What would it take for you to buy a third edition of Exalted?, Part the Second... | Tabletop Roleplaying Open (2025)

Since the other thread is nearing 1000 posts with no signs of stopping I'll just throw this one up for the inevitable.

As I have pointed out elsewhere, what will really make or break a new edition for me is how easy it will be to GM - and a huge factor will be how easy it will to come up with NPCs quickly and how few variables you have to keep track of during an encounter. By now I am very spoiled by the D&D 4E stat blocks, which have all the explanations for the powers an NPC uses right within the stat block and where you don't have to look anything up.

Another important concept from D&D 4E is that player characters and non-player characters don't have to be built according to the same rules. Sure, you will still want to be able to come up with Exalted NPCs of similar power levels as the PCs without too much fudging, but you really don't want to keep track of the same level of detail as for the PCs. There is only one person who has to run a particular PC, but the Storyteller has to run all the NPCs.

Some domain management system that works decently would also be nice. Another idea would be something on the lines of the systems for gaining Profit Factor in Rogue Trader, which allows the PCs to come up with their own schemes to increase their overall power, wealth and status, and track the results mechanically - this would be important for longer campaigns where the PCs really want to establish their own realm of influence.

Though not having such a system would not be a dealbreaker - unlike the simplified NPC system.

For me to buy a 3rd edition of Exalted...

Holden would need to figure out a way to give me a lap dance without it being awkward for either of us.

TheMouse said:

For me to buy a 3rd edition of Exalted...

Holden would need to figure out a way to give me a lap dance without it being awkward for either of us.

Click to expand...

So that's a no on putting it up on YouTube?

PoorDick said:

So that's a no on putting it up on YouTube?

Click to expand...

You can only post it to Youtube if we're both wearing masks of former presidents of the United States.

Simplicity.

Everything Jurgen said above would be the first step. When I first bought Exalted 1e all that many years ago, it was because I wanted a compelling fantasy setting without the clunky rules set attached to D&D2e & 3e.

Now we still have a compelling setting, but a system that looks like an absolute dinosaur compared to D&D4e (and it doesn't even piss heroin). Jurgen's recommendations would be a big step in the right direction, along with a simplified Charm system and a less counter-intuitive initiative system.

Another thing: I don't every type of Exalted or magical creature needs to have rules to make it playable. It just leads to game-bloat if every other book is basically "Exalted: The Household Furniture" (With the patio furniture supplement coming out in 6 months!!! OH BOY!!!). I'd say pare the playable character options down to Solars, Lunars, Dragon-Blooded, Sidereals, Abyssals,... MAYBE Alchemicals, and that's it.

Jürgen Hubert said:

Some domain management system that works decently would also be nice. Another idea would be something on the lines of the systems for gaining Profit Factor in Rogue Trader, which allows the PCs to come up with their own schemes to increase their overall power, wealth and status, and track the results mechanically - this would be important for longer campaigns where the PCs really want to establish their own realm of influence.

Click to expand...

The reason domain management works and is great for Rogue Trader is because the game wears it's colours on its sleeve and says this is what success looks like.
Exalted OTOH is an ideological sandbox. Laying out rules for stuff like that says, hey mister Solar, yeah you can be whoever you want to be and have whatever goals you think are best but look at these little slider bars you can nudge... no no no, totally not trying to push you in a certain direction at all!
I personally believe second edition went too far in the direction of encouraging certain PC behaviours without even laying out its agenda openly.

Cirv said:

The reason domain management works and is great for Rogue Trader is because the game wears it's colours on its sleeve and says this is what success looks like.
Exalted OTOH is an ideological sandbox. Laying out rules for stuff like that says, hey mister Solar, yeah you can be whoever you want to be and have whatever goals you think are best but look at these little slider bars you can nudge... no no no, totally not trying to push you in a certain direction at all!
I personally believe second edition went too far in the direction of encouraging certain PC behaviours without even laying out its agenda openly.

Click to expand...

Sounds interesting. What sort of agenda do you think Exalted 2E pushing?