Defiant Awakening (PDF)

Defiant RPG is an urban fantasy game about the mighty, modern-day supernaturals, who rebelled against their destiny and, instead of destroying the world, decided to protect it. By enforcing a demanding set of rules, the Defiant aristocracy empowers protective seals around their cities, making them the only safe-havens in a world ravaged by the Apocalypse.

Player Characters are the Defiant blue-bloods, leading the supernatural society of fallen angels, demons, ancient gods, and dragons. They are powerful rulers, with their own Holdings (like clubs or luxurious mansions) and faithful subjects.

Defiant Awakening is a free Defiant Quickstart. It covers all the basic concepts of the game and setting, along with game rules needed to start playing Defiant. This guide should be more than enough to play a couple of mini-Episodes with your friends and get to know the game. 

In Defiant Awakening, you will find a short Chronicle, taking place in the Bridgewood Boulevard Province, a few months before the events described in a main Defiant rulebook. You will be able to play as fallen Angels and Daeva, the ancient gods, and choose from several character creation options (no pre-designed characters). Aside from many NPCs and locations described in the book, there are six Threads and many Story Hooks to help the GM run the Chronicle without much effort. And if you get attached to your Characters, you can continue playing them in the main rulebook Chronicle.

Game rules highlights:

• There’s no simple “You succeeded” or “You failed” outcome. There’s always a choice, an obstacle, or some trouble involved, but also bonuses, unexpected benefits, and lucky turns of events.
• Players can influence the story by using different Theme Questions, tailored to playing their chosen Themes. The “Gem” Character can ask, “How am I the center of this event?” or the Guide can ask, “Who approaches me about my teachings?”.
• Instead of Skills or Attributes, the Characters have descriptive Traits the Players can use creatively. The Traits may sound like “Athletic body,” “Thrives during tournaments,” “Knows how to charm,” “Acclaimed style.”