Salvage Union

A post-apocalyptic mech RPG

Overview

Salvage Union is a RPG set in a Post-Apoc world where MegaCorps rules pockets of civilization and nomads on giant 'Crawlers' comb the wastes for 'salvage'. Players are part of the 'Salvage Union', on one of these roaming Crawlers and deploy out in jury-rigged Mechs to collect salvage and investigate their ruined world.

Description

Playing Salvage Union means playing a crew of salvager mech pilots living aboard a massive, mobile home base called a Union Crawler, scavenging a corporate-ravaged wasteland for scrap to keep their community alive. Beyond raiders and rival scavengers, threats include monstrous Bio-Titans, alien Meld, and the Corpos who still control most of the world's remaining resources. Much of the game's appeal comes from its two-layered loop: narrative exploration and salvaging runs outside the mech, and tactical, resource-managed mech combat once things go loud, tied together by a deep crafting system that lets pilots build and refit their machines from scavenged parts between missions.

Key features

The Quest Core Mechanic

Every action resolves on a single d20 roll against five possible outcomes - Triumph, Success, Tough Choice, Failure, Catastrophe - rather than modifiers or ability scores. It keeps resolution fast and puts the emphasis on what a player describes doing rather than what bonuses are sitting on their character sheet.

Mech Customization from Scavenged Parts

Pilots build and refit their Mechs from a pool of 30 chassis and over 150 systems and modules scavenged from the wasteland, turning downtime between missions into as much a part of the game as combat itself.

Six Core Classes, Five Hybrid Classes

Pilot characters choose from a mix of Core and Hybrid classes offering dozens of distinct abilities, giving mech-piloting identities as much mechanical range as the mechs they climb into.

Heat and Resource Management in Combat

Mech combat runs on tracked resources like Heat and Salvage rather than open-ended hit point attrition, forcing pilots to manage their machine's limits as carefully as the enemy in front of them.

Active games and players

en English
Homebrew
Homebrew
...
Boston
Online
Adam
I’m an experienced GM, have run multiyear campaigns, and I regularly run games at local conventions. Preferred Systems: Mostly not D&D or similar traditional fantasy games.  Recent games include Agon, Unknown Armies, Call of Cthulhu, Delta Green, Mothership, Pendragon, Mythic Bastionland, Alien, Blade Runner, Symbaroum, Starforged, Over the Edge, Swords of the Serpentine, and Paranoia.  But I generally enjoy learning new systems Preferred Playstyle: Narrative and investigation are my first choice. I like roleplaying heavy games where choices carry weight and the setting matters: occult conspiracy, espionage, horror, gritty sci-fi, mythic adventure. Combat is fine when it’s brief, tense, and consequential rather than a grind. Character death in earned circumstances is fine.  I'm open to romance in games if the table is bought in.  I don't need a lot of rules but I care about the rules we agree on being consistent and well understood.  I enjoy and run both traditional RPGs and GMless story games. Preferred Tone: Serious stakes with room for humor. Warm, character-driven humor or dark humor works for me; contempt-driven or goofy comedy doesn’t.   I prefer a grounded game but pulp is fine as long as we're all on the same page. I’m happy to run a one-shot when the regular GM needs a break.
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en English
DND5E
Dungeons & Dragons 5E
DND5.5E
Dungeons & Dragons 5.5E (2024)
...
St. Thomas
Nick
Tone chameleon The storyteller
I enjoy trying new systems, I typically GM but would also like to join games as a player. I often host in-person one-shots where other GMs and I try out new systems, if you're in the area and interested to run or play something let me know!
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en English
Lancer
Lancer
MOTHERSHIP
Mothership
...
Online
FrigidMoth
Tone chameleon Against type
I'm up to give new systems a shot, and my interests are all over the place. No harm in reaching out! My time is very flexible But if its not PbP my timezone and life factors might spring up as I take care of family.
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en English
CoC
Call of Cthulhu
...
Roanoke
Online
Andrew Beard
I like playing casual games, especially one-shots.
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en English
DND5E
Dungeons & Dragons 5E
MOTHERSHIP
Mothership
...
Online
Benjamin
38 he/him just trying to do some collaborative story telling online looking for flexable games. Willing to GM for the right group.
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