Echos of the Past
Echoes of the Past is a Space Opera focused setting. with a Focus on grand adventures that can span the entire galaxy, or even other Realities.
Summary
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Its the Year 2563 in Sol time and the Garm believe they are in the Age of Observation. After years of unregulated Experimentation, the Collective has decided to sit back and focus on cleaning up the messes they have left all over the Galaxy. With the Garm busy with that the Arakona have began mobilizing some of their forces with a focus to expanding into the Unclaimed section of space. The Sovar and Revalents have been silently fighting over a plant with an absurd about of Aether in it, with both hiring PMCs to mine the planet's supply of Aether for their own use.
Important Groups
Garm Collective
A collection of systems ran by a Council. This group was the first to reach the stars, Due to this they own a good chunk of the galaxy. The most common species you will find in this group are the Garm, though you will find Hu'zark a close 2nd, followed by Humans.
Sovar Federation
Started by a group of systems near the northern tip of the Garm Collective. This group slipped off wanting to escape the bureaucracy of the Garm Collective, Over time more and more systems have joined the Federation.
Revalents
A Collection of systems owned by the Wassie, one of the younger civilizations in the galaxy. They generally have open borders and don't mind letting the other species of the galaxy come and go.
Milran
The Systems that you will find most Arakona located. This civilization has a focus on robotics and generally rejects outsiders. This rejection will usually mean you won't find a good port to land in this section of space. Though having an Arakona in the crew will get you special treatment.
PMCs
Pheonix Shroud
Leader: Zakres
A stealth based PMC created by Zakres, a Hu'zark who was 2nd in command of another PMC called 'Raven's Stash'. When his original PMC collapsed due to betrayal and internal conflict, he took those who remained and made 'Pheonix Shroud'.
Jrillvis
Leader: Mi-quan (Mi)
This PMC puts the MILITARY in PMC, they are ruthless and unforgiving. This PMC has a focus on pure Lethal action, their armor can withstand most bullets and there shielding tech can block most shots.
The Rectifiers
Leader: Yanivos Serrel
A PMC with a focus on energy. Their guns fire off arcs electricity and their shields can withstand most bullets easily. This specific group is known for its rather strange way of enter the Area of Operations, with drop pods and cannons.
Void Groups
Groups that work with or involved with the Void.
Void Travelers
Created to research and understand the space between realities, with some effort spent on understanding the Universe overall. Lead by Three leaders.
Reclaimers
A small group that is attempting to understand the 'Abyss'. They've been known to displace people with the intention of studying the effects it has on them and the universe.
Soul Order
This group believes that the current universe is improperly setup. Believing that only those who are truly important need Souls. They want to bring about a great change to correct this.
Technology Level
Well into the space age, most people can buy a ticket and travel all the way across the galaxy in a couple weeks. Most people carry around super computers that can hold their own personal AI if someone wanted.
You'll find some crazy wizards carrying medieval weapons due to some limitations on Digi-Bags when it comes to enchanting more complex weapons, though some will go for guns if they wanted.
Most guns are energy based, though some PMCs have used Ballistic due to them being cheaper and easier to store in a Digibag.
You'll find many cities are designed with foot traffic or public transport in mind. Most cars that are owned by your normal person are used for travelling between town.
Background
Backgrounds represent your life overall. The things you focused on before adventuring. This determines your Attributes, starting skill, and your Wound and Strain Threshold.
Well Rounded
You don't lean into any skill and treat them all as Equal.
| Brawn | Agility | Intellect | Cunning | Willpower | Presence |
| 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Skill: 1 Free skill rank in any non-Career skill. No Skill can go over 2 ranks in Character Creation.
| Wound Threshold | 10+Brawn |
|---|---|
| Strain Threshold | 10+Willpower |
Hard Labor
You spent a good amount of your life in hard labor.
| Brawn | Agility | Intellect | Cunning | Willpower | Presence |
| 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
Skill: You start with 1 Rank in any skill that uses Brawn. No Skill can go over 2 ranks in Character Creation.
| Wound Threshold | 12+Brawn |
|---|---|
| Strain Threshold | 8+Willpower |
Long Study Nights
You spent a good amount of your life studying and learning things
| Brawn | Agility | Intellect | Cunning | Willpower | Presence |
| 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Skill: You start with 1 Rank in any Knowledge Skill or any Skill that uses Intellect. No Skill can go over 2 ranks in Character Creation.
| Wound Threshold | 8+Brawn |
|---|---|
| Strain Threshold | 12+Willpower |
Socialite
You spent your life partying and/or being around others.
| Brawn | Agility | Intellect | Cunning | Willpower | Presence |
| 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
Skill: You start with 1 Rank in Cool, or any Social. No Skill can go over 2 ranks in Character Creation.
| Wound Threshold | 10+Brawn |
|---|---|
| Strain Threshold | 10+Willpower |
Divine Worshiper
Your life had a focus on prayer and meditation
| Brawn | Agility | Intellect | Cunning | Willpower | Presence |
| 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
Skill: You start with 1 rank in Divine Magic ((If the skill exist) or any skill that uses Willpower. No Skill can go over 2 ranks in Character Creation.
| Wound Threshold | 8+Brawn |
|---|---|
| Strain Threshold | 12+Willpower |
Something Unaccounted For
None of the above really sit with what you want. Or Maybe you just want to min-max. Either way you are free to create your own Backstory using the following Setup
1: Pick one attribute to be your best attribute, something that your character used a lot as they lived. This stat will have 3 in it.
2: Pick one attribute to be your worst attribute, something your character ignored or didn't focused on as they lived. This stat will have a 1 in it.
3: Pick a skill related to your Best Attribute.
4: Every other attribute is at 2.
For Wounds and Strain. Take a base of 10 for each. You can take points from one to increase the other
So you can decrease your Wound Threshold by 1 to give you 11 Base Strain Threshold , but 9 base Wound Threshold
After that add your Brawn to your Wound Threshold and Willpower to your Strain Threshold.
After picking your background, pick a Race below. This will give you two free talents and One Malus.
Races In the Milky Way
This section is all the races that can show up in the Milky way Galaxy. They are the most common and the kind you will see everywhere you go.
Each race grants you two racial Talents, for the sake of talent rules, these are considered Tier 0 and will not help you towards getting Tier 2 talents (Subject to change. I need to read the book to see how it handles racial talents)
Human
Lore Page: Humans
Humans from the planet Earth, and for some reason Kul'dah. You know what a human is, squishy apes with a love for tools.
| Name | Description |
| Ready for Anything | Once per session (Or Once per Day) as an out of turn incidental, you may move one Story Point from the GM’s pool to the Player’s Pool. |
| Cool Under Pressure | When a Cool roll is required you can spend 1 strain to add a Bonus Die, this can be used after the roll is made. |
| Possible Malus | |
Android
Lore Page: Androids
Androids come in many shapes and sizes. They can come from a large range of backgrounds. Some were created by the Arakona while others seem to appear at random. They are humanoid in form, most typically resembling humans. It is common for androids to be obviously robotic but not unheard of for them to pass as human.
| Name | Description |
| Made of Sturdier Stuff | Unlike the meatbags of the world, a couple of stabs isn’t going to put you down so quickly. When rolling for Critical wounds, your roll takes a -10 to the total. |
| Machine | You do not need any help traversing dangerous environments. You take no penalty for being in a bad environment and do not need any items to travel in space. |
Hu'zark
Lore Page: Hu'zark
Humanoid dragons created by the Garm a long time ago. They usually stand around 5-6 feet in height. Mutations within the species cause them to have many different layouts for their horns and sometimes digitigrade legs.
| Name | Description |
| Dragon Remnant | Dragon blood runs in your veins, allowing you to cast ancient spells when you attack. when you attacks someone. You can spend aaaaa to activate any weapon trait.
Even ones your weapon lacks. (Maybe to strong) |
| The Garm's Expirement | You can spend 2 strain to read the surface level thoughts of another creature. When doing this you can upgrade a dice in your pool when doing social Checks |
| Possible Malus | |
| Purpose Made | When using a skill you have no ranks in. Add 1 setback dice to the pool. (Maybe Change) |
Garm
Lore Page: Garm
The Garm are one of the first to travel the stars, and are the creators of the Hu'Zark. Large bulky humanoids with grey leathery skin, with the most unique characteristic being their lack of a mouth. You will find many old Labs created during the Age of Experimentation that were made by the Garm.
Extra: Silhouette 2
| Name | Description |
| Telepathic | Since you lack a mouth, you have to speak by projecting your thoughts. This allows you to easily sneak messages to select people. You can also send multiple different messages at once, albeit with some difficulty. |
| Overcharge | Even Garm who are not spell casters know how to tap into their inner supply of energy to give them just a bit more ‘Mmmph’ when they need it.
A Garm can spend 2 Strain to upgrade a dice in their pool. (Turn an k to l) |
Arakona
Lore Page: Arakona
Arakona are large spider like creatures that mostly stay within their own section of space. Though you can find some drones who will leave the hive, they are far and few. The Arakona are known to be builders of many of the machines that exist, and its rumored they created the Sentient factory.
| Name | Description |
| Poison Claws | When attacking with your fist. You can use claws instead that do +2 damage, and can spend aa to inflict poison onto a person. This does 2 damage a turn on the enemy for 2 Turns and gives the enemy a j. |
| Amazing Climbers | You can upgrade a die in your pool when climbing a surface. |
Wasie
Lore Page: Wasie
Wasie are shapeshifters and so are not defined by a notable size or shape. Despite being able to replicate other species’ forms, they are unable to replicate coloration. Instead, Wasie have their own unique color patterns.
| Name | Description |
| Change Shape | AT the cost of 2 Strain With +1 strain being added for any changes to silhouette, you are able to change your entire shape and size. This change can also be done per limb to turn them into sharp melee weapons, a tool like a crowbar, or something of similar size and shape. |
| Unstable Blood | Your blood is extremely dangerous for others to touch. When attacked you can spend 1 SP to cause your target to be covered in some of your blood. This inflicts Burn 2 on them using your Brawl damage for the base. |
NOT OF THIS UNIVERSE
Occasionally creatures from another reality make their way into our own. There are a couple ways to arrive here, as listed below. Choosing one of these backgrounds does not allot your character any particular bonuses, but gives you an idea of their past and placement in the world. You can also pick races from Star of Solestine and Gears in the Machine.
| Name | Description |
| Void Refugee | You were rescued from the void. Either your original universe was thrown into the void or you were cast there by yourself. Due to this your introduction to your current universe was Kol-No. |
| Misplaced | A spell that went wrong, an old artifact that supposedly removes people, or maybe you were in the wrong place. Either way you were misplaced and somehow landed in this universe. |
| Reclaimers Experiment | A mysterious faction of people who claim to be researching the ‘Abyss’. You were living a normal life when they brought you here against your will. They might have given you a job, or maybe you are a part of one of their experiments. |
Goblin
A humanlike species that is short with green skin.
Extra: Silhouette 0 (maybe Remove)
| Name | Description |
| Anythings Food if You're Brave enough | Goblins are able to consume a good amount of things that most races can’t. When rolling a resistance check to resist the effects of something you ate, you can add a j to the roll. You can also add a j to survival checks when looking for food. Though the stuff you find might not be edible for everyone else. |
| Love for Fire | Something about your kind is drawn to the aspect of fire. When attacking a target you can 2 strain to add Burn 1 to your weapon. You can spend multiple amounts of stain to increase the rating. This doesn't require a to trigger. |
Dwarf
A humanlike species that is shorter, thicker, and hairier. Most dwarves sport beards of some length. Many dwarven societies put a focus on mining and blacksmithing.
| Name | Description |
| The Power of Beard | Your Beard doesn’t just serve the purpose of being cool. You can use that beard of yours to detect vibrations. When it's pressed against a surface, you can feel any vibrations going on. Pressing your beard against a door lets you feel if anyone is talking. Or against the floor gives you a vague idea of where people are up to medium range. |
| Stout and Sturdy | Add 1 to your soak, and you can add j To any Resilience checks related to poison or disease. |
Paziki
Humanoid rat creature with Digitigrade legs. Used to be apart of a hivemind.
| Name | Description |
| The Old Collective | As a maneuver you can form a connection with another person. While connected, You upgrade any checks related to a target that both you and your bond are attacking.
Out of combat this connection allows you to upgrade any check you are helping the bonded with. You also can suffer strain in place of the bonded, this will end the connection. You must either rest or take make an Average Discipline check before you can make another connection |
| Strange Sense | Paziki have an innate sense of smell for aether or mana in general. You upgrade any check related to finding items with magical properties.
You also can identify magical items by smell. |
Kobold
Small lizard looking creatures with dragon features. Known most for their diminutive stature.
Extra: Silhouette 0 (Maybe Remove)
| Name | Description | ||||||||||||
| Shrug it Off | You can make a Hard (kkk) Discipline Check to negate any strain you might take while in a social encounter.
Any threat generated on this roll cannot be used for generating Strain | ||||||||||||
| Dragon Breath | You always have a breath weapon...well unless you can’t open your mouth.
Or you can pick a scale color below to change your Breath weapon. This can only be done during character creation Bronze Scales: Instead of Fire breath; You can breathe out a cloud of gas. Instead of Burn you weapon has "Stun Damage" Gold: instead of Fire Breath; you release a bolt of energy You lose Blast and Burn, instead it gains "Weaken" Silver: Instead of Fire Breath; You release a cloud of gas. Instead of burn Your breath weapon now has Concussive 1. Copper: Instead of Fire Breath; You spit up a sticky liquid. Instead of Burn. Your breath weapon now has Ensnare 1 |
Weaken: Spend aa to sap 1 Attribute of your choice. This last for 1 hour.
Salamanders
(Salamander-like Humanoids)
| Name | Description | ||||||||||||
| Regenerative Limbs | Once per day you can spend a story point to instantly recover from any critical wound. This can be done as an Action while in a structured encounter. | ||||||||||||
| Toxic Spit | You can spit a ball of poison at your enemies, unless you can’t open your mouth.
|
Burn: You can spend two Advantages to inflict poison on your foe. Causing them to take poison damage 4 for 2 turns
A Fragment
Lore Page: Fragement
You are nothing more than a fragmented memory of someone, split by a powerful force, you only remember flashes of your former life. You appear as a humanoid blob, with two glowing eyes.
| Name | Description |
| Connected to the Universe | You can spend One Story Point to cast a Meta spell with no strain cost. You do not choose what spell is cast, and you treat it as if you gained 1 Success.
This can only happen once per encounter. |
| A Moment Remembered | At the cost of 2 Strain, you may use any Skill as if you had 2 ranks in it. |
In addition to the above. You can regain shards of yourself. How you get these are left up to your DM. Though it doesn't have to be your goal. Doing this lets you 'Return to your Former self'. Both of these are really something you should talk to your DM about ahead of time due to the effect these shards can have.
When acquiring shards you can choose to embrace them or forget them. Embracing gives you some small bonus. While Leaving behind gets you nothing. No matter what you gain a hint of who you were. The only exception is on the 4th fragment, where you are given back all your memories and can choose to embrace fully or forget. If you Embrace the 4th your character is replaced with your original form. Keeping only some skills, while Leaving the 4th behind will let you keep the memories, but you will stay as you are.
A Shard can take on any form, but in most cases it takes on the form of something related to the character. They can spread anywhere, but do move around from time to time.
| Fragment | Embraced | Leave Behind |
| 1 | You gain a concrete memory from your former life. This can be plot relevant or just a random memory | You gain a concrete memory from your former life. This can be plot relevant or just a random memory |
| 2 | You gain 1 Career Skill from your Previous Life, and another memory hinting at who you were | You remember another memory hinting at who you were |
| 3 | You gain 1 Racial Talent from your Previous Life, and a fact about your previous life | You remember a fact about your previous life |
| 4 | You are Whole once again. You lose your racial talents in favor of your original Races. Your skills are replaced with your Original forms skill list. You can keep 2 Skills from your fragmented form. | You Know fully who you once were. But for your own reasons decide to let go of this former life. |
Armor, Weapons, Gear
Talents
Meta Magic
Lore Page: Meta
Meta spells are a list of powerful spells that those with the Meta skill can cast, unlike normal magic these have a unique cost that changes depending on your ranks in Meta.
Meta magic are spells that mimic certain unseen functions of the universe. Using these spells takes a large amount of energy at first, but as a caster gets more experience with these spells the cost decreases.
Anyone can learn these spells but it's not common for someone to learn about them by themselves. It can happen but most of the time the knowledge is passed on from someone who has already figured it out. You can only put ranks into Meta If you have at least 3 rank in either Arcana or Spellcrafting.
No matter what the cost of Meta magic starts at 7 and goes down by 1 per rank in Meta.
To cast a spell you make a Hard (kkk) Meta Check. Every success makes the spell stronger. If the check is a wash or failure then the spell fizzles out and you take the strain cost, plus any additional gained from Threat.
Structured Encounters
| Spell | Effect |
| Sight | For some turn equal to your Success. Any attacked targeting the caster increases its Difficulty by 2. |
| Revert | When cast, each success lets you cancel out the action of 1 target. |
| Pause | Every Success gives you a bonus action or Maneuver. If Successfully cast you may ignore the Maneuver limit.
You cannot Spend strain to get additional actions while using this spell |
Meta spells can cancel each other out, in a simple rock, paper, scissors way.
Sight counters Revert, Revert counters Pause, and Pause counters Sight.
Any Meta caster can cast a Meta spell as a reaction to another caster. Both losing Strain but neither gains the bonus effects of the spell.
Narrative Encounters
Meta spells generally function the same in both structural and narrative encounters, they still have the same cost. With each rank the effect should be a bit stronger. Example,
Meta Descriptions
| Spell | Effect |
| Sight | The caster gets a hint of some event about to happen. How useful the hint is depends on the dice pool. |
| Revert | The Caster is able to return to a previous moment in time they have marked.
Every hour increases the Strain cost by 1, this is canceled out by the amount of success the caster has in their pool. |
| Pause | The Caster is able to stop the flow of time around them. The caster can move freely for a minute per each success. |
Spending Threat and Despair on Meta rolls
With the power these bring, there is also a chance it will backfire. While threats might make the spell cost a bit more, it could do other things depending on the spell cast.
| Cost | Result Options |
| h Or d | The spark inside the character fizzles a bit. For one round the caster adds jj to all magical checks for 2 rounds |
| h h Or d | The Strain cost of the spell is Doubled. |
| h h h Or d | Something goes wrong while they are casting, until their next turn the caster upgrades all magical checks by 2. As if the universe is actively trying to make them fail. |
| d | The caster is overwhelmed by the spell. The spell increases their wounds instead of their strain.
Revert misplaces the caster into a dangerous spot. |
| ddd | The caster is unable to control the spell and the energy blast back. Fragmenting them slightly. Until they are able to reform, all skills and Attributes are capped at 2. This can be reverting through the story (The caster is able to find their fragment) or via a Formidable Arcane check.
Do not do this unless the player is ok with it. |