DEUS EST MACHINA

THE YEAR IS 10,000 AD

Humanity was supposed to reach the stars, find a glorious new life as an interstellar civilization, lightships darting along solar winds and scraping along the edge of physical limits from bustling societies exploiting the entire output of their host stars. It failed. 

Instead, it languished, trapped in its own gravity well, building inwards instead of outwards. First Mercury was torn apart and smelted down, Jupiter’s atmosphere syphoned for propellant. Asteroids and comets from all across the solar system were brought to fuel the exponential growth of Earth, driven by a relentless need for expansion, development, conquest of the last frontier. Human construction passed onto machines as technological development skyrocketed beyond all expectations, and eventually, finally, all control was lost. The expansion continued, relentless, growing first into orbit around humanity’s oldest home, then further and further, encasing the Moon, snatching Mars. 

Now, there is only the City, a colossal hulk of twisted, AI-built structures drifting through the galaxy, thrumming with life on the inside but only a solar-system sized mass of steel and stone when viewed from beyond its borders – not that its inhabitants are even sure there’s still a border to reach. The definition of human has twisted and bent over the millennia, and they are no longer alone in their own home, joined by enigmatic entities of unknown origin. Not all of them are friendly.

Nestled near the heart of this great, terrible creation spun out of control lies what is only known as the Centre, an island of relative stability suspended in an enormous hollow where the Moon might once have been. It is a mixing ground for the Citizens, a safe haven, yet its position is precarious, and there are always dangers lurking, waiting to upset the balance. Only a few willing individuals, brave or foolhardy, lucky or unlucky, stand in the way. 

Good luck.

DEUS EST MACHINA is a TTRPG set in the City, a labyrinthine megastructure in the far future, where humanity has splintered and fractured beyond recognition and unknown entities roam impossible landscapes. It is built on the 24XX SRD (CC BY Jason Tocci), presenting simple, Lo-Fi mechanics for putting the fiction first. Inside are 5 origins for various sub-branches of humanity and their creations, including spark tables for character generation, along with tables for gear, weaponry, and 100 artifacts from the City.  Developed as part of NaGaDeMon 2022