Fate Core: Creating a Character for Mindjammer 2nd edition
Now that the Fate Core rules are out as part of Evil Hat’s mega-Kickstarter, I thought I’d post one of the characters we’ve been using in the Mindjammer 2nd edition playtest. So, without further ado, may I introduce you to Mayameer K’Soo, elite Space Force 2-pilot!
K’Soo is a xenomorph – an organic life form derived from uplifted animals in the First Age of Space. Before Rediscovery, xenomorphs weren’t considered full citizens of the Commonality, and on many Core Worlds were even considered property. In the Expansionary Era that has become a nonsense, and xenomorphs now find themselves in a wide variety of legal states, depending on their homeworld and place of residence. K’Soo is felinoid, derived from the great cats of Old Earth, and has a genotype divergence of 80, which means she looks mostly human, but with some clearly marked feline features – probably catlike irises, sharpened facial features, and abundant, mane-like hair. She’s also sleek and sensuous, with excellent reflexes, and makes a formidable 2-pilot aboard Space Force vessels.
| Name: | Mayameer K’Soo | ||
| Genotype: | Xenomorph (Felinoid) | Culture: | Commonality |
| Occupation: | Starship Pilot | Apparent Age: | 30 standard years |
| Fate Points: | 2 | Refresh: | 2 |
| Physical Stress: | (1) (2) | Mental Stress: | (1) (2) (3) (4) |
| Consequences: | 3 |
| ASPECTS | |
| High Concept: | Elite Space Force 2-Pilot |
| Trouble: | Irresistible Curiosity |
| Cultural Aspect: | Rediscovering Lost Worlds |
| Phase Aspects: | Sensuous C-Person, Sublimated Predator Instinct, Unfathomable Relationship with the Magnanimous Intervention |
| Game Aspects: | Humanity is Transcending, Ubiquitous Cultural Conflict |
| SKILLS | ||||
| Great (+4): | Pilot | |||
| Good (+3): | Will | Technical | ||
| Fair (+2): | Empathy | Ranged Combat | Notice | |
| Average (+1): | Unarmed Combat | Athletics | Stealth | Deceit |
| STUNTS | |
| Starship Pilot: | use Pilot skill for starship actions |
| Gunnery: | use Ranged Combat skill for starship actions |
| ENHANCEMENTS AND SPECIAL ABILITIES | |
| Skill Chip (Starship Pilot): | +2 skill bonus with Mindscape contact |
| Hyper-Reflexes: | +2 bonus to initiative and dodging |
| OTHER EXTRAS | |
| Space Force Null-Pistol (aspect) | |
| Mindscape Implant (aspect) | |
| The Magnanimous Intervention (starship): Good (+3) Gravity Engines, Fair (+2) Planing Engines, Average (+1) Passive Sensors |
That’s it for starters – I’ll be blogging more about my work on Burn Shift – the post-apocalyptic setting for the Fate Core Kickstarter, next week, and of course much more about Mindjammer 2nd edition, due Spring 2013!
Cheers,
Sarah
Normandy, December 2012
Sarah Newton 
Hi Sarah:
Now that I am about 400 pages in to the collected short stories of Cordwainer Smith, I REALLY get a kick out of one of the influences you are playing around with and paying tribute to in Mindjammer. I think he would be quite amused and pleased to see his influence and ideas alive, well, mutated and in play in your game!
John Till
Hi John,
Cordwainer Smith is *awesome*, isn’t he? 🙂 He’s a major influence, along with folks like Olaf Stapledon. Smith IMHO really manages to convey just how *alien* the future is going to be – and that science-fiction isn’t just about 21st century folk in funny interstellar environments, but about a qualitatively different species which we’re in the process of becoming, and which our limited 21st century selves may not be fully able to comprehend. I love his stuff – and his wonderful, spiritual vision. He raises SF to the status of the best literature.
With Mindjammer, I’ve gone off in a massively different direction, as I hope future fiction and RPG supplements will show – but I’m still always left breathless and inspired by the sheer scope of Cordwainer Smith’s vision. So many themes pay tribute to Smith’s insights and develop them into more 21st century forms. I’d hope he’d appreciate the compliment! 🙂
Sarah
Looks great! Are you doing a Kickstarter for M2, or just producing and selling it straight-up?
Good question Robert! The simple answer is, we’re not sure yet. One way or another we’ll definitely be doing a pre-order with a special intro price, but whether that’s Kickstarter or “trad” pre-order we don’t yet know. We should be deciding by the end of January; either way I’d like to have the manuscript pretty much done and laid out beforehand to make sure we hit our timing targets for the end of May for the hard-copy.
Cool either way. And good on manuscript-first, sales-later approach.
Thanks for the treat, Sarah! I’m really excited by the way things are shaping up in the KS and with this 2nd Ed.
Keep us posted!
Thanks Zooroos! We’re hoping to give regular updates and sneak previews whenever we can over the next few months. 🙂