Taiga is a post-apocalyptic roleplaying game set in the mid-21st Century where much of the world has been ravaged by drought, acid rain, increased UV-radiation, contaminated groundwater, radioactive fall-out, and overpopulation. Taiga no longer simply refers to far northern confer forests, it is also the name for an area east of the Ural Mountains between the Aral Sea and the Arctic. The area is now part of Russia and Kazakhstan, but by 2039, climate change has dried rivers and lakes in the south, deserts have spread, the tundra has turned into marshes, and Novosibirsk is a mega-city of 500 million.
Taiga is produced by Burger Games and is distributed in the U.S. by
Renaissance Ink.
What Taiga offers as a game is a fresh perspective on post apocalyptic gaming. First off, its Eurasian setting is a nice departure from all of the other games focused on North America. Second, the setting provides plenty of opportunities for adventure. In Taiga, the area east of the Urals is the borderland between the European Union Emergency Government, a military dictatorship, and the Asian Corporation League, making the Taiga area the battleground between the two. A situation similar to that of the Badlands of Terra Nova in Heavy Gear. In the cities, the urban cores feature clean streets and gleaming skyscrapers and are home to the true citizens of the Government and Corporation. Sprawling around these fortified cores are the Free Zones of the non-citizens. These zones are a tangle of streets, improvised construction, and undependable power supplies. Beyond the cities, smaller towns attempt to eek out a living from the polluted land, avoid the dominating influence of the Government and Corporation, and protect themselves from cycle gangs. Truck conveys shuttle along the roads carrying goods and materials to the cities and towns and between the Government lands west of the Urals and the Corporate lands to the east.
Taiga’s rules provide basic mechanics and use a narrative approach to elaborate rather than provide additional complex rules. This is particularly true with its treatment of cyberware and is most succinctly stated in the air combat rules. After describing simple rules for attacking aircraft and shooting at aircraft, the rulebook states that “Referees are encouraged to make their own rules about aircraft if necessary, but it wouldn’t hurt to leave out the entire idea of aircraft combat. If it occurs, it should be resolved with storytelling or with a couple of obscure and freely interpreted skill tests.”
Character creation in Taiga is straightforward. The nine attributes (Strength, Health, Agility, Dexterity, Intellect, Education, Willpower, Charisma, and Appearance) are ranked from 1-5 on a logarithmic scale and are generated by rolling 2d3-1 and then rerolling the low scores if they do not add to 30. Players then have four background points that can be used to add bonuses such as additional starting cash and equipment, friends, lightning reflexes, and other bonuses. An additional background point can be earned by generating a useful character history, and another additional point can be earned by coming up with a weakness for the character. Skills are also ranked logarithmicly from 1 to 5. Characters begin with approximately 30 points to spend on skills. Certain rare skills such as aircraft pilot, cybernetics, forgery, martial arts, and surgery that can only be purchased with the “Special Training” background. In keeping with Taiga’s narrative rules, the background picks provide a simple method for defining a character’s individual personality.
Taiga expects that characters will begin as a gang member. As gang members, PCs can earn status by undertaking adventures that benefit the gang. However, PCs can also lose status if they miss out on gang activities while away on adventures or if their adventures damage the gang or its reputation. Status is used Thirty sample gangs are provided for the PCs and GM to use. Taiga’s presentation of cycle gangs is more developed and consistent than that of Cyberpunk 2020’s presentation of nomads in Neo Tribes of North America. Other occupations are discussed, such as free trader/trucker, road wardens, mafia, special forces, Central Sector law enforcement, underground operatives, mercenaries, and guerrillas.
Skill tests are made by rolling 2d6, adding the skill value, the value of the relevant attribute, and subtracting any difficulty modifiers. The result is compared against a difficulty of 10. Each point over 10 is treated as a degree of success and each point under 10 is a degree of failure. In combat, each degree of success adds to damage.
Vehicle combat is handled using the Heavy Combat rules that simplify the personal combat rules and reduce the damage of the weapons used. Initiative is determined by a skill test modified by a vehicle’s handling and the speed at which a vehicle is traveling. If the test is failed by -5 or more, the vehicle is out of control and may crash. The attack skill test is then modified by subtracting the target’s speed value and half of the target’s initiative. The Heavy Combat rules are one of the few places where Taiga’s focus on cycle gangs breaks down. The focus on infantry arms means that some vehicle weapons such as main guns are not described and there is no description of the battle tanks or heavy guns used by the Government and Corporate forces. Stats are provided for 14 ground vehicles and 7 aircraft. The Heavy Combat rules would also have benefited from a more detailed example of play.
Taiga’s post-apocalyptic setting is rounded out with description of the rare mutant humans and animals and with several lengthy encounter tables. Taiga does take its nihilistic, post-apocalyptic setting too far at times with its description of the practice of slavery, prostitution, and cannibalism in the region. Taiga also overplays the consequences and prevalence of global climate change. Fortunately, this elements can be included or emphasized as a GM sees fit.
Taiga has a simple layout and crude illustrations characteristic of small press games. There is no table of contents and no index, but the text is laid out in a clear, comprehensible manner, so that it is relatively easy to find items. The copy that I received from Renaissance Ink had cardstock covers and a tape binding. I was not able to order Taiga through my local game store, but I received my copy from Renaissance Ink within six weeks of mailing in my order. Online ordering is not available.
While there are a few things that I would have liked to have seen in Taiga, such as more information on the lands bordering Taiga and more support for running non-gang characters, overall it is one of the more interesting and well-developed post apocalyptic settings.
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