Evil Recommendations: he Exalted Quickstart for 1e
There’s something intoxicating about the raw ambition packed into the Exalted Introductory Kit. It’s not just another fantasy setting. It’s a tapestry of myth, martial power, fallen empires, and half-remembered golden ages where reality itself is thin and flickering around the edges.
Published by White Wolf and serving as a primer for the Exalted line, this quickstart gives players everything they need to begin wielding godlike power... or at least to feel the weight of it creeping in. What’s impressive is how much lore and mood is crammed into a short read without becoming a textbook slog.
From the opening pages, it’s clear that this is not a clean, tidy setting. The Realm is fractured, the Dragon-Blooded empire is losing its grip, and the Celestial Exalted, those golden paragons long thought lost, are rising again. There’s drama baked into the bones of the world. It’s a setting that screams for stories of rebellion, redemption, and revenge.
The kit focuses on the Solar Exalted, former god-champions betrayed and now returning with fire in their veins and sunbursts burning on their brows. You get just enough mechanical structure to build a character, assigning Traits like Fighting or Scholarship, spending magical Essence to push actions into the mythic tier, and picking from five Solar Castes. Each one offers its own thematic identity and in-game utility, from Dawn warriors with molten eyes to the social chameleons of the Eclipse Caste.
Essence powers feel appropriately overwhelming. Using Charms and spells to bend reality, characters glow, flare, and sometimes catch fire with anima energy. There’s a sense that using your powers is not just effective but visible and terrifying, both to enemies and the world that once hunted your kind.
Combat is fast and deadly, built around d6 rolls where 6s explode into two successes. There’s soaking, damage tiers, and simplified but cinematic mechanics for things like sorcery and stealth. The design leans toward narration with mechanical teeth. It encourages dramatic description, rewarding players who get flashy with an extra die or even a recharge of their Essence pool.
Most of all, it’s a world begging to be explored. The kit includes vivid slices of setting, from the corrupt cities of the South to the dream-devouring Fair Folk lurking at the edge of reality. There’s enough here to launch multiple story arcs, especially with the three included adventure seeds. Want to storm a tomb full of beastmen and lost relics? Besiege a city against the Deathlords? Escort a doomed caravan across sand-scoured wastes? It’s all in here.
Getting your hands on the PDF isn’t hard, it's floating around in plenty of places online if you look. But if you want a clean, legal copy of the original 1st Edition core rules, it’s available through DriveThruRPG. That’s the route I’d recommend. Support the game if you like what you see.
If you’re even slightly interested in high-powered fantasy with a mythic, anime-tinged slant, this quickstart is a no-brainer. And if you’re an old hand at the World of Darkness or just burned out on typical dungeons and dragons fare... Exalted might just be the shot of solar fire your table needs.
This isn't just a beginner's guide. It’s a firestarter.
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