Sorry for the blurriness. Didn’t catch it sooner. This is the first of 2 add-ons I got for the game. It was also $49. It’s another fat book at 312 pages. The short version is that this goes over the different timelines available to play in the game as well as key figures one could potentially run into or are relevant during the time.
Chapter 1 is “The Promise of a Better World” and covers 1958 - 1973. It starts with a timeline going back to 1953 and also a blurb about the Cold War. ANSA is the military affiliate of NASA and stands for the American National Space Administration. We get information on events, legends, and rumors of the time like the Juno/Mars Mission and the Secession War in which Texas left the Union, as well as information on the missing Apollo Missions. There are 3 “Promise Era” archetypes available in addition to the specific astro-naut archetypes from the Core Rulebook. Then we get into the politics of the era and some defense projects and locations (Area 51). Next is a list of the major players, their bios, and relevant stats. So Taylor, Dodge, and several others. Then we get equipment and vehicles. Lastly is some game scenarios.
Chapter 2 is “No Escape” and covers 1973 - 1982. We’re in the “Chimps have landed” timeline. Layout is the same as far as where information is presented. One key event/rumor is the body of the dead Chimpanzee, Dr. Milo, disappears from the morgue at some point with whereabouts unknown. New archetypes are available which can be used in conjunction with those from the prior chapter and appropriate ones from the Core Rules. There’s an update on politics for the time and new organizations that come to the front, like The Animal Exploration Bureau, Fur & Feather Magazine, and Mchanon & Nash Technologies. Locations include Armando’s Sensational Circus, Kwan’s of Hollywood, and Marine Camp XI. A bunch of bios follow, as do equipment and adventure ideas.
Chapter 3 is the Nature of Conquest (1983 - 1992). A lot is going on in this chapter. So much that it takes up 80 or so pages of the book. So much goes on in this span of time. So much goes right, and yet so much goes horribly wrong. The introduction to the chapter gives a history of the era, from the deaths of Zira and Cornelius to the Rise of Caesar. They then sum it up nicely with the “Ape-o-naut Tapes,” a lightly redacted version of Cornelius’ and Zira’s conversation from Escape From The Planet of the Apes. Next is the more obligatory timeline. March 1983 is the moment in universe when the dogs and cats are wiped out. By November 1984 the US starts towards a totalitarian regime. In 1988 the Authoritarian Party wins the election and by 1989 major changes have happened. During the stretch between December 10 -15, 1991, global nuclear war happens. In January 1992, Caesar leads his allies (ape and human) into the wilderness. In the events, legends, and rumor section, more information is given on the virus that killed the dogs and cats, the start of Ape Management, evolving the apes so they can be “helpers” to humans, the fall to authoritarianism, trouble abroad, the Night of the Fires, and the mushroom clouds, among so much more going on. There’s a quick blurb about playing in the era and some new archetypes. Apes cannot speak at creation, but can spend XP as they acquire enough to go from babble to sound mimicry to full speaking ability. The other option is pantomime or sign language. There’s also a lot going on with politics and organizations. There’s the State Security Council, the State Security Agency, American News Network (the state run propaganda, er, news channel), The Watch, the Human Labor Movement, and many more. In locations, we get a deep dive of Modern City and the agencies in its borders. they also go into the Provinces and other locations of interest. The bio section goes over every major player of the era: Caesar, an updated bio on Armando, Governor Breck, Malcolm MacDonald, and a lot more. Also included (like previous chapters) are fodder NPCs of many types. Equipment, vehicles and nuclear weapons are next, and lastly the adventure hook section.
On to Chapter 4: Choose Your Battles (1993 - 2040). This gives us the exodus of Caesar and his band of apes and humans from Modern City to the first colony. There’s a blurb (in 2 parts and on different pages) about Caesar’s Legacy. He became referred to as the Unknown Ape as opposed to King of the Apes when the Lawgivers struck him from the record in the 2700s. There are hints he has descendants still. It is known that his grandson Alexander ruled Ape City with Virgil’s son Jacob (the first Lawgiver) as his aide and spiritual advisor. The timeline at points is spotty as some “history dates” are lost with some sources saying the mutant attack on Ape City came in 2004, while others claim it was 2020. What is known is the virus that destroyed the dogs and cats mutated due to radioactive fallout and accelerates apes’ learning abilities. It will mutate further over the next several centuries affecting human intelligence. Eventually the events of the movie happen and in the wake of those events the Alpha/Omega Bomb (the bomb to destroy the planet ) is almost used. 20 years on from the battle, a delegation from the Forbidden City meet with Caesar and others to discuss a peace treaty. An accord is reached, though 2 apes appear to lose their minds (go apeshit?) and an elderly Caesar and young Steven (now Mendez II) survive to rule over their respective communities. More ape uprisings, new enemies and allies, and the schism between Aldo and Caesar make up some of the events, legends, and rumors of the time. There are new archetypes and all archetypes (except Lawgiver, which doesn’t exist until the 2600s) in the Core Rules can be played. Humans in this era would be servants of the Apes. Politics and organizations include the Mutants of the Forbidden City, and the Aldonites among others. In locations, the main is the first Ape City, aka Caesar’s City, aka the Unknown City. The Forbidden Zone is discussed and is a colloquial designation for the area between Ape City and the remnants of Modern City. The Zone is typically more irradiated than other areas, though it becomes less so over the millennia. The Forbidden City is discussed more as well. The bio section gives updates on some characters and introduces others. Barter is used at this point in acquiring goods. We get some new equipment and the obligatory game scenarios to help get your session off the ground.
Chapter 5: What Lies Beneath (3858 - 3979) We’ve hit the timeline of the first 2 Apes movies. It’s interesting to note the full timeline from when Liberty I crashes and the planet goes totally nuclear is only about 67 days. Taylor and crew land November 25, 3978 and everything goes boom on January 31, 3979. Other events of note: Ape Society’s quota system breaks down in 3958 and Dr Zaius shuts down an archaeological site in the Forbidden Zone in 3977. The ape cities vary a little across the land. There is Ape City in the East which stretched its boundaries in the surrounding area to become the nation-state of Simia, where events in the movies happen. There’s also Central City on the West Coast. There are also villages with treehouses, simple huts and other small structures. Legends, rumors, and events presented hear add a little more to what was given in the Core Rules. The politics and organizations section is very heavy on organizations and very light on politics. There’s the Hunt Club, which showed up in the first Apes movie; the Anti-vivisection Society, which was started by a Chimpanzee scientist named Prisca, who thought butchering humans was a bit distasteful; and also the Fellowship of the Holy Fallout, which is the mutants we meet in the 2nd movie; as well as several others. Then there are more bios with new characters as well as updates to others, including: “Bright Eyes,” Dodge, and Stewart. There are 38 bios presented in the chapter, new and updated. Lastly are some scenarios and hooks.
The final chapter is Chapter 6: The Infinite Highway. This chapter talks about time travel and various theories (or postulations/hypotheses, however one wants to call it) of time travel and how to use it in your game. It even allows for a psionic power called Infinite Regression.
There was obviously a lot to unpack here, hence the length (think about what I must have glossed over. There was so much more I could have included). Said it before and I will say it again, they definitely went above and beyond in researching the lore to complete this. If you’re going to get the Core Rules, you should definitely pick this up.
To preorder: www.planetoftheapesRPG.com