Battlelords of the 23rd Century

Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century

Designer(s)	Lawrence R. Sims
Publisher(s)	Optimus Design Systems (1990-1998) SSDC, Inc. (1999-present)
Publication date	1990 (1st edition) 1990 (2nd edition) 1991 (3rd edition) 1992 (4th edition) 1993 (5th edition) 2000 (6th edition)
Genre(s)	Science fiction, Space Opera
System(s)	Custom

Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century is a paper and pencil science fiction role-playing game designed by Lawrence R. Sims and first published in 1990. The game's tagline is Roleplaying in a dangerous future. The Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century license was later sold by Optimus Design Systems (ODS) to SSDC, Inc. in September 1999.

Setting

Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century is set in the year 2279. The territory of the Galactic Alliance, spanning several galaxies, is the primary setting for the game. The Galactic Alliance is made up of twelve races (including Humans), and is run behind the scenes by huge mega-corporations seeking to exploit the farthest reaches of space.

Player characters usually assume the role of Battlelords, mercenaries employed by the corporations to further their business by any means, legal or otherwise. They face various challenges, including rival mercenaries, Rebels, hostile alien lifeforms on unexplored worlds, and the alien race known as the Arachnids.

Races

There are many alien races in the Battlelords universe, but twelve are presented in the basic rulebook and form the basis for the Galactic Alliance.

Alliance Races

• Chatilian Empath
• Cizerack
• Eridani Swordsaint
• Gen-Human
• Human
• Mazian
• Mutzachan
• Orion Rogue
• Phentari
• Python Lizard
• Ram Python
• Zen Rigeln (Tza Zen Rigeln)

Additional Player Races

• Aeodronian
• Andromeni
• Ashanti
• Fott
• Gemini
• Goola Goola
• I-Bot
• Ikrini Geomancer
• Jezzadeic Priest
• Kizanti
• Misha
• Tanndai Techknight
• Frekk (introduced as a playtest race)
• Zzzwhirr (introduced as a playtest race)

Hostile Races

• Arachnids
• Krakeds
• Xarians

Locations

The Galactic Alliance spans portions of several galaxies, including the Milky Way, Andromeda, Fornax, Spirax, M32, and the Magellanic Clouds. Details of two 'sectors' of the Fornax Galaxy are presented in the planetary atlas supplements, No Man's Land and Hell's Kitchen.

System

Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century features a d100 (percentile) based system for resolving combat and skill checks.

Character Statistics and Skills

Each character has eight Vital Statistics scores and four Secondary Statistics scores. These are significantly influenced by the character's race. There are no character classes or character levels in Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century; the system is skill-based, with skills being increased with experience earned. Some races have matrix abilities (psionics) which can also be advanced with character experience, while other races are more suited for physical combat or other occupations.

Growing Up

Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century features a detailed character generation process that not only encompasses the eight Vital Statistics and four Secondary Statistics, which are generated using d100 (percentile) dice, but allows for determining events from the characters past. These are a mix of good and bad; granting a character several thousand credits worth of equipment or horribly maiming them. They are featured in several tables including a racial specific table and a job specific table which is chosen by the player.

Combat

Combat is resolved through the use of d100 attack rolls and detailed hit location tables; futuristic armor systems and massive critical hits feature prominently. Actions are resolved in half actions (1 second each) and full actions (3 seconds each). Each character can perform two half actions or one full action in a 3 second round. These include but are not limited to; aiming, firing a single round, swinging a sword, dying quickly, diving for cover, running, and dying with a lengthy speech.

Other system features

As of 2007, the system does not feature rules for space combat. These rules are planned for forthcoming supplements. Vehicle rules were added to the system with the publication of Engines of War in 2007.

History

Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century has been published in 6 editions since 1990:

• First edition (black-and-white cover illustration of a Ram Python, published 1990).
• Second edition (black-and-white battle scene)
• Third edition (red 'cloud' background with a Phentari on the cover)
• Fourth edition ('Blue' battle scene with a sword-wielding Eridani prominent)
• Fifth edition (Black cover with a full-color cityscape illustration)
• Sixth edition (featuring a montage of races and starships on the front cover, published 2000).

SSDC, Inc. now produces the core rulebook and all supplements. A number of printed supplements are available for the game, including two equipment manuals, a vehicle rulebook, two planetary atlases, three player companion accessories, and an alternate campaign setting.

Supplements

Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century has several supplemental books that further delve into the races and the universe. Some expand on the matrx abilities of the various races or add extra skills, others go into detail behind a races past and customs. None of these books are necessary but they expand on the game providing depth, location, and motive for a player to draw upon.

• Galactic Underground I (GU1)
• Galactic Underground II (GU2)
• Galactic Underground III (GU3)
• Uncle Ernie's Minions of Doom (UEMD)
• No Man's Land (NML)
• Hell's Kitchen (HK)
• Lock-N-Loaded: Armor, Equipment, Cybernetics (LnL:AEC)
• Lock-N-Loaded: Weapons and Tactics (LnL:WnT)
• Beyond the Rift (BtR)
• Condemned
• Engines of War (EoW)

Modules

There have also been two modules written for Battlelords of the Twenty-Third century. These modules were written for new players to get the party together and introduce everyone to the life of a mercenary.

• Injection
• Do Not Be Alarmed: This is Only a Test

Spinoffs

The game inspired a collectible card game named Battlelords released in 1995.

External links

• Battlelords website (ssdc.com)

• 'SSDC inc. Wiki'

• Battlelords Twitter Casual Game