Making an Exalted Setting Together

or A Way to Run Exalted

With apologies to Vincent Baker

and special thanks to consilium

Hey you, Storyteller, Game Master, whatever!

Setting Creation
Tone
Blue Sky Days
Twilight of Heroism
After the Sunset
A Glorious Dawn
Themes
Glory
Greed
Justice
Love
Survival
War
Choosing a Location
Setting The Table
Groups of Interest
Important Persons
Notable Places
Character Creation!
Personal History
Personal Goals
Starting the Game
Be Excellent To One Another
The Art of Storytelling
Alternative Character Development Methods
Pyramid Character Creation

Hey you, Storyteller, Game Master, whatever!

Hello! Please read this first!
In many roleplaying games, you are created as the ultimate arbiter of the setting. The titles you are
given, Master, Teller, leave you as the one who supposedly has the power to do whatever you want
with the game, because you can simply tell others what happens. This is coded into the rules of
many games, leaving this one player - leaving you - as the final arbiter.

Let's not do that. Hold on! Let me tell you why.

To be sure, in Exalted, you are going to have to make many decisions about what best fits the Tone of
the game, and you are going to have the power to judge a thing and make the call about whether it is
right or wrong. But you make those decisions with the other players. If you were here just to make
a story with no input, or even a "choose your own adventure," with strict branching paths, you could
go write that. If you aren't a great writer, you could make a Visual Novel and split the difference.

The reality of it, however, is that this is a cooperative game. You're running something together with
other people, and either it has a potential to go off from your predecided courses of action, or you're
just writing the story to yourself. You're working together, and hopefully creating a story that
surprises and interests everyone! Unfortunately, Exalted itself assumes the player group inherently
has the ability to cooperatively generate the setting and improvise. But what if it doesn't? For that
purpose, this booklet outlines an approach to creating the setting together with the other players,
and advice on improvisation.

But first, you have to set aside your own expectations of how things are "supposed to go." Throw out
your plot. Throw out your intended climactic scenes and the carefully scripted denouement. Throw
out your false choices, and definitely throw out "roll to see if you find the plot." I'm going to try to
teach you how to allow the story of the game to happen organically, as a natural process with the
rest of the players. If nothing else, sharing a little bit more of your burden with the other players at
the table will have less of the game with you on the spot, making it a bit more easy to run. But the
result can also surprise and entertain, and for that alone, it will be more interesting and worth the
journey.

Setting Creation
The first step in running a game of Exalted is to create the setting everyone is going to play in, and
here we're going to do it together. You might say, "but the setting is obviously Creation!" But even
allowing for that, and not a game set in one of the more exotic locales or some variant on the setting,
there's huge gaps of possibility in where the game could be, and what the game could be like.

Before anyone does character creation, do this first. It's very hard to fit a setting around a character,
and making a sheet first before the setting is decided on is a sure recipe for a bad fit. It will also
help provide ideas for characters. This will probably take much of the first session's worth of effort,
and people can spend the rest of it hashing out their sheets together, so budget time accordingly.

It helps if at least one person has familiarized themselves with this document and can guide the rest
through the process if necessary. However, making decisions as you read along is perfectly fine, and
in fact that is the intent of this document. Just start here and work your way forward.
Tone
The most fundamental issue of "what is your Exalted game like" is decided by its Tone and scope, of
which there are a few major possibilities. Everyone gets to speak up, and all players are equal here.
Whatever your group's decision here, make sure people can live with it. Likewise, everyone should
discuss what they want, specifically, out of a given Tone - if the players want Blue Sky Days because
they want something specifically upbeat, that is different from another game where there is more
ambiguity but it is still about problems that can be solved by punching them in the face.

Blue Sky Days

The world of Creation is an Age of Sorrow, in the ashes of a shattered empire. . . but under these
Blue-Sky Days, the player's characters are the Big Damn Heroes, here to set things right with two
kicks and a daiklave. Things can go wrong, and the world is not automatically nice, but if the heroes
win, no one has to die this time. The player's characters have ordinary human foibles, but they are
all decent people at heart, and some of them are even idealistic. Most importantly, they have friends
they laugh together with, and the reason they can make good on their aims to make the world better
is because they're a living example of it, shining as a light against the darkness even if they're rough
around the edges, or weird, or simply the manliest women around.

The scope usually begins small, with the heroes and their friends, and expands as the heroes make
more friends and allies, moving from overpowering strictly local threats to regional ones to
punching Balor in his eye. A frequent return to the heroes' hometown is common, however, as the
reason to take on the world is the people they care about - friends and family. Not all conflicts are
strictly physical, and temptation takes many forms, but in the end the heroes will soundly defeat the
corrupt.
Source Material: Every shounen anime ever, your average JRPG, Star Wars, Conan, Michael Bay
Movies

Twilight of Heroism
Many heroes are willing to pay the ultimate price in achieving their goals, to make the world a
better place. But what happens when those heroes know that they could march to die. . . without
anything going well? In the Twilight of Heroism, the line between victory and defeat is narrow. The
players take on the roles of those heroes who stand against the tide of darkness, even though it
costs them dearly to do so. These are often deeply flawed characters who must grapple with their
own vices, but in the end some goodness usually shines through - or at least, their wrath will be
directed at the deserving. These characters might be doomed already, but often when they die it
was because they were unmade by their own hands.

The focus of such a game takes on a fairly personal aspect. Because ethical quandaries are more
likely to arise here than anywhere else, they need to be situated in a place where cause and effect
really matter. Local, very focused games are common, though the story could easily expand to take
on an entire city-state and its surroundings, as the heroes slowly clean up the town and become
responsible for it thereby. Wandering games can work, but often continue to bump into narrow
situations with deeply personal conflicts. Either way, though the characters are heroes, heroism is a
difficult task, and often the question isn't whether you can kill someone, it's whether you should.
Source Material: Nordic epics, Greek epics, Cowboy Bebop, Elric

After the Sunset

Not all of the Exalted are things you would really call "heroes" nowadays. Oh, they are still heroic. .
. in the sense of the Bronze Age, where might made right and the biggest virtue was your ability to
overtake others, by force of arm or force of wits. The world is indifferent to its own fallen state, and
the players take on characters who are willing to abuse that fact. With their force majeure, they
might not be making the world a worse place than it is, but its not exactly getting better under their
hand. There's no pretense of virtue here, and those who struggle to do good often lose their way, or
are slain by the less timid.

Such a game is usually more appropriate to already powerful Exalted - experienced, Essence 2 and
higher characters. The story becomes less about the question of whether someone will flout the
taboo, or pay what price, or if they can defeat the opposition, and more about what they won't do.
What bits of moral character do they have left, and will that too be cast away in the power-plays of
these demigods which use mortals as pawns? The scope, naturally, tends to be a bit larger, with
intercity politics being standard fare, but the story should still cut back to their own queendom, so
they can see the cost of their rule - or the glory their own city enjoys, because of its enslavement of
others.
Source Material: A Game of Thrones, Thieves' World

A Glorious Dawn
With the return of the Solar Exalted, comes an age of grandeur and majesty once more - or perhaps
the reign of a Lunar queen finally pays off, and the ideals of her beastman utopia make good. The
heroes are not mere actors in the setting, but shapers of the world, and they recreate the
environment around them on a massive scale. Every action must be weighed carefully, because
their power can have an unstoppable domino effect - but carefully managed, this will not be a
destructive pyre, but a brilliant light against the darkness of the Age of Sorrows that will eventually
illuminate the world.

There is a lot of temptation to go directly to this mode of play, but in actuality, this final approach to
a story is usually the result of another story evolving beyond its start, as the middle or endpoint of
many games. It requires a much larger setting to reflect its impact, which also means it needs more
of that setting to be explored before people actually can see the difference. As a result, the opening
stages of such stories play out more like one of the other game modes anyways. So, it works best to
discuss this mode as a possibility, but to start the Tone off elsewhere. Transitioning to this can be
done when everyone feels like they have something relevant to contribute. In particular, this bears
many similarities to an After the Sunset game, but with wonderment and optimism instead of an
inherently cynical story about "hard men making hard choices," and warlords seeking to redeem
their own ruthlessness are one possible transition point.
Source Material: Dune
You left out a thing!
Well, no, these four Tones are not complete or definitive, but they are meant to encapsulate what
most Exalted games are about or like or intended to be akin to. Don't sweat trying to match the
Tone dead-on - there are more and less serious takes on any given genre, after all.

Themes
Related to but not identical with Tone are Themes. While the Tone sets the overarching feel for the
game, Themes inform the players and the Storyteller about what kind of actions the game is going to
cover. "Dark and gritty" or "bright and cheery" do not themselves a genre make. In particular, they
highlight the chief motivations present in the setting that will inspire action, and shadow the rest of
the story. The group should select at least one Theme for the game, but two Themes can be used,
especially if they are particularly compatible.

However, unlike Tone, Themes usually shift around as a game progresses. What concerns the
heroes can quickly evolve if political disaster thrusts one into exile, or they finally do acquire wealth
beyond even their own reckoning. As a result, when a major Theme is resolved for good, the group
should probably discuss where to go next - or if they should end the story, with one final arc to serve
as the epilogue to the game.

Glory
In every scenario, the Exalted are heroic figures, whether they are motivated by high ideals such as
justice or base ones such as the next meal. But some want fame more than anything else. Their goal
is to hear their name sung, whether it is because they want a legacy after their death or desire the
praises of today. Others bear the burden of upholding the honour of their family, or have set
themselves upon the task of building something with meaning. Stories revolving around this theme
deal often with the houses of nobility, maintaining one's reputation, and scarring the land with
monuments to one's name.
Source Material: The Epic of Gilgamesh

Greed
They say that you can't buy love, but what else can you buy? The Exalted have the means to acquire
wealth beyond reason, but they can have equally vast appetites, expanding their budget past
sensical levels. Tomb raiding, mercantilism, and heists all feature prominently in this Theme, as the
quest for more money takes the heroes along to the next plan. While this Theme might soon be
resolved if the heroes achieve great success time and time again, the consequences of these actions
tend to shadow the rest of the story, providing plenty of narrative grist for the mill.
Source Material: Ocean's Eleven, Indiana Jones

Justice
Corruption prevails, and it is up to the heroes to do something about it - or take advantage of the
same. This Theme doesn't mandate that all the heroes are fighting for justice, but the story is still
one about crime and punishment, specifically. They might be independent vigilantes pursuing
personal vendettas across the land, members of the local constabulary, or an actual gang of thugs,
but the night watchmen might find themselves on the take as easily as the gangsters might be
putting the boots to someone for being "the wrong kind of thug." Due to its nature, you should
discuss this in greater detail even more so than most other themes.
Source Material: Judge Dee, The 47 Ronin, The Water Margin

Love
While most people's ideas about Exalted aren't the bodice-rippers of the Romance genre, it remains
as a prominent theme in myths and legends, such as Orpheus' descent for his love. This theme most
naturally situates itself in the stories of aristocrats, which the Princes of the Earth naturally qualify
as, because romance stories often are complicated by either their obligations to politics, such as
promised brides, or the chief business of the aristocratic class - war. It also doesn't have to rely
entirely on passionate love, either, as the familial devotion of brother to brother can at times run
deeper than vows between two people who just met a couple years ago.
Source Material: The Ramayana

Survival
Supplies are in a crunch. Either there's not enough food to go around, or all the food is on
something that wants to eat you first. While the Exalted can be expected to endure such hardship, it
may take all their wits if they want to build up such meager resources into a monument befitting
their glory - or to simply not wind up on the dinner table themselves, as scarce food can mean
predators are willing to hunt more dangerous prey. This Theme tends to be resolved over time as
the Exalted can travel or invoke the Benediction of Archgenesis, but many such quests for the
"promised land" dot fiction - and even more stories about the brutal conflicts for when they get
there.
Source Material: Turok, Odyssey, Book of Exodus

War
Many stories of the Exalted can potentially lead to war, but in this case, one has already started or is
about to begin - and it might have even already finished, leaving wounded veterans, ruined homes,
and noticeable gaps in someone's power structure. This leaves the heroes to pick up the pieces,
marshal their forces, and step into new conflicts, as the battlefield forever hungers for more blood.
Deciding where to situate the game relative to the conflict will obviously have a profound impact on
where the story goes, but the stories will be of battle and its effects all the same.
Source Material: The Iliad, Book of Judges

Not Created Equal

The themes that the group agrees on are not necessarily all going to be equally represented in a
game, but likewise, you don't have to pick a theme for minor elements of it to show up. The players
do not have to, as a consensus, agree on Love as a theme for someone's romantic entanglement to
ever be a plot point. However, it will direct the camera - a story primarily about Glory might treat
such a relationship as a minor sidenote, lingering primarily on the impact it has on power and
political influence. Obviously, if something becomes more prominent than other elements in the
story, such as a game that has a war brewing that could impact the heroes greatly, the players may
wish to pause to discuss how they wish to engage with this as a new Theme.

Choosing a Location
The next step is to choose a location for the game. Don't get overly fixated on the precise placement
of it on the map, as heroes tend to move around a bit. Instead, think in terms of distance into
Directions, and how those affect the shape of a game. Even a story that isn't itself about Survival
may take on some minor notes of such if it is situated into the far North, as a time of plenty does not
prevent death by exposure. Choose one, or two to get an ordinal direction or address a special case,
and consider whether they are near or far into the directions in question.

South
The noonday heat of the South is well-known for baking madness and religion in to humanity, but
the environment is otherwise receptive, allowing for most fairly "normal" stories to take place in the
near South. In addition, the presence of plentiful gems means trade is an important element,
leaving Greed as a particularly appropriate Theme here. But the open fields also bring plenty of
room for cataphracts to maneuver and immolate their opposition with firedust in times of War.

West
Even the "near West" is a remote and distant place, separated by expanses of water that limits travel
to the wealthy or the insane. This means a game will either be isolated to an island around the size
of Japan, or sharply influenced by the heroes exploiting an advantage that not everyone has. It takes
some wealth to put together an oceangoing voyage, while itself being quite profitable for the Greedy,
but a single shipwreck can make the story turn to Survival.

North
Most of the near North is fairly solidly in the hold of the Realm, but the further north one goes, the
weaker its grip. Winter claims all, however, and the theme of Survival is ever-present, even in
stories inside the sorcerously insulated cities. However, the struggle to endure for another
generation also raises again and again the quest for meaning and Glory inside that fight, as family
traditions are often all that keeps them alive.

East
They say that in the East, everything happens. However, the River Province is more and more
fraught with danger, with Dynastic Houses marshaling independent armies that do not always
remember the Realm's previous defeats in the East, and the slow advance of Juggernaut across the
land could bring war anywhere. In the rest of the Scavenger Lands, however, life goes on - low,
scumsucking life that it often is, and the strong presence of the Guild's corruption makes it a natural
fit for tales of bringing Justice to cretinous merchants.
The Blessed Isle
Standing at the center of it all, the titan of the Realm remains unquestioned and unchallenged in its
seat of power, except by itself. Stories are likely to involve the inner politicking of the Houses here,
and the outward consequences of them as well. Here one is especially likely to find star-crossed
lovers - or jilted demigods deciding that if they can't have his Love, then no one can. Likewise, the
proud lineage of Dynastic lines can challenge them with tales of Glory.

Traveling
Rather than a set location, the group is associated with or forms a caravan or ship that makes its
rounds across the countryside. This means the actual "setting" is the group that they travel with,
and it should be given similar attention to detail as with other setting creation, but the background
environment and characters there will change on a regular basis. Often it will be every session, as
the heroes ride in, address what they must, and ride out. This is more demanding on a Storyteller
than most options, but can be an especially helpful setup for more relaxed "adventure of the week"
play, or providing continuous novel dilemmas for darker Tones.

Other Worlds
In addition to all of the Directions of Creation, the group may desire to situate their game partially
or completely in one of the more unusual places that are associated with but apart from Creation -
not merely the irregularities of demesnes, but a place such as Malfeas, or the Underworld. This
decision requires the most discussion and planning, as these settings are usually fairly unusual and
require more effort for players to wrap their heads around, but if everyone's on board it can provide
a very interesting game.

A Specific Place?
It's not necessary to choose an exact location here, but if everyone wants to they can drop the game
into an already described place in the book. It doesn't, however, remove the burden of the rest of
setting creation. Even the most detailed setting book only creates an outline that is not immediately
relevant to the heroes, requiring them to fill in the groups and individuals which they will be
interacting with.

Setting The Table

You've picked out your Tones and Themes, and chosen a rough location. Now it is time to create any
notable groups, people, and places that the heroes are liable to interact with. While these can be
visited one by one, there's no particular reason you can't simply address them all at the same time,
as a group might easily have a person associated with it, and vice versa. Keep in mind that
individual players can also add more to the immediate setting by taking Merits such as Followers
and Manse - these are ones that are hopefully of interest to everyone, instead of one player.

When generating these, the way that usually works best is to go around the table and have everyone
chip in an idea. It isn't automatically necessary for everyone to contribute exactly one group, one
person, and one place, but as long as everyone has some idea for something, it usually works out to
a pretty good number. Likewise, while ideas can be improved by bouncing them between players,
this part is less about consensus and more about throwing things at a wall and seeing what sticks.

More of all of these will be constructed in play. The purpose of this step is to seed the setting with
initial ideas so that more naturally branch out from them, following the pattern of humanity's fractal
creativity.

Groups of Interest
The nature of the groups people propose should be relatively informed by Tone and Themes. Here
are some sample groups to start people off with. Anything you suggest should be relevant to the
heroes in some way - sure, some bureaucrats exist in most cities somewhere but they won't matter
unless the game is highly political in nature. Focus on those people who could wind up opposing or
supporting the heroes.

* The Shaman-Priests: The local priesthood are a common group everywhere, who barter with the
gods and often serve as the literal mouthpiece through which the divine speaks. In stories about
Survival, they take on an especially important element, as the divine must be pleased to gain even
momentary relief from unending drought.
* The Bigger Fish: In stories about Greed with a more economic focus, the usual threat to the
heroes is someone who has the bigger, better, slicker operation. Whether a longtime overlord of the
market scene or a newcomer with strange investments, these people are marked by their
ruthlessness and willingness to do what it takes to stomp out the competition.
* The Corrupt Constabulary: A staple of games about Justice is the fact that whoever is supposed
to mind the law here... isn't. The most common reason is that the cops are themselves on the take,
though they could be lazy, incompetent, or bound by the technicalities of their office.
* The Tea Society: Just an ordinary gathering of some people for tea. What? Those rumors? No, of
course its not a night-long party. There's definitely no backroom deals that take place there, and its
not at all the kind of masquer's revel where you might find your Love in anonymity. I don't
understand where you get these silly ideas.
* The Insurgent Rebels: Not every War is popular in one's homeland. Often a state's greatest
enemies lie within its borders. It may be up to the heroes to coopt, squelch, or join the rebellion.
* The Masonic Circle: Simply that, a bunch of stoneworkers. They architect buildings in the area,
and thereby have an incredibly large impact on the local geomancy. They also could be persuaded,
with the right donations, to build a statue to one's Glory, and it is by their leave that one may
construct a palace.

Important Persons
Here, you want to go around the table and suggest story characters who either provide an
interesting person that the heroes might find relevant, or someone who is sufficiently important to
the setting itself that they will feature in stories about it anyways. Either works, or something else,
as long as the non-player character has as much of an "in" to the game as the players do. As with
groups, the characters should be appropriate for the Tones and Themes in question.

* The Medicine Man: Most of the menfolk scoff at the idea of setting aside hunting for picking
flowers, but he's the best herbalist they've had in years. The visions he's had are a troubling sign,
however, of divine portents... or perhaps a growing addiction, but either gods or bad herbs could
threaten the man important to everyone's Survival.
* The Fence: If you steal something, you usually have to offload it somewhere if you want to actually
satisfy your Greed. This is the person who does that. As a side benefit, they usually are fairly
knowledgeable about the rest of the criminal underworld, for obvious reasons, and while they prize
discretion, they are willing to provide information, too, for a price.
* The Honest Thief: It would be an exaggeration to say he never lies, but there's often that one
criminal that tries to be upfront in everything he does. It's not because of any high-minded ideals of
Justice, even though he often serves that cause indirectly. He just prefers to make his shady living
with less of the backstabbing and double-dealing that usually comes with it.
* An Infatuated God: The heroes aren't the only actors in stories about Love and romance. Many
stories of Creation tell about the god who fell in love with her mortal paramour, only to forget key
elements of her humanity. The Exalted may try to unite the two across their differences, or find
their own flirtations attract divine wrath.
* The Retired General: Many armies fight their wars today in response to the battlefield conditions
of yesterday. That may not be the case, however, now that this general has quit the field to a simple
farming life, and taken with her a trove of military secrets and information.
* The High Priest: He sets the festival calendar, and by doing so he tells people who and when and
how to worship for a large area. The high priest has the power to extoll the Glory of an Exalted hero,
or snub them and turn to other gods.

Notable Places
You only need one or two locations of interest for the group to interact with, and this step is the
most optional of the three. Feel free to skip it. However, Exalted is full of strange forests full of
whispering voices, or mausoleums where the dead speak, and an interesting place can become as
much if not more inspiration for stories and scenes.

* The Sacred Tree: It is said, if two lovers tie a twining ribbon to the boughs of the sacred tree, that
if they must part one day, they will always be reunited with their Love again.
* The Secret Passages: In War, often the best advantage is one that your enemies don't know about.
But what if even you don't know much about the rumoured secret passages underneath the city?
* The Clandestine Casino: Many locations ban gambling, preferring that their citizenry direct their
money to the state's coffers instead of the hands of what are often criminal organizations. This
doesn't mean the gambling goes away, it just goes underground to elude Justice.
* The Forbidden Vale: None are permitted to hunt here, by divine edict, but the creatures that
roam here have plenty of meat on their bones. Are the heroes prepared to poach from the gods in
order to help the tribe's Survival, or do they have to stop someone from doing the same?
* The Ruined Queendom: Long ago, scavengers picked away at the edges of this fallen civilization,
taking what easy treasure could be found. But the true contents of its inner city remains a mystery,
and there is much Glory to be had by being the first to tell of what lies inside.
* The Haunted Mines: It's filled with ghosts, but it has jade down there! Just bring a little salt and
it'll be worth the risk, surely. A little Greed is good, sometimes.
Character Creation!
After you have your assemblage of possible hooks, persons, and features available, its time for the
players to create characters! And hopefully talk it out with each other. Exalted character creation
takes a while, so some ways to accelerate that are provided at the back of this text.

Personal History
When working out characters, its very tempting to create detailed and elaborate histories which
cover every single moment of the character's history from the moment they first gained memory up
to the moment they Exalted. Or to add almost nothing at all. Either of these are inappropriate.
Instead, think of where they came from in their walk of life, and then think one particularly
important event that impacted your character in some way. They needn't even be aware of the
cause, but the character should develop some strong feelings about the effect! Write those down.
It's perfectly okay to use this as part of your Exaltation story, as long as it is the event that impacted
them more than just Exaltation; characters usually develop some opinion of their ascension to the
ranks of heroes anyways.

The Storyteller is also encouraged to ask questions here. If they need more history for the character,
now is the time for them to prompt you for more. But a lot of the time having a decent idea of where
they're from, what impact the world has had on them, and what they think about it will provide
sufficient information alone. Most movie characters get by on as much, even in film which explore
them in emotional and psychological depth.

Personal Goals
In addition to history, the player should think of one reasonable goal for the Exalt to achieve.
Obviously something that they haven't yet. Get specific. You can even make up something, adding a
target into the setting. No one detailed the Ziggurat of Chixitotli that your treasure hunter wants to
raid? Throw it in. Mention it to the group and Storyteller, obviously, so no one else is surprised, or
so they can offer suggestions. You are generating characters together, right? Throw out an e-mail if
not. Expect the Storyteller to ask questions about your goal, and any parts to it.

Don't set your goal too far into the future or too far away. It shouldn't be open-ended either. We
want something they want to do right now. Its perfectly fine if your Exalt achieves their first goal in
the very first session. Hopefully they can think of something else to do, or something else happens
to them as a result of their success, that propels the story forward. If not, there's three other goals
at the table, and unless everyone had the same one, you can continue moving forward by addressing
those.

If you do resolve a goal, write down another one somewhere on your sheet. Its fine if you can't
think of one until the session starts, but it will be a great help if you can throw something out as
soon as possible. It won't just give the Storyteller an idea of what your character is after, it will give
you an idea of what to do next in the story.
Starting the Game
Once the players have finished writing up their characters, it is up to them to answer how they've
met each other. And just for reference, yes, they have. No one has to start as anyone's best friend,
but it's hard to work in That Gal Over There if no one's heard of her. There's games which work well
with the setup of a random crew gathered together by some outside agent. Exalted is not one of
them, and the heroes are generally expected to act on their own desires, not serve as hired help. It's
easier, of course, if your characters reasonably share a common bond over something, but anything
is acceptable. "They were dueling just now over some imagined slight but got exhausted and
decided to stop for drinks" is fine.

Even if your characters are not closely related to each other by some common origin or goal, they
still have plenty of reason to deal primarily with each other. As the heroes, they're liable to stand
head and shoulders above the rest of the crowd, even if they are "mere" mortals. And if everyone
keeps in mind the Tone and Themes of the game as they generate characters, they actually will
probably have very compatible goals even if they are not identical. A bit of tit-for-tat can go a long
way in pulling the characters together through their initial dealings, even if they have less history
with each other.

Speaking of, now that you have your setting and characters together, its time for everyone to
actually start off with the game. It’s tempting to go with an in medias res action-fueled kickoff, but
most stories don't quite begin that way. The climactic finish of the first episode happens after the
characters are introduced. It's the Storyteller's option as to how to set the initial scene, however,
but usually the best way is to figure out what the characters are likely to be doing on any given day
and get acquainted with both them and the setting that way.

This doesn't mean it has to be boring. The characters, after all, are Exalted, and prone to living
highly interesting lives. The players should always expect questions as the scene is set, and think
about what a typical day for an Exalt is like. If they're some kind of bounty hunter or sword for hire,
do they have a client at the moment, or are they just wandering between jobs? If they are a
sorcerous antiquarian, are they blowing the dust off of some bleak tome that they stole from a
library? The entire first session might be a bit slow, but it can still be quite interesting.

Usually, it’s right after the Storyteller gets a loose grip on the setting and the characters that they
throw something in that changes everything up. This doesn't mean "then they start the plot." It
means they present something that prompts the heroes to really respond, and show what they're
made of. Hopefully with all this stuff put together you have something to really explore and
entertain everyone with instead of a scripted narrative of events.

Be Excellent To One Another

The main point of the game you are about to play is to enjoy yourselves. To have "fun." What is fun
and interesting to people varies widely, which is part of why this document is so long and attempts
to tackle so many variations of games that people might want to run. With a single system, no less!
But enjoyment remains the goal, even if some people define it as the emotional catharsis from
struggling through awfulness and some people define it as pounding gods into rubble.

So when you play this game, try to remember that the easiest way you can make it more enjoyable
for everyone at the table is simply being polite to them. Nice, even. Many games are online
nowadays, and you might not be able to see or hear the other players at the table, but remember
simply that they are other people too. Be respectful and sincere. When someone contributes
something you think is cool, say so. If someone is worried, it costs you very little to reassure them.

Sometimes, being asked to call upon the powers of your creativity to tell part of a story and assume
another role will strain the mind, even with three or five other people helping. People stress out
over the strangest things. If this happens, don't panic, and be patient with them. Reassure them. If
they act rudely, then don't stoop to their level. Politely reprimand, if necessary. Most people, even
the ones who lash out when stressed, have the decency to be properly mortified when the matter is
pointed out to them. For the ones who don't apologize, well, you don't have to invite them back. For
those who do, please remember: we're only human, or sometimes-defective gynoids.

If there's creative differences between two players in the game, and that includes the Storyteller and
anyone else, the fastest way to resolve that is to have a conversation. Address what needs to happen
in order to make both parties happy. Sometimes these differences are irreconcileable. If so, it
serves everyone the best if they find out now rather than later. But if they can be resolved
peacefully, the only real way is for people to talk it out and present their concerns. Lots of games
are destroyed by passive-aggressive bickering.

Finally, remember! There are other people involved in this game. They are other individuals with
hopes and dreams and a triple digit IQ. It costs you very little to try to be positive, considerate, and
mindful of others, and it can have profound benefits on the session. Even when it does take an extra
second to check yourself, it can improve an entire game session, or at least spare people the ruin of
a stupid argument that leads to everyone going to their respective corners until next week.

The Art of Storytelling

"When the Master governs, the people are hardly aware that he exists. Next best is a leader who is
loved... If you don't trust the people, you make them untrustworthy."

As a Storyteller for Exalted, the first and most important principle is to remember that while you
occupy a distinct role, you must remember that you are a player in this game. This means that not
only are you here to be entertained by the game, too, but that everyone else at the table is equal to
you. Its not on your shoulders to come up with everything and make the magic happen. You are not
a one man band. It takes two to tango. Feel free to ask other players to contribute, especially in the
early games. Ask questions. "What is your favourite local teahouse?" "What did the bastard do to
your wife?"

However, you do get a special role, and you can't back down from that. You put the Storyteller hat
on, after all. But the primary aspect of your role is as facilitator, not lord and master. Usually people
will treat you as having authority, but your real job is to confirm their place in the game and setting.
So consider that when someone asks you a question about, for example, the rules. They're not just
asking you "what do the rules say?" Usually, they have a favoured interpretation, so ask what that is
while you read it. If their reading sounds cool, roll with it. If it sounds off, throw your idea out.
Come to an agreement, and then you put your stamp of approval on it. Same goes with the rest of
the setting. If people are uncertain about something, make sure you know why, if it isn't obvious,
and then resolve that. Especially if you have new players to the system, reassure them. The rules
can be intimidating.

The most common game question is "what do I see? What do I hear?" Resist the temptation to say
"Awareness check!" If someone has a Charm, let them use it and give them more, but you should just
tell people what they hear or see. Especially if it is something plot-relevant. If there's a clue, let
them find it when they say they search the room instead of demanding an Investigation check.
Awareness already gets rolled when opposing Stealth, for Join Battle, and so on. Let Perception
checks be for actual benefits, like an extra edge over their opposition, or tracking down a cold trail,
or something else above and beyond the call of simply having eyes and ears and being smart enough
to use them.

In many gaming circles, a common admonishment to Storytellers is "say yes, or roll the dice." The
corollary is that something interesting has to happen when the dice hit the table, or you just wasted
that roll. If the consequence is that people manage to bumble past interesting things in the story,
throw it out. If you can't think of a meaningful consequence for failure, don't ask for a roll, just
presume success; the players are demigods, after all. If you can, lay it out first, especially if the risk
is personal to the character, and especially if the risk is not obvious from context. Your mission is
not to play "gotcha!" with the other players, and they will want to know if now is a good time to
pump their Excellency or not.

Your role as an Exalted Storyteller is to help bring out the tales of awesome from a gaggle of setting
bits and some hopefully interesting heroes. Even if the characters are mortal, give them the
opportunity to use their abilities, including their smaller abilities. Exalted lets you set difficulties
for rolls, but seriously look at those difficulties against what's in the book. Difficulty 5 feats are
almost impossible, beyond the bounds of most characters, even godlings. If something is difficulty
3, it requires a decent amount of focus, even for a hero, to reasonably beat. Difficulty 1 covers
picking a lock. Not "a nearly broken, rusty lock," a lock. Scale the awesome to the difficulty. If the
stakes are not so high, if there is nothing exceptional to be gained or lost by performing an action,
don't set it at an exceptional difficulty - and always consider just saying yes.

Try to promote the characters at every turn. Get interested in them. Ask questions about the
character, and ask the player what they think is awesome about the character. Even if a player turns
over a character sheet that you can't think of anything to do with, ask them what's cool about them.
They're presumably a fan of the idea, so see what the player thinks is awesome about it. Figure out
the story built into the character! There's usually at least one. Throw out some suggestions, and see
what they like about those. You've all created the setting beforehand, and they've created a
character that can be worked into the setting, so work with them to do so.

Exalted is not a low preparation game. Look at this entire document. The entire first part of it was
given over to telling you how to prepare for an Exalted chronicle. But don't sweat everything. When
you prepare something, you aren't planning out a specific course of events. You are making
something happen that hopefully is interesting, that will engage the players, and prompt them to
respond to it, and look deeper into it. No plot, just scenarios. And sure, since this is Exalted you're
writing some stats down on the designated violence kings and the like. Use the Quick Characters
rules from the book wherever possible, and take only the most important elements of their
character; if the players don't interact with someone, you don't want to have wasted a whole lot of
time jotting down an elaborate Charm tree, and it lets you rethink their possible role. Anticipate the
players to meet up with people eventually, however. It's not a big deal if you only use some of your
notes this session.

It's very tempting to have all the opposition you prepare be a formidable threat that will potentially
overturn all the player's perfectly set up plans and clean their clocks or whatever. Don't do this.
Look at the stats for a soldier in the book. 7 dice to attack. That's a Realm legionnaire. That's not
only the baseline representative of all the warriors in the entire setting, that's the 7 dice to attack
that has crushed the world under their sandaled heel. If someone has 8 dice to attack on their
sheet, they aren't saying "eh, I'm only so-so in combat next to Rex Occidi over there and his 13 dice."
They're saying "I can duel a real soldier to the death and probably win." Sure, the soldier won't fight
fair, as they usually bring at least four friends to any conflict, even bar brawls, but neither do the
Exalted. Emphasize the opposition making sense over making it "challenging." The fact that they've
torn through a Legion's worth of infantry in previous battles, or bent entire city-states to their
whims, will make the one opponent who actually stands up to them more memorable.

Remember that Exalted is a power fantasy. The major point of the opposition the heroes face is to
reveal the qualities of their heroic character. In the case of combat mooks, that is usually to grant
them an opportunity to look cool. There's no one there, no human mind or soul behind them. Such
random characters do not have inherent value of their own. No one actually loses their pride if
Sparrow begs for the heroes to spare his life. Indeed, failing to reveal how awesome the player
characters are means these mooks fail their one role in the short life of their screen time.

Likewise, a power fantasy does not mean "wins forever." Eventually you do want a Holyfield to come
around to take their Tyson out. As a Storyteller, Exalted grants you an alarming amount of latitude
to say "your actions fulfill the obscure summoning qualifications of a powerful 3rd Circle Demon.
She steps out from a gate to Malfeas and challenges you to a kung fu duel. Pay 11 willpower to resist
the compulsion to accept." Obviously, don't. Instead, give any threat which stands a serious chance
of defeating them the appropriate drama. Foreshadow the danger. Make it seem as ominous and
exciting as it is. Sell the players tickets to their showdown, and make them want to come to it, even
though they know they could lose.

This doesn't mean that players should not face death or disaster at any time other than carefully
prophesied events. Enkidu falls ill with a wasting sickness that quickly carries him to his deathbed.
While the story says that it was sent by the divine, mostly it serves as a cruel and random end.
Gilgamesh's entire quest is to avoid that same fate. Likewise, you should give a player the chance to
avert their demise, either physical, financial, or otherwise, by every means possible. Give them the
information they need to react appropriately, and let them roll for their longshot attempts to escape.
The Exalted are the sort of people who can walk away from everything bursting into flame. But if all
that fails, and they fall into the hands of those who take no prisoners? Let it end. Don't pull the final
punch, whether it happens on session 1 or 100, or you've done them a disservice.

On the flipside, that carefully orchestrated finale can also end in the sudden and abrupt demise of
the foe that was about to slay the heroes, as the Exalt reveals the power of their Five Hearts Die As
One Prana. Or a sufficiently large quantity of firedust. Likewise, you have to let the antagonist die.
Sure, the kinds of foes that stand up to the Exalted can often survive being thrown into a volcano,
but if they've really been finished off, let them stay down. There's value in such an anticlimax,
because its part of how roleplaying games create stories that surprise the tellers. Often, such an
ending can reinforce the themes of the game anyways, by telling a story of how no power can truly
hope to endure the Exalted.

Alternative Character Development Methods

Here are some character creation and advancement methods that are mostly designed to work out a
little faster than the baseline while also hopefully addressing some flaws in the basic way the
character generation and advancement mechanics work together.

Pyramid Character Creation

In this style of sheet generation, the player simply assigns fixed values to Attributes and Abilities.
This is designed to make it so the Experience value of sheets are very similar, bypassing the issues of
dots and BP in character generation, and their implications on future advancement. It also is
slightly more favourable than baseline character generation in its distributions, to make up for
points "lost" in the shuffle. Finally, it is simple - there is very little math involved, the main point of
dot-based character creation.

The value of Merits is hard to calculate because it varies with every Merit, and many Merits are not
Purchasable, making the question almost moot. As such, there is no special effort to figure Merits
into the calculations, or balance them. However, it should be noted that were they all Purchasable,
increasing Merits to high levels would be a highly advantageous use of points.
Pyramid Mortal Character Creation
This sheet provides 22 dots of Attributes, 31 dots of Abilities, 3 Specialties, 7 dots of Merits, and 3
dots of Willpower. Aside from Merits, the Experience value of a sheet generated in this fashion is
approximately 222. It should be noted that an Exalted character sheet would gain over 100
Experience from Charms alone.

Attributes
Assign one 4, three 3s, four 2s, and one 1.

Abilities
Choose 15 Abilities. Assign two 4s, three 3s, four 2s, and six 1s.
Choose 3 Specialties.

Advantages
Assign 7 dots of Merits. Willpower starts at 3.

Intimacies
Choose four. One is Defining, one is Major, one is positive, and one is negative.

Bonus Picks
Choose 12 points of. . .
Raise an Attribute from 1 to 3 (4)
Raise an Attribute from 3 to 4 (4)
New 3-dot Ability (3)
New 1-dot Ability (1)
New Specialty (1)
+1 Merits (1)
+1 Willpower (3)
Pyramid Solar Character Creation
This sheet provides 27 dots of Attributes, 35 dots of Abilities, 3 Specialties, 15 Charms, 10 dots of
Merits, and 5 dots of Willpower. Aside from Merits, the Experience value of a sheet generated in this
fashion is approximately 427, plus or minus 15 based on Charm selection. Transitioning a
developed Mortal sheet to one of the Solar Exalted, therefore, can be approached by adding 15
Charms, 3 Merits, 70 Experience, and refunding them 1 Experience per dot of Caste and Favored
Abilities. It'll add up to about the right amount.

Attributes
Assign one 5, two 4s, three 3s, two 2s, and one 1.

Abilities
Choose 5 Caste Abilities and 5 Favored Abilities. Assign one 5, one 4, two 3s, three 2s, and three 1s.
Choose a Supernal Ability.
Choose 7 other Abilities. Assign one 3, two 2s, and four 1s.
Choose 3 Specialties.

Advantages
Assign 10 dots of Merits. Choose 15 Charms. Willpower starts at 5.

Intimacies
Choose four. One is Defining, one is Major, one is positive, and one is negative.
Choose a Limit Trigger.

Bonus Picks
Choose 12 points of. . .
Raise an Attribute from 1 to 3 (4)
Raise an Attribute from 3 to 4 (4)
Raise a Caste or Favored Ability from 1 to 4 (3)
New 3-dot Ability (3)
New 1-dot Ability (1)
New Specialty (1)
+1 Merits (1)
+1 Willpower (4)