In RPG ADAPTATIONS, I review media properties adapted to tabletop roleplaying games like Green Ronin Publishing’s World of Lazarus for Modern AGE based on Greg Rucka and Michael Lark’s Image comic book series, Lazarus. Using the Modern AGE system, this RPG allows you to play as, for, or against The 1% in the dystopian near-future of Lazarus.
For those not familiar with the comic or the RPG system, let’s break those down.
What is Lazarus? This explanation will sound trite, however it’s anything but. The system didn’t fail, it was foreclosed on when the hyper-wealthy bought it all. Sixteen families own everything, the sea, land, air, and you. In their neo-feudalistic system, if you’re not a member of one of the top sixteen families, your best hope is to be elevated to a Serf, a paid servant of your ruling family. Below Serfs, everyone is considered, and dubbed, Waste, the masses living off the scraps of the world as they hope to be elevated or birth the next generation of Serfs.
You remember when “The 1%” was the phrase that pays? Before someone did the math and realized that 1% represented over 3,000,000 souls in the US alone. That’s a lot of folks to hate, especially when they meant The Billionaires (600 in the US, 2,200 worldwide). For a cast of villains, that’s much more manageable. In Lazarus, the world has fallen to the highest of those ultra-rich. A handful of families and oligarchies run the world and the epitome “Lazarus” is part of their control apparatus, a single genetically-enhanced super soldier each family fields to be their primary bodyguard, expert assassin, and command their militaries.
The comic follows Forever Carlyle, a Lazarus loyal to her family as they fight among themselves and other families to control the destiny of the world. The Carlyle family administers the US from the Mississippi River to the Pacific and Canada from Ontario/Manitoba west. The story is about Forever learning who she is among a family of financial monsters and defining what family means to her. By Greg Rucka (writer) and Michael Lark (artist) at Image Comics, the series is a dark read with a strong female lead thanks to Rucka’s words atop some of Lark’s best artwork.
What is Modern AGE? In 2010, Green Ronin Publishing adapted the Dragon Age video game franchise to tabletop RPG. The engine that TTRPG utilized became known as the AGE system and has been used in a variety of Green Ronin games including Fantasy AGE, Blue Rose, The Expanse RPG, and, of course, Modern AGE.
The AGE system is a medium-crunch simulationist RPG akin to D&D in which you have a character with Abilities that improve their attack, their crafts/skills, their Defense (like Armor Class), and Health (Hit Points). My overview might make the game sound pedestrian but there’s a secret sauce to this system, the Stunt Die. For every action, you roll 3d6 with one of the dies being visually distinct, which is called the Stunt Die. If you succeed in your roll and any two dice come up with the same number, you read the Stunt Die to see how many Stunt Points you have. There’s a chart of options to buy with those points to impact this round of combat/skill check/social interaction. This replaces double damage with options that make your character a bit more unique.
With each iteration of the AGE system, the engine is adapted to the world. While Dragon Age and Fantasy AGE are class-based a la D&D, Modern AGE is ability-based so it feels more in-line with the “real” world. The stunts are different as is how the game interacts with its setting.
What is The World of Lazarus: A Modern AGE Campaign Setting? This 128-page hardcover (or PDF) written by Crystal Fraiser, brings the comic’s setting to your tabletop using the Modern AGE system. Adventure-wise, this combination lets you expand on the world by looking at the other families (the comics focuses on one of the sixteen families) and how they run their territories. While you do not need a command of the comics to play, you will need both the Modern AGE Basic Rulebook and The World of Lazarus: A Modern AGE Campaign Setting to enjoy this tabletop experience.
Existing in the near-future, most of the action and physics are grounded in our modern-day mundanity, save for the Lazarus and certain genetic enhancements such as the Carlyle’s longevity. That is to say, unless you’re a Lazarus, or facing off against one, you will play and encounter “normal” humans with weapons of the near-future (better rifles and drones), not Superman and the like.
The World of Lazarus: A Modern AGE Campaign Setting came out in 2018 and shared a piece of information that was helpful for this review and will assist future readers. It says exactly when the book was written, after Lazarus #27 (of 28 issues from the first volume) and after the first 2 (of 3, so far) Lazarus Sourcebooks. If you’re a fan of the comic and want to know when the material in the RPG runs up to, this pinpoints the cutoff. Which brings us to the best part of this crossover: It crosses both ways. This is not a one-and-done campaign sourcebook, instead, The World of Lazarus is expanded on every quarter in the comics. Green Ronin has a hardcover full of information for your table and Image Comics’ Lazarus Risen #1 (#2 drops this month) has The World of Lazarus RPG information in the back, both sources written by Crystal Fraiser. It’s an excellent bit of cross-promotion and an incentive for fans of the RPG to keep up on the comic.
Is Lazarus AGE a good fit? The Modern AGE system is designed to input and handle any contemporary setting as magical as Harry Potter or as militant as John Wick or as horrific as Resident Evil. Lazarus combines James Bond, super soldiers, and any Vietnam War movie creating something darker than its parts. The richest families lead lives that are unimaginable while the Waste population subsist on handouts. Lazarus jumps between high action, policy positions, blackmail, and spying in a sci-fi dystopian world that went all-in on the pot but folded their hand.
Lazarus is an ideal fit for the Modern AGE system. Its population of normal humans, some augmented individuals, and near-future tech let the Modern AGE cruise through the environment it was designed for. Where Modern AGE best meets Lazarus is its Stunt Die options. Combat Stunts perfectly match this world of firefights that lead to unexpected moments. Even more immersive, there are Social Stunts for a setting built as much of blood as negotiations and contracts. The ability to make social rolls and include stunts mimics Rucka and Lark’s world splendidly.
I don’t know Lazarus so why should I play? Lazarus’ view that the dystopian future will be pragmatic is easy to build upon. The corporation is easy to hate because it’s apathetic with every decision being driven by how it impacts the bottom line. This contrasts with, say, an 80s dystopian tale where the corporation is actively evil and wants to blow up the world. It’s easier to grasp the narrative that you are being downsized for improved profits than you are being executed to bring a dark god into this world because someone thought that would make things better.
Beyond Lazarus, the system is superb for creating a near-future dystopia. Your character is mortal and the enemy has deadly weapons. Stunts add to the fun of gameplay as you work through the tale and faceoff against the evils of corporate America. Since stunts are not exclusive to combat, roleplaying scenes include dice for effect. If you’re looking for a dramatic, near-future action-adventure with something for every type of player, Green Ronin Publishing’s Modern AGE Basic Rulebook and World of Lazarus for Modern AGE fits the bill.
Modern AGE Basic Rulebook (Green Ronin for PDF and print, Amazon for print, DriveThruRPG for PDF)
Modern AGE Companion (Green Ronin for PDF and print, Amazon for print, DriveThruRPG for PDF)
The World of Lazarus: A Modern AGE Campaign Setting (Green Ronin for PDF and print, Amazon for print, DriveThruRPG for PDF)
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