''CORE Command'' is a

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, or abbreviated as RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out ...

published by

Dream Pod 9 Dream Pod 9 (DP9), formerly Ianus Games, is a Montreal-based Canadian game publisher. Its most notable products are ''Heavy Gear'', ''Jovian Chronicles'', ''Tribe 8 (role-playing game), Tribe 8'', and ''Gear Krieg'', as well as the Silhouette role ...

since 2003. It introduces a far future

space opera Space opera is a subgenre of science fiction that emphasizes Space warfare in science fiction, space warfare, with use of melodramatic, risk-taking space adventures, relationships, and chivalric romance. Set mainly or entirely in outer space, i ...

universe for

role-playing Role-playing or roleplaying is the changing of one's behaviour to assume a role, either unconsciously to fill a social role, or consciously to act out an adopted role. While the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' offers a definition of role-playing ...

, featuring advanced science, gigantic

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle that is designed spaceflight, to fly and operate in outer space. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including Telecommunications, communications, Earth observation satellite, Earth observation, Weather s ...

and epic space battles.

Setting

Across the galaxies, sentient races are being awakened to defend their existence against an encroaching evil that menaces the entire space-time continuum. Brave heroes must step forward to protect reality, else the universe itself may crumble into nothingness. ''CORE Command'' taps into the legends and archetypes that power the

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

myths Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

, with technology so powerful as to be virtually indistinguishable from magic. Its wide-open, galactic-scale setting is intended to put

player characters A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...

at the center of the action, not on the sidelines, while still providing a common story backbone.

System

''CORE Command'' is based on the ''Silhouette'' game engine, a streamlined set of rules that is already described in

Heavy Gear ''Heavy Gear'' is a mecha science fiction game universe published since 1994 by Canadian publisher Dream Pod 9. It includes a Tabletop game, tabletop tactical Wargaming, wargame, a role-playing game, and a combat card game (''Heavy Gear Fighter' ...

and

Jovian Chronicles ''Jovian Chronicles'' is a science fiction game setting published by Dream Pod 9 since 1997. It introduces a complete universe for role-playing and wargaming space combat featuring mecha, giant spacecraft, and epic space battles. The ''Jovian C ...

's other successful

games. The Silhouette rules used in ''CORE Command'' are sold separately as a book titled ''Silhouette CORE Rulebook.'' ''Silhouette'' is a realistic, simulationist system that defines characters in terms of 10 base attributes (agility, knowledge, etc.), 5 derived attributes (health, etc.), and a variety of skills. Skill rolls make up the backbone of the system, which focuses on effect-based speed of play over grainy detail. The core mechanic involves rolling a number of 6-sided dice, taking the highest result and comparing it to a set threshold number. If the result is higher than the threshold the test is a success; if it is lower the test is a failure. The margin by which the test succeeded (Margin of Success, MoS) or failed (Margin of Failure, MoF) helps to determine the outcome. Combat is handled by the same system, with characters taking penalty-inflicting wounds rather than depleting a set number of health points. As a result, the system can be lethal, especially on inexperienced characters. ''CORE Command'' and its supplements were dual-statted as ''SilCORE'' for both ''Silouette'' and d20 gaming. The latter were not as complete or accurate as the native ''SilCORE'' stats, however.

Reception

Reviews

*''

Pyramid A pyramid () is a structure whose visible surfaces are triangular in broad outline and converge toward the top, making the appearance roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be of any polygon shape, such as trian ...

References

{{reflist

External links

Official ''CORE Command'' homepage
Canadian role-playing games Dream Pod 9 games Space opera role-playing games Role-playing games introduced in 2003