Balla Boosts
When a Balla character is picking their 3 boosts, instead of being restricted the the four in the rulebook, the Balla character can pick one from any Academic or Technical ability. The other two must come from the list: Botany, Geology, History (Balla), or Zoology.
Ashen Stars uses the Gumshoe system, and the Gumshoe system has optional rules for more cinematic combat. I've included the ones we're using here in the file Elite Combat Rules.
Introducing Background Details
As with details of established location, facts about the cultures, histories, politics and planets that form The Bleed can be introduced and built upon by any participant. These details can be player-driven or GM-prompted.
Player-Driven Background Details
Introduce a player-driven background detail by making an assertion in dialogue or description.
In a scene set in a starport of the despised tentacled frog-people, the Xorg, Charles is served a sumptuous feast. “I pretend that it tastes good,” says J, “although the food of the Xorg is notoriously salty.”
Exposition Challenges
Any participant can challenge a newly introduced player-driven background detail. The GM allows the challenge if the detail fails any of the following tests:
• Consistency: The detail is out of keeping with a post war Space Opera. It might:
◦ indisputably establish the existence of fantastic magic or creatures (as opposed to distant rumors of same, which are acceptable, and may turn out to be technology and/or psionics)
◦ include technology far in advance of the Combine, unless it’s mysterious and unobtainable.
◦ include elements from other genres: such as superheroes (this would likely also fail the tone test, below)
• Continuity: The description clearly contradicts a previously introduced background detail.
• Tone: The description is somehow ridiculous.
• Believability: The description defies common sense.
GM-Prompted Background Details
When introducing new information about the setting, the GM may prompt players by asking them to answer basic questions about it.
These are called prompts. After the player answers, introducing that fact into our Ashen Stars campaign, the GM invites another player to supply an additional amplifying detail. As usual, both answer and amplifying detail should be brief: a single sentence consisting of no more than two or three clauses.
For the first time, the Lasers meet the Binomals, cuing the GM to ask:
The Binomals are despised by all the Combine. Why? What do people think of when they think of the Binomals?
J: They absorb the brains of their captives.
K: And take their memories.