VULCANIA ESSENTIAL is a condensed rulebook and scenario guide from Gear Games, authored by Simone Raspi and Luca Galietta. It is specifically designed to deliver fast, narrative-focused one-shots or online campaigns in the volatile, steampunk, and magmatic world of Vulcania. The goal of this lean format is to throw players immediately into the action and atmosphere of the game.
Key Features & Simplified Mechanics:
• Expert Rank Gameplay: The ruleset is balanced for characters of Expert Rank.
• Streamlined Rolls: Actions are resolved using Tests (d12 + Skill vs. Narrator Difficulty), maintaining core mechanics like Opportunities, Complications, and Gears of Fate. Opportunities are now triggered after any Test (natural 11 or 12 on the d12 or by spending a Gear of Fate), not tied to specific actions.
• Quick Character Creation: Character creation is simplified, focusing on narrative choices like Origins and Particulars.
• Trauma Mechanic: Adapted from Beyond the Storm, the Scars or Trauma mechanic allows the Narrator to introduce elements of dissonance to complicate a scene or potentially derail the crew in exchange for a Gear of Fate.
• Archetypes over Arts: Character classes are compiled into nine easy-to-learn Archetypes (including the Assassin, Engineer, Alchemist, Gunslinger, and Monk).
• Simplified Combat: Weapons are categorized (Small, Medium, Large, Firearms, Thrown, Alchem) and do not confer modifiers to Tests. Armor provides a flat 1-point damage reduction.
• Special Weapons: Characters select one Special Weapon capable of unique Opportunity effects like Burning, Shock, Piercing Shot, Trip, or Acid Fumes.
Three Included Adventures in the City of Bravia:
Vulcania Essential is centered around the burgeoning metropolis of Bravia, where exponential growth has led to extreme disparity in wealth and opportunity, fueling organized crime and social unrest in the Suburbs.
1. The Bravia Riot (The Core Scenario): The city is a powder keg. Following a violent explosion caused by a theft, the scenario tracks a 5-day escalation of tension, influenced by player actions on the Oppression Indicator of the Suburbs. Players must navigate rival factions, including the Monopolies, the Union, and the rising Alchem Barons led by the notorious Vicious. The adventure culminates in a potential REVOLT or ULTIMATUM scenario, where Vicious aims to steal reagents and potentially declare the Suburbs independent.
2. Resonance: The Characters are hired by Palmiro Schicchi, a wealthy Bravian entrepreneur falsely jailed for the brutal murder of a company shareholder, Lars Melandri. Schicchi was framed by Lorenzo Corelli (Sivok) and his twin, Lirian (The Mask), a deadly, face-shifting assassin. The characters must piece together the truth—that Lirian, disguised as Schicchi, committed the murder—before the trial begins. The motive behind the murder is vengeance against a professor at the Markonist Academy.
3. The Strange Case of Doctor Jahill: When business dries up, the Characters are hired by the possessive Flora Necchi to find her missing husband, Dr. Marcus Jahill, a biopsist ostracized by the Monopoly of Alchemists. In truth, Jahill is secretly working with Vicious to synthesize Bannerine—a volatile compound designed to generate boundless rage and enhanced physical traits—to pay off his debts to the criminal gang The Rat Raiders. The PCs must confront the Raiders to locate the doctor and decide whether to return him to his miserable life with Flora or allow him to join the Barons.
Grab your gear, heed your Trauma, and step into the dangerous alleys of Bravia!