tinkers. They not only work magic with Essence, but

with tools, needles and thread and with their wit and

insight. By channeling Essence through their animas,

they may protect themselves from attack, an important

power given their active and dangerous lifestyles.

N IGHT

Night Caste Solars are the spies, scouts and assassins

of the Solar Exalted. Night Caste Exalted are often

tricksters and vagabonds, but they are not necessarily

thieves and killers. They are often peddlers, hunters,

guides, police officers and the like — anyone partaking in

an active life for whom stealth and ingenuity are more

important than raw strength. Note that there are a fair

number of cutpurses and assassins among those who are

Exalted to this caste, but they are by no means the sole

members of the caste.

Night Caste Exalted are unparalleled in stealth,

acrobatics and getting where and what they shouldn’t.

These Exalted also possess a preternatural awareness of

their surroundings. By channeling Essence through

their auras, Night Caste Exalted may conceal their

presence, making them difficult to sense. Night Caste

Solars may also mute their animas, allowing them to

more easily use Charms without revealing their true

nature as Exalted.

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