Since we’ve already talked about class and faction, let’s talk about the third major decision you’ll make when creating a character: calling. It’s your character’s profession. (Although that word might be well and good for a guilder, it’s certainly not fit for a noble — it implies “work”, for Pancreator’s sake! And a priest has a calling, not a job. So, to placate the ruling classes, let’s just call it “calling”.)
The Known Worlds is rife with factions. Some have risen and others have crumbled over the centuries since the Fall, but many have proved quite durable.
Society cannot share a common communication system so long as it is split into warring factions. — Bertolt Brecht, “A Short Organum for the Theatre”These factions, the major Royal Houses, Church sects, and Merchant League guilds, pretty much rule the Known Worlds. Of course, the Emperor is the nominal ruler, but he cannot dramatically change the status quo without riling the existing estates. Emperor Alexius has spent years slowly cementing his power, knowing that upon his death, his family’s hold could crumble if he doesn’t appease those who will choose his successor. When Alexius must anger one, he must first placate two others to back him.
Let’s answer some questions frequently asked by those who are new to Fading Suns: Who do you play? What do they do? Where is it set?
In our last design diary we talked about the core assumptions of characters with the Class Struggle is Real.
It’s been a while since we talked about the core game system. We’ve streamlined it since that time, so let’s review it again.
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Happy Lux Splendor to you all!
December 25th, by the reckoning of the Holy Terra calendar, is the celebration of the Radiance of Light — Lux Splendor. On one level, it is a time of sadness, for it is the death-day of the Prophet Zebulon. Hence, this most bright of holidays retains an undercurrent of mournfulness for all we have lost. But it is also the day that the Prophet’s sacrifice cleansed and consecrated the jumproutes against the Dark, making them safe for travel.
Halloween has come and gone, but the chills aren’t over yet. This month we’re talking about something truly scary, something that causes every faithful Church inquisitor to tremble: we’re talking about… technology! The horror! The horror!
Lucky tyrants — the perquisites of power! Ruthless power to do and say whatever pleases them. — Sophocles, AntigoneIn last month’s diary we talked about the callings, the professions you follow in Fading Suns. This time, we reveal the perquisites of office that those callings give you, otherwise known as perks.
