CREDITS Scenario Authors: Rose Bailey and Audrey Whitman System Designers: Rose Bailey, Meghan Fitzgerald, Jordan Goldfarb, and Danielle Lauzon Editor: Dixie Cochran Art Directors: Michael Chaney and Richard Thomas Art: Chris Huth Cartography: Rose Bailey and Mike Chaney
© 2016 Rose Bailey. All rights reserved. Text and illustrations are the property of Rose Bailey. Reproduction without the written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden, except for the purposes of reviews, and one printed copy which may be reproduced for personal use only. The mention of or reference to any company or product in these pages is not a challenge to the trademark or copyright concerned. This book uses the fantastic for settings, characters and themes. All mystical and supernatural elements are fiction and intended for entertainment purposes only. This book contains mature content. Reader discretion is advised. 2
INTRODUCTION
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R ULES
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Characters Basics
Ksenyia Malaya Zillah “Sunny” Lucio Sisera Ipato
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Actions
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Lasting Consequences
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Exerting and Exhausting Traits
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Talents
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Drama Points
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Spending Drama Points
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Gaining Drama Points
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Strain Conditions Combat
SAMPLE CHARACTERS
ADVENTURE The City of Vance Festival in the Plaza
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The Plaza
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The Action
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Searching the Dredge
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The Dredge
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The Action
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Cornering Ruvar the Blue
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The Combat Round
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The Crypts
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Ranged Weapons
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The Action
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Combat Maneuvers
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Minions
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The Map
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Resolution Customizing the Adventure Links
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24 24 25
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I NTRODUCTION Return now to dying Mars in its last age of glory. A planet of flashing swords and choking sands, of winking courtesans and lantern-lit canal cities. Mars, where fortune and death are two sides of the same obsidian chit, where lost cities and dry oceans stretch between the last bastions of civilization. Where the First Martians, the monument-builders, are but a haunted memory. Where the Red Martians become decadent and reckless in their last days. Where the Pale Martians rule the wastes, remembering a history whose weight would crush a lesser people.
In this adventure, you’ll find yourself in Vance at festival time. When revolutionaries strike a visiting prince, you’ll need to explore the city’s dark underbelly, before racing across its towered tombs! Live, fight, and love on Mars, a world of red death and strange mystery, a world of savagery and romance. Welcome to the jumpstart for Cavaliers of Mars , a roleplaying game of swashbuckling adventure on a dying world. This book includes sample characters, the rules that power the game, and an action-packed adventure to introduce the setting.
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R ULES Cavaliers of Mars is powered by the DEIMOS system, in which a hero’s motivations and approach to problems strongly influence her chance of success. In combat, heroes face off with their enemies in contests of tactics and chance.
ning, With Force, or With Grace). Add these two dice to your pool. Then, add one die each for any Trait which would help you. The GM is the final arbiter of which Traits apply. Another player can help by describing a way his character helps yours, then contributing his highest relevant die to your pool.
CHARACTERS
The GM then picks two dice. If the opposition is inanimate, then the GM picks two dice of the same size to represent the difficulty (2d6, 2d8, 2d10, or 2d12). If the opposition is a non-player character or creature, the GM takes the character’s Resolve die, and the die for the non-player character’s most rele vant Trait (like Stubborn as a Steppes Bear d8). The GM may also include one die for difficulty (d6, d8, d10, or d12).
Your character is made up of Traits, each ranked as a die size from d6 to d12. For example, your character’s Traits might include For Love d8, With Force d6, and Cavalier d8. Traits include Motivations, Methods, Origins, Careers, and Relationships. Your character also has a special Trait, Speed, which is rated as a number rather than a die type. Speed determines how many actions your character can take per round in closely-timed situations, like combat.
You and the GM each roll your dice, then each of you add the two highest results. If your total is higher than the GM’s, your character succeeds, and the GM narrates your success. If the GM’s total is higher, the opposition overcomes your character, and you narrate the result.
Finally, your character has Talents, which create exceptions to the normal rules.
Basic actions can be used for fighting instead of the combat system, in order to speed things up. But to kill (or inflict any other Condition on) a significant character, you must call for a combat.
BASICS ACTIONS
LASTING CONSEQUENCES
Basic actions are resolved by rolling a pool of dice against an opposing pool belonging to another player or the GM. To form your pool, first pick a Motivation (For Honor, For Love, or For Self) and a Method (With Cun-
Some actions have lingering consequences be yond their immediate effects. Examples include astrological predictions, building or repairing equipment, inspiring or tricking people, political
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manipulations, and infiltrating a group or place. The GM is the final arbiter of what actions may have lasting consequences.
PLOT TWISTS VERSUS JUST ASKING
A successful action generates a Windfall die: a d4 added to a basic action or combat roll as a bonus die. When a player earns Windfall, he holds it in reserve until he chooses to use it. In basic actions, the Windfall die is rolled and added to the player’s result after he selects his top two dice. For combat actions, the Windfall die is rolled and added to a single action die of the player’s choice. This must be done after action pools are rolled, but before the Clash of Steel phase begins.
Cavaliers of Mars is designed to
be a game where everyone cooperates to experience an entertaining story. A lot of the time, the GM may just want to ask players what happens, or take suggestions. For example, looking around a murder scene, the GM might ask a player what his character’s looking for, and go with that. The player could say “this guy was a champion pit fighter; I probably know him from my Entertainer days.” Spending a Drama Point, though, is for something weightier or more unlikely, like “I turn over the body... and see my own brother’s face staring blankly back at me!”
A failed action generates a Misfortune die, also a d4. Usually the GM holds Misfortune in reserve until she chooses to add it to a player’s pool for a basic action or a non-player character’s combat roll, though some actions allow players to inflict Misfortune instead. If the Misfortune die matches any other die in a basic action’s pool, the GM or player introduces some complication — reinforcements arrive, a sandstorm sweeps the area, a character discovers that her coin purse is missing, etc. If nothing matches the Misfortune die, the GM keeps it for future use.
TALENTS Talents give your character special abilities. Basic Talents usually give you narrative effects without requiring you to roll a basic action. Careers also offer Talents.
DRAMA POINTS
In combat, Misfortune dice simply become Windfall for the player’s opponent instead.
Drama Points are a player resource for influencing the flow of the game. They let players achieve great deeds and insert plot twists, and compensate them when the tables turn.
Most Windfall and Misfortune dice can be used on any kind of action, although there are logical limitations on some of them. For instance, players must use consequences generated by astrology on actions relevant to the prediction.
SPENDING DRAMA POINTS
Only one Windfall or Misfortune die can apply to any given roll. All unused Windfall and Misfortune vanishes at the end of the session, unless otherwise noted in a specific system.
There are five uses for Drama Points. • Exceptional Action: When rolling a basic action, the player can add a third die to her total result.
EXERTING AND EXHAUSTING TRAITS
• Just a Scratch: After combat, the player may remove half of her character’s current Strain. • Lore: The character just happens to know an obscure truth or rumor that helps in the current situation. Her player can ask the GM, but it’s encouraged that the player make up the fact herself.
Some rules, such as basic and career Talents, require you to exert a Trait, stepping its die size down by one until the end of a session. For example, a d8 Trait becomes a d6 when exerted. A Trait at d4 can no longer be exerted.
• Plot Twist: Fate intervenes in the character’s favor. For example, an ally shows up just in time to help her fend off assassins, or she stumbles across a piece of critical evidence. As with
A Trait can also be exhausted, meaning that it immediately becomes a d4 for the rest of the session. A Trait must currently be d8 or higher to be exhausted.
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Lore, the player is encouraged to come up with this themselves, subject to GM approval.
being Taken Out. When a Condition disadvantages a player character significantly, or prevents them from doing something they’d otherwise be able to, the player gets a Drama Point.
• Rally: In combat, the player may roll a d4 and add the result to any of her action dice.
As with Trouble, a player can only earn one Drama Point from Conditions per scene.
• Second Wind: In combat, after making a Resolve Roll, the player can roll a d4 and add it to the result of her Motivation die.
Conditions usually last until the end of a game session, although a player can choose for her character to suffer the Condition for longer. Occasionally, it will make narrative sense to remove the Condition from play before the end of a session, such as if enough in-character time passes for an injury to heal on its own. Just go ahead and do that if you need to.
GAINING DRAMA POINTS Players start each session with 3 Drama Points. The GM awards Drama Points, but players should speak up when they think one of their peers ought to earn points. Drama Points always reset to 3 at the beginning of the next session.
The available Conditions are: • Exhausted
There are four ways to gain Drama Points. • Disaster: When something deadly or tragic befalls the player characters, and they didn’t have a chance to prevent it, each affected character’s player should receive 1 or 2 Drama Points.
• Injured • In Love • Presumed Dead
• Memorable Roleplaying: Particularly great dialogue, moving character interactions, or an ingenious response to a problem should earn a Drama Point.
• Trapped • Vengeful When non-player characters suffer Conditions, they grant an extra d6 to non-combat rolls against them that exploit those Conditions. In combat, when a player character exploits a non-player character’s Condition, the player chooses one of the non-player character’s action dice to discard, after rolling.
• Self-Sacrifice: When a character gives up something vital or puts themselves at great risk for others, the player should earn 1 or 2 Drama Points. • Trouble: When a character’s Trouble comes back to haunt him, his player should earn a Drama Point.
A character can only have one instance of a Condition. If a player wants to choose Injured twice, then he should take Presumed Dead, instead.
STRAIN
Conditions expire for non-player characters as for player characters, but the GM is encouraged to only very rarely clear a Condition for a non-player character before the end of a session, since that tends to make players feel cheated of their victories.
Strain represents the effects of injury and fatigue on characters during and after combat. After combat ends, a player can automatically reduce her character’s Strain by half. After that, the character needs a full night’s rest to rid herself of the rest of the Strain. Strain goes away completely at the end of a session.
COMBAT
In combat, your hero takes a number of actions each round equal to her Speed rating. Each action is represented by a single die. At the beginning of a round, you decide which actions your character will be performing, and gather a hand of dice to represent them.
CONDITIONS
A conflict can inflict Conditions on a character, reflecting the emotional or physical consequences of
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There are four types of action dice. • Red d10s: Strike dice, representing attacks and aggressive actions.
DO YOU WANT TO HAVE A FIGHT SCENE?
Physical conflicts can be resolved as basic actions, which will speed along the flow of the session. The combat rules are intended for dramatic duels and melees, and are only mechanically necessary to inflict the Injured or Presumed Dead Conditions. If you don’t want to invest the time, or don’t need to inflict a Condition, use a basic action instead.
• Black d10s: Parry dice, representing blocks and dodges. • White d10s: Stunt dice, representing maneu vering around the battlefield, and sometimes other actions not specifically related to attack or defense. • Blue d4s: Bonus dice from sources like Drama Points and Scenery.
THE COMBAT R OUND When a Strike lands against a minion, the rolled value of the Strike is compared to the minion group’s Strike Threshold. If the die is higher than the Threshold, the minion is killed, knocked unconscious, or otherwise removed from the conflict.
Each round is divided into three phases: Taking Up Dice, Clash of Steel, and Break.
TAKING UP DICE You and the other players decide your characters’ tactics. Fill your hand with as many dice as your character’s Speed rating in any combination of Strike, Parry, and Stunt dice. For example, a character with a Speed rating of four might pick up two Strike dice, one Parry die, and one Stunt die. All players take up dice simultaneously, and don’t need to announce what dice they’re choosing.
When a strike lands against a player character or significant non-player character, it inflicts Strain on that character based on your character’s weapon’s damage rating.
Stunts For a Stunt die, you choose one of two effects. You may move one space on the map for each die you have that matches the current count. Alternatively, you may change the scene to your advantage. For example, you might knock a candelabra over on a foe, forcing them to Parry your attacks between blazing candles!
Then, roll the dice in your hand. Sort your dice by action type, and then from highest to lowest.
CLASH OF STEEL In this phase, Strikes are compared to Parries, and Stunt dice are spent.
Stunts are usually things your character does, but you can use them to create events that benefit you, as well. Your love might dash into the room to see you fighting the Count, distracting him at a critical moment.
The GM counts down from 10 to 1. When the GM calls a number that you have a Strike or Stunt die equal to, it’s your character’s turn to act.
A Stunt gives you or an ally a +2 bonus to one Strike or Parry die, in addition to the benefits of manipulating the scene. The bonus must be used before the end of the round. (Using the Stunt in this way is sometimes less advantageous than using it for movement, since movement can allow you to withdraw from striking range for the rest of the round.)
Strikes and Parries For a Strike die, select a target within your weapon range. Compare your Strike die to the target’s highest Parry die. If your Strike die is greater than his Parry die, the hit lands, and the Parry die is discarded.
Stunts can’t be Parried. The way to counter them is to pull off a Stunt that counters the narrative ad vantage gained. The GM may disallow a Stunt that doesn’t make sense.
If your Strike die is equal to or lower than his Parry die, both it and the Parry die are discarded, and no hit lands.
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BREAK
in this fight, the player doesn’t have to make one. If she did, she’d use the Apprentice’s For Self Motivation, at d8.
The final phase of the combat round determines who’s too injured or exhausted to continue. Each player makes a Resolve Roll, using their character’s most relevant Motivation die.
The boy, meanwhile, has a Resolve of d4. The GM rolls the die and gets a 1, so the boy is Taken Out. The boy stays on the ground, humiliated. He still gets water… in the form of the Apprentice’s spit upon his cheek.
If the die comes up greater than or equal to your character’s Strain value, your character may participate in the next round.
The player chooses to inflict the Injured Condition… though after this defeat, she doesn’t expect to see the boy or his cronies again.
If the die comes up less than your character’s Strain value, your character is Taken Out: She is wounded, unconscious, or otherwise removed from combat for the rest of the scene. At the end of the fight, she receives a Condition.
R ANGED WEAPONS Slightly different rules apply when a combatant is using a f lintlaser, sling, or other weapon intended for attacking at a distance.
EXAMPLE The Apprentice, young ward of a cavalier, is surrounded by a gang of boys demanding her water. She picks up a sharp rock and calls out their leader, who responds by drawing a crude knife.
Most ranged weapons need to be reloaded between shots. This happens automatically in the Break phase. Thus, they can only inflict a single successful Strike. However, ranged weapons can also be aimed, essentially combining Strikes. Each Strike die in the player’s pool can be spent to add +1 to the value of the highest Strike die in the pool.
The Apprentice has a Speed of 3, and the boy has a Speed of 2. She’s in an aggressive mood, so her player picks two red Strike dice and one black Parry. The boy is wary of her defiant attitude so the GM splits his pool between one red Strike and one black Parry.
Many ranged weapons can’t be used to Parry, meaning that the character must Parry as if unarmed. Parry dice can still be used to dodge ranged Strikes.
The player and the GM roll. The player rolls 8 and 6 on the Apprentice’s Strikes, and 7 on her Parry. The GM rolls 7 on the boy’s Strike, and 4 on his Parry.
COMBAT MANEUVERS Combat maneuvers are special moves that replace the effects of your regular action dice. Anyone can use any maneuver, provided they meet the requirements and pay any costs.
The Clash of Steel begins. The GM counts down from 10. On 8, the Apprentice lunges, making a savage swing at the boy’s head with her rock. Since her Strike die is higher than his only Parry, she connects, sending him reeling. He takes 1 Strain. His Parry die is discarded.
You may use one maneuver per round. Except for the basic Strike and Parry, you can’t use the same maneuver in two consecutive rounds. The variety of maneuvers can create some decision paralysis for new players. Feel free to stick to the basic Strike, Parry, and Stunt until you’re ready to experiment with fancier moves.
On 7, the boy regains his footing and slashes with his knife. Since the Apprentice has a Parry of 7, she leaps lightly out of the way. She takes no Strain. Her Parry die is discarded. On 6, the Apprentice Strikes again, this time aiming to sweep the boy’s legs out from under him. Since he has no more Parry dice, she succeeds, and he lands unceremoniously on his backside. He takes another 1 point of Strain.
STRIKE
You stab, slash, or bash your foe. Action: Strike PARRY
At the Break, it’s time to make Resolve Rolls. Since the Apprentice hasn’t taken any Strain so far
You deftly block or evade an attack. Action: Parry 10
DISARM
Requirement: Using a heavy swinging weapon Effect: Attack each enemy in space Drawback: -2 to highest Parry Mastery: No Parry penalty
You knock your opponent’s weapon from their hand. Action: Stunt Effect: Disarmed advantage; opponent can’t use maneuvers like Riposte or Moulinet until they Stunt to retrieve a weapon.
MOULINET Requirement: Using a heavy swinging weapon Effect: Attack each enemy in space Drawback: -2 to highest Parry
DRAW CORPS-A-CORPS You draw your opponent in, pressing body to body as you grapple. Action: Stunt Effect: Corps-a-corps advantage; only fists and daggers can be used while advantage is in play. You or your foe may use a Stunt to break free.
MINIONS Since having the GM track a hand of dice for each individual non-player character in a big fight scene could get cumbersome, mobs of minor characters (minions) use a simplified set of rules.
FEINT
Each minion group has a Strike Threshold: 2, 4, 6, or 8. When an individual minion gets hit with a Strike equal to or greater than their group’s Threshold, they’re killed, knocked unconscious, or otherwise removed from action.
You make a false attack, and your enemy’s defense gives you an opening. Action: Stunt Effect: Opponent is distracted until the end of the round. One Strike against a distracted character counts as +2 higher than normal.
The GM rolls one pool of dice for an entire group, with a Speed rating equal to the number of minions in the group who haven’t yet been defeated. Minions shouldn’t usually Parry – their dice should typically be Strikes and Stunt.
LUNGE
As the Clash of Steel resolves, the GM can use any die for any minion in the group.
You thrust forward with your entire body, putting devastating force behind your weapon but leaving yourself open to attack. Action: Parry Effect: The Parry becomes a Strike.
THE MAP Maps are simple flow charts showing the different places characters can move in the current scene. Map spaces don’t represent exact distances, but instead areas which require an effort to move through. For example, in a theater, the stage might be a single space, since bounding from one side to another is trivial, while the seating might be two or three spaces, representing the challenge of pushing through the rowdy patrons.
RIPOSTE Your opponent’s assault leaves her open, and you strike back. Action: Parry Effect: If your successful Parry is higher than the Strike it counters, promote one Strike to the level of the Parry and resolve it immediately.
R ANGE
SHOVE
Two characters in the same space can attack each other with close combat weapons, like swords. To attack from further away, they would need ranged weapons.
You crash into your foe with great force, pushing them into a less advantageous position. Action: Stunt Effect: Your foe is moved one space.
SCENERY DICE Spaces on the map may have Scenery dice associated with them. These are d4s that represent features like ropes to swing on, sandbags to knock over, curtains to dodge behind, and so on. Once per turn, you may describe how your character makes use of the Scenery, and add the result to one of your action dice.
SWEEP ATTACK You swing your weapon in a wide arc, sending your enemies sprawling. Action: Strike Cost: Exert Force 11
KSENYIA MALAYA KILLER OF THOUGHTS
MOTIVATIONS For Honor: For Love: For Self:
METHODS
With Cunning: d10 With Force: d6 With Grace: d8
d8 d6 d10
TRAITS Slum Rat of Vance
d8
I was a dock daughter, fishing for rich men’s trash; too ambitious to stay.
Assassin
d10
My sharp eyes won me a patron, who taught me her ways.
Scholar
d8
My skill won me another, who taught me his reasons.
Patience
d10
A good plan requires care and diligence to see it through. I’m more careful than most.
Member of a Secret Society
d6
Now and then I take a contract to kill knowledge, and not just its bearer.
Trouble
I’m patient, but not always silent.
Equipment
Subtle poisons, books of forbidden lore, letters to be lost forever.
COMBAT Speed: 3 (roll 3 dice per round) Weapons: Small blades Damage: 1
TALENTS INVISIBLE BLADE
WELL READ
By taking advantage of distraction or the cover of darkness, you can slip your blade through the best of defenses. Cost: Exert Cunning Effect: This Talent can only be used when previously hidden, or after maneuvering behind your opponent. When applying your Strike die to an opponent, you choose which Parry die they use against your attack.
You are able to remember obscure information you’ve read previously. Cost: Exert Scholar Effect: You can ask the GM to give you a single piece of information that your character would have read pertaining to a particular situation or plot.
TASTE OF POISON You know the tools of your trade well enough to recognize poisons. Cost: Exert Assassin
SLIP THE KNIFE DEEPER You use precision instead of force when striking, able to find vulnerable areas or vital organs in a swift strike. Cost: Exert Grace Effect: Deal 1 additional Strain with close combat weapons.
Effect:
You are able to identify any poison, including knowing where it came from and who is likely to use such a poison.
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ZILLAH
THE R ISING FIFTH
MOTIVATIONS For Honor: For Love: For Self:
METHODS
With Cunning: d8 With Force: d6 With Grace: d10
d8 d6 d10
TRAITS Merchant Class of Vance
d8
I am the fifth daughter of a fecund but unremarkable accountant.
Adept
d10
And I’ve had the gift as long as I can remember.
Astrologer
d8
It wasn’t long before I began using it to track the heavens.
Numerology
d8
I know the best days, now. For starting a journey, for meeting a lover, for ending a life. Each day is full of little threads, and I know just where to cut each one.
Trouble
Unreliable. So much time spent looking inward has left me less attentive than others. Without a guiding hand, I’m apt to get distracted.
Equipment
Charts of the heavens, maps of the Princess Invincible’s palace, a list of names.
COMBAT Speed: 3 (roll 3 dice per round) Weapons: Debris, furniture, discarded weapons, and anything else my telekinesis can pick up Damage: 1
TALENTS TELEKINETIC CONTROL
QUICK READ
Your mental strike is powerful enough to move opponents as well as deal damage. Cost: None Effect: When using telekinesis to strike in combat, also move the opponent up to one space in any direction. This is not limited to once per round, as the Shove maneuver is.
After speaking with someone for a short amount of time, you can do a quick reading, giving you an advantage over them. Cost: Exert Astrologer Effect: After having a conversation with someone, you can quickly consult the stars to gain a single piece of information about them.
PORTENTS You predict someone’s doom. Cost: Exert Astrologer Effect: You make a prediction of doom about your subject, which then comes true before the end of the session.
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“SUNNY” LUCIO BITTER YOUNG SOLDIER
MOTIVATIONS For Honor: For Love: For Self:
METHODS With Cunning: d6 With Force: d10 With Grace: d8
d10 d6 d8
TRAITS Tailor’s Son from Chiaro
d8
I grew up in the terrible shadow of the great Cydonian tombs.
Soldier
d10
I fancied that so much majesty would make me brave and strong.
Thief
d8
But not even a lord’s soldiers can make him pay his due.
Entertainer
d8
His city will love your picture of glory, though, and stories are safer than battles.
Sharp Eyes
d6
Spot the arrow with your number, or pick a mark; but you’d best keep an eye out.
Trouble
My lord owes me money… and I owe many others.
Equipment
Soldier’s greatcloak, lockpicks, a charming smile.
COMBAT Speed: 3 (roll 3 dice per round) Weapons: Stolen bastard sword of Deimos steel, forged with a foreign family’s crest Damage: 1
TALENTS DEADLY FORCE
DISTRACTION
Your training makes you a deadly combatant. Cost: Exhaust Soldier Effect: Gain a +1 bonus to all Strike dice this action. This Talent is activated after the dice are rolled, but before Clash of Steel begins.
You put on a performance that distracts those watching you. Cost: Exhaust Entertainer Effect: You entertain a group of people, which distracts them from noticing other actions. Allies acting outside your performance gain a Windfall die to their actions.
TACTICIAN Your training allows you to direct others in combat. Cost: Exert Grace Effect: You may lend a single Strike, Parry, or Stunt die to a nearby ally, or you may allow an ally to donate any one of his dice to another ally.
KEEPING UP WITH THE NEWS You are a source of news, and it finds its way to you quickly. Cost: Exert Entertainer Effect: You learn the latest and most up to date news for the area you are in.
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SISERA IPATO DESERT CAVALIER
MOTIVATIONS For Honor: For Love: For Self:
METHODS With Cunning: d6 With Force: d8 With Grace: d10
d10 d8 d6
TRAITS Scion of the House of Ipato
d8
I was born into a house of merchant lords, fat with water.
Noble
d8
And so I might have remained, a lawyer with a proper wife and a legion of children.
Cavalier
d10
Until I heard the call of the desert, and never stopped walking.
Perfect Direction
d6
All cavaliers can navigate the shifting sands; I have never lost my way.
Trouble
Broken home. The sand has ground away my feelings for a life abandoned, but I cannot say the same for the family I left behind.
Equipment
An abandoned estate and tomb, a broad black hat, a faded child’s drawing.
COMBAT Speed: 3 (roll 3 dice per round) (4 while using Grand Entrance) Weapons: Short sword and knife, nicked and stained with blood Damage: 1
TALENTS FAST FOOTWORK
FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES
You are able to move quickly across the battlefield Cost: Exert Grace Effect: You can move up to two spaces on the map for each Stunt die.
You are a trusted confidant to important people. Cost: Exert Noble Effect: You can gain a single piece of information pertaining to the nobility in the area.
GRAND ENTRANCE You burst onto the scene riding a local beast, whose loyalty you won by whispered promises and secret means. Cost: Exhaust Cavalier Effect: You begin the scene with a mount, which gives you +1 Speed until an opponent lands a Strike and forces you to jump off. Recommended Mount: An oleph, a sort of six-legged cross between an elephant and a camel. Its two heads whisper incessantly to each other in a sibilant half-language. This one has, oddly, been taught to climb.
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A DVENTURE The adventure begins at a Vancian festival. Assassins strike at a visiting dignitar y, prompting the heroes to action, each for their own reasons. The defeated assassins reveal that they were hired in the Dredge, a lower-class district in the depths of Vance. Investigating the Dredge uncovers that they were in the employ of llium and its goddess-queen, the Princess Invincible. The heroes follow that trail up into Vance’s towers, and face off against the leader of the assassins, Ruvar the Blue, as he tries to make his escape.
term flight. The city does have several towers with sky docks for visiting dignitaries from Zodiac and Illium. A few merchant houses own sky-yachts, but so far none have replicated the technology. The Prince of Vance is chosen from among the merchant houses. The city employs a regular and professional fighting force, the Prince’s Hounds. The master of this force is the Dog of Vance, who is nearly as powerful as the Prince himself. In matters of war, his power becomes supreme. However, since companies of Hounds are sponsored by the merchant houses, their loyalty quickly returns to the commercial establishment when peace returns.
THE CITY OF VANCE
In the central portion of the land of Meridian, Vance lies at the intersection of several canals. It is thus rich in Mars’ most valuable commodity: water. The city is actually built on top of the canals. At the surface, this creates a network of sub-canals. These carry freight and people like roads.
Many con artists, mercenaries, and outright thieves people the lower quarters of Vance; such people flock to wealth. It is not unusual to see an urchin loosening the pockets of a group of Red cavaliers who are drinking alongside a Pale tribal chief.
The city is monumental in scope, carved from huge blocks of red and white rock. It reaches nearly a dozen stories towards the sky. The locals enjoy shade, sweet water, and the produce of the farms along the canals. Trade also brings exotic goods and great wealth by canal and caravan.
The crypts in the city are in its highest towers. Soldiers refer to watching from the towers as “crypt watch,” and civilians sometimes use the term to refer to any tedious nocturnal task.
At night, the city is lit with many-colored lanterns, according to a superstition deeply held but long since forgotten. Windows are made of glass salvaged from the Prismatic Wastes, fit together into intricate patterns.
FESTIVAL IN THE PLAZA
Poor or criminal dead are placed in the outgoing canals to be swept away forever.
During a festival, assassins make an attempt on the life of a visiting dignitary. The heroes are spurred to action.
Vance does not possess a sky-navy as such, though its greatest scholars are working long and hard at the problem, and have perfected other means of short-
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THE PLAZA
THE ACTION
The Plaza Arez is never quiet at night. The famous songs of the gondoliers echo throughout the forest of bronze statues, muffled slightly by the small, expensively-maintained trees – some of the last on Mars.
Depending on your group’s playstyle, the characters can either spend some time socializing and generally attending the party or you can skip straight to the assassination attempt.
Never quiet, but always dark, The Plaza, built to commemorate a long-forgotten achievement, is famously dangerous at night. It is ill-lit, as the buildings that surround it tower ever upwards. It is a dark pit at the heart of the city where only thieves and the unwary walk...on any night but tonight.
ENJOYING THE PARTY Socially, the characters might do any of the following: • Join the drunken philosophical argument among the Zaius.
Tonight, though, lanterns of every color fill the Plaza to celebrate the Small Moon festival, when the moon Deimos passes closest to the surface. On the outskirts of the city, youths hang from kites to try and reach the moon. They are lured by the thought of easy riches waiting for the brave and strong in Deimos’s mines. Not even the best sky-ships of Illium and Zodiac can breach the atmosphere, but children everywhere have heard of the Dawn Runners -- the foolhardy pilots who fling rattletrap ships toward Deimos tonight, bringing back precious metals, and the men mad enough to mine them.
• Acquaint themselves with the Wyeth woman and discover what brings her to Vance. • Hob-nob with the upper class. On this occasion, even the highest aristocrats are likely to talk to their lessers, particularly if they are well-complimented. • Engage in one of the contests of skill being waged around the square, such as tightrope-walking between the statues. • Find a glass of cool wine and a perch from which to people-watch and listen for gossip.
As the night deepens, the Plaza fills with people of every description. Throngs of Red Martians of every social class, a drunken party of ape-like Zaius en route back from Chiaro... and a lone plant woman from the Wyeth rainforest who simply got caught up in the crowd.
After everyone’s settled into their character, abruptly move on to the assassination attempt.
THE ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT
All are gathered to witness the brightest night of the year, and all are masked. Some wear simple yummoc-leather domino masks, others ornate woven facades covering all but the merest hint of the owner’s form. At the end of the Small Moon festival, the year’s slate is wiped clean, and no one need know who you were last year. Tomorrow fresh star charts will be drawn, and new treaties will be signed; but tonight Vance says goodbye to last year’s secrets.
Among all this color and festivity, there is a small contingent of men in black cloaks embroidered with fanciful golden designs. They sport black-and-gold masks to match, and have casually integrated themselves into the mob around the Lady and the Prince. Approaching the Prince of Coronal just as he drains his glass, they shout “Vance for Vance!” and draw their knives to attack him. As the Lady Aldonza fumbles for her sword (entangled in the elaborate sash she wore over her gown), they stab him several times and then move to escape.
Among the richer attendees are the Lady Aldonza Arez, whose old-blooded family sponsored construction of the statues and the Plaza itself, and her consort, the Prince of Coronal. Coronal is a smaller citystate to the north of Vance that controls a number of radium mines. The affair between Lady Aldonza and the Prince has potentially far-reaching consequences for the balance of power among the Red Cities. But like so many others in the plaza, Lady and Prince play the part of young lovers tonight, intoxicated by the freedom afforded them in the last hours of an old year.
There are cries of murder and general chaos erupts. Within seconds, the Plaza is on the verge of a riot.
CHARACTER HOOKS Kseniya Malaya I didn’t know about this. An assassination that I’m not part of could mean I’m getting edged out of
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DANGERS
the business, or that other players are entering the field. Either way, I have to know who they are.
The Prince is unconscious and dying. His shallow wounds might be treatable with a supply of healing gum from the Wyeth rainforest, but someone would have to find it and get it to him. Worse, the knives were poisoned. Unless someone finds out what was on those blades, he could die at any time in the next few minutes or hours.
“Sunny” Lucio There’s no doubt that most royal types deserve as much, but they didn’t look like any soldiers I know. And if the lady isn’t grateful? I know men who could use a cloak like that. Maybe a rich man can do a poor man a service tonight after all.
The crowd is fighting and stampeding. People are being crushed underfoot. Characters trying to make their way across the scene might be better served to run across the forest of statues, or even atop the heads and shoulders of the crowd.
Sisera Ipato They’re killing civilians; I can’t stand for that. It’s terrible when a man dies for no reason; worse when one dies simply for being in the way.
Zillah
The assassins themselves are sparing no violence in making their escape. They’re headed for the widest nearby canal, which is filled with boat traffic. Once there, they’ll leap across and crash through gondolas, merchant boats, and pleasure barges on their way to wards the Dredge.
The stars spell disaster if a Prince dies tonight. And they weren’t thinking about Vance at all. Who would benefit from altering the map of Vance’s heavens?
THE ASSASSINS
The characters can attempt to subdue the assassins or kill them outright. If they’re captured, the Lady Aldonza will have her personal guard come to collect and interrogate them, and will be furious and indiscreet enough to do it in public. Rattled by the events, she won’t be visibly grateful to the characters, but will distractedly commend them for their loyalty to the city.
Black masks cover their faces, while black cloaks enshroud their bodies. Gold embroidery traces fanciful patterns over both, while their daggers sport matching golden hilts. Minions Resolve: None (a single Strike fells each minion) Strike Threshold: 4 Damage: 1 Action Points: 1 (for entire group) Each remaining assassin contributes 1 die to the GM’s pool, which can be spent on the actions of any of the assassins. The assassins begin at the Pavilion, with numbers equal to the heroes. They spend their dice on Strikes (to ward off the heroes) and Stunt (to escape towards the Canal).
If some of the assassins survive, they can be persuaded to reveal the poison used. Whether captured or killed, one of them will, with his last words, reveal that they were hired in the Dredge. The Lady never directly requests assistance, but she implies that someone who happened to uncover a traitor would be well-rewarded.
SEARCHING THE DREDGE
MINION TALENT: SPRING BACK Cost: 1 Action Point Effect: One assassin who would otherwise have been eliminated by a successful Strike returns to action.
Led by the words of one of the assassins, the heroes enter one of Vance’s more dangerous districts in search of clues.
THE MAP
THE DREDGE
The assassins start in the Pavilion. The heroes start among the Statues or the Vendor Stalls.
Through some quirk of the architecture of the Vancian canals, the waters in the Dredge move slowly and murkily. Boats float sluggishly through the muddy waters, and the gondoliers here sing lower, more ominous songs. The area rarely sees the sky, having
Place one Scenery die among the Statues, another among the Canal spaces, and the third in the Vendor Stalls.
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been covered over by other construction in the centuries since the canals were built. In many ways, it resembles a great, dark tunnel – one with hundreds of people packed inside.
Sisera has been away from Vance for a long time, but a cavalier’s broad, black hat is easy to spot from a distance, and most people will assume he is looking for work. If he indulges this assumption, he can find out which noble houses have been hiring killers lately and how well that’s turned out for them. He may also be called upon to calm down a dyspeptic beast and learn more about its former owner.
The Dredge covers slightly more than a square mile. Living in the area is considered less than desirable, so the population tends to be mostly laborers, servants, and unestablished immigrants. The district is near some of the city’s major barracks, meaning that off-duty soldiers come here to drink, and often end up moonlighting as security officers. The result is something between a depressed residential area and a raucous red-light district, choked by the stinging miasma of the filthy and slow-moving waters.
THE TRUTH Ultimately, the heroes will find out that a man called Ruvar the Blue recruited the assassins from the area. He’s planning on going to a particular tower crypt tonight in order to somehow make his escape. They can find this out using their own methods, such as those suggested above, or they might find information at the following establishments.
THE ACTION The heroes have their work cut out for them, looking for someone who might have seen the assassins be hired. The Dredge is always rowdy, but at festival time, it’s downright chaotic.
THE WINKING LAPIS Khaamat Istra knows what the body wants and the soul fears. Her large, two-story house caters to both. The front door is flanked by two blue torches: In Khaamat’s native Chiaro, these are said to keep ghosts and the dreaded tomb stalkers at bay. Blue lights and paints appear throughout the house. They play to the common fear of Earth, the blue star of ill omen, and of the blue dust halo the sun shows at dawn and dusk.
This segment of the story is designed for investigation. It’s a good opportunity for basic actions using the heroes’ careers, as well as plain old question-and-answer storytelling. There are also a number of locations within the Dredge that stick out as places to go for information.
INVESTIGATION HOOKS
The Winking Lapis is a fortune teller’s shop, where all the fears of ancestors and looming mortality can be conjured and put to rest. Most of the first floor is devoted to Khaamat’s reading chambers, where she slashes palms, leaves ash marks, and performs the rituals of divination. Many a soldier dreading his next campaign will stop the night before to see Madame Khaamat.
If your players are stuck for investigation tactics, suggest some of the following. Zillah and Kseniya are used to working as a unit. They take up an inconspicuous position, arguing over dice, while Kseniya picks out targets for Zillah to read. Kseniya keeps Zillah on task by challenging her to find the best moment to read a given target. Zillah relies on Ksenyia’s familiarity with the Dredge and superior grasp of their surroundings to keep her out of harm’s way.
Yet fortune telling is not the only service on offer. The Winking Lapis is also a brothel. That same soldier might stop to enjoy one last embrace with one of Khaamat’s Chiaran prostitutes. The Winking Lapis is a place of sex and death, a place where any kind of catharsis can be had for a few obsidian chits.
Sunny has friends in this neighborhood and a few cloaks to sell. (Sunny can be moved by other former soldiers, and will give up cloaks to those who look like they could use something to keep off the chill of night.) Sunny is not, by nature, subtle; he will showboat as much as the other characters let him, and is prone to concocting stories that exaggerate his skill or accomplishments. But his chummy bonhomie will hold the attention of a shop owner long enough for him to get a solid look around and pick out any details of interest.
Trouble: Madame Khaamat is gracious to visitors, but not at the expense of her strange trade. If the characters come looking for information too unsubtly, or address her as a charlatan or whore, they will find she is also a potent adept. Her calm demeanor conceals a deadly temper and a storm of psychic power.
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Conflict with Khaamat works best as a basic action. She has a Resolve of d8 and a Hidden Adept Trait of d8. If the heroes lose, they’re driven back into the streets.
on the premises out of an odd streak of mercy; he knows that many of them have nowhere else to go. At any given time, the cloisters are temporarily occupied by a dozen addicts. Some of these are destitute and simply need a place to spend the night; others ply illicit trades in a place where few would care to follow.
Information: An employee of Khaamat believed that one of the assassins would marry him. He was being taken advantage of, but he did learn that the apparent revolutionaries were in the pay of the citystate of Illium.
With the festival at its height tonight, nearly three dozen people are packed into the Cavern, including six soldiers. The air is thick with sweat. At least two people are rutting somewhere in the cloisters.
THE CAVERN
Trouble: The addicts and revelers in the Cavern just want to be left to enjoy their highs (or lows, as the case may be). They’ll quickly turn rowdy if they suspect the characters of being dangerous. Azanza will incite them if he thinks he’s being investigated by authorities or suspects the heroes are there to muscle in on his business.
The Cavern is, literally, a hole in the wall. Cracked masonry between two abandoned buildings allows entrance into a small network of cloisters. These tiny chambers, once open to the sky, are all that are left of a star cult that flourished in the area a hundred Princes ago. Now the chapel and cloisters host devotees of a different sort. The Cavern is a drug den, where a tall, pudgy man named Azanza plays host to those who find themselves in need of untroubled sleep or unending wakefulness. He allows his customers to stay
As with Khamaat, treat conflict with Azanza’s customers as a basic action. The crowd has a Resolve of 2d6, and a Riotous trait of d8. Information: A mysterious new customer showed up just last week. He was most recently seen yester20
day, mentioning something about a meeting in the sky crypts during the festival.
The crypts have also been put to practical use. Most nights, soldiers keep watch from the towers over the surrounding canals and desert, alert for any danger. Particularly fleet-footed messengers have also been known to leap across the crypts as shortcuts to other high points in the city.
BARILLA’S When people are down on their luck, they come to Barilla, and they bring the things they prize most. His pawn shop is among the few buildings in the Dredge that are well-kept. In fact, it’s immaculate. Even most wealthy shopkeepers can’t boast a shop as clean as Barilla’s. The walls are lined with objects that once meant everything to someone. Jewels, swords, stone cameos of loved ones... they’re all here.
As a result of these activities, as well as ongoing construction, the grand tombs are connected by ropes, narrow bridges, and scaffolding. Traversing the tombs is quite possible, if vertigo-inducing.
THE ACTION
Barilla hires off-duty soldiers as security, and he keeps three of them around at any given time. He’s well aware that his valuable merchandise is in a dangerous place. Still, the soldiers don’t see too much action. At least two usually play cards out front on any given night. Tonight, however, they play inside, and with the door barred.
Tonight, the mausoleum-towers are almost empty of lookouts. The Small Moon festival is a compelling distraction, and the dutiful few who remain are easily persuaded by Ruvar’s cruel reputation and his naked efforts at bribery. A few truly honest soldiers have crawled into the tombs of the wealthy, preferring to share a dead man’s bed rather than face the blade of one of the traitors.
Trouble: Barilla isn’t seeing customers – or anyone else – tonight. Unfriendly attempts to enter will be met with force by his soldiers.
Ruvar is secretly in the employ of Illium, and a personal agent of that city’s Princess Invincible. He plans to escape before the Hounds of Vance can be mobilized to track him down. Knowing that Vance’s few sky docks are more thoroughly guarded than the crypts, his plan is to meet an Illium sky-ship atop the crypt of the recently-dead Magister Marcellus Tertias Tegallianus. From there, he will make his escape.
In a conflict, the soldiers roll Resolve at d8, and Off Duty and Punchy at d6. Information: Barilla recently accepted an object even he had some reservations about: a bas relief clearly chiseled off of a tower crypt. Enough of the inscription was even left to make out that the crypt belonged to Magister Marcellus Tertias Tegallianus. Barilla’s had a lot of second thoughts about keeping the item. Everyone knows that wealthy men leave the most dangerous curses.
Ruvar is accompanied by a small group of trusted agents. Their motivations range from Illium’s coin to personal loyalty to Ruvar. These men and women have accompanied Ruvar as security only. Once he has made his escape alone, they will fade back into the Vancian population, waiting to be activated again at some later date.
CORNERING R UVAR THE BLUE
Ruvar and his agents are surprised by the heroes, but they wouldn’t have been traveling in force if they weren’t ready for trouble. After any initial surprise attacks, they rally and take on the heroes.
The heroes ascend to the sky crypts to confront the master of the assassins.
When Ruvar’s Strain reaches 4, his sky-ship arrives. While it appears to be one of the yachts sometimes sold to rich Vancian merchants, it is actually a military craft, appropriately armed and armored. Unable to board via the usual gangway, Ruvar will attempt to leap atop the craft. One of the heroes might follow him and continue the duel on a sky-ship thousands of feet above the ground.
THE CRYPTS In the highest towers of the city rest the bodies of Vance’s wealthiest citizens. To be interred close to the sky is a sign of status. The ornate tombs haunt the city’s skyline. Their architecture is intricate, by turns baroque and gothic, chiseled with great and precarious care out of the white rock from which so much of the city is built.
If Ruvar is killed or captured, most of his hired help scatters and runs.
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R UVAR THE BLUE A handsome man, almost young, with unsettlingly blue eyes.
Resolve: d10 Speed: 4 Damage: 2 Action Points: 2 Weapons: A single-shot flintlaser (+1 damage on first Strike), a rapier of the finest Deimos steel
Resolve: d4 Speed: 1 Damage: 1 Action Points: 2 Weapons: A repeating gun Brennius uses ranged Strikes to discourage the heroes, and he uses his Hail of Bullets Talent to slow their advance. All of the outdoor areas on the map are within his range of fire, but heroes can avoid them
Ruvar begins on the crypt of Magister Tertius, marked with his name on the map. Since that’s where he’s planning to escape from, he’ll initially favor Strikes and Parries. After he’s taken 4 Strain, the skyship from Illium arrives, and he uses a Stunt die to leap onto its open deck, where the fight can continue.
ANTAGONIST TALENT: HAIL OF BULLETS Bullets from Brennius’ weapon pound the stonework ahead of you, chipping it and forcing you to choose your steps carefully. Cost: 1 Action Point Effect: One space that Brennius targets requires 2 Stunt dice, rather than 1, to move out of.
ANTAGONIST TALENT: EVASIVE FOOTWORK Ruvar’s grace allows him to dance between your strikes, denying you the advantage of numbers. Cost: 1 Action Point Effect: Ruvar gains 1 additional Parry die for every enemy attacking him past the first.
THE MAP The heroes start on the Large Tower. The agents start spread among the Crypts and Bridges. Colonel Brennius also starts on a Crypt. Ruvar starts on the crypt marked with his name.
R UVAR ’S AGENTS The agents are dressed as a group of common ruffians, but are actually highly-trained soldiers and assassins. All carry mili- tary-issue rapiers, which glint wickedly in the light of the moons.
Place Scenery dice on the Skyship (when it arrives), on two of the Crypts, on one of the Bridges, and on each of the Ropes.
Resolve: None (a single Strike fells each minion) Strike Threshold: 4 Damage: 1 Action Points: 2 (for entire group) Each remaining agent contributes 1 die to the GM’s pool, which can be spent on the actions of any of the agents. There is one agent for each of the heroes.
Characters can move from the Crypts to Ruvar using the Ropes with a single Stunt die, unless the Ropes are being affected by Brennius’ Hail of Bullets Talent.
DANGERS The agents fight as a group. While one might engage a single foe, her fellows will be ready to trip or backstab that enemy. The fight takes place high above the city. Characters must utilize all their agility to stay atop the crypts and bridges, though they may also use the great heights and precarious positioning to their ad vantage.
MINION TALENT: MOB VIOLENCE The agents close in around you, promising violence from every direction. Cost: 1 Action Point Effect: When the agents resolve multiple Strikes on the same hero this round, the GM may activate this talent to increase the value of the Parry result needed to cancel Strikes by 1 for each Strike the agents have already landed on that character.
More agents might spring from within the crypts or drag their enemies inside to fight among the brown bones and funerary jewels.
COLONEL BRENNIUS The Zaiu’s ape-like silhouette looms ominously over the crypt on which he perches. He carries a large, repeating projectile weapon. 22
Each agent has spent time climbing the crypts, and each is ready to fence on the narrow bridges or kick enemies down from towers. Even carrying his massive weapon, Brennius is capable of leaping from tower to tower without us-
ing the intervening bridges and ropes. The bullets he fires can shatter the very stone on which the heroes (or his fellow agents) stand.
heroes trusted agents in future endeavors...including in possible covert retaliation against Illium.
R ESOLUTION
The sun rises with its eerie blue halo, and the city begins to put itself back together. Hangovers are nursed. Masons and other crafters go to work repairing the results of the night’s excesses. The heroes have thwarted a plot aimed at the very heart of Vancian power, and they have rescued (or avenged) the Prince of a smaller state. While the merchant houses aren’t going to be throwing any parades in their honor, the characters are likely to receive quiet offers of lucrative employment, and not a few admiring glances. With the traitor identified, the Lady Aldonza seems more confident and openly grateful. She offers honorary commissions with the Hounds sponsored by her house. While these are little more than titles now, they carry potential pensions and property rights in the future. She’s also likely to consider the 24
CUSTOMIZING THE ADVENTURE
We expect you’ll tailor this adventure to your group; none of us ever runs a published adventure just as written. This particular story focuses mainly on swashbuckling action, with a dash of investigation. The web of intrigues that occupy the Red Cities are only hinted at, but could be expanded. Particularly, consider what the Lady Aldonza’s family might think of her dalliance with a foreign prince, and whether some factions might ally themselves with actual revolutionaries, such as the Mongrels or the Twelve Dead Men. It’s also a relatively linear story. This works well for a crash course in the setting, but you might want to try something a little broader. In this case, we recommend expanding the portion of the adventure that begins in the Dredge. Give the players freedom in their investigation, and give them the chance to
catch Ruvar the Blue and his henchmen in ways other than the set piece finale we provide. With the full game, you might take the action to the Hangman’s Garden or chase them across Mars and into the Lab yrinth of Night.
We’d love to hear what you think; you can e-mail
[email protected] with your thoughts. We’ll see you again atop Chiaro’s pyramids, or perhaps Illium’s perch on the Radium Plateau. In the meantime, hold your sword close, your flask closer, and keep an eye out for the full game!
You could also consider different ways of tying the heroes into the adventure. Perhaps the Prince of Coronal has important diplomatic business under the cover of the party, and being left indisposed has jeopardized it. Now, one of the characters must don his mask and take on his persona.
LINKS
You can always find the latest on Cavaliers of Mars at http://www.cavaliersofmars.com. And while you’re at it, why not read “The Apprentice’s Tale,” an in-character setting exploration at http://blog. fantasyheartbreaker.com/2012/03/04/the-apprentices-tale/?
Or maybe you’d like to play it from the other side. The characters could very well be the assassins themselves, facing off against the guards and soldiers of Houses Arez and Coronal. Are they true revolutionaries, or are they, too, in the pay of Illium?
Check out Cavaliers and other projects on the Onyx Path site at http://www.theonyxpath.com .
However you choose to run it, we hope you have an evening’s fun getting to know our Mars.
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Return now to dying Mars in its last age of glory. A planet of flashing swords and choking sands, of winking courtesans and lantern-lit canal cities. Mars, where fortune and death are two sides of the same obsidian chit, where lost cities and dry oceans stretch between the last bastions of civilization. Where the First Martians, the monument-builders, are but a haunted memory. Where the Red Martians become decadent and reckless in their last days. Where the Pale Martians rule the wastes, remembering a history whose weight would crush a lesser people. In this adventure, you’ll find yourself in Vance at festival time. When revolutionaries strike a visiting prince, you’ll need to explore the city’s dark underbelly, before racing across its towered tombs! Live, fight, and love on Mars, a world of red death and strange mystery, a world of savagery and romance. Includes:
• A complete adventure set in one of dying Mars’ greatest remaining cities. • The innovative DEIMOS rules, for high-flying, swashbuckling adventure. • Four pre-generated player characters, ready to get into the heart of the action.
