Battlelords for Savage Worlds (QUICK-START RULES)

Free downloadable QUICK-START RULES for the Battlelords of the 23rd Century setting using the Savage Worlds rules!

Want to find out what it’s like to play over-equipped, undertrained, expendable corporate mercenaries fighting against a horde of techno-organic monstrosities in a galaxy at war? Grab your pulse rifle and your mechanized battle armor and kick some ass in the universe of Battlelords of the 23rd Century.

These Quick-Start Rules will teach you the basics of Battlelords for Savage Worlds. Included are tons of art, Edge list (partial), Hindrance List, Weapons & Armor lists (partial), and sample characters with a starter adventure. You will need the Savage Worlds Adventure Edition to play this game. 

Battlelords of the 23rd Century is granddaddy of Military Sci-Fi RPGs.  With over 30 years of history the Battlelords setting is rich with detail, and we’re bringing it to Savage Worlds. 

Our "Savage Battlelords" Kickstarter was successful and hardcopies will be available in the summer of 2023! 

BATTLELORDS OF THE 23RD CENTURY IS A SCIENCE-FICTION TABLETOP ROLEPLAYING GAME WHERE PLAYERS CAN ASSUME THE ROLE OF MERCENARIES, MISFITS, SOLDIERS, SPIES, PIRATES, AND HEROES ADVENTURING IN A WAR-TORN UNIVERSE.

“The soldier of the future will be more like a medieval knight in ultramodern armor than a soldier of the 21st century. Operating autonomously, they will be light years from their commanders and support.”
-Military Scientist, Howard Dickenson. Earth, Year 2083.

By the year 2282 humanity has spread among the stars and joined The Alliance of Allied Species. The Alliance is composed of over a dozen species, who pool resources and technology, to expand across the galaxies and defend themselves against the threat of galactic war with the hostile Ak-Nar-Ryn. The Ak-Nar-Ryn, who are more commonly called the “Arachnids,” have destroyed worlds and decimated populations as they advance into Alliance territory. More recently the Alliance has been faced with a new threat, that is even more insidious than even the Arachnids. The shapeshifting, nanite swarms of the Atlanteans, which are capable of devouring entire cities.

Many member species of the Alliance have longstanding rivalries, conflicting agendas, and a few have even gone to war with each other in the past. However, each species brings something unique to the coalition, but all must overcome their bias and speciesism if they are to cooperatively achieve their goal of survival. In the midst of it all, the mega-corporations run the show from behind the scenes and cash in every chance they get. If you’re not living in a colony town on some backwater world on the frontier, you’re probably working for a mega-corp on a long-term contract. They own and run nearly everything, including you… for as long as you’re under contract.

Against the backdrop of war, you can take the fight to the Arachnids as soldiers of the Galactic Armed Forces. Become a hired gun working as a corporate mercenary. Explore the universe, discovering new species and relics of past civilizations. Protect the bottom line of your company as you engage in corporate espionage or research the hidden threat the Atlanteans pose to the Alliance working as a spy. Maybe plunder is more your style? There’s always room for another pirate out on the frontier. The possibilities are as limitless as the universe.

The "Savage Battlelords" core rulebook contains:

• 94 New Edges & 21 New Hindrances. 
• 15+ weapon systems (136 individual weapons).
• 32 suits of armor and 90+ armor options.
• 120+ pieces of sci-fi equipment.
• 3 New Powers, 25+ new Power-specific modifiers, & 36 generic Power Modifiers.

The Carnage Companion book contains:

• 4 teams of ready-to-play archetype characters (mercenaries, soldiers, pirates, and spies), 50 characters total
• 72 New Edges & 17 Hindrances.
• 11 new weapon systems (53 new weapons total).
• 22 new suits of armor and 60+ new armor options.
• 31 vehicles, including 11 suits of mecha-like ultra armor! 

The Alliance Setting Guide (tentative title) book contains information on:

• Spacecraft & space combat rules
• The Atlantean nanite swarms.
• The Alliance (culture, crime, law, travel, places of interest).
• Mega-corps
• Dueling
• Mercenary Companies
• Bounty Hunters & Sheriffs
• Privateering & Piracy
• The Galactic Armed Forces
• Game Mastering
• Running short and long term campaigns
• Tech Levels
• The Meta Plot (What's really going on behind the scenes)