A Lonesome Sky is a science fiction role-playing game about looting the ruins of extinct alien species in an otherwise empty galaxy.
Mankind has seen no evidence of extraterrestrial life, leading to what is known as the Fermi Paradox: if it’s possible for life to evolve once, it should be possible for it to evolve many times, given the number of planets in the galaxy. There are many proposed answers to the paradox, but the one A Lonesome Sky is based on is the idea that alien species have all wiped themselves out in some form of conflict. This leaves behind the ruins of their colonies, the wreckage of their armadas, and most importantly for the game, the remnants of their technology.
In A Lonesome Sky, one or more players act as the protagonists of the story, while another player acts as the Game Master, controlling the actions of the rest of the world, as well as resolving conflicting actions taken by the player characters.
dice
character sheets
shared mapping surface
Attributes represent a character’s innate ability to perform certain very broad kinds of tasks.
Strength represents toughness as well as physical strength Agility represents gross and fine motor skills and general quickness
Awareness represents empathic and physical perception Logic represents ability to remember and reason
Charisma represents ability to convince and ingratiate Willpower represents determination and domination
Edge is possessed by characters with some degree of specialness in the story. Psi is possessed by characters with psionic powers or sensitivity.
Division: physical/social/technical standard range: 1-6? might want to lower that to leave some room for power armor &c breakdown for standard extras: 7/9/11 with 5 free points
Athletics represents ability to move quickly and confidently in difficult situations, including climbing, swimming, and jumping
Brawl is the skill of physical close combat, and is used for both attack and defense
Larceny is used for pickpocketing, recognizing and disabling security systems, and other actions of dubious legality.
Pilot allows characters to operate common vehicles in their culture. Specializations may allow for operation of large or specialized vehicles.
Perception is used to notice physical phenomena.
Shoot is used to attack at range, whether using handguns, longarms, heavy weapons, or vehicle-mounted weaponry.
Stealth represents ability to move unnoticed, both silently and without being seen.
Bureaucracy
Empathy
Expression
Intimidate
Persuasion
Tactics
Artisan
Electronics
Medicine
Operations
Research
Rigging
Sabotage
ranged attacks: attribute + skill vs distance table melee attacks: attribute + skill vs skill
damage: net hits + weapon damage (+ str???)
soak: armor guaranteed + armor dice + strength dice
convert to quadratic HP loss 1 1 2 3 3 6 4 10 5 VERY DEAD
Pulse Laser:
Laser Pistol:
Gauss Pistol:
Grav Pistol:
Plasma Pistol:
Slug Thrower:
Submachine Gun:
Assault Rifle:
Flechette Gun:
Gauss Rifle:
Gauss Sniper:
Grav Rifle:
Grav Sniper:
Heavy Laser:
Laser Rifle:
Plasma Rifle:
Shotgun:
Sniper rifle:
Gravy Gun:
Flamethrower:
Anti-material Rifle:
Distortion Cannon:
Grav Cannon:
Grenade Launcher:
Plasma Cannon:
Railgun:
EVA Suit: A civilian space suit designed to provide insulation from vacuum, an EVA Suit provides four dice of soak.
Jetbike Leathers: Primarily designed for protection from dust, rocks, and falls, Jetbike Leathers provide two dice of soak.
Industrial Exoskeleton: A civilian exosuit designed for industrial tasks, the Industrial Exoskeleton gives two dice of soak and provides a 2 die bonus to strength tests.
Rigger’s Armor: Converted from an industrial exoskeleton, Rigger’s Armor gives six dice of soak, a 1 die penalty to Agility tests and a 1 die bonus to strength tests.
Raider Exosuit: Purpose-built armor from the workshops of the Rim, a Raider Exosuit gives five dice of soak and provides a 1 die bonus to strength tests.
CMI Power Armor: The standard armor of the Mobile Infantry, Core Military Issue Power Armor reduces incoming damage by two points, gives two dice of soak and provides a 1 die bonus to strength tests.
CMI Assault Armor: A heavier variant of the CMI Power Armor, the Core Military Issue Assault Armor reduces incoming damage by three points, gives a 1 die bonus to strength tests, and allows characters to use heavy ranged weapons as though their strength were two points higher.
No one knows what the causes were, or who won, if anyone did. What mankind knows is that there was a war, or wars, among the stars, resulting in the obliteration of any sentient alien species. All that remains are the ruins of their works: shattered fortresses, collapsing cities, half-operable factories, deranged artificial intelligences, and a few scraps of incomprehensibly advanced technology.
basic humanoid robot, melee oriented?
Str: 3; Agi: 1; Awa: 2; Log: 1; Cha: 1; Wil: 2;
Skills: Brawl 4, Perception 2
human ergonomics, lots of floaty ball robots
scuttling crab, maybe 3 feet tall, laser weapon
Str: 2; Agi: 3; Awa: 2; Log: 1; Cha 1; Wil: 2;
Skills: Shoot 3, Perception 2
cat-centipede thing, AOE electric blasts, climbs walls/ceilings, main AI of an installation
Str: 5; Agi: 5; Awa 3; Log: 6; Cha 3; Wil: 4;
biomonstrosities
hoarders on an interstellar scale
The Rim is the collective term for the outer regions of human colonization.
Str: 3; Agi: 2; Awa: 2; Log: 2; Cha: 2; Wil: 2
Skills:
Athletics 2, Brawl 2, Pilot 2, Shoot 4, Larceny 1
Bureaucracy 2, Tactics 1, Intimidate 2, two other social skills at 2
ranks each
Operations (Repair) 3, 4 additional points of technical skills
Backgrounds: Rim Militia 4,
Str: 3; Agi: 3; Awa: 2; Log: 2; Cha: 4; Wil: 3
Skills:
Athletics 2, Brawl 3, Perception 2, Pilot 2 (Power Armor), Shoot
4,
Bureaucracy 3, Empathy 2, Intimidate 2, Persuasion 2, Tactics 3,
Operations (Repair) 3, Medicine (First Aid) 2,
Rim Militia 6, Rim Crime 4, Local Government 3,
Str: 3; Agi: 3; Awa: 2; Log: 2; Cha: 2; Wil: 2