Sol – full name Solanaceae – is the default name of your character in I Was a Teenage Exocolonist.
Your parents are farmers, and they named you after their favorite taxonomic family, the nightshades, which contains potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and tobacco.
You are your father’s Little Tomatillo, his Brave Gooseberry, his Spunky Petunia, and his Busy Aubergine. Your dad’s a sweetheart… but a little embarrassing.
Your mom’s the realist of the family, always trying to get you to work hard and toughen up. You may butt heads with her, but it’s usually for your own good. It’s your choice whether you take her advice, or roll your eyes and fidget like a proper teenager.
Exocolonist starts with a short character generation which takes place during the first ten years of your life on the colony ship Stratospheric before it lands. You choose your name, your gender (two sliders for appearance and pronouns) and a genetic modification.
Before the colonists left Earth, they “acquired” valuable gene editing tech to give themselves an edge on their new planet. All the colony children have one augmentation. You can pick:
| Perk | Skill | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Extra fingers | creativity + 10 | Increase Creativity and Organization faster |
| Eagle eyes | perception + 10 | Increase Perception faster, events while exploring |
| Absorbent brain | reasoning + 10 | Increase Reasoning, Biology, Physics faster |
| Super strength | combat + 10 | Increase Toughness and Combat faster |
| Calm temperament | empathy + 10 | 25% less Stress |
| Nothing at all | kudos + 30 | 25% more Kudos because you tried your best |
Through a series of other choices you pick your childhood best friend, starting skills, and early childhood memories. These memories take the form of cards.
More about these cards and Sol’s list of skills in future posts!
