Exalted: War Manse 13 (Exalted, all welcome, seeking GM/Players)

[Lustful Bride]

War Manse 13 was once part of a system of 20 similar facilities spread out through the Western portion of Creation. Each one was hidden but had a tower or other form of structure to act as a signal to other facilities. Together they all worked as an early warning system against invasion by the Raksha. With the West being primarily based around water, and Human habitation being on islands, floating docks, or other creations, it was not nearly as settled and defensible as the North, South, or East. And some of the old Solar Deliberative feared it to be a weak point in their empire. So in secret they set up various manses and similar facilities across the West along the ley lines, hidden with the best skill that even other Exalted would find difficulty locating them.

The last one was completed a year before the Usurpation occurred. Their records were kept relatively secret, aside from those assigned to them and in need-to-know situations. They were not as remembered as other glorious works by the Solar Deliberative, due to there being far greater inventions that outshone a simple beacon and defense system. And with the Usurpation, and the Great Contagion and decades of war and unrest that followed, many of the records about the War Manses and other facilities in the Raksha Warning System were lost.

Even during the Balorian Crusade, when an army of Raksha marched to destroy Creation and return it to primordial chaos, no one found the beacons, and they did not light for the march did not come from the West.

Now, several thousand years later, Creation is a much different place, and those who survived the usurpation and Contagion within the Manses, have mostly died from mechanical failures in the manse or lack of food and resources. The only one still standing is War Manse 13. It is still surviving, people are still born, they still live and still sing praise and hymns to the Unconquered Sun, hoping someone will arrive to relieve them.

But as time moves on, many can see that rescue is not on the way. Even the leader of the Manse sees that all of their work and ways of circumventing their limited space and critically low resources is not going to last. They need new blood, raw materials, manufactured goods, and materials to be able to survive. They have hit their limit and their stores are running dry. So a plan is made, to create a team to head out into Creation itself where they could see what has happened since the traitors tried to take the Manse, and who may aid them in these times.

The War Manse and Surroundings

The main body of the War Manse itself is covered by a watertight adamant roof, under which soil was placed to provide arable land during sieges. The War Manse itself covers the entire 10 mile by 5 mile island, which is artificial in nature. The forbidding walls of the Manse complex are festooned with now inactive defenses, done in the style of the First Age of course. A small distance from the main island is The Tower, a long inactive beacon that was meant to act as a warning system with other similar systems on the other facilities. But it has fallen into disrepair since the Usurpation and occasionally been used as a source of spare parts.

The primary manse complex reaches down into the bedrock of the island, providing industrial facilities, minerals, fresh-water collectors, and air generators. The living quarters spread out under the sea-bed around the manse in a spider-web pattern of bubble-like domes and defense turrets/silos, and this is where the majority of the population live. The living quarters have been expanded somewhat over the years, usually downward. The myriad imperishable domes that rise from the seabed have been gutted and replaced with hydroponic gardens, since light filters down from above. Many of the weapon silos and ammunition stores have remained untouched, as most of the access codes have been lost over time and there have been no enemies to threaten the complex.

The sad truth is, as forbidding as the manse is, none of its deadly weapon systems can be activated without restoring the dragon-line that powered it... it is simply ripe for being breached. The defenders of the complex however, would present far greater difficulty for any would-be invaders, as they are intimately familiar with the maze-like complex and what systems still work.

The Usurpation and Loyalty

The Usurpation was not without incident. A few revolutionaries had infiltrated the War Manse and attempted to seize control, but were stopped and executed by the Dragon-Blood officers there for high treason. In a very public fashion, of course. The Dragon-Bloods quelled the mortal panic with calm and reason, saying that the Deliberative would undoubtedly be coming to the rescue at some point. That was over 1,500 years ago.

The Current State of Affairs.

The Manse is kept at a stable population to not strain the closed system, with somewhere around 5000 people living inside it, with lotteries determining who has the right to bear a child. Occasionally through the years, the Calibration Gate has dumped a newcomer into War Manse 13, bringing new blood. Though no one has been able to use it to get out of the manse and the Gate seems to have a mind of its own.

Society is divided into Clans based on whom of the original 150 Dragon-Bloods a person is descended from, with each clan having a traditional sector of the Manse's extensive underground complex to themselves. A person's full name will tell somebody in War Manse 13 their clan, major house, minor house, and your mother's name, meaning each person has at least five names to call their own.

The seed of the dragons is comparatively thick in War Manse 13, resulting in a high percentage of Terrestrial Exalts compared to most populations. The Dragon-blooded officers chose to breed for numbers, as they were unsure what was going outside and felt numbers would be a safe strategy. They make up approximately 25% of the population.

Many mortals are taught to harness their Essence so that the everyday tools they use for their jobs are as good as those of the finest craftsmen. A great number of agricultural charms were developed over the years as the population increased to increase the bounty of the fields, and new strains of crops developed for bigger yields.

Five hundred years ago, an event changed the power structure of War Manse 13. A farmer Exalted as an Zenith-caste Solar when saving the life of several other farmers during a structural breach. For various reasons and political manuevering, the self-styled Umari Thousand-Hands became the ruler of the War Manse. And has generally improved things to be less brutal and more benevolent.

The people now pray to the Ignis Divine with more devotion than ever, knowing that the god of the sun has not abandoned them, and that with his guidance, they may thrive.

But for all of his work and effort, supplies dwindle, and there are things they just cannot make on their own. There are not enough magical materials, not enough people, not enough of everything. The Manse was original made to survive at least 50 years on its own if need be. But has made it far past the original expectation.

They cannot survive on their own any longer, so the call is put out, for anyone brave enough to take on a mission to head out into Creation, for the first time in almost two thousand years. None of them know what they will encounter, but they cannot fail. Their home depends on them.



Setting info for those unfamiliar with Exalted.:

Official canon History of the setting

https://youtu.be/lz_g6w44iIs

The TLDR funny version (Warning: Swearing and a few crewd jokes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_CJtBxIS5U

This specific scenario was inspired by a wiki page for the exalted wiki itself

http://exalted.xi.co.nz/wiki/Darzoni/WarManse13

It is just way too cool not to expand upon and look into. A long lost bunker of Solar Loyalists, led by a solar priest and needing new resources. Not sure how it would be run or who the player characters would be, but its just begged to be turned into a thread.

[Gilgameshian]

I love Exalted's world but I'll be the first to admit I haven't actually played an Exalted game yet. I have Ex2 and Ex3's core rulebooks and I've read them but I'd still be a noob.

Having said that, if people are okay with putting up with that then I am so down to play some Exalted.

[Lustful Bride]

I love Exalted's world but I'll be the first to admit I haven't actually played an Exalted game yet. I have Ex2 and Ex3's core rulebooks and I've read them but I'd still be a noob.

Having said that, if people are okay with putting up with that then I am so down to play some Exalted.

I have only played a pseudo system lite game here on E with a partner. It was a one/one game.

I know for a fact that I am a terrible GM and should not be allowed control. But I feel like this could be a good way for characters and new players to be introduced to the setting and get their feet wet.  

[Muse]

  That's a really awesome scenerio, Bride. 

  Were you wanting a GM who would run the actual game for you?  (As opposed to freeform.) 

  I love both playing and running exalted, and might go either way. 

[Lustful Bride]

  That's a really awesome scenerio, Bride. 

  Were you wanting a GM who would run the actual game for you?  (As opposed to freeform.) 

  I love both playing and running exalted, and might go either way.

I honestly don't know. I just felt an urge to share the idea and polish it up slightly.   I just know I shouldn't run it because I am the worst GM ever.

[Merdoroli]

I also have no experience with Exalted, nor it's background, but this sounds awesome. I have played a lot of DnD 3.5 and a few other systems, and I've glanced at Exalted before and wondered about it, but that's about it. Personally I'm a terrible GM of even systems I know so I'm sure I'd be god-awful as a GM for this. However if this gets going and you find a GM, I'd love to join.

[HairyHeretic]

It's an interesting idea, but the West was never my favourite region. I always felt it would be a bit too awkward to run around there, compared to say the Scavanger Lands or the other cardinal directions.

[Lustful Bride]

I also have no experience with Exalted, nor it's background, but this sounds awesome. I have played a lot of DnD 3.5 and a few other systems, and I've glanced at Exalted before and wondered about it, but that's about it. Personally I'm a terrible GM of even systems I know so I'm sure I'd be god-awful as a GM for this. However if this gets going and you find a GM, I'd love to join.

It would be fun to have you when the game gets running.

It's an interesting idea, but the West was never my favourite region. I always felt it would be a bit too awkward to run around there, compared to say the Scavanger Lands or the other cardinal directions.

Well they won't stay there forever. There are other places they can go with sea routes, maybe even eventually getting ship wrecked on the mainland.

[HairyHeretic]

From my perspective the manse is the focus of the campaign. Negotiating with the local spirit courts to help expand the underground tunnels, or bring shipwrecked people to the manse, and ensuring they'd integrate rather than try and destroy these anathema worshippers :) . Establish contacts in neighboring islands where you can trade and, in time, recruit. Try to find savants who might be able to help restore systems to working order. Fighting off the attentions of pirates, Lintha, the Realm and the Bodhisattva (or whoever the local Deathlord is)

There's plenty you could do without going too far from the manse.

[Lustful Bride]

From my perspective the manse is the focus of the campaign. Negotiating with the local spirit courts to help expand the underground tunnels, or bring shipwrecked people to the manse, and ensuring they'd integrate rather than try and destroy these anathema worshippers :) . Establish contacts in neighboring islands where you can trade and, in time, recruit. Try to find savants who might be able to help restore systems to working order. Fighting off the attentions of pirates, Lintha, the Realm and the Bodhisattva (or whoever the local Deathlord is)

There's plenty you could do without going too far from the manse.

This is why I should never GM, because I miss great chances for campaign storylines. All of that is glorious.

[HairyHeretic]

Exalted is one of my top three settings (along with Scion and L5R), I've run a few games and played in others. Right now my work schedule means I rarely post half the week, and I'm sort of behind in some of my games already.

I think this isn't a bad starting point for a campaign, but it would need to be heavily player driven. The PCs would have a variety of problems to solve and ways to solve them, but they'd need to drive the story along with those choices, rather than just reacting to GM introduced stuff.

[Idej]

If this is a West Centric game I have a character just for this.


Cynthia Patricia Athamastus former member of the Imperial Merchant Fleet, now Eclipse Caste Solar and inheritor of Grand Admiral Kendik Arkadi's Exaltation.

[AndyZ]

Keeping an eye on this.

[Pumpkin Seeds]

I'm game.

[HairyHeretic]

So, assuming I can get caught up enough on my existing games to consider running this, what do people want from it?

Free-form or system game?

2nd or 3rd ed?

Dragon blooded inhabitants of the manse? Solar's from the outside? A mixture of both?

PC Lunars, Sidereals or ronin Deathknights?

Thoughts?

[Gilgameshian]

I'll admit a preference for playing Solars.

I have 2nd and 3rd edition, doesn't matter which to me though I feel like 3rd is easier to understand? (imo)

Freeform or System works for me.

[Lustful Bride]

If this is a West Centric game I have a character just for this.


Cynthia Patricia Athamastus former member of the Imperial Merchant Fleet, now Eclipse Caste Solar and inheritor of Grand Admiral Kendik Arkadi's Exaltation.

Cool :)

So, assuming I can get caught up enough on my existing games to consider running this, what do people want from it?

Free-form or system game?

2nd or 3rd ed?

Dragon blooded inhabitants of the manse? Solar's from the outside? A mixture of both?

PC Lunars, Sidereals or ronin Deathknights?

Thoughts?

I am unsure I am in a one/one exalted game and I am unsure what edition it uses as my partner handles the numbers since I am terrible at them :/

I say maybe, System light? A Combo of Dragonblooded and Solars and Lunars from the outside. After that Sidereals and Deathknights and others can be brought in if characters die off.

[Merdoroli]

So, assuming I can get caught up enough on my existing games to consider running this, what do people want from it?

Free-form or system game?

2nd or 3rd ed?

Dragon blooded inhabitants of the manse? Solar's from the outside? A mixture of both?

PC Lunars, Sidereals or ronin Deathknights?

Thoughts?

Personally I think I'd prefer a system'd game. I haven't done the Exalted system before but I've wanted to try it for a long time now. With that, I have no edition preference. 2nd or 3rd is all the same to me.

I don't know their in system differences, like what kind of powers exactly each have, but from a lore stand point I think playing a Solar or Dragonblooded both sound interesting. Solar's dealing with people beliefs that they are evil or demonic and such or the Dragonblooded from inside the manse dealing with an outside world that's chnged so very very much.

[HairyHeretic]

The only problem with a system game is Dragonbloods tend to be weaker than celestial Exalts (Solar's, Lunar's, Deathknights etc), so it can be hard to maintain a fair balance. If any Dragonblood player was OK with that limitation, it's less of an issue.

Also 3rd ed only has rules for Solar's so far. If people want a mixed type game, we're looking 2nd ed, a homebrew rules light or free-form. Free form would be the easiest for a mixed group game.

[Pumpkin Seeds]

Lost all my 2nd edition books in the move.   So I'd need help if wee do that.

[Idej]

I only have 2nd edition so I can do mixed groups.  Until 3rd brings more than Solars I'm sticking with 2nd Edition.

[AndyZ]

So, assuming I can get caught up enough on my existing games to consider running this, what do people want from it?

Free-form or system game?

2nd or 3rd ed?

Dragon blooded inhabitants of the manse? Solar's from the outside? A mixture of both?

PC Lunars, Sidereals or ronin Deathknights?

Thoughts?

No preferences, but what I play will vary drastically based on the choices there.

[Rook Seidhr]

I would potentially be interested in a 2e game. In a mixed party, I'd want to play a Solar or Sidereal, but I'd be OK with a DB-only party too.

I will not play in any game with PC Infernals, just so you know.

[Idej]

I have no intention being an Infernal at all

[Muse]

Second ediition using the 2012 Eratta, please.  :)   

Hairy, I'd love it if you'd run this.  I have some thoughts: 

Playing a party wiht mixed celestial (solar, lunar, and sidereal) and terestrial exalted will always lead to a bit of power disparity, but with a good group it doesn't get too bad. 

My first choice for this game would be to focus on dragon blooded form inside the manse.  Supporting caste--such as from the henchmen background--could include god blooded and half caste. 

My second choice would be to include celestial exalted from outside the manse in the story. 

Either way, I would suggest we use something similar to the Outcaste of Looksy character generation for the dragon blooded.  If we're going to be adding celestial to the party, I might also suggest a modest degree of extra experience for the dragon blooded as well, but so long as the celestial were starting level it should be workable without. 

I can't say I'm particularly comfortable with PC infernals either--or abyssals.   

Pumpkin, if we do 2nd edition I'll be happy to render any assitance you like.  :)