Suns fading

Fading Suns is a futuristic Roleplay medieval being held at the 6th millenium. The history of the world takes as a starting point the human history, with an anticipation of the future. It is published with the the United States by Holistic Design, is distributed and translated into France initially by Multisim then by Ubik. A version d20 exists but was not translated into French.

Universe

History of year 2100 at year 5000

The first republic: 2100

In a near future, following many conflicts, humanity succeeds in forming the first republic, a world government, at the price of the freedom of its citizens. Indeed, the land economy was entirely controlled by a handle of multinationals; their leaders, named the zaïbatsus, thus directed indirectly the republic. Wanting to channel the energy of the people, so that he does not revolt, the zaïbatsus launched a vast project of colonization of space. Quickly (in two centuries month), humanity colonized all the solar system, i.e. primarily the Moon and Mars, the remainder being used especially for industry. Through exploration, humanity discovered in extreme cases of the solar system a made ring of an unknown and old alloy 40.000 years, created by the extraterrestrial ones now disappeared: Ur. After some unfruitful studies, the Man succeeds in activating what proved to be a gate between the planetary systems. Each world having its gate, humanity discovered hundreds of them. Many were the too happy explorers to escape tyranny from the zaïbatsus. It was the beginning of the diaspora and the end of the first republic. It was destroyed by the countervailing power incipient from this colonization, the noble houses.

The diaspora: 2500

The diaspora was one period of intensive colonization. From this chaos was born the Zacharie prophet. This one undertook a long spiritual pilgrimage through the universe. At the time, many were the men and the women in lack of spirituality. Its wisdom pushed a certain number of people to follow it. At the time of this search it have the vision of the " Holy-Flamme" on a world now lost. Tranfiguré, it preached a new religion. Unifying all the old religions, it named the creator " Pancréateur" and denounced the evil dissimulated among stars. Explaining that the " Saint-Flamme" caused any life, it preached a policy based partly on old land philosophies. Gathering many followers, he entrusted the direction of it to seven (eight according to some) disciples who followed it since the beginning. Zacharie died at the time of a space voyage of an accident of gate. In 4998, the religion created by Zacharie is that of 99% of the population. During this time, humanity met many extraterrestrial civilizations which it overcame systematically and pitilessly, treating overcome more or less well according to their degree of resistance; until the day when the Man made the meeting of Vao. Vao form a civilization much more powerful and advanced that humanity. Fortunately, they proved to be not-expansionist and required of the Man only peace. Inter alia xenomorphic civilizations (extraterrestrial), Vorox, Ur-Obun and Ur-Ukar deserve to be quoted for respectively their capacity of survival, their wisdom, their capacity to be harmed. Humanity having pacified the space which it had conquered, it could be organized, and it was the end of the diaspora.

The Second Republic: 3500

The second republic was the apogee of humanity. At that time, each one was free. Human technology exceeded in certain fields that of Vao. It is at that time that took place the majority of the terraformations (transformation of a hostile planet into a planet similar to the ground), and that the human ones improved their control of the psychomancie (together of paranormaux capacities). However, the too fast development of technologies involved many excesses. The Men sank in the lust, letting the machines do the work. The Church lost of its capacity, leaving room to the materialism. This apogee ended when an attack destroyed the files managing the redistribution of the richnesses. This event, the darkening of the suns and mollesse of the leaders was involved the decline of the second republic.

The Old Dark ones: 4000

The noble ones benefitted from the weakening of the republic to take again the capacity. The Church haggled over its support with the nobility, n the other hand the latter agreed to recognize Orthodoxy like single religion. After some conflicts between the Church and the nobility, it was issued that technology and the psychomancie (as well as the théurgie recently developed by the eskatonic heretics) were prohibited with everyone except with noble and with the priests. However, the old companies of the second republic, true holders of technology, negotiated the access to this one with the help of some to be able. Thus, was born the triumvirate: the noble ones, the Church and the League of the merchants. And chaos reigned… For the period of decline of the republic and a long time after, of many worlds were lost, either that their gate was sealed, or that their coordinates were lost. One day of these lost worlds came from the hordes of barbarians who threatened the trimvirat. This threat allowed a noble house, named Alecto, to unify the worlds known in an empire to fight against the barbarian invasion. Unfortunately, the Vladimir emperor was assassinated during his crowning, and the civil war began again. The Alecto house was destroyed, like many its allies. From another lost world, named Tchernobog, came the threat from the symbions, monsters born of the infection of human by a foreign form of life. One succeeds in fighting them at the price of the legalization of certain mental capacities. In this tended context, each member of the triumvirate tried to reunify humanity by the force. This time, it was the Hawkwood family which succeeds in unifying the worlds known under the orders of the Alexius emperor. This one mû by a direction of the diplomacy and strategy out of the commun run, succeeds in sitting its authority, pushing back the Symbions and the hordes of barbarians.

Empire: 4999

The empire counts 4 powers now: The emperor, the noble ones, the Church and the League of the merchants. He is always threatened by the barbarians, the symbions, the demons as well as the progressive darkening of stars.

Play

Basic, the players have the choice between belonging to one of the 5 Noble Major Houses, of one of the 5 Major orders of the Universal Solar Church or of one of the 5 Major Guilds of the League of the Merchants.

Major houses

Hawkwood house

The members of the Hawkwood house are of Anglo-Saxon type. They are very proud and seek to excel at the same time by their intelligence and their force. They have a direction of the very developed honor. The Alexius emperor comes from this house, however, for political reasons, it prévilégie not his house.

Décados house

The members of the Décados house are of Russian type, or at least claim themselves some. For them, all the means are good to achieve their goal: to dominate the universe. It is the noble family having the best spy network. They exploit their appearance much.

Hazat house

The members of the Hazat house are of hyspanic type. They are known to be good warriors, and not to know to make large-thing at side. They have a direction of honor of the military type. Hazat give much importance to their army.

House Li Halan

The members of the house Li Halan are of Asian type. They are known for their devotion with the Universal Church. So the serfs Li Halan are generally well treated if they remain in their place. It is sometimes difficult to encircle a Li Halan because of its high degree of spirituality.

House Al Malik

The members of house Al Maliik are of Arab type. They are known for their smoothness of spirit and their very great intelligence. They usually speak by metaphor what makes their discussion difficult to include/understand. It is said that they speak the flowered language. The members of this house are very close to the League of the merchants with the result that they are with the point technology. They are also the guards of the last republicans.

Major orders

orthodoxy

Principal order of the Universal Church, it is them which traditionally direct the Universal Church. When one thinks of a man of the church, nine times out of ten it is with a member of this kind.

the Fraternity of the Weapons

Military order, the brothers in arms are warriors aguerris. Their feats of arms are recognized in all the known worlds. They are disciplined and do not hesitate to use technology to increase their deterrent force. They are known for their uprightness.

the Eskatonique Order

This order announces the eskaton (end of the world). Those are scholars. They were at the origin of the rites theurgic now used by all the orders. One often takes them for magicians.

the Avestite Temple

The members of this kind have a very literal interpretation of the bible Oméga (bible of the Universal Church). One can easily associate them with fanatics. The majority of Avestites belong to the enquiry.

the Temple of the Sanctuary Eternal

They are the following of the doctrines of Amalthée, one of the disciples of Zacharie. They pass their life to look after the others. They have very an good image near the people. The best means of being lynched is to attack (by the gesture or the word) a amalthéen.

Major guilds

Auriges

Auriges lead the vessels and have the monopoly of technology making it possible to use you the gates. People seeking to break this monopoly finds themselves ejected in space without diving-suit. They are auusi the merchants of the known worlds.

engineers

The Engineers are the specialists in high technology. They spend their time trying to restore old technologies of the second republic.

Fouinards

They have the best information network of the known worlds. They are recuperators, schemers, shadies and others. They are specialized in art to earn money with all and anything.

recruiters

The Recruiters are mercenaries in any kind. They can fill of the missions of combat, solve investigations, carry out building sites, or any other work suitable to bring back money. They have also a solid reputation of slave.

baillifs

The Baillifs are the bankers of the known worlds, they are also used of lawyers and occasionally as investigators. Some tell that if they claimed the refunding of all the contracted debts, they would have all the known worlds.

Other Factions

They exist many other factions among these three organizations and also in-outside they, but they are too numerous to appear here.

Characteristics

This play offers a universe Space operated rather dark and declining. It is not without evoking the universe describes by Frank Herbert in Dune. There exist multiple environments of play, since the political plots around the emperor to the wars of the systems borders. It is a rather recent play, which however knew to find its place in the United States and which seems to have a certain success in France.

Range in French version

Book of Rules
Screen + Booklet
Lords of the Known Worlds
Priests of the Universal Sun
Merchants of the Stellar Network
Byzantium Secundus
Sands of the Faith
Children of the Gods: Obun/Ukar
the Guide of the Stellar Player
Atlas: Stellar Hawkwood
Atlas: Decados

External bonds

Wiki Fading Suns
www.sden.org/jdr/fading: Site of reference
Fading on the GROG: The card of this play on the Guide of Galactic Roliste
forum alternative suns: forum of French-speaking fans

See too

List of roleplays

Random links: