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In 1966, a new television program sought to broaden the minds, hearts, and spirits of American television audiences. That show, Star Trek, introduced America and the world to a group of people in the distant future who were carrying out their lives and dreams aboard a vessel that traveled between the stars. To me, Dreams of the First Age, a new boxed set from White Wolf Publishing, accomplishes much the same thing; except, this time, we voyage into the distant past of prehistory and discover humanity’s place there.
This is not the first time that White Wolf fans have journeyed back in time to the “newly discovered” ages of prehistory. In 1999, this journey began in earnest with the release of the first edition of the Exalted role-playing game. Even then, hints jumped off the pages about a golden age that came before the time period discussed in that game. Then, starting in 2002, five softbound books (The Caste Books) came out, each detailing around four pages about this golden First Age that came before the current Age of Sorrows. Later, in 2006, The Book of Sorcery, Vol. I—Wonder of the Lost Age yet again whetted the appetites of Exalted fans everywhere. Two later books discussed spells of the time period and magitech construction in that time period, respectively. So, there has been quite a build up of information before this year’s final release (which is roughly more than seven months late) of the big boxed set, Dreams of the First Age.
YOU WILL NEED THE EXALTED SECOND EDITION BOOK TO PLAY THIS GAME. However, I could see it being good background material for an Exalted First Edition game as well.
The wait was terrible, but I think most of the owners of the new boxed set will agree that it was worth the wait. The boxed set comes in a colorful cardboard box under clear wrap. Brief examples of the First Age language are on two sides of the box, which looks similar to the Mayan character system. These symbols also appear on the cover of the white, leatherette (with gold outline) Meru: A Guidebook to the Exalted City. This book, supposedly written by an Exalted of the time from the Eclipse Caste, contains breathtaking black and white art of the city and short essays on the buildings and things to be discovered there. Topics covered include: city life, the climate, communication, money, transportation, housing, and worship. Most of the pamphlet covers places the characters can visit while staying in the city. A short section discusses magical gates and where they can send the Exalted using them, as well as the expeditions one can join in on to other places in Creation (the flat, magical world that they all live in). Elitism is touched on a lot throughout the books. Those with powers from the gods (the Exalted) have a lot more freedom and access to everything than normal, mortal people. There’s also a fold-out map of Meru at the end.
Next, there is a cloth map of Creation. Some did not like the shininess of the material used, but I found it appropriate. I would have chosen darker letters for the names of the cities in some cases, but the map is still easily read. The Elemental dragons are also depicted around the edges of the map for flavor. The Exalted book had a map for the Second Age (the Age just after the First Age, the Age of Splendor) on its inside covers. At first glance, it’s hard to tell the changes, but there are many. While the East stays much the same (though all directions contain new cities), the Northern and Southern edges go out farther. There is even a new continent in the West, called Saigoth.
The set contains two other books and a combat wheel. The combat wheel is made out of perforated cardboard pieces of a nice thickness. I have not constructed it yet, but it looks serviceable (though I may use a different system for combat, like the one in the first edition of Exalted). Book One: Lands of the Creation covers topics like what it’s like to live in the High First Age, what places are like in the High First Age, and the Old Realm Script (the Mayan-like characters mentioned before). Comics and art work abound in this book. The history of Exalted is definitely something I enjoyed reading about. The book discusses cities, rural areas, I AM (think: a magical internet), economics, transportation, health care, education, magical longevity treatments, worship, death/reincarnation, crime/criminals, nonhuman races, how the Exalted live, how mortals live, etc. Several chapters go deeply in depth on different locations in the High First Age, like Tzatli the flying city, like Rathess (capitol of the Dragon Kings), and Chiaroscuro the city of stained glass (well, it’s made with the Essence of magic into skyscrapers, but you get the idea). Wonders are around every corner. To be such a paradise, there’s also adventure/danger to be had as well.
The second book in the set, Lords of Creation (no, not the Avalon Hill game I enjoyed playing once upon a time), also contains further wonders of the High First Age. First Age character creation builds on what players already know about Second Age character creation and builds on it. There are also alternative rules for character creation, if you wanted to play established, influential or legendary characters. Players can play Solar Exalted, Lunar Exalted, Sidereal Exalted, and Terrestrial Exalted. There are new/altered backgrounds like Mutation Implants (like bio-tech). There are thirty pages of new Charms, ten pages of new artifacts, Advanced Geomancy, Altered Humans (Herd Guardians, Minikin, Persons of the Air, etc.), and statistics for many legendary Exalted.
Overall, the books are a fun read. The boxed set is well put together. The books are softbound. I’d recommend this to anyone interested in Exalted, but Exalted Second Edition is strongly suggested to play it, unless you just want background material. I was a little disappointed that the Altered Humans could not be played starting out of the box, but I don’t think it would take that much to make them from a regular human (AKA mortal or heroic mortal) sheet. This game has serious gaming potential. I think many people will enjoy playing in the Age of Splendor.
