TSR Ltd 120 Church End, Cherry Hinton Cambridge CBI 3LB United Kingdom TSR, Inc pCredits Written by Wolfgang Baur Graphic Design by Sarah Feggestad and Dawn Murin Typography by Nancy J. Kerkstra Edited by Steve Winter Original Auxzinc Excine® design by Zeb Cook Project Management by Karen S, Boomgarden Cover Art by Brom Interior Art by Rabb Ruppel Cartography by Diesel Production: Paul Hanchette Satellite images provided by the EROS Data Center of the U.S. Geological Survey. With thanks to Werner Baur, Karen “Cyberfairy” Boomgarden, William W. Connors, David “Zeb” Cook, Cornell Uni- versity, the Cyberfairies, Richard Dreiser, Steve “Bunny Ears” Kurtz, Pete “Plotting and Scheming” Magsig, Mike "Misjump” Marchi, Belton Myers, John “Firepower” Noddings, Craig “Muzzle Velocity” Sheeley, Bill “I Get Back to You In a Minute” Slaviscek, Lester "Bugzapper’ Smith, Jonathan Szeto, Teeuwynn, Tamiko “Zen Businesswoman” Toland, the U.S. Geological Survey, the University of Ilinois at Urbana-Champaign, Yerkes Observatory, and Lih Min Yuan for feedback, commentary, and useful information on just about everything. Playtesters from Thanatos, Inc.: Michael Baum, Ben Dickenson, Neal Dickenson, Michael Marchi, Rebecca Marchi, Shelly Nichols, and John Noddings. Playtesters from Pegasus: Carol Clarkson, Glenn Overby, David and Laurie Ballenger, Brian Burr, Bruce Inglehart, and Matt Taylor. Dedicated to the people who taught me biotechnology and its history: Wemer Baur, June Fessenden-MacDonald, Rebecca Goldberg, Bruce Lewenstein, and Will Provine. House and alate companies have word dtibon rights i the book wade or Engle angie po lathe hook and hob tade i the ted Kingdom by TSK Dre to he oy ad abby ace by ——.for Players 20 23 37 45 61 65 a1 96 for Game Masters 19 121 122 127 133 136 138 142 143 144 Table of Ci sa0¢———$_—$_ — The AMAZING ENGiNE® Role-Playing System. Things Fall Apart Slackers & Microcorps Treachery & Skill Capitalization & Finance Soft Machi es Hostile Takeovers Ars Electronica Story Arcs & Finales Intellectual Property The Invisible Hand Faces Destinations Kromosome Campaigns Kromosome Adventures Appendix 1: Languages Appendix 2: Sources Appendix 3: Character Record Sheet Introduction to the Attitude Eco, War, Tech, Corp, Politics Characters Skill Pools Funds Equipment & Genemods Combat Rules Netrunning Rules Gamemastering Kromosome Experience & Resources Power Groups Famous Als & NPCs Adventure Sites What It’s About What PCs Do Foreign Terms Reat ig & Viewing What it Says syNote ar lea Familaewith the base rs for this game ey- tly tothe Universe Book portion ofl tice Any rules modifatons specific to this sting ae inelade there The AMAZING ENGINE? roleplay playing game, bei fantasy wor stead the AMAZING ENGINE sytem provides the hase fr creat ing wide variety of roleplaying tc is mre hin a in detectives investigating fairy realms to deadly aliens talking h-rech space marines and as much a con be imagined in between, System Guide and Universe Books Todo this the AMAZING ENGINE sytem consists of to pare The it pet comprises the bac rules or erating player character aed hills, ight, and move: the Sys now. These ru which you are reading AMAZING ENGINE pro snd GMs can change sti “This ection alo details how players while tansering benefits player chare hy crave gained frm pe he sec part of the system cnnprses the rest of each Universe Book, Eich Universe Book ia complete roleplaying game. Ii not neccesary to buy every Universe Book to pay in the AMAZING. ENGINE system. Game masters can run cam nn jst a single un ny, 0 playin Both sco other personal whan The AMAZING ENOINE system it more than 9 mere collection of univers (a this em, the advances a player charite gains in one universe can he used ro help FCs nother universes, Starting na nee for satng ove: fom the begring: this mea The Player Core and Player Character the AMAZING ENGINE sytem is the combina the player core and the player chaacter. The player work around which FC The heart a rebut. The sme The PC is al collection of numbers ils ru othe Saracen each univers, br these charactor maya be generated fram the sie eo When erating player cones the players must make certain decisions the kind of sets they wat. They sn: hase forthe (our diferent pools (ee next page) that define a haracer Physique, ltllet, Spt and Influence. These choi rae while creating the player cre, reflect inal PC created tho core Each poo fers pai of choices: Does player want char re generally seong ae influentia or ones who ae feceually sepeioe ud sthletic? Phyienl Checrerscas be either ee The Axnzinc Excite” Role-Playing System ruscular or quick: spiritual characrets an poses gest psychic poten: Salo ong wile ‘OF couse the sume aby fon always che het in every univer. A snawcale peehealy weak acter wo does le wel ft ee BUGHUNTERS® game may be at quite a disadvantage in MAGITECH” game, where wierd nesding strong paychesto manip Locsin creme ght fre le er pape here ‘ot ited in every universe. batad, che player cote allows each charac tert be tailored tothe need ofeach universe—within the limite of the players onal choices, Players who emphasized Physique wl til hve chatncters who ae either faster or stronger than most others T ned sil or ineuitive undeestanding. The archetype around which a single player's characters ae all se The Ability Pools The our ferent abi pools: Physio, fete lec, Spin and liluence, Each pool has ewo atte that define che player characte. When creating the plier core, ony the ability pools te wed. When creating a PC, or playing that PC in asingle une nthe atures ae used. Once the frst character generated, ai ty pools. The ality pools’ consponding abuts ae ines and Reflexes. These acibtes of Physsue meas all hi eal abt the character alton. These ae ental power fer ening ents sche and Walower, These acibues ‘h ‘Charm and Potion, These attributes of nflence generate the value Fc satel potenti a The Attributes ght attinates are mone precise beaks ofthe ‘univer. Beginning character’ attributes have wales fom 3 0, with 25 being the approximate average sore. (Characters gener ate fo the core later i a campaign may have higher sores) Finest. A menue of boty strength, nest elects the characte amount of damage characters cam cane i Bartha combat, end the amount of dy damage they can take. Reflexes. This anribute menures characters reaction epoed and harsd-eye coordination. Its uted for scoring a bitin eombnt, ond (along with Willpower) determines che amount of stamina damage charscters can take earning. This caasures character knowledge in areas requiring long ttsining oe study In ome universes st may represent ade riod of schooling. Learning affect the number and kind hance of exces ay ls character ean avehe uve lle co imagined by phy sieete maybe Fete ore things than can be measured or at leaee AMAZING ENGINE 1a the char ot ierat. This atti others ae di actin of NICs a cn ae sl bran 6 Sioa the Payer tae and Player Character The pr character sro decide what kind of cha ster you lie. You can do this even before knowing what Ke of ti uc OM is you prefer stron ch ble ond fil Cashes nts ea alter wa out of wy atten seat solving problems: oe magclly-charged wonder spe (othe Player Cove Sheet, 8), write the uel (bet) ofor which you want the best chance for high sore and 4, ememberng that he Later die ole do noe ext tothe p “Then rank the resin ste the thin tp, begin creating your ft acl PC by (the cig attsbutes and rolling four 10sbed dice nr 310 and adding the resus, Note the total in the ‘Once the hose nu bined: dcvern sti Rank 3:5 pin Rank 4:0 points Creating Characters fam the Player Core nice eating (this wa the ist top you pe 7 thescdice fen each po’ attribute rt. In ‘ice, ll new PCs have have an oribute racing ‘Once the ate = Do mot recalculate th an only be al reaed from chatmS Mule chert cam be era rom he same layer cre. However ld have only ple characters per care in the some universe would tnlir advantage over players with cnlyasingle PC per ere You ‘ee mali rues for “Generating the Player Core ane Plyer Character 2 detailed complete example of erating a player core anda prime character ive on pages 415, life and Death Actual parc of any he PCs. Everytime she can wifer damage. This damage fe measied in points, subtracted i character's total. In the AMAZING ENGINE system, here are oe je tamina and body ‘Stamina damage i caused bythe host of eases, re, Jot, and ff spent avon serious harm. A caacter wh her stamina poines doesnot dieshe falls unconscious. (This ay ach, however.) Unconsciousness comes fr the com {bl Tos, concussion, shock, pain, an just plain oes, however, each with cu prie chair we the jury and death to playing ame ithe ne PC ees vomething dane to tpesof det bined effec ezhausion Ian attack causes 10 points of stamina datsage aed yout character has omly 4 remaining, the excess character falls unconsckass. However, all aire tacks sutomatcally cause bey damage Body dager the heal of yeu PC. These incl ballet hoe tomes, serous bur bites and ther unpleasantis. When yo seer eal her body pons, she's dea Just how many sarin ad body points your PC as varies fom un sere to univer In some, sch as that of the BUGHUNTERS game of she mnin activites Here, your PC wil need los a wounds and injuries that seriously threaten ab won broken seaming and bay points nother like For Faerie, Queen, and Co el Character in Tomer tamina and body pons toast dscourape fy, comb iva law resort when all othets have f sich aun player’ ds Tnall universes, however, stamina and bay points ae calculated foom the same atihute sare. Fitness wed t que boy points. ‘Characters with high Fines scones wll ways have more ody points than thse with poor Fines sores, no mater the universe. Wilrowe sind Rata coche ae pe bane fr tema pir 0 ae th ‘with high sors in these wrbte wil have mre snips han those wth kw ene Injuries aad wounds do eal llowing your PC to ein lost stain and bay point, Because the evo 8 Cues each eal at diferent ate. Stamina br ont in heft 10-60 minutes (160), then lO pines po ht tars fight arvity (2410 per eight hours of bd ato sound sleep) Bey points heal atthe rate of I per week. Rest, nursing, and smage reflect different tation can increase theft saniverse. ter al, che hi ‘pothing ike the icky facts of 23" century starship! ital of pueudor Victor Beyond the Player Core: Fine Tuning Jes arth coms Thee re ay ote ccs boomy aes ethan the sum of thee depend on the universe in which our character playing. While all the chovees re defined for your character in the Univer Book sec: cm this ns seaplane here in genera Base Adjustment Every universe ofthe AMAZING ENGINE system pe may not be ight ea given universe may apply a Bse adjust PC ability pools. This adnent incre me tmoune! {A base nijuarment of 30 oo the Pree poc every affected anebute by means yu kd 30 to the ae Fitness coe a 30 10th fone) The adjustment runt be made afer calculating Upto now, thing a een sa of jut what yt PC and from the ume everyone's human, However, this need not hethe case. fn characters that are members of some religent being evalved fom di alin ace fn ster ta, be 3 (eomaperativalyshaply) have fairy blood. The univers ofthe AMAZING ENGINE system have all of scence fcton and faneasy wo ‘raw upon, the posublites are nearly endless! Gender There nothing in the player core there may be seca estrietons or diferent choices, particularly when ne vers, your may have the opportunity eee jes. Your character shinai of human and machine, determines your PC's gent can choowe i freely. Homever, i some cases rman) PC. The Universe Book desrbes any playing an air Handedness For convenience, your character ues the se hand life. OF course, f you're playing a four-arasd grax, spoil ules may arly ou do in real Appearance Aza, unless yout PC isan alien, you can describe your character's looks however they please you. He coukl be tall and willowy, or he{$$ os _ ‘ould he shor and blunts commend tha you create a character description that matches the atrtbute sores. I your character bas a Professions and Skills Acsome point in her imaginary life, your PC probably wens to schoo, learned s rade, ota least got an education on the street. a the AMAZING ENGINE system, what your PC knows i defined by her profession. No matter the uni ‘arid though they are. Ena Victorian fanny setting yt PC might be s consulting detective, conal ofthe Foreign OFice, Oxford doo, navy érsien, or medium. & completely diferent set of pofesions exis in 2 work of high space eper: space feighter captain, alien spy suger, an psychic are only afew poitiii. very character has pro ‘kv the exact benefits ofa prefssion can ary ra universe. The Vietorian consulting detective might know material nisin, chemistry, Gatcuf,eraiomnetry (teanitement of people's ll), heraldey, and fencing, his tae could well omen yo catpet driving, spell analy [rae and empathy ‘When you rete aPC for camp, your character mas be ver The Uni rot determine hat rounterpat ina world of mode a profesin from those offered in that paricular uni eve Book isthe ni PC ows at the seat Choonng 3 professin de cmtenly, it only els what she was, and therefore what she the compaign. From this bas, ou can make of your what you want Stil Groups Notes Reference this Universe Book’ il iting you read this se: Evoy profession includes isting of kil groups falling within hat pro feaion’s purview: These si soups form the bass of what a character can learn, given her profession. The ski ‘rouping ne all relate to that are of dy or se, although the sills themselves may be quite different. F example, scholarly character cup. Checking the if may have “Humanities” esl you find the several diferent coll eas and skills that all have toc humanities (ike Linguistics and Theology), though they ae ‘elite to cach other. Certainly not every profession has the same sill scholar’ tes in mantis would be ile ups, The 3 would include things like the Sk ro neni kil the sl century. Her sll go Sears and Comm eat. The sl ferent rom thon of the Haan also show the sil ig cil pe ner and eleva tet, bth important Sl Order In cach I, skls ar ranged in ever rl iain. Before ail an be leaned your PC must know all rece following ls. sms (R) Coherent Beam () Line ile (R) Particle bar (8) Projectile (R) Moder (R) Antique (R) lurderbus™ (RD Riles rakee*() Awited (R) Enexgced (R) Flecete (RD General Medicine (L) Xeno-bickgy L) Arcrrean medicine (L) Eich evel of secalinion indicated by indettion jt win at ‘outline, Once your PC as learned ail (Sklearms or General Med she has asc falar wth everthing igouped below i, allowing her to attempt any of tho spectalees Hower, your PC decreases when atempting things of yeater speciation than he training level. The dete of malty depends on what the PC knows and what she's trying to da. She cannot know the Rifled musket enhan Antique weapons which she cannot have unt she as taken the Peo josie tefore she ean kaow Projectile; these ro are atthe same level, th ) The pecie penalty varie from universe terse. A typical penalty is 10 to the PCs chance of acces pe each level of diference, (In the shove example, a PC Familiar weapons tng to we ald musket d tot kaowing the Antique specalizat Rill cine, i the above ling lencahe Lot alization (She need not Lnow Coherent beam weapons having the musket enhancement) Enhancements: Some specials do not roi your AC to gain Tearing o technique, bt ining knowledge. Yo improves what she can sexy dh TC does ea? anythi These spect tents, and are noted by an asters (*) onthe skal group. ve Wespons, Blderbus and Red masher we ean of loning abd Bing co the same, and the same res fran her antique weapon (che laret Aclleiteory). The diferencs are that a character sil in Bland. For example, under Ann The base ate exentally is more familiar with the particular quiks of thar weapon. The ve Weapons to Mdern ots pecalty Neborbokoy, tthe same does tot apply when compar ‘Weapons, or General Medicine‘acs, the ills involve new leering, new techniques and new nding of that must be mastered in addition wo the basic under Sidestns ot Medicine Kei ving that particular sill—bur ‘Blunerbse en her dil rl She doesnot gaia that bonus when sing a ied unk wie the Antiqae Weapons sn enhancenient gives aPC typi +10) when that skill A PC who knows the however ever though hoch weap rt praisfor lock wrpeinlty do. For instance, charac ter with the Blunded 9 the Sie nhl rns til despite the fact that there ae Seating Skills: Aft You and noted de the hl ops of ils your PC en ean selec oil fr your BC. The r depends omer Lesnninsan nts thin alow beet ape ecttively fa whaler carer the othe sil groups named by hhaschosen Vor can choose any skills thar profeson, Your PC can have tail Allen ony be chosen ifthe pce al group egal ofthe DC's pre you ean pick he dle fr a These ill epecsene your FCs penal knowledex, were, cuit, and hobbies: Select one sil (om any sill group) fr every 15 points of ‘lls red nay be within the PCs preferon or completely cise i. As before, your PC cannot learn specializations or sub-specaization all previous ile are kr, Asyon elec sil note the same an relevant atibies (ted ‘Skill Checks Although your PC may know how to apply dl, this gsi ong ll omcty and ce reign Lagu, ut cou sll make an exe wes. talking to. native speaker. Fanbermce, not everyone is ell rot every fir-year French student speaks frt-yeat French equally igh “toor tell These tre of coun, or yur PC i, you wit wk heck to ofthe effort succeeds. This ental calling percentile dic, applying any bonuses of penalties as required, and comparing the i PC's attribute scores. The relevant attribute Vtg i the ll groups i 1, Willpower, Char, a tem, Refers, Learning, Incuition,P The (modi) die esl is than che PCs aeribuce score he ue reser than the so mall of 9 aterpesuceets the (mnaied) de the atterpe ai sll checks fl 00, but there Enry and Dificalt Tasks: Skills are applied o tks of varying dif culty. For your PC with mechanical ling» stubborn lwo former isa ok of basi plicit, the Latter a highly Jessi and complied ok Cleans, your PCs chance of acces in each endeswoe same as rebuilding the engine om a sub-obial jet. The d not be these A sil hi ti elated Fo tapes dering Hib eprops a sill check. A character trained we a spaceship plot need not make a hill check everytime he travels through space Iti assumed that ck (snot required every time your PC doer very dill provides a level of sic undentanding. Thus, ail chek ‘an be ignored fr simple and fie When dhe re with Fieanine ail can handle a gun without «ail check, but they a sill check ts reir to find out Wf the check suceeds, yous PC pero the action acest hlting the recta il cnc shad Bade Charsbes "Yout PC eat alo attempt actions of even arate ik nd sil x0 uch that «normal il check itil ro ey She may wane sho reflect che difficulty ofthe neti. Guidelines iver as appropriate in the Univene Bo Aro times, your PC may attempt smething more specialized than she is trned fo. fn this case, even the sil Akl check (with the penalty for nr knowing the specialty applied), since mryspecialied Inowlege ic stem tobe Beyond your BCs tase understanding, Tasks tha would requite a normal kill check > extremely difiel for thon withou dhe proper backend, while tinge sical fora specialist become realy sept Unskiled Characters: No mater PC ta there are always times w which she simply not rane. Face with sich situation your PC tna have lite choice but to try het Bes ‘Whether your PC nahe faced with a problem fo even hope to succes depend onthe skill sermil sk I this sa Learned skill (ane thac us (Computer varamming, biochemistry, ard I. With he proper rain sour PC simply has no clue For example, she can s the Leaing arb for skill checks), he xk s impor. ery ae all examples of eared shout what needs to he functioning high-energy as laser The ony ding she's key 0 dy wiehou de proper walnng, sncrease the damage. Acris bed on nonLenring ail canbe aterpts by even th lacking the proper taining I this cate, the PC has a defele chance alf che appropriate scar requte ll coc: (Us Wit mitotic vate i the ascibute coe is halved forthe axempe, The other penalties, for pe alization and dificult, stil apply Aargin outcome ofa sill check doesn’t change her poorly the PC id story deta. Rol well below the succes nu and your PC di the atemely well Roll high—cloe to fling the acces number, and your PC botched things royally For example, your PC, Anya, and her companion, O Ing to Jump acrow a pit, witha villain in hor purit. You voll a 17 brately rolls Below the Right behind your PCs, the villain i empes the lea ase, the OM m Adon and help George, wh by his fingertips. The th ch The he Bot player characters wat nothing gained hy doi the cate. If Anya had not been have simply hoisted himself over the ede ti thug failed and would have fallen in there, George w Ath fale br sal fares Skil that rue them ae defined in the Universe Boos In For Fen, Qu re. These ae kat crt cir ns and Conny, Los the fonge salen a wil A accel sil check rele na will tha fools most people, but Lo tends a cttcal acces to dupe the cour’ handwriting expert. ln the BUGHUNTERS game, Harmon, the demolitions mans faced with a ompicte tne bam Sues vd ut her inthe hep the wrong wie. This would be Ingthe bomb wo detonate immediate Critical scenes and fairs ate defined by margin rai PoP, Fic he Is dig ofthe ll check oll Fora citcal succes, the il che tbe saccesful and the Is digit mus be equal to or les than the wc et margin Fora critical failure, the check mut be ited andthe dg mst be egal to o rete than the fare margin, For example, Lois has a 45 on his artempt to fore a signarure. The ll notes a success margin of 1 (SI) fra prfct forery. Loui play rallthe sill chek, aa the results 40. Lois uccees! Not ony tha ing) I Loi esl bat ienpertet. On al greater chan 45, the forgery woukl have stcally, margin ratings give characters wth hi fractions ofa characte’ sil, so ax that skill increase, the marin bench, Applying them to the lsd ly ill check i i Movement Siipoarg tn kiedty tgninecmnaneae ‘Neasurements To eate the tation fom one universe to another, this game stem Tigre, et and da. urn i roughly elo 10 seco of : wed for comb and her cine-important actons. Mint nt the rest are self-explanatory. A given universe may have week tmonths, and year equivalent to those of our Earth, or may use a quite lng isthe slope ana meat common movement. A pe «an coverup to 15 meters per tum. (In general people uneonsciush adjust dheir strides to thove of ther companions 10 walk at a uniform the hourly movement rate of 500 mld be wa PCs trav for ger than 30 minutes a Rising sa brik ogo log loping pee haul Mont PCs tances 2 faut fst your PC can A character with a Fines of 32 Notably unfit chara m quickly as she or he can Bach turn your PC can opin be maineained for tums equaling one-tenth the PCHE CS. 10), rounded down. Amasingly unfit characters (those with Fite Tes cannor eprint run although they sill walk at Carrying Capacity Another imporant mae for your PC spe in any station i the weigh thet caying, The movement aes piven sare the PC pas that would slow he ot penalty. A PC with a Fines of 21 ean cary 21 bilo (abou icant dif. When ca. fying upto twice cis weight, the PC's running and sprinting speeds re alved, At thre times the hase weight, the PC cannot sprint ed yoy li el a he Fitness sore before re layer resto tax her PCs Fines by spending experince points (so she can lit a greater than normal weigh) the benefit lasts until the PC failea Willhower check. Like an Olympic weightitr, the PC P nl back i ‘uncle ta he bry tsi nl her Willpomer rally gies out. When the PC fal this check, she ser 1 poof stamina damage: Payers cepetece points to ta thele PA Wilpers et heroic effort tothe great weight Every Pushing the Limits: Ie is posible for PCs tna allowances by taxing thie Fine heck pein fsx father than thee noe a ly The player must pend expe the Pines sir. However a AG can never creme hissed by nor in this way (he cannot ad more than half is nes score). iad ellctrs lors sgh tr The' player pr com tinue to spend experience points to maintain the PC's pace on sbwe Any PC ca a ty to exceed his uation At the ert ofeach when speincing, o minut, when runing, during which the BC wanes ‘on longer than his normal deation, the player makes a Willpower check with percentile dic. I the result flower than the PC's Wil for that rumor minute otherwise, he mst ame aco he Ke fp since he's exhausted, PCH who fal dtunina damage. Note that players can spend experience point Increme their PCs Willpower thi chock For more information on ting atrhues, see “Taxing Arh Aesting Flatout pining an lang ness, and your PC mut ret atthe end of ay dash, PCs Jisanee running make for exhausting bus sent sprinting. Sprinting three tums requires resting three minutes. tea wal upto 10 meters Vehicles and Special Movement Since the AMAZING ENGINE universes can encompass anything ti-grav skyaled, rules for vehicle adi lect 2 ect at pt of the Univers Bo a Universe sk may present unique movement ils eal cont that univer. Heavy gravity, magical terrains, other dimen: sions, and weightlesiness are all pomible complications unique Combat Sooner of ltr fighting becomes part of every roleplaying game. The AMAZING ENGINE sytem i no exception, although the emphasis hi dangerms es) lle Sry soe cf the inivere. For example, coh For Fare, Queen nd Coin is a infrequent thing and dangerous when it oceurs A character can be ti ot the ee burles ae equent and buckling un space opera. The BUGHUNTERS ume sshere charters are the elite of the intenellar ames forces, alc ‘only combat centered Became of the differences among univers, the things described ete re bake peocedues that de not change rom sting 6 tig. 1 ditlerncesFerwoen ranged combat and melee, and how t IL Beery UniereB atonal combat sch a make an attack voilbl in that univer ced knightsand sod chrom rales. At minioum, these ince weap msc fle just won't be found ine world of arm dragons, Ic could appear in a word of cyhernetle Eni has that of the BUGHUNTERS comber than others. Accordingly, combat manevvers, penetition, Lacek-back, and recoll. Other uni ‘eres may Keep the combat rules the harest minimum in favor Became combor can be a confusing event with six or seven characters tossid, each tying to do something different, the AMAZING ENGINE system (ike most RPC pices combet into a serie of Each turn repeats the sequence of events until one sie efeated or manages to exape1 eae eae (he ly) IL Player declare PC actions GM decides NPC action LL Determine initiative IV. Resolve actions |. Determine Advantage: This isthe “ump” ome characte nw such av ewo group (friend and foe) stumbling ono each other emexpectelys a group being betrayed by x mcaben wate x the pores walling Se in svt. The character ot party wo hat the abrantige a sachances to hit the agers, Aalontae x checked atthe hoginning of any encounter, before any scaly gts the fie action and may have a bonus 70 lrger checked since both her up tat least in general ters. donald advantage checks maybe calle for: a new atacker ape The bs ercentil dce and compare the result to the highest Psyche score in te metho for detersiningalvantage sor bot sles ell mek pay. the check ps vd, however he check aly the group is unprepared and the other side th advantage I hoc sides succeed, noone i caught unprepared If hth sds fil, everyone is caught flat-footed. Wf either wrpraed—caught completly off guant—an s Advantage Outcomes” able appens on ‘Some pois inlade thermal en rpeionie powess to detect thoughts Any such mois wl be noted in the Universe Bock) tors wor what js normally w members gina 5 modifier on any attack oo Fae pry i ating fru entice turn {drag which their opponents have che fred to move, ack, tl, nun sy, ce whatever (with the +5 mcafee without a eatin fom the sarpied grnp the ext ue, the suse group considered alifes, while theic opponents oct cond and afer 9-5 Declare Actions: Except fr stations of vantage and sunrise “sh PC wil ak bf Serbo Losing ia what lnc (the sare app 1). Tell your GM. ‘at action your charncter wil take i the coming tur. Try the ax = ie, given that yo don't own the intentions of the any things 0 track, so the more Fou sting the gine wil be In gener Bett keep actions short, ely things that can be completed within 10 secon. Not only does this help preven con th PC will nt PC for your hesitation. Combat Som, also means your PC realy to react new stat ext turn. You should also he ready to sy quickly what y tbo, since the OM can penalize d you should be ready to play the part oe allowed, but delaying the ame ein your PC ening er sccoringly: Reasonable que while you ty to make a decision i ptt re IL. Determine Init in combat, one to ow in what order everthing happens This done by determining initiative at the beginning unless one side as advantage over the other (be GMs ruling) A single initiative norvally determined forthe ence froup, although universes with dtd comb le Refleaes coe ‘Check nitive by rolling 1410 and moving the fee cus 10% (for spicy, the 1s gt) of the be wveach sd, A character witha Reflexes sire of 37 ale 31 the die il. Only thone PCs present a activ nthe comb reconsidered in his initive roll The side with the higher mali de ll act fest Talon t PCS, any thing or event beyond the contd of ether group has its own unmodified initiative rol. Ifthe enemy labs mide at your FC fet, atthe tart ofthe next natn the GM vectethy le LO forthe grenades initiative (to se whem i explode). Your FC may havea chance to throw it hack, or dive fr cover or she may Prepaeed actions ke holling a gun ing teres are pecal nive snasioas Nocally, the preyed PC Toe NPC) automatically goes fis ("Move and I However, your PCcon ry cenful Rel lenge reacts Fil, and she just wasnt quick enough 1V. Resolve Actions: Ment often, this involves plying cut sme Kind combat So, yal net okt how yong sow Hing Your Target. Whenever your PC attacks (or is attacked), actualy hitting what she ame a no guarantee. Vitaly all atc ere ade rll wo devemine ahi ora ‘Only the nscale ae ‘xempe fom this rule Tr melee an ranged combat, your PCs base chance whit eas her Reflexes cote. However, this chance is modi second to thet: the ol equ too ee than your PCs mcliodRefleses cote, the wack damage determine. Ifthe ol excesde the sore, oa cs. amet Aras. Anytime your PC (or anything cle) makes an attack, srt specify ome of three tage ate: general, neta ia D ance ot apply to ech aren, ad succes hits esl in Alert damage feGenera the opponent’ body our PC ins ein 1 without concen the attack mene tha it wil va ll. Tring tok norable areata could eal son vital area ate putculaty ical, and ws the chance of ting non 10% of your PCs ema Reflexes score (rounded up. The chance for fay daringe however, increase by 3 T Combat. Ranged combat (attacking with a weapon th pecil rule: While hooky) certain ranges and damage Ranges are dived it sh categories (sme uiveres may alo have eee) aa in meter ‘When shooring tases beyond sheet rang, your PC ues pe nher chance tohit. The exact penalty depends the univene, nce yar Char diane, ofcourse, but when fey, hich te pe i the Univer thot may combat include Armor. Depsrng on the armor, be it the leather and metal of fantasy or the spun fiber body armor off. Move ace edie the amount of damage cas by abit type of amor mail the attacker’ chance to hit Cover. The most common kind of protection s something to hide Jivided in thot thtoagh that sil conc k ft. Han! cover i anything rocks, ana walls, fr example. Hand covet ay it the aet areas that ea be ‘What can’ he sen, cant Be shot Damage Every weapon ina given univers, be ita Irani Rlechetes, enchanted rated magnetic field fle noe caued, ard a eal reine, Fo acpi For Fore, en nd wry, the service revolvers damage 26/5 ca mage pe hic ned has Iethahy rating of 5: Whenever aici scene Lethality Ratings Is posible vo see things et sa Toni with some weapons than hers. A hit fom a hb Har; bu tet chien only aes wey bres wh cin ast ters to have far moe faa fics The ferences between we ic reflected, in pr, by thet thay sting the chance that any bit nines boy damage instead of this number k equal o le than the lethality rating of the weapon, {mod bythe arget aren chosen), te damage used by this i is subreactd fom the age’ oly points, Otherwie all damage comes than Uo rater than 10 (Don the de speence pits) used by dhe character. Experience point are simple way sure all the tamale things your PC gain frm surviving ds right gota litle bere, her enfidence might grow. Experience pon ‘The Goals of the Game Experience pnts ae not the bel nd eral of dy are one), then ysce what they might control, Naturally, they sve f fs fut they alo act out thei ch wi nd week with te GO a hee player, ts perfectly pombe to have an exciting experince pin or ‘warding and Earning Experience section to list everything a PC avse the AMAZING ENC Your PC can't ear experience ising a arin re setting where high-tech space combi x important. PL revarded for showing tactical kl. uit the needs of cha univers, In ina fy filed Engl talking their way through and solving problems. The experience a ret ting will no mork forthe later. No ‘Succenful adventures, In any universe a seco pnts suse experience pos depereis onthe un fc oe mt he defeated Using skills People fear by AMAZING ENGINE thls in way clove vo che adventure. “Relevant” means your PC pend the day shoring a all were Taaet Sh ted be aiferen story) Using the sll has to involve some real chance of alr kf Roleplaying. This the object of le playing s sewer wich x COM cal I depends on the personality you have established the AMAZING ENGINE stem, character, the GM, ad the sation atthe moment. keeping what you ‘knows Ava player Experience and Multiple Universes ts mowt RPGs, you play ony singe character at hy tha situations are often different. The mo wil play in one universe, where your PC earns some xp, and then change toa diferent universe. What ba all the aps your PC has camel to date! Few players want to give wpa their advantage and ‘Whenever yur PC exe experience in an AMAZING ENGINE diate use. but eann pois. Wit points the player character, you canta the characte’ atibute these aps co make permanen: With the pines you pve to the player core, you ean buy extra dice for Taxing Attributes The most immedite ws f experience point i spending them & 7 iohore Th te hare. Taxing can inereave her chance of sucess with a il pour speat weight for exarsple that ex achave, ce ake a hers eft wolf a "When you wan o tax your characte tell she GM before rang ony dice Once the dice ae rolled, your chance has posed, be fendy to decide quickly. At the same time, yu shoul tell the GAM how There oe thee ltations oh : the charter stb sc 1. our PC nase Have wees ei apne theese (TH apples toall se of xpe Tren such thing a “negative ex 2. perience poi 3. Experience point ents of 5:5, 10,15, ete ta taxing atempe cannot exceed 50% of—— 5," not excend 150% of the cena, Numbers are ound down, tothe nearest multiple of 5. Fr examples, ee “Pann the Lit ite under “Movement.” and “Example: Taxing an Attbute,” under Tables Chats and Examples attribute check ae suberacte from the PC ap total, opal cf theeieck’'ssccem o fe ‘improving Your Character A more permanent od to your character attibae scores Unlike mexifving an abe ho of improving PCietvina pein to ing). these purchases are permanent, They ae also more re. bone i may cow 3 pet auc an atte | pda in the sme change might cost 10 ps There te two limitations on haying increased atebute sores 1, Noattibute score cane increase beyond 9 2 Permanent improvements cannot be Poght an adventure. They ea oly be purchased afer yout PC has ing the cou tine to reflect on her accomplishments Increnes bought i His way are permanent for your character. Ease the od attihute sore and wrt down the new one, then subeact the _psspent fromthe character oa Player cn also buy new lls for thie charncers proving heir [PCsby inereasing the range of thes Lnowledge and ability. The xp ‘ont fr fying sills ean vary wiel rom lt sll and ure to tnivene, Cots and procera described in each Universe Boo Improving the Player Core Foe longterm planning, you can Lak beyond your mediate character and isteadwsgn posto your player core. With these point, you an buy aiviona dice for your ability pools. The purchase of al tional die has no effect on cent characters only helps thos re: wed fon the ipeoved Each die of improvement to an ability pool costs 100 aps. Since lemproverments othe player core have no effect on your eurrent PC this ind purchase cin te made at anti Althongh th rtialy the rahe of dice you can buy for asingle sy po mite wo 10 (allowing yt the maximum allowable), a specific AMAZING ENGINE universe smay set diferent ability pool or atibuce limits on characters in sha tive, I shes to check wth the GM before oversnvesting i an shy pool or ‘Without special Univene Bo alt meio i i pomible (event tchave dice fo each aiiy pool sficient to neqote ce we ace dice. However, dhs reques many, many game sesioné dhof pe, which must be asgned to the player core nd not dhe PC ad the ps In general, we gest that player cores reaching limit (andthe PCs created frm them) be retired permanenty, and that players create new cores and new prime characters. This eventuality snot covered within these rules. GMs are ee ro design their ules wo del with this tution; whee ane cas within Transfer to Hew Characters: (One une ean fr rey of univers: bn oer BEG lay comes to naught when you tar in anc wk That sor the cme isthe AMAZING ENGINE stem. Ech te you create anew character fon an exiting cor, you can transfer aps from the core to the new character, withthe allowing ln 1. The ew character mua ce from the sme core a the pre hacer (che one that eared the experience 2.-The two charters cannot be active inthe same univers. A new from am existing core can appeae 1 PC fom the same cone only if the Previous character dead or ney eed Thus, in the MAGITECH game universe, your new PC could profit from the adventures ofthat marine sergeant from that ol BUGHUNTERS game, Treat the tanafer like with 1. The point yo posited” later on, but new ape can be earned by the new PC and rl io the player tore (or t the nee pater characte, a cal from tank ign tothe new PC cannot be “rele ‘houne). See “Example: Assigning Experience Points” late in th {Experience and Character Deat [Unpleasant asthe thought i, your PC can (and will die. When thin happens, any experience assigned to that player character is os, ‘seaming sll eying to beep dhe FCalive. Experience points matgned 10 the ayer core ae na Tot. These can be urd by rates create rom the same or Tables, Charts, and Examples “The remainder ofthe rules section contains o character generat ni rofeence rable and charts forthe play ere wing aplication of taxing skal checks, and Trews You canine this section tn seyeal Wj tnd Ic ck ery od only the pare you, saving the rest for when you really need them: of yk, Se jame-ply sintione sh ow, before continuing with the rest of the book lore anu tum 4 later nhen you've beste hope cal, though if yeu need carifeaion cn any ofthe po‘tvample: Character Generation ‘Wolfgang is edy to teste his it character fr an AMAZING ENGINE ga wl hese ssa an interesting te ine thinking about what he wants: Having ast omfidence mean a smoothing aku thieves, Wolf deciles he would Wik fingered individ with a west, Fasc on his sil. ran, Wola lec how to tank the four smattering of mystical aby, he rates the pola ie his lity pook Since he wants his PC tobe a very smooth taller, somewhat Pysigque,2 (410 pines) Incl: 4 (+0 prs) Spkte3(+5 pol ce 1 (+15 points) Remember, the pool ated 1has the est chance fr high sores the poo ard 4 has the lowes chance ‘Wolfgang now selects four axibutes ax his primary concer. Since he rally wats lig Fingred abies, his nve a penninable charter, he chooses Char, Ts snd choice & elles After onucring, Wolipmg realzs his characte fie nis lowest ranked ality pool (Intell) Fr his havea sophinteated con abt He then ls 4410 ith cic, be decides Reflenes 31 Paton ‘Wolfgang now fills out the remsiing atrbue When he iished, hee Looks li Physaue Inlet Ranke? Ranke Dice Dice le 5 Payche:21 (Charm: 17 Tuan 28 Willwer'? Paton: 23 ies time to a th x3 according to the abil poo ranking. Wolfgang starts with his fistranked pool Inlunce. He had bi ing for Charm and he wally wants a personable character, so he ada 5 pin aval pons betweun Fics toad all § points to hat lock ‘to Charm In Physique, Fines fe ite low, so he sls the 10 ad Reflener, 5 each Linder Sprig, the character's Willower i danger ou, 20 Wolfgang fel he re even thoush he would like beter Peyche, He led well fr his ello acu the fourth-nanked po, which gna no meifien) which Pysiue Invelet farce | Ranks? Ranks Ranke Dice Dice Dice Fines 21 Learning: 23, ryche: 21 (harm: 32 Refine 36 Testo: 28, Willpower 12 Paton: 23 Lacking over is character’ ial aeibtes, Walla decides the PCs nimble fingered (high Refletes) and soo foe dango (fom bis, (sd Ch wih gd ee character Isnt the stonget or healthiest (only avenge Fitness, and he need o work (only aveigePeyche). Finally, with « Willpower of 12, Wolfgang decides his eon man ray to ve to fght another ay Irion. His. mn hs pyc ables {something of craven fellow, who moe often than not “runs cer me TST eens =)re by assing the dice ratings to each ably poo Prosi Invllect Spine Indlunee Ranke 2 Rank: Rank: Rank: Dices6 Dices6 Dices4 Dice 6 Fes 21 Leaming: 23 Pache Cia 32 Retlens: Inet Willower:12 Postion: 23 (2153610257 QIsIVIOS3—_32+23)/10-55 Alter sunning fanny camp tig (and since he's ping ced that his PCs wil end tobe 1 far some time, Wolfgang's OM decide to switch to seience tion univer, Since ther is no magic inthis set laying thieves and scoundrels), Wolf once more chooses role he might like to play. Knowing fom hs play ng in Physique aed Influence, Wolf decides tty fra hard-Nten sm ler captnin. Checking his player coe xp total he ses thar there are 150 poise ean work with. Since hit Spirit poo tends to Be weak (theca of tad ice ol), tina defor that pool He eros of 100 pe (th from the player core’ teal, and adds 1 dhe othe dice rating for his core’ ir pool. Then he divides his poo dice accord cet Fes (2), Willpower (3, hecase it was ver decides to purchase ad Tow), and Poston (2), Prosi Inlet Spit Influence Ranke 2 Ranks Ranks 3 Rank 1 Dieesé Dice: 6 Dees Dice:6 Learning 3dice — Pyche:3dice Charm 4c Invuition 3dice Willpower 5 die ton dice |. this PC's Fess and Willpower atte have the maximum number af die allowed (5), Wol rolls and note the erals ce wth the llowing sets Leaning 18 Reflexes 13 Inu Cham: 24 on:29 Willpower 17 Patton 25 Once agai, he ll nee ook: Inlaence. Fr th hot fr Willpower, Looking at hi new charac, be scars withthe fst-anked abiley Te wnt an nportant chee an so puta 15 pons toward Position. Inthe second-ranked Physique poo he put Fines an 6 to Reflese, while fr the dhir-tnked Spin, he pve all 5 posto Willpower. Fines 30 Leoming: 18 Payche: 28 he: 24 Reflexes 19 Ineuien: 29 Willows Poston: 40 remaining 50 xs fom the player corer this new character, ending those pons immediately avilable during ply te usin came). Wolf might alsa cove tous some of those xps to purchae some new ils for his PC ltr his fist vent Pletd He notes che 50x50 the new character's sheet, andaibracts them rom the player co With these adjustments, Wom new charac is ey fr ply eRMovement Distance per: Type Tarn) Minute Check Walk 15 m. 90 mn. Indet None Run Fimness Fitness x6 Minute Yes Fit Sprine Fitness x2 Fitness x 12* Yes Carrying Capacity Kilos Equal to: Fieness score * Ifcharacter has sufficient duration. Effect on Movement No effect Fitness/10 Target Hodifi Target Area TS Chance to Hit General Reflexes Fieess score x 2 Fimess score x3 Advantage Condition Sprinting and running halved No sprinting or running allowed, smust rest after walking meters = Fitness score Non-vital Ei Reflexes Viral 10% Reflexes Payche Check advantage Successful 95.00 Psyche Check Successful No advantage Player has Player has Psyche Check advantage surprise Failed NPC has No advantage No advantage 95.00 pme Poy NPC has No advantage No advantageExample: Skill Checks Karen hasty getaway from the law. Flying Carpet sll, which Leo has, is Reflex bused: Karen knows Leo's Reflenes coe is 36 haracter, Leonard “Big Shark" Accando, needs to make a ‘Wasting no tne, Lo jumps onto his Mach fing eatpet, ete a vik incantation, and sp int tac on Michigan Avene, No skill check required. Strung and ling the carpets common nog acim, oe Lo does ery dy, ene no sl hak sede Ae weaves through the late rush hour trafic, Leo looks back (Chicago's finest ae in hot part. Leos in rouble! He ean outrun a police special carpet, epecaly notin this trafic. His only hope Tose them with some quick tums. A gap inthe tfc appears just ahead, the Big Sharh commande his carpet to pour ito He darts asc than is sk secs the lanes and whip onto aside Skil check required. Kern shaving her characte sake a chance, the uivlet of seeding around a corer during a high pev car chase. She ls prcentle dice and ers a2 which ess than Le The move siceeds, and Leo doer rsh Ms capt ‘White Lnucklod, Leo careers arcu the comer narrowly missing an ancomin bs goer a the plat of Bewor's Depa tment Store, Unfortunately, the cope make the turn too, and are now ks his carpet again this ime ‘aning on him. Sill speeding, Le simi fran ale. Jat as he Begins the tr a an ates fom a se ‘ie enerance, blocking the the ony thing Leo ea do ty to shox between the fellow’ le. ‘Modified skill check required. Takiny the ew too fast already rege a kil check, he GM esis 10 penalty fr he ded mick of trying wo ser heen the a’ les. Thi vac Lea's Reflexes scone 0 26 forth sl chock. Keren ocak ening! IV's tn late o change cone 0 57 om eee de. The check fad; Len (bo! Stated, he gan intinctively rotect hime closing the fap Leo was amin he capt hits the rate sghe a his knees and crumples ike imp rg. As Leo i ug from the ch, he ears the howl ofthe police a they too, nk nt ie pileup tnample: Stl Check with Penalty fr Yonspciaization Leo ha tp om shipment of smuggled magical artifacts stored in a warehoue ner theeinyans, jt the evidence be needs taping his client All he has to do is rei and we afew pica Tha ight a the back door, Leo figures he ough wo hack for burglar alarms before fencing his way in Leo knows the bases of glyph (Glyph Analysis Al), but smo caper in burglar alarms (Protection Glyph special tion) Checking the dr fr alas is prety Basi fora specai for Leo sll check agains his Leaening score (which is only a2 src an ditional -5 for nomepec ton) is eguied. The chock is rolled, and the result isa 12: Suécet! Sure enough, the door is cnchaned ‘Now, Le resto deactivate che alm. Tis eure ail check for a special, and 0 very df for Leo. Thee 5 apie othe atnte score (-5 for nonspecialzation, -10 forthe action) fra ttl chance of saces of 8 or ew. Aras, Kace lls ‘made witha errant dagel the alae ample: Attempting an Unknown Skill ‘Once inside the w ins searching through the ere. Sdden, jus a8 he finds a supicoas one labeled “Exaltur” a foe step serapes behind hi. Leo spins, pulling his gun ashe does, ofnd fA quick hoot kick seeds Leo pening, his gun clattering acon the flo, A second blow jus isis, shattering the ete nex to is head and pllng the content»—the soe hall ut ofthe ho: In desperation, Leo grabs the sword and pulls ic fom dhe ox. "Aint the some as bles, ut youl have to do” Ashe camaly J i heist glow ‘Kaen never dhngh er ehvaccrwoxld weed a auord, so Leo doen't have Fencing sil, However, since Fencing anomLaoring bed al (one ‘hat wes Refles), La ca ten oma Rfles seme house, Leo swondighimg but a an 18, hal is Example: Taxing an Attribute tna campaign of Fr Fave, Queen, and Cenmiry, Karen's character Colo! Sr reson Plkerng, KC MG aa cally looting aout sex the lai 3 magical power while ated tant dipkmatic bl Frnt ‘eaning in the shadows onthe poricn, Ther eyes meet an before Sie ca magical paralyis creee over his beat Juctive wil Te station is die, 50 Karen break the spell. The ipower Jameson can war anyo decide is ime ota St Jameson's Willower ‘normal atribute check to resist posession is equal tothe score halved. Sir Jameson's Willpower 46, halved Karen spend the maximam (50% ofthe orignal ausibute coe, of to bring the relevant atrbute score Back to 43 for this check ce rll isa 32; wth strain, Si Jameson breaks the countess ‘makes hi way int dhe dea oe fe 8 the check atthe avilable xp ign to Se Jameson ndPhysique Rank: Dice: Intellect Rank: Dice: | Influence } Rank: Dice: Fitness Learning, Charm: Reflexes: Player Core xps Willpower: Position:: i Y 4 3 E » % 3 & € 2 a 2 & = Watch out for worlds behind you ical? wokepyingsyiern- Kromakome aks pace is 2 vel flag biological rightmares, wire chaos sth (ero hein. The word has cen luca by hed etry and the decry of cies: Ener ware wack the map power blocs: Plage ahd famine kl wilions ial, Eoaysters ate knplocing al eta ey of sped Mee ce ana bat Inthe mids of hs mauve decay and cllapse, some forces sil promote change and growth Aiea intel tid belt ae pushing tne boundaries of evolution ina {pees Becronc oopmaies bung gene bythe Net Are restoring human tes and ging xe eporeed er ocala ree ee cela sa isetinlogeal ahs hold Gack lagu we cleie: sources; and the seid bell produces raw aes at TNSOGTs ho reet pond oe ahs vi] NeW torpotte drctnes ge sorte hope fecsronie dab, sc slain tng Nat eth chance hal ney paltics wil une he ragrented nations "The player characters (PCs) In Kromosome are bound together by technology They are members ofan apie sail compebitve ricrncrporston aba to norive the Intemtional angle. They are caught in ip erosatice between organ and inorgate life, ss both Biology and Sestores cubaiadlcal leoaoriart union eae the ward. Pcs tackle the probleme but wits lick the heroes can pach together or a (pln nd chop fr ds ie Attitude Survival in the biopunk future is not easy. Characters must struggle to overcome the odds or die trying. Fortu: The Graffiti Mindset. 2 ~The Velvet Underground sical she muasalic Bree alas iow ap ager spell salina Canny players put eaperlence porveaiiaedmacs ave Gwar adlny ac lklngcare apemrose lata tril gl you further thon « grenade launcher alone ere he folowing ues or improving the od Surviving Kromosome * Don't outgun the enemy if you can ourthink him. * Do the job, then get out. Don't do anyone extra favors. * Depend on yourself and no one else * Never show how good you are; always hold back a litle * Cover your corp’s back and hope i's covering yours. + Don’t believe the hype until you've checked it yourself ‘= Never trust the locals, * Nobody’s s0 tough, so rich, or so smart that he can’t be taken down, Ho Borders The world of Kromosome is full of contradictions and collapses. The world’s borders are vanishing things, increasingly irrelevant to a world controlled by a single market, a single set of standards, even a single culture Travel is decreasing. Why cross the border if everything is the same on the other side? Global communication makes events everywhere seem close. Packets of ethnic ity and national pride remain, but visual, Net-driven cul- ture has driven out most regional variations. The further a given culture is from Net access, the more distinct its. Everything is subject to the invisible hand of capital and everyone has his or her price. Life is not sacred: It is something that can be studied, dissected, and rearranged at the genetic level, People are collections of genetic mes. sages, and for the first time humans have the power to rewrite them. The rich tolerate the masses as sources of genetic diversity and as experimental subjects. Rumors Claim that some powerful special interest groups actively encourage pollution and mutations, hoping for new genes, that the wealthy can engineer into their own bodies.The rich, industrialized world is muddling through, States and large corporations have been largely replaced by nation groups, trading blocs, and microcorporations, especially hose in low earth orbit that control haf the world's power grid. Even the richest individuals are being replaced by interlocking corporate power blocs, shut out ofthe decisions that change the world. Solar ceneegy, natural gas, and information are the most impor- tant commodities, and they are entirely controlled by a handful of powerful corporate states and power blocs Individuals are less important than they once we Poor citizens have no voice at all as their governments increasingly work without their support. Small govern- iments are in retreat: Taxpayers revolt, corporations ignore them, and civil servants simply feed into huge bureauc cies serving the interests of microcorporations and anyone else who promises to create jobs and larger tax bases. The world stabilized a little after the Data Panic that rocked the global economy, and a new institution has taken charge. Microcorporations—small, agile busi nesses able to respond quickly to new conditions—rule the earth, having replaced the extinct corporate dinosaurs. Owned by their employees, they took the place of the family, regional, and national institutions that had failed, The player characters have formed their ‘own microcorporation, linked by genetics, finances, and cyberware. Hope is enough, Warning and Disclaimer: ‘The AMAZING ENGINE Rules As part of the AMAZING ENGINE line of role-playing, games, the Kromosome rules build upon the cote rules in the AMAZING ENGINE game System Guide, which is included in this book. If you have never created an AMAZING ENGINE character before, the System Guide tells you how. The System Guide also explains the basics of skill checks, combat, and improving characters through experience— terms and concepts important to Kromosome. If you have already generated a character in another AMAZING ENGINE game universe, you are ready to decant that character's Kromosome incarnation, This section describes the setting your character will be step- ping into, Rich & Poor, Young & Old The concentration of technology and resou rich, developed nations led to snowballing levels of wealth and power. At the same time, poor nations tunable to maderize or adapt to new technologies, new jobs, new governmental forms, and new currencies crumbled under the weight of their exploding popula: tions, which were increasingly alienated and dislocated. Just keeping up with the pace is exhausting for many Low birth rates among the rich and educated mean that the elite of the world have become a smaller and smaller percentage of the population: The poor continue to grow while the rich ate stable or even declining in population. All people are demanding more as the Earth’ resources are running out. The resource crunch and biosphere crashes have led toa new, Gaia-centered philosophy, almost a form of ecotheology. It has taken hold at the ground level in many countries, complete with fertility rites intended to restore the dead or dying land. Though the Earth Spit cult has no central hierarchy, the number and fanaticism Of its members make it powerful Lack of resources has also driven exploration of near space. The few settlers of the Belt find ready markets for the vast mineral and energy resources they offer. At the same time, the Belt frontier needs many manufactured goods and is glad for bioware that helps people survive in an unforgiving environment; the Belt places no restrictions on new bioware. Back on Earth, anger simmers between the young micros and the old corps, the stodgy power lies feeling threatened by the vigor and the streng the new generation. Youth culture seems unable to, establish itself in the face of senior citizens living longer and longer and keeping their withered hands on the levers of power. The turnover of generations has stalled and the old branches on the human family tree stub- bornly refuse to die off to make way for new growth, tis an open secret that the top executives of the three megacorps are seeking immortality through mechaniza: tion, The CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, COOs, and directorial boards ofall three want to be made into Als when they die so that heir physical deaths. ‘monopo- they can continue to rule beyoree ec. Si ay ~_ The sections below cover both the natural and artificial ecology, new technology, new businesses and markets, and new political realities of the Kromosome setting, The Hew Ecology Inthe Kromosome setting, most natural ecosystems have collapsed, overwhelmed by pollution and humankind's crushing numbers The collapsing ozone layer almost killed all plant life, taking the rest of the food chain with it near the poles. Even in the middle latitudes, skin cancer and cataracts are common problems. Ultraviolet light can quickly kill fenturing out in the sunlight unprotected, The oceans are poisoned with PCBs and heat shifts Most large ocean species died out decades ago; those that survived are offen tao toxic to be edible. The oceans are shielded from the effects of UY, and some gigantic fish farms near Antarctica remain profitable. Fortunately, complete destruction has been avoided so far, but the PCs should never take their safety in the outdoors for granted, Entire regions are biological badlands: the poisoned Ukraine, acid-drenched Central Europe, most coastal flood plains, and the desenified equator. On the other hand, much of Siberia and Canada have become quite livable, Greenland is green once more, and even Antarctica has attracted a few settlers—mostly miners Animal species have not adapted well to rapid change. Whole forests had to be transplanted north. Coastlines surged inland, and Dutch engineers are much in demand in the thriving ports of Asia that need protection from typhoons and monsoons. In only a few decades, the face of the Earth has become almost unrecognizable. Welcome to the Hothouse The greenhouse effect ated the largest shift in the earths climate, When the aceans warmed and the ice- caps melted, coastal flooding led to waves of eco- refugees, from Egypt to Florida, from Bangladesh to India. The hordes led to more political instability, mult plying the effect of ecodisasters. At the same time as the greenhouse effect, massive overfishing crashed the populations of almost all mar- ketable fish. Toxic dumping made the remainder inedible, The Oglala aquifer dried up, ending irigation of the Great Plains. Grain stocks crashed. The Great Plains are ‘a dust bow! now, though the Cherokee and other Native American nations have had some success with land reverted to buffalo pasture. These New Prairie herds and settlements are under strict Native American control in semiautonomous regions. Bioregions Not everyplace is unsafe; pocket-sized ecological par adises exist where money, power, and resources inter- sect. The Islamic Republics have restored the old buildings of Fez and glorified the mosques. In the east, iey Katmandu serves as the retreat of the Pacifican lead- ers, high in the Nepalese Himalayas but with air pure and untainted. Baikonur, the site of the first orbital launch, is still an important site for unmanned cargo and Esoterika's Mars missions. Baikonur’ greatest competition comes from Brunei, where the Sultan maintains his own skyhook. Brunel is also the planetside outpost of NeoTek Ulan Bator, the Mongolian capital, is increasingly a nshipment center between Pacifican factories and. Siberian resources. Ulan Bator is booming; new buildings {30 up daily, a new maglev spur of the TransSiberian Rail- way leads to Beijing and points south, new ventures to exploit Siberian resources appear and expand daly. Pacif- ican and Esoterikan interests are predominant, but the European Community also maintains a presence. Rumors of Esoterikan development of secret research sites in the Gobi Desert have, s0 far, remained unconfirmed. All the while, the Mongolians get a cut ofall the action Estonia {sa well-known spot for avoiding regulations and playing in the ultimate free market. functions as a border area and neutral ground for combatants, as Helsinki across the Gulf of Finland once hosted negotia: tions and diplomats. Tallinn, the capital, isa sparkling city of smart houses, saunas, and the midnight sun. It's a pop- lar site for negotiations between Esoterika and the EC—Chinua Achebe The world is not well arranged. | | Vancouver is primarily a shipping and financial cen. ter. It is clean and friendly, and popular with Pacifican tourists. White-collar crime is common, but rarely pros ecuted. Recent accusations of Russian money being, «d through Vancouver have tarnished the city's image slight a Fe retains its small size and herit by aj sively keeping out non-natives; itis an artist's mecca. In addition, itis a technophile’s dream, where many entre- pre neurolecteonics and human-machine interaction, Intel: lectual spill-over from Los Alamos National Labs keeps Santa Fe smart and sophisticated Tobacco- and hemp-money keep Memphis relatively clean, and its riverboats, blues heritage, and genteel civility h nt central escape valve for corp execs. The collapse of employment due to eco- logical warfare has simply made hiring workers for the tourist trade cheaper Denver is still often the host of religious and sporting, events, and many mansions are a cross between leftover survivalist fortresses and luxury hideaways, Skiing in the Rocky Mountains has declined because of the terrible dangers of UY. Though hot tubs have moved from ski spots to private estates, the culture of indolence remains. Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, is likewise afflicted by increasing UV danger but otherwise is much greener, richer, and friendlier. Scotland controls. access to substantial oil deposits in the North Sea, and the new oil money makes the capital gleam with lavish urial companies are expanding the envelope of fe made it an impor spending on the arts Important bioregions that are still fertile and even becoming more productive include the Pacific and Indian oceans, Mississippi River delta, Amazon River basin, the valleys of the Nile and Congo, the Himalayas, the Australian outback, the southern edges of Siberian and Canadian tundra, and most South Pacific islands The major contaminated or collapsed ecosystems include the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, the river valleys of the Danube, Indus, and Rhein, the Yellow River basin, the Mediterranean basin, the Caribbean, the Great Plains of North America, the Sahara and surrounding regions, the South American pampas, and Scandinavian bo 24 eS Fauna Most large animal species are extinct, but a few new ‘ones have established themselves. All predators and ani: mals that require large undisturbed habitats—wolves, tigers, lions, elephants, and others like them—no longer exist outside zoos. Most aquatic species are gone, including salmon, whales, dolphins, and tuna. Scavengers and vermin thrive in the expanding urban spravvls. Rats, raccoons, roaches, squirrels, and pigeons still survive. Zebra mussels have been used to stabilize some aquatic ecologies and have been deployed as weapons to destroy others, They take over freshwater areas with tes of reproduction chemical and biological pesticides; because they mutate quickly, they also develop resistance to new pesticides quickly. Zebra mussels measure only 5cm long, If released in the wrong places, they clog intake valves at factories and power plants and ruin sewer systems, wells, irrigation pipes, and reservoirs The new species include genetically modified apes, dogs, cats, and bears, Flora While algae in the Arctic Ocean have died off entirely, new weeds have been genetically engineered to with: stand increased pollution, the collapsing ozone layer, and rising temperatures. These include creeping hollan der, variegated ressim, and nargkhat. A few new weeds have been used as weapons of eco- nomic warfare, released! in enemy territory to clog water crowd out crops, or slowly eat away at infrastructure. The most infamous is propweed, an aquatic form of kudzu which has covered the waterways of the Mississippi and the Yangtze. Another variant of kudzu called tigers paw has overrun the rice paddies of Asia, Ente forests have disappeared in Europe, in Siberia, and in Canada, logged into extinction or killed by rising temperatures. The remnants of the Amazon rainforest remain, as well as most of the forests of Africa, the U.S. and Australia, incredible nd resistance to mostThe Fallen Sky The ozone layer has collapsed in the northern and southernmost regions and thinned everywhere else allowing UV light to burn the eyes and skin of pe southern Australia, Chile, Finland, iand, New Zealand, Norway, northern Canada, parts of South Africa, and Sweden are scorched; few plants can survive the deadly UV light Even closer to the equator, where the ozone layer still 's some protection, blindness or death is the price for failing to become nocturnal or take precautions against the sun. Few people venture out during midday, and the tradition of the siesta has been revived through: out the Americas to avoid the most dangerous part ofthe day. The population is spit into two new cultures, a day group that uses skin protection, powerful su and UV-shielding hats and clothing to continue the ditions of life before the sky fell, and a night culture avoids sunlight altog¢ owls are breed, moodier and mo ssive than the daylight humans, Famine Drought has combined with the increased UV to destroy agriculture in the exposed countries listed above, plus the drought-stricken Great Plains, Ukraine, and part China. The Scandinavian nations sustained themselves by harvesting the last whales and Alaska hung on by the ipo aiampee—Thomas Malthus The power of population is indefinitely greater than the power in the earth to produce subsistence for man. mines the uranium deposits near the South Pole; its members are strictly nocturnal The Saudi aquifers dried up early in the 21st century, and the land under cultivation plummeted by 959 despite extensive use of desalinization, As a resul Middle Eastern countries must import much of their food. While oil-rich countries like Saudi Arabia can afford this, many oil-poor Arab countries cannot. Even though the oil wells have mostly gone dry, the moun: tains of oil money remain in Arab hands, COvergrazing led to mass starvation of almost all herd animals around the Sahara. Much of Africa starved, while the granaries of the West overflowed. For decades, Africa couldn't feed itself and couldn’ afford to buy food. Millions of immigrants began a new wave of mass migrations to Europe and the Americas; others became vegetarians out of necessity—no grain could be spared to feed animals, Recently, new biotechniques—paid for with Nigerian oil wealth, assisted by Polygene’s expert much of Africa into a breadbasket, unspoiled by radiation (or centuries of industrial pollution. Rains that once sup- ported the irigation ofthe fertile Mississippi River delta and. the great North American grain belt have moved into Min- nesota, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, and Saskatchewan, China has always had trouble feeding its people, but the rise in average temperatures was a disaster for Chi nese agricultur above 95 degrees Fahrenheit. With the greenhouse effect, driving up temperatures, by the middle of the 21st cen- tury the Chinese rice crop failed regularly. Tens of mil lions died in the ensuing famines, but other nations were collapsing at the same time. Polygene and other genetic engineering comps have been scrambling to modify rice’s preferred temperatures, so far without success Plague & Plague Cities Cruel as it sounds, the new plagues that ravaged Africa India, the Islamic Republics, and Asia made more food available for those who survived—the famines would have been worse without the plagues. Millions died, but the world population grew faster than even epidemics —have turned Rice will not grow at temperatures could reduce it. Modern plagues of AIDS, hepatitis F, and the manmade Kismayan flu kept the population ‘ear sustainable levels. Rich nations avoided the worst of the plagues with public education, preventive health care, and expensive treatments, but they suffered as well. All industrialized nations began seeing cases of HIST (human immune sys- id first reported! in Mexico City. The first symptoms of this stil deadly disease are usually allergic reactions, rashes, headaches, fatigue, and diarrhea. Cures exist for a few forms of cancer, but they are extremely expensive, with treatments genetically engi- neered to each patient Too Many Houths The world population is 13 billion and still growing, and even agricultural biotech won't feed everyone. Famine is common in India, Russia, and even the Islamic Republics. Africa can feed itself, but only barely. Every bit of fetle ground is farmed to the limit Efforts to keep numbers in check have grown more and ‘more oppressive: Genetic or hormonal castration is now a common punishment for felons in the U.S,, forced steril- ization after the second child for women is common in Airica, and hormone locks are wildly popular in China. Every so often, hormone locks crop up outside China. These are usually inflicted by quacks, fanatics, or govern ment programs, but the tail to the perpetrator is normally {00 cold to follow by the time the genemod is discovered. The world population includes three billion Chinese, two billion Indians, two billion Africans, 500 million Australians and South Pacificans, one billion Europeans, three billion Hispanics, and one billion North Ameri- cans. All of the population growth occurred in Asia, Latin America, and Africa The same trend was at work in the USA, where whites stopped being a clear majority decades ago. Most of the population of the USA is nonwhite, though whites and Hispanics have about equal numbers. Every U.S. citizen can take advantage of civil rights legislation that protects ‘minority status. tem termination), a form of pollution overlaWhere hy tiny fraction of the influence is en people would rathe Ith and dec: the ably huge, the needsank in a dark —Black Hawk 3 = 3 3 5 E 8 & é & 3 5 & 8 8 é i 3 a ec 3 é 8 9 = 3 3 3S 3 } § v 3 3 3 the Economic Union Treaty with China provided work ers for Japan’ factories. Outside Pacifica, massive unemployment, declining standards of living, and is ing deficits became the norm, The crushing burden of supporting the geowing senior citizen population— often more than one retired worker for each active ‘one—is a terrible encumbrance on the youngest, most productive workers. The dollar finally collapsed during the Data Panic, and took many venerable institutions with it. The panic wwas set off by six overlapping viruses introduced into the Net at access nodes by the Basque Army of National Liberation, The electromagnetic disease ‘wiped out the data cores in Franklurt, Hong Kong, Lon- don, New York, Shanghai, and Tokyo by infecting all backup records for a full year before anyone knew of it. The loss ofall financial records from the world’s bank- ing capitals led to the repudiation of many debts, and the collapse of banks, corporate lenders, and entire nations. The web of debts and obligations was irrepara- bly torn, and though the stockbrokers and bankers scurried like spiders, applying damage control and ferouting and falling back on contingency pl whole sticky web failed utterly The corporate revolt that ensued in the wake of the Data Panic was the beginning of economic democracy, casing all but three of the corporations of the age of capitalist feudalism. The three survivors controlled almost all energy production, biotechnology, space transport, and communication. To guard against future panics, the Net was given much greater autonomy to Create triple-redundant, self-checking immunization routines. It achieved many basic life functions to regu late finances, employment, and currency markets, but nas still not achieved sentience Though the Data Panic took down corps and n. he real sufferers were individuals. When both the econ- omy and environment fell apart, the cities followed. Everything was inadequate: There wasn’t enough food to feed workers, there wasn't enough energy to maintain services, there weren't enough resources to provide relief. Millions became subsistence farmers on marginal land or became permanently unemployed welfare vic: tims. Industrial cities withered as they diverted resources to puttin The only bright spot in a sea of abysmal annual reports and red ink was the invention of the microcorpo: ration, a new type of enterprise that succeeded at mas- tering the dataflows and flourishing in the toxic atmosphere of chaos and loss. Most started as gangs, co- ‘ops, or small businesses owned by their workers, but they all learned to work hard and fast, and to stay flex ble. They sold temporary services, information and analysis, Net skills, and light industrial goods. The big corporations laughed at or ignored the tiny shops, the global consultants, the firms without offices and without ranks. When the crunch came, the mega corps died like dinosaurs, and the mobile, resourceful micros survived. The microcorps are urban tribes, each equipped with what it takes to thrive in a hostile environment. Each member of this family has skills and resources that the others need to survive. They stay as small as possible to allow rapid redirecting, and yet must be big enough to ‘marshall enough resources—human and others the job. The Hew Old Order Long ago, in the 20th century, there were multinational down riots. Everyone expected a hai corporations. Then came the decline of national states and the rise of corporate ones, ancl then the collapse of the corporate states in their turn. In the postcorporate age of Kromosome, cartels, trading blocs, and a few large regional bodies hold the levers of power. Three large multinational megacorps survived the sgreat corporate extinction: NeoTek, Polygene, and Eso: terika. Each of these dinosaurs controls a powerful chokepoint of the modern world, a monopoly that keeps it alive. The megacorps have vast resources, and they will do anything to retain their monopolies. Since they control private armies, legions of Netrunners, media empires, and vast sums of capital, they tend to get what they want NeoTek controls the solar power grid in near space; itmonopolizes decentralized electricity as much as it can be monopolized. NeoTek controls the manufacture and epair of solar cells, batteries, and hydrogenerators. It srovides the tools and processing for natural gas and anol and builds the engines that run on them. Esoterika rules most of the distant space colonies and handles communications withthe rest. Its supported by many nations and individuals who dream of moving into space. The cash flow and public goodwill that Esoterika ns from investing in Martian terraforming keep it afloat While many Esoterikan colonists live on Mars, the planned asteroid impacts that provide Mars with water and an enriched atmosphere make life hazardous and stic at best Polygene is the world’s leading genetics corporation, 1eaily involved in discovering and manufacturing med. cal, agricultural, and ecological bioware of all kinds. Its databases and genebanks are the world’s largest, and its patents control the use of cloning, most human genemods, and all narcoviral and viral surgical materials. Polygene is tally reshaping the biological world. Only a few Belter roups are more daring in theit experiments, Polygene’s vast resources (much of it derived from the ‘caine money of the U.S., Brazil, and Columbia Just because three megacorps are still hanging on Joesn't mean that every state and nation has disappeared 1 they lack under the heels of corporate boots. The collapse of mega ‘mp power gave the nation-states breathing room, though hey still had to cooperate in trading blocs to compete ifectvely. The national power blocs that remain big play—Zaibatsu motto Business is war. ers on the world stage are the European Community, the Islamic Republics, Brazil, Pacifica (the Pacific Rim nations trade cooperative), and the North American Free Trade one. Each of these is briefly detailed below. The European Community (EC) has suffered only a lit. ofa limited nuclear w he fallout was carried a, and Siberia. The tle from the fallov between the kraine and Russi west into Turkey, Ge overed; border ‘ources, educated all make the EC ees from the East Russians and Ukrainians have still not re n. Their vast r ers, and high standard of liv favored destination for re Hong Kong is the political capital of the Pacific Intereconomic Communities of Asia (Pacifica ver and Tokyo are the financial capitals of Pacifica Kyoto and Bangkok are the cultural centers, where ia, high culture, and fashion are created and distrib ted, Though San Francisco is still technically within the orders of the U.S., both it and Vancouver thrive on cannot be overestimated. Shanghai, Indonesia, and Viet nam are Pacifica’s industrial heartland A/N surf zer orerrcn pemesetrt Corn Liar a) Tepes ee Pets CeCe ey Peter epeerrr Pec ear ean) oun ores think we need a committee to reet Comat) resem Perea ees tLe eer talk. If you re not pares: Cenc reer Pere ae aes reteers Veer es Peaster seme! Tee create) Cree eee Pat treerarrCeair ty Islamic regimes held on despite their massiv ontcolled the oil. But the Islami 1 out of oil, tak Belize, Albania, and the Mal- ‘onomic disruption. Then NeoTek stepped in to save it, with a crucial new solar popula: tions because they ‘economy crashed and burned when it a ing every nation excep dives into energy riots and ell and a plan to harness solar and wind power on global scale. it became the monopolistic power source for those nations willing to pay its price et full fet rein perc Trey ae isn t it interesting eer nee ces Por tec se ee Crate: evar: Distro ac errs memesenrts Crean rd as Sate tL Ae) poser eerrc ee Ty t natural g eee Posteri ear ist aaey bees: eee Ue emse tet Sector! NAFTZ, Node Angel Sum ee ee Ae >>Let it? You had no choice Seer eta acn te Clee hauling and military apps cere) roe Tees prere) ree aoc e Caren ee Ls Peer str) surat ery) ereret ys eonHodern Warfare Warfare in the age of interconnected economies is not what it once was. The primary form af wariare in Kro- mosome is a type of large-scale sabotage, or infrastruc ture-war. The targets are not peop typical attacks are low-intensity ones directed at creat ing economic slowdowns: Harbors, oil pipelines, power bbut economies. The plants, the Panama Canal and the Malaccan Straits (nes Singapore, the maritime link between Europe-Arabia and Pacifica), and switching and communication centers like Cu per Switch in Culpeper, Virginia (an electronic switch that handles all federal fund transfers and trans. actions). Guerilla tactics are common in I-war, as are ecological and biological weapons. Viral strikes, poi soned reservoirs, and productivty-crippling plagues a not unheard of The second most common and direct warfare is the economic kind between nations and between corps. Dumping, embargoes, tariffs, and even blockades are the weapons most often used to demolish rivals The least common form of conilict is machine warfare or total war, This uses traditional, high-intensity, all-out battles to crush an opponent into submission. With the advent of drone planes and tanks, electronic target acquisition, and high kill ratios, these wars have become very brief indeed, ranging from hours to a few weeks long. Targets include military command and contro! centers and satellite recon centers (like Big Blue Cube the U.S. clearing house for satelite recon, near Moffett Feld in Mountain View, Califo Finally, there is one new form of warfare that has lust begun to affect the planet. This is the war between communities in the real world and virtual communi ies held together by the Net, When a virtual commu nity (political, ethnic, racial, or otherwise) feels that one of their own has been hurt or discriminated against by the citizens of a real town or nation, they retaliate with economic boycotts, smear campaigns, and even buyouts (buying up the misbehaving area and shipping its inhabitants out), Since most real communities have very little community or patriotic spirit, they usually put up little resistance to such Hew Technologies Technology has brought a demonic illusion of progress, though life keeps getting grimmer. There are always new gadgets, new ways to manufacture products, to harness energy, and to feed and clothe the masses outside the richest nations. But almost all new technology hasi Power comes jrom the barrel of a gun. brought further social and ecological collapse and more unemployment, because the more efficient the tech is, the fewer people are required to do the job. Out of the Bottle Biotechnology, long restricted to agricultural applica- tions, finally took off by creating new strains of medical viruses, new crops capable of surviving the new condi- tions, and new strains of people. Workers in China and Brazil wer from their employers and government. In Brazil, photo: skin has worked out very well, but the hormone locks in Chin: finally revealed. Most biotech patents are held by Poly ‘gene, though a few have been pirated by powerful gov- ernment, While the growing computer networks have made information more available, they have become tools of the ruling classes just as much as tools of subversives. In fact, the Net is a power unto itself; it has grown large and powerful enough to seem sentient, though it The Net is more than the sum of its parts; it is a con. sensual hallucination that shapes itself to fit its visitors. Traveling and acquiring data in the net require bypassing its safeguards, which resemble an electronic immune system. Since all PCs can use the net, they can operate in both the real world and the virtual world of cyber- space, and use both resources to overcome obstacles. Genome Projects Governments have proposed many different solutions to the population problem. All Chinese children beyond the frst born to any couple have been hormone locked at age 13. By preventing the onset of puberty, the older generations have preserved the rulership of China's ancient elite, kept down the population pressure, and dl drones work as hard as a fertile adult but require less food and cannot have children. The Brazilians created photoskin to feed the people, and their success has spawned many imitators, Implan- tation is mandatory at birth for all Brazilians and many the first to be offered genetic enhancements almost destroyed the nation when they were created a class of sterile drones. These hormone-locked children elsewhere in Latin America The Belters are leaving behind most planet-bound traits and are trying a million different routes to adapting to life in space; bioware allows them to ensure that their children are smaller, lack legs, require no gravity for proper growth, maximize oxygen efficiency, and so on. The Costa Ricans have established a national gene bank based on their natural resources. By cataloguing hundreds of thousands of animal species and their bio- chemical products they won the patronage of Brazil and Polygene Dozens of other genetic programs are currently underway, many of them covertly funded. Many have to do with enhancing human immunity to the toxins humankind is using to foul its own nest; others are mil tary (Such as attempis at creating fungal plagues) or ag cultural (such as the open secret of the Brazilian termite bioware that would allow humans to consume wood and other cellulose as termites do) Beyond Gravity's Rainbow ‘There ate four ways to get off the planet and into space: ‘© Work for Esoterika and pull a lucky assignment, or ‘work for NeoTek and see Earth from orbit. + Sell yourself into indentured servitude on Mars. This option is hyped mercilessly on video, on billboards, and in the Net, and many complete their term and then emigrate to the Belt. The story on the street is that colonial life is physically demanding. The ads typi- cally run, “If you have no history of heart disease, asthma, or mental illness, and you're not a smoker, then life on Mars awaits you!” Life on Mars is clearly longer and healthier than life on Earth ‘*Be deported to the Lunar colony. Worse than inden- tured servitude, with crushing boredom and a life expectancy measured in months. * Pay for the privilege of leaving Mother Earth. This ‘option is unlikely for most citizens. Though a few Esoterika rockets still launch from Baikonur and Canaveral, the modern gateways out of Earth’s gravity well are the skyhooks in Brazil (controlled by Polygene) and Indonesia (controlled by the Sultan ofBrunei and open only to Muslims and the wealthy). Eso- terika is based in low Earth orbit at the Earth’s surface; the few of up or down the gravity well go th 1e cosmodome at Baikonur. A half-dozen still work like mules from North America, but their low payload and inability to escape Earth orbit limit their usefulness All extraterrestrial colonies in Earth orbit and on the moon and Mars are slavishly loyal to NeoTek, their eco- white-collar groups are either mentally wired or phys cally booby-trapped with genebombs to prevent embar have been able tc Saree work a 8 turbines, ceramic armor, spun fiber, buckyball be composite materials, and Al crystals. Lush and © gant cell growths that would collapse in the presence of gravity exude precious biochemicals. The f Belt provide raw diamonds, metal corp travel is being. full with other problems. Some colonists may hope to set light resources for such a trip. Three separate Belter groups ils for the nearest star, but as yet lack the claim to have plans drawn up for a colony ship. Thougha no one has funded them yet, they are proceeding with attempts to build these behemoths. Whether they will work is anyone's guess. —Julius Caesar The most radical colonists are the asteroid miners who have adapted to a low- or no-G frontier society They call themselves Belters, and their society is like nothing on Earth. The Belt is a wild frontier, with few laws and no room for incompetence or intolerance. Vis- itors need to be flexible and highly tolerant, because Belter customs and morals ace often very strange. Some treat their robots as equal to humans; the others humor them, Some spend months running with no lights (saves ‘on fuel cells and battery power). The only death most Belters fear is the living death of perleromeg. The few bootstrapping pioneess of the asteroid belt are indepen. ddence-minded, and are willing to fight to stay free of tes to and dependencies on Earth All space travel except asteroid prospecting is done in cold slee berths and is obscenely dangerous and expensive, Space colonists ship raw materials to resource-hungry Earth and get high rates of return, which is just enough to provide a subsistence living in the hostile void. The most efficient mining isn’t done by colonists at all, but is done with flacks of robots, the secrets of which are closely held by the Belters. The colonies are completely unpolluted; though they lack the amenities of Earth, most urbanites would kill to get there, Politically, the off-worlders are much freer to say and do whatever they want: Afterall, they are no threat It is not these well-fed, long-haired men I fear, but the pale and the hungry-looking. to the established politics back on Earth. Power groups on Earth use space as a dumping ground; malcontents and religious groups are all packed off to the colonies with promises of independence and sovereignty. The Hew Politics Politics and ideologies are the core of the Kromosome game, the foundation underneath the flashy genemods exotic weapons, and Belt frontier. Although the game doesn't require political adventures, politics add a richer dimension to otherwise ordinary mysteries and combats, In a politicized adventure world, “Whose side are these guys on?” becomes a critical question, and politics force players to choose their enemies carefully. Player and DM preferences will dictate which side the PCs take, but different campaigns will depend on different enemies See the “Campaigns” section for some ideas on possible ‘campaign styles. Social Collapse The social fabric of the Kromosome setting is torn and shifting, with a thousand subcultures and little unity or loyalty to institutions. Many governments are corrupt and they view people as commodities to be packaged and sold like goods. Disinformation science is a popular branch of foreign policy. Disinformation created behind the scenes is the fastest growing media sector; even corps find it difficult to track down the facts, so all critical observers dismiss government data. Collecting statistics is a welfare system for bureaucrats. Corporations employ their own workers for reliable data and have entire networks of private reporters whose stories and conclusions are not intended for public consumption. Corps often subcontract micros ‘who specialize in data collection to brinj in the real story Individual murders are no longer reported, only the total number. People fee! cut off from decision-making they may dream of escaping the crushing cities for the off-world colonies, but most are resigned to struggling lives. Huge amounts of data are hidden from most citi-