Cosmic Renegade is a tabletop roleplaying game about spacefaring noir adventure and intergalactic capitalism. Here’s how to get started!
A Space Tycoon Noir Adventure
Imagine a galaxy where interstellar travel was commercialized and the doors were opened to vast opportunities awaiting in the cosmos for anyone willing to take a little risk for a helluva return! All you need is a Galactic Starship Mortgage™ to start your space venture!
Welcome to Cosmic Renegade, a tabletop RPG that combines cyberpunk, steampunk, retro and noir themes under a space western setting.
With a seamless blend of spacefaring adventure, noir intrigue, and tycoon management, Cosmic Renegade offers endless opportunities for epic storytelling and business-building in the vast expanse of the cosmos.
Are you ready to ride the cosmic winds, carve your legend, and start a bed and breakfast among the stars?
Basic Rules Overview
Cosmic Renegade runs on the same rules and mechanics for characters as Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition. At the character level, actions, bonus actions, movement, and other gameplay mechanics present in D&D 5e work the same way. Those who play Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition can easily adapt to the Cosmic Renegade system.
However, the rules change when onboard a starship.
Cosmic Renegade introduces a fresh perspective on starship to starship combat in a way that maximizes roleplay, storytelling, and party synergy. To achieve this, we researched and tested popular starship combat mechanics such as Star Wars 5th edition (SW5e), Star Trek Adventures (STA), and Stars Without Number to unify and bring to life the best elements and features from those games.
Initiative and Turn Order
Rather than rolling initiative for each character, turns alternate between the crew of each starship involved in combat.
This allows for dynamic play where players’ plans can be potentially interrupted by complications and enemies. Do you stick with your plan or do you address the Screw Up that happened?
When all crewmates on all sides have gone, the round ends and a new one begins.
Screw Ups
Screw ups are bad things that go awry on your starship during combat, and can prove fatal if not addressed by a crewmate in time. These can occur as a result of enemy actions or (even better) as a direct consequence of a player’s actions.
This allows for unique problems for players to solve, which makes every encounter have its own story. Furthermore, the GM may customize Screw Ups (and how to solve them) to better fit the narrative of the encounter.
Momentum
To break the initiative order (i.e. having two or more crewmates go consecutively rather than passing the turn to the enemy), you can spend Momentum.
This can lead to potentially powerful combinations of party abilities one after another in quick succession. Party members are encouraged to investigate and plan out their character ability combos with each other.
Momentum is generally gained by rolling successfully against your adversary. There is no limit to how much momentum your starship can store. Momentum persists until the end of the encounter.
Action Points
Action Points are used for station actions (i.e. actions the starship is performing). Each starship’s Action Points reset to 0 at the end of the round, and need to be restored. This game mechanic allows players to contribute meaningfully to the battle on each of their turns.
When adapting Cosmic Renegade starship combat to DnD 5e rules, a character’s action is typically equivalent to 2AP. The GM may decide to increase or decrease this amount based on what the player describes or the GM may ask for an ability check to determine the outcome. As a general rule, any action can be converted to Action Points, but the more creative actions should be awarded more Action Points.
For a complete guide for how combat works in Cosmic Renegade, please read this article.
Starship Creation
Here is the basic process for creating your own Cosmic Renegade starships:
- Assign starship attribute points for Power (POWR), Maneuvering (MANV), Hull (HULL), Heat (HEAT), Sensors (SENS), and Swagger (SWAG).
- Calculate modifiers and stats like hull points (HP), armor class (AC), and damage reduction (DR).
- Pick out 2-3 weapons. Most starships strike a balance between kinetic and energy weapons.
Lastly, give your starship some character! What are the main ways it makes money? Is it a classic freighter for transporting cargo, or is it a long-term co-working space/bed & breakfast? What have you and your crew done to the ship to make it your own?
For a complete guide for how to create your own starship in Cosmic Renegade, please read this article. Also, here’s a downloadable starship sheet to help you get started!
Starter Adventure Scenarios
Try one of these starter scenarios to get your game going! These can be long campaigns with a regular group or one-shots at your local bar, coffee shop, or comic store. I’ve done both, and they’re a lot of fun!
Not a GM? Don’t have a crew? You can join our Discord to find friends and a game master online as our community grows.
Freighter Ambush
A fresh crew meets on Comida for the first time onboard a newly purchased star freighter to start a starship coffee shop franchise. You’re set to travel the next day to Isla de Lofi, where coffee and good vibes are in high demand.
However, while in the starport, your crew rubs the wrong way with some unsavory types in a pub brawl. These ruffians decide to follow you as your starship departs.
Maybe they just want to try some coffee?
Lost Lawmen Patrol
Your crew and vessel are contracted as mercenary lawmen under the Royal Trouton Authority (RTA). Your task is to apprehend or destroy pirates seeking to ambush would-be prey entering the Troutopian star system along the patrol route set out for you.
However, your starship has a bed & breakfast side hustle with guests you need to protect, at least until your week of patrol ends. Can you and your crew get 5-star ratings from your tenants while dogfighting pirates?
Bounty Payday
A dangerous pirate has kidnapped a princess bride on the planet of Comida just before her wedding day! Her father has put up the wedding dowry as the bounty reward for her safe return to the kingdom.
Investigate the trail left behind, and find the scoundrel with your crew. But be wary – your crew of private detectives aren’t the only ones competing for that wedding dowry!
Additional Resources
- Starship Sheet
- Common Starships
- Starship Weapons
- Starship Stations and Crew Actions
- Planets and Worldbuilding
Get Involved!
Follow the game’s progress: subscribe on YouTube.
Join the community: Discord.