Exalted Lite/Core

Exalted Lite: Core Rules

The basics for Exalted Lite can be found at D2 System. Basically, when you make a test, you flip a number of coins, count heads as successes and tails as failures.

• Most tests only roll your [[../Attribute|Attribute]].
• An Attribute in Exalted Lite is more than just a physical or mental property of the character, it is a heroic archetype encompassing a number of abilities. See the Attribute rules for specifics on what Attributes cover. All Abilities and Attributes have been rolled into ten Attributes - Awareness, Creation, Expression, Harmony, Intellect, Might, Natural, Prowess, Subterfuge, and Warfare
• [[../Specialties|Specialties]], Item Quality, [[../Charms|Charms]], and [[../Virtue|Virtue]] Channelling can modify the Attribute roll:
  • Most Dice-adding Charms may also add up to the (higher of character's relevant Virtue or permanent [[../Essence|Essence]]) to a roll.
  • Specialties may also add up to the (higher of character's relevant Virtue or permanent Essence) to a roll.
  • Item quality may also add up to the (higher of character's relevant Virtue or permanent Essence) to a roll.
  • Channelling an appropriate Virtue adds its score in dice to a roll.
• All other non-Charm modifications are modifications to the base difficulty of the task at hand. They do not change the amount of dice rolled, merely apply a difficulty penalty or add automatic successes.
• [[../Knacks|Knacks]] may lessen or negate such difficulties

Terms

Basic Terms

• Active Actions are direct, conscious actions. They test against reactive actions and passive actions. In contests between Active and Passive or Reactive actions, the Active action always loses the tie.
• Passive Actions are actions that happen continuously. For example, an Awareness check is normally a passive action - a character does not see only at specific moments when they consciously make an effort to do so.
• Reactive Actions are responses to an active action, such as a parry or dodge.

Character Role

The basic term is Character. There are three kinds of characters:

• Major Character. The PCs and assorted major NPCs in the Storyteller's story. Major Characters can [[../Stunt|Stunt]].
• Minor Character. Everyone else with a named role. They can still be quite formidible, but Minor Characters cannot stunt.
• Extra. Nameless mooks. Don't stunt, don't even roll dice. They are effectively part of the scenery, imposing penalties and causing environmental damage (if hostile) rather than having actual rolled actions.

There are a set of 'classes' for characters. They represent the strength of the role they play in the story of Creation. It is used mostly as a loose categorization of a character's power, or potential power.

• Supernal. Shinma Aspects, Primordials, Yozis, Malfeans.
• Divine. The Celestial Exalted (Abyssals, Astrals, Bestials, Chimerae, Elysians, Empyreals, Infernals, Lunars, Sidereals and Solars), Third Circle Demons, the Eight Divine Ministers of Autocthon, the Deathlords, the Celestial Incarna, the Five Elemental Dragons, certain few Behemoths and Hekatonkhire (Essence 10), the greatest of the Unshaped.
• Superior. The Terrestrial Exalted, the Alchemical Exalted, Akuma made of the Terrestrial and Alchemical Exalted, Second Circle Demons (and Infernal Exalted of such stature), Certain Essence 6-9 Beings (Ghosts, Elementals, Gods, Behemoths, and Hekatonkhire), most Unshaped.
• Mystical. Dragon Kings, Enlightened Mountain Folk, Heart 4 Raksha, Certain Essence 4-5 Beings (Ghosts, Elementals, Gods, Behemoths, Hekatonkhire, Plasmics, etc.), the weakest of the Unshaped
• Heroic. Spirit-Blooded, Half-Caste, Heart 2 or 3 Raksha, unEnlightened Mountain Folk, Certain Essence 2-3 Beings (Mortals, Beastmen, Ghosts, Elementals, Gods, Plasmics, etc.)
• Mundane. Heart 1 Raksha, Heroic Essence 1 Beings (Mortals, Beastmen, Ghosts, Elementals, Gods, Behemoths, Hekatonkhire, Plasmics, etc.)
• Extra. Everyone else (Heart 0 Raksha, Least gods, nonheroic 'mundane' types, etc).

In suitably high-powered campaigns, Mundanes and Heroic characters can be considered Extras

Test Difficulty Terms

Terms are sometimes assigned for a specific difficulty, especially regarding craft, research, and design rolls:

• Simple difficulty is a single success, representing what nearly anyone with the most minor training can perform regularly.
• Standard difficulty is two successes, representing what significant training will allow for regularly. This is normally what 'Joe Average' can get to nearly without fail (~4 dice) in his specialty.
• Challenging difficulty is five successes. Extreme training and a great deal of natural talent will allow for this regularly. Joe Average, with good equipment and passion, might achieve this on rare occasions.
• Exceptional difficulty is ten successes. This is impossible Joe Average, but the greatest of mortals, putting their hearts and souls into their work, can achieve this regularly.
• Legendary is twenty successes - almost unheard of for a mortal, though with drive, passion, and a lot of luck, it is possible. Naturally, legendary results are completely outside the ken of Joe Average. Only the Exalted or teams of exceptional mortals do this with any regularity.
• Exalted is fifty successes. Most Exalted do not work on such grand projects alone. Exalted successes are true objects of wonder and legend. No mortal can achieve this, and it is rare even for the [[../DragonBlooded|Dragon Blooded]] to achieve such success as a team.
• Celestial is one hundred successes. This is outside the ken of the Terrestrial Exalted, and it is a rare event that even a [[../Celestial|Celestial]] Exalted achieves this on their own.
• Primordial is two hundred successes. This requires the commitment of entire nations of Dragon-Blooded, or a circle of highly experienced Celestial Exalted in order to achieve. Even the Primordials have a difficult time pulling off this level of supernal quality.

See the [[../Lexicon|Lexicon]] for more terms.