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Robotech The Shadow Chronicles Role Playing Game
PAL0550 Robotech The Shadow Chronicles Role Playing Game by Palladium Books
The role-playing game will pick up where the DVD movie begins. The return of the Robotech Expeditionary Force, the separation of Rick Hunter and the SDF-3 from the rest of the fleet, and everything else that is part of the universe of Robotech+ The Shadow Chronicles.
- Written by Robotech RPG creator Kevin Siembieda.
- Cover by veteran artist Apollo Okamura.
- Packed with detailed illustrations throughout.
- Comprehensive character, mecha, spacecraft, and vessel statistics and images.
- Mecha pilots and other fleet personnel Occupational Character Classes (O.C.C.).
- Additional background information and detail as space permits.
- Fast-playing RPG rules. Mega-Damage setting.
- Printed in popular manga size for easy portability.
- 336 pages.
The role-playing game will pick up where the DVD movie begins. The return of the Robotech Expeditionary Force, the separation of Rick Hunter and the SDF-3 from the rest of the fleet, and everything else that is part of the universe of Robotech+ The Shadow Chronicles.
- Written by Robotech RPG creator Kevin Siembieda.
- Cover by veteran artist Apollo Okamura.
- Packed with detailed illustrations throughout.
- Comprehensive character, mecha, spacecraft, and vessel statistics and images.
- Mecha pilots and other fleet personnel Occupational Character Classes (O.C.C.).
- Additional background information and detail as space permits.
- Fast-playing RPG rules. Mega-Damage setting.
- Printed in popular manga size for easy portability.
- 336 pages.
- GenresRole Playing Games
333 pages, Paperback
First published March 15, 2008
6 people are currently reading
53 people want to read
About the author
Kevin Siembieda
206 books52 followersKevin Siembieda (born April 2, 1956) is an American artist, writer, designer, and publisher of role-playing games, as well as being the founder and president of Palladium Books.
Palladium Books, founded in southeast Michigan, claims to be the first to implement a role-playing system intended to work for all genres and to introduce the perfect-bound trade paperback format to the RPG industry.
Some of the role-playing games Siembieda helped produce include Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness (1985), Robotech RPG (1986), After The Bomb (1986), and Rifts (1990).
Siembieda is also an artist, best known for occasionally illustrating Palladium Books' products. In 1978, he started the now-defunct Megaton Publications in Detroit, publishing a digest style title called A+ Plus and several other titles. He also contributed art and cartography to several early Judges Guild products (for both their Traveller and Dungeons & Dragons lines).
Palladium Books, founded in southeast Michigan, claims to be the first to implement a role-playing system intended to work for all genres and to introduce the perfect-bound trade paperback format to the RPG industry.
Some of the role-playing games Siembieda helped produce include Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness (1985), Robotech RPG (1986), After The Bomb (1986), and Rifts (1990).
Siembieda is also an artist, best known for occasionally illustrating Palladium Books' products. In 1978, he started the now-defunct Megaton Publications in Detroit, publishing a digest style title called A+ Plus and several other titles. He also contributed art and cartography to several early Judges Guild products (for both their Traveller and Dungeons & Dragons lines).
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 8, 2024
Great adventure book for this game. Well laid out and great pics. Recommended
January 9, 2025
I remember when this first came out - it was the first new Robotech book published in a long time by Palladium Books and it seemed to inject new life into the game...briefly...and not among my friend group whom I could never get to care about Robotech in any way, shape, or form.
However, this really helps flesh out the "Sentinels" portion of the Robotech timeline in fun and interesting ways. Although, I have to say that I'm not 100% happy about the reinterpretation of Haydonites. Turning them into the mustache-twirling, secretly-evil-all-along baddies just throws a wrench into the Robotech universe that really didn't need to be there.
But that's neither here nor there. If you like Palladium RPGs you'll probably like this book. If not, at least it makes for a fun read and is really pretty.
However, this really helps flesh out the "Sentinels" portion of the Robotech timeline in fun and interesting ways. Although, I have to say that I'm not 100% happy about the reinterpretation of Haydonites. Turning them into the mustache-twirling, secretly-evil-all-along baddies just throws a wrench into the Robotech universe that really didn't need to be there.
But that's neither here nor there. If you like Palladium RPGs you'll probably like this book. If not, at least it makes for a fun read and is really pretty.
December 10, 2017
I feel like it's a little hard to give an exact rating for this book, because it's really two things in one. On the one hand, it's a sort of technical guide to the mecha, characters, and setting of the Shadow Chronicles movie, and on the other hand it's a roleplaying game. As an RPG it's kinda a mess, even compared to Palladium's usual fare. The biggest issue is that it's rather poorly organized, with the usual "what is roleplaying" and "how do I actually make a character" stuff largely not coming till more than halfway through the page count. There's a quick roll character gen bit, but the book starts by going through the Haydonite and Invid threats, then detailing UEEF character classes and gear, before it finally gets to the actual rule mechanics. One of the most obvious problems is that it takes forever for the book to explain Mega-Damage and how it differs from normal, human scale damage. Also things like strafing runs and ship to ship combat are never fully explained, and in general the GM will have to make stuff up a fair bit to fill in the gaps.
This issue of gaps is also present in the technical manual/setting bible set of things, though it's not really Palladium's fault. The Shadow Chronicles movie introduced a fourth Robotech War and sees the Haydonites from the Sentinels material turn traitor. This book describes the handful of Haydonite starships and mecha seen in the film, but makes no real attempt to explain their motivations or what happens next. As it's been a bit over a decade since The Shadow Chronicles was released and no follow up is in sight, the players and GM have no choice but to make something up from whole cloth in regards to what happens next. Fortunately, the material covering the basics of The New Generation arc is somewhat better. While the Invid Regess and things like Invid Hives are held back for the inevitable New Generation sourcebook, the run of the mill Invid are described, along with a number of different human mechs in various types. There are details on three or four Alpha Veritech variants, for example, and a number of different utility vehicles and Cyclones. I think the attitude Palladium had with the first edition of the Robotech RPG is definitely on display here - if it's on screen for even a second, it gets a full write-up. That's something I appreciate, and it makes this gameline a nice sourcebook for anybody interested in the technical details of Robotech's mecha and weapons and such.
While the RPG rules as presented in this book have some major gaps, some of them can be filled by those familiar with Palladium's other games, which I imagine will be most of the audience for this book. While I think the new Robotech comic is bringing some attention back to the franchise, I can't imagine that many people are going to have this as their first RPG, unlike the original version back in the 80s. As somebody who's read other Palladium books gamelines, I find some of the quirks and gaps annoying, but I still enjoyed reading this, and it certainly makes me feel like a Robotech game could be fun, even if I'd have to make up a lot. Still, I largely enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading the supplements that have been released so far.
This issue of gaps is also present in the technical manual/setting bible set of things, though it's not really Palladium's fault. The Shadow Chronicles movie introduced a fourth Robotech War and sees the Haydonites from the Sentinels material turn traitor. This book describes the handful of Haydonite starships and mecha seen in the film, but makes no real attempt to explain their motivations or what happens next. As it's been a bit over a decade since The Shadow Chronicles was released and no follow up is in sight, the players and GM have no choice but to make something up from whole cloth in regards to what happens next. Fortunately, the material covering the basics of The New Generation arc is somewhat better. While the Invid Regess and things like Invid Hives are held back for the inevitable New Generation sourcebook, the run of the mill Invid are described, along with a number of different human mechs in various types. There are details on three or four Alpha Veritech variants, for example, and a number of different utility vehicles and Cyclones. I think the attitude Palladium had with the first edition of the Robotech RPG is definitely on display here - if it's on screen for even a second, it gets a full write-up. That's something I appreciate, and it makes this gameline a nice sourcebook for anybody interested in the technical details of Robotech's mecha and weapons and such.
While the RPG rules as presented in this book have some major gaps, some of them can be filled by those familiar with Palladium's other games, which I imagine will be most of the audience for this book. While I think the new Robotech comic is bringing some attention back to the franchise, I can't imagine that many people are going to have this as their first RPG, unlike the original version back in the 80s. As somebody who's read other Palladium books gamelines, I find some of the quirks and gaps annoying, but I still enjoyed reading this, and it certainly makes me feel like a Robotech game could be fun, even if I'd have to make up a lot. Still, I largely enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading the supplements that have been released so far.
July 30, 2011
The wait for new Robotech RPG materiel from Palladium books is over! This introductory book gives some of the basics for the system and how they relate to the "Shadow Chronicles" movie but has a few chinks in the armor.
The book's small (anime) format is something that I liked a lot. I am ableto carry it and nearly flip it with a single hand or browse quickly for what I need. My cover is staying together but Palladium books have had troubles with their covers in the past. I have many laminated covers from Palladium Books that have come apart.
The content is pretty good but exists in most of the previous RPG books if you own them. They've been out-of-print for years but they are still available and out there. It does give most of everything that a starting player would need to start the game. The trouble is that very few details about capital size ships were omitted for a future book. Even the "Deluxe" edition will have no additional rules for capital ships. The space opera that was Robotech was known for its large ship battles.
The concise materiel and the low sticker price make it a nice addition to any hobbyist or Robotech fan.
The book's small (anime) format is something that I liked a lot. I am ableto carry it and nearly flip it with a single hand or browse quickly for what I need. My cover is staying together but Palladium books have had troubles with their covers in the past. I have many laminated covers from Palladium Books that have come apart.
The content is pretty good but exists in most of the previous RPG books if you own them. They've been out-of-print for years but they are still available and out there. It does give most of everything that a starting player would need to start the game. The trouble is that very few details about capital size ships were omitted for a future book. Even the "Deluxe" edition will have no additional rules for capital ships. The space opera that was Robotech was known for its large ship battles.
The concise materiel and the low sticker price make it a nice addition to any hobbyist or Robotech fan.
June 26, 2008
I've something of a long history with Palladium's system, especially in regards to Robotech. I picked up this game out of nostalgia for the original game (of which I am only a handful of books away from a complete set), a nostalgia ruined by powergamers back in the day.
The first thing that helped is the $17 price point, very good for an RPG these days. The next thing to help was that most of the complaints I had from the old days, the things my powergaming players latched onto to run roughshod over everything were largely fixed, or given greater capacity for fixing (Boxing skill, I'm looking at you).
Combine this with a writing that goes out of its way to make things as easy as it can on new players, and I'm surprisingly happy with it. If this is indicative of Palladium's direction, they may well be winning back a fan.
The first thing that helped is the $17 price point, very good for an RPG these days. The next thing to help was that most of the complaints I had from the old days, the things my powergaming players latched onto to run roughshod over everything were largely fixed, or given greater capacity for fixing (Boxing skill, I'm looking at you).
Combine this with a writing that goes out of its way to make things as easy as it can on new players, and I'm surprisingly happy with it. If this is indicative of Palladium's direction, they may well be winning back a fan.
April 7, 2012
Loved it, it is nice to see a Robotech RPG again.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews