Juan_Gimenez_-_Metabarons_Universe_Guide.pdf

U N I V E R S E G U I D E

WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF A LEXANDRO J ODOROWKSY

A BRIDGED E DITION

P REFACE

Phew! My head’s on fire!… I just blew a diode! But I’m not complaining — quite the opposite. I’m happy, for

I know at last that I’m not human…

The limitations of my bio-organism had been depressing me. Even more than that, it’s been the walls of the

mental prison that hem us in from childhood, the “rational” mold called school. But then came the Yéti Mu-

tants: Fred Le Berre, Marc Prudhomme, Kurt Mc Clung, and Julien Blondel. They put me under the red-hot rays

of their psycho-interrogation lamp and bombarded me with questions for a full fifty hours. Initially, I was

overcome with feelings of anger. What right did these young griffins have to dare infringe upon the inner recesses

of my cerebral maze in this way, hunting down answers that like giant jellyfish were floating along the veins of

my unconscious?

But I had a plan! Slowly, step by little step, I was going to give them the keys to the Incal Universe, which is the

same as the Metabarons and TechnoPriests. A hugely immense “oeuvre” that would have taken me at least ten

years to recount. But I hadn’t been counting on the young mutants’ impatience. They wanted to know every-

thing, right away. Showing no respect they fired off their mental probes, assaulting my impregnable Data Bank

and under the incessant fire of their questions, my human mask disintegrated.

I ceased being a man and became a universe.

Far, far away, in an ethereal zone where my body didn’t exist, I saw myself giving away tons of secrets, with an

absolute precision that I had never before dared to imagine, even in my dreams. At the height of the trance,

streams of words — barely comprehensible for they were of human origin — gushed from my mouth, laying

bare the hidden structure of the cosmos, the nature of the people who live there, the mysteries of parallel

universes, thousands of centuries of history, countless weapons and vessels, outrageous doctrines, judges and

laws, and billions of other things as well…

A new chapter in the history of my Jodoverse came to life with each one of their questions. A moment of

extreme ecstasy! A singular experience that can only be compared to what happened to me one day in Mexico

while meditating in a Buddhist Temple with a Japanese Zen master. Suddenly, he subjected my spirit to a koan —

a sacred riddle conceived to break the straight jacket of the intellect: “I have no beginning, nor end. Who am I?”

I knew very well that some monks go into retreat for ten or twenty years looking for an answer, which isn’t

necessarily expressed in words. But, body taught with effort like a readied archery bow, I wanted to find the

solution in that very instant: “I am god; that’s it, I am everything.”

Full of wrath and disdain, the master threw me out of the temple: “Intellectual! Learn to die!” My failure was

filled with such disgrace and shame that a part of me died on the spot. Instantaneously, I became another. And

from the deepest reaches of my unconscious, a voice that was already no longer human exclaimed: “There is no

beginning and there is no end. There just is.”

Thank you for your questions, Yéti. They blew my diodes. They made me into a galaxy of answers, nothing

but answers. Ever since, I roam infinite space, in search of the first and last question.

Alexandro Jodorowsky

U N I V E R S E G U I D E

A BRIDGED E DITION

The Empire

The Four Pillars

The Factions

Everyday Life

Endocities

The Universe

Worlds

Aliens

Mutants

101

Major Forces

105

Cults and Religions

112

Amarax and Necro-Dream

117

Technological Progress

122

Weapons

127

Cybernetics

139

Robotics

143

Transportation

147

The Metabunker

150

Glossary

153

Reading List

155

Note to Our Readers

This PDF version of the Universe Guide was created from the original electronic files. Images and select text

were left out or modified and the page layout was modified to reduce file size and production time. This electronic

document is provided as an relatively inexpensive means for people to get previously unavailable information

about the Metabarons Universe.

If you received a copy of this file from a friend and would like to support the publishing efforts of Humanoids

Publishing, please send US$15.00 via PayPal (https://www.paypal.com/) to cs@humanoids-publishing.com.

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retailer can order the Metabarons Roleplaying Game Rule Book and other printed Metabarons supplements through

Humanoids Publishing. You can find more information about ordering directly from Humanoids Publishing in the

Games section of our Web site.

The Metabarons and The Incal comic books and trade paperbacks are available at better comic and book stores

around the world. For more information about these series or the roleplaying game and how to get them, please visit

the Humanoids Publishing Web site, www.humanoids-publishing.com.

Conception and Development: Julien Blondel, Fred Le Berre,

Kurt McClung, and Marc Prudhomme,

with the participation of Alexandro Jodorowsky

American Adaptation: Nikola Vrtis with Scott Palter

Short Stories & Writing Direction: Fred Le Berre

Continuity: Marc Prudhomme

Coordination: Nadège Delbos and Kurt McClung.

Design of Original Book: Régis Haghebaert, Stéphane Martinez, and David Panzo

Graphic Conception: Régis Haghebaert, Virgnie Bréham, Christophe Bonneterre, Olivier Hug, and David Panzo.

Layout & Manufacturing of Original Book: Nathalie Rocher

PDF Design, Layout, & Creation: Nikola Vrtis

Cover Art: Travis Charest

Interior Illustrations in PDF: Cyril Adam (pp. 98, 104), Bernard Bittler (p. 95), Aleksi Briclot (pp. 94, 97),

Juan Gimenez (pp. 8, 40, 44, 96, 144), Boris Golzio (pp. 62, 63, 152), Zoran Janjetov (pp. 37, 42, 54 upper),

Thierry Masson (pp. 129, 130, 132 lower, 133, 135, 136), Mœbius (pp. 18, 30, 54 lower, 59, 117, 142, 145, 146, 149),

Gérald Parel (p. 8), and Roberto Zoulie (pp. 132 upper, 134).

Coloring: Studio Beltran, Guillaume Bessis, Philippe Guinot, Walter Le Brec, Agnès Moreau, and Pascal Pontoire.

French Editing & Corrections: Sophie Lamotte, Ronan Le Breton, Antoine Pinchot, and Loïc Portnoë.

English Tranlsations: Diane Bertrand, Justin Kelly, and Joan Wilchins

English Editing: Rachelle Brissenden, Kurt McClung, and Nikola Vrtis

A big thank you to: Didier Gonord, Bruno Lecigne, Philippe Hauri and the Yéti Team.

French version developed and published by Yéti Entertainment S.A. English version developed and published by Humanoids in

association with Yéti Entertainment S.A. The Metabarons and The Metabarons logo are trademarks of Les Humanoïdes Associés

Alexandro Jodorowsky. The D6 System game mechanics used herein are used with permission of Humanoids, Inc.

French First Printing March 2001. Printed in Spain. PDF Edition April 2003. PDF created in USA.

T H E E M P I R E

Wonder of wonders, fruit of the eye of the Omphal,

this vast universe is richly inhabited. Indeed, the area

mapped out by the eager reach of humans, far beyond

the bounds of the Milky Way (Terra Prima’s galaxy),

contains a wide assortment of races and peoples, most

of them human, but some mutant and alien as well.

These worlds, completely alien to one another, are

united beneath the authority of the Empire, a colossal

organization whose powers extend as far as its ships can

fly. The Empire boasts an armed force — the Endoguard;

an ever-present clergy with godlike technological powers

— the Techno-Pontificate, also known as the Techno-

Technos or the Church of the Industrial Saints (C.I.S.);

and a financial institution — the Ekonomat, which has

great influence over all economic transactions. Besides

these, two other groups carry considerable weight: the

Maganats and the Union of Planets, also known as “the

Colonials.” A Maganat is any planet, group of planets,

system, or even group of systems placed under total own-

ership and authority of a leading Noble House. By defini-

tion, the Maganats are loyal to the Empire, and Janus-

Jana is their leader. However, this apparent obedience does

not rule out intrigue, which seems to be the criterion rather

than the exception. Depending on circumstances, these

Noble vassals either hold almost no power, or they pos-

sess means tremendous enough to at least challenge the

Empire, although not to overpower it. The Colonials, on

the other hand, are independent in appearance but re-

main more or less loyal to the Empire. Each one of the

numerous Colonial planets is ruled by a “Kamar,” com-

pletely independent of the concerns of the Imperial Court.

As for the Union of Planets, it includes two main branches,

which are themselves subdivided into clans. The first

branch includes two major clans: the Troglosocialiks and

the Menscheviks. The second branch includes a wide ar-

ray of minor clans: the Ultra-Colonialists, the Super-Con-

querors, the Troglo-Barbarians, the Poly-Schismatics, the

Amico-Visitors, the Hyper-Putschists, the Trotsko-Revo-

lutionary Avatars, and the Proto-Nihiliks, to name just a

few of the more prominent.

V ERITABLE H ISTORY OF

THE T RANS -B OURBON L INEAGE

Janus-Jana, the illustrious Imperial Siamese couple, is

the last of a line that dates back to the introduction of

royalty in the Kingdom of France, part of Terra Prima’s

“Old World.” Indeed, when the Trans-Bourbon family

acceded to the Imperial throne in the year 3499,

Rosemonde I the Rebis resumed the broken thread of the

dynasty of magical monarchs, even though centuries had

passed in the interval. Today’s Trans-Bourbon family, far

from being an Imperial offshoot springing suddenly from

the void, can trace deep roots back to the royal breeding-

ground of Terra Prima’s absolute monarchs.

After the citizens of Paleo-Paris, in 1789’s great current

of wrath and joyful regicide, had cast aside the political

order that had controlled their destinies, the Dauphin Louis

XVII, son of Louis XVI and heir apparent to the throne of

Paleo-France, became the pivotal focus for both supporters

and enemies of the monarchy. This second child of Louis

XVI, became first the Duke of Normandy, then the Dau-

phin when his older brother died on June 4, 1789, and con-

sequently he was jailed in the Temple prison in August 1792.

Official history maintains that he quickly succumbed to an

onset of illness caused by poor hygienic conditions, perish-

ing in the Temple on June 8, 1795. Of course questions

were raised, and over the following decades, many claimed

that the true Dauphin had fled and was waiting for the right

time to return and reclaim his rightful throne. Then again,

over the next several years, numerous self-proclaimed “Dau-

phins” appeared, demanding to be granted titles, honors,

castles, and all the other normal trappings of kingship. As

time passed, reliable witnesses to the events disappeared,

but the mystery remained. Had the Dauphin died at the

Temple or not? Had he escaped? Or had he been murdered

by a reactionary from a rival faction in order to prevent

him from claiming his rights?

The questions were examined seriously. The body was

exhumed numerous times, but the experts’ reports all gave

completely different and very surprising results. How

could the body of a ten-year-old child have measured 4'8",

or even 5'4"? The Dauphin’s heart, purloined by Doctor

Pelletan during his autopsy, had passed all his tests and

was now embalmed at the Paleo-Basilica of St. Denis.

Unfortunately, however, a relic cannot talk. It was not

until the late twentieth century, with its understanding of

the mysteries of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), that the

questions which had held all the historians spellbound

over the previous two centuries could finally be settled.

The verdict: the embalmed heart indeed belonged to a

son of Louis XVI. Comparative analysis carried out on

DNA of the living descendants of the Bourbons was de-

finitive. Once again, the winds of oblivion did their work,

and the mystery of the Dauphin who died in the Temple

became no more than a curiosity for nostalgic historians.

But what was the truth of it?

T HE U NSUSPECTED M OTHER

The truth of it was this: at the dawn of the year 1795,

on a cold wet night at the end of winter, a citizen named

Amelie Ladoucette, former nursemaid to Louis XVI’s wife

Marie-Antoinette in the castle of Versailles, arrived at the

Temple prison to switch her own son with the Dauphin.

Of the four known attempts at substitution, this is the

one that succeeded. To save the Dauphin, direct inheritor

of the miraculous power of divine essence of the kings of

Paleo-France, Amelie Ladoucette consented to lie, to en-

dure taunts from corrupt guards, and above all, to sacri-

fice the son she cherished more than anything. Of course,

this raises several new questions. Why then would DNA

analysis of the embalmed heart have confirmed succes-

sion? Did she act alone, or were her actions inspired or

even masterminded by others?

What is for certain is that the citizen Ladoucette must

have been utterly convinced of the greater good of her ac-

tions to consent to so many sacrifices. Presumably, since

she had lived intimately with and tended to the royal fam-

ily, even serving as nursemaid to the children of the king

and queen, she could well have been acting in response to a

royal summons, which would have driven her to endure

anything to ensure the perpetuation of the line. Since she

had looked after Louis XVII from his infancy, she would

also have felt some maternal sentiment for him. But above

all, he was the son of the king, a man so far above her and

yet so close, whom she had loved and given herself to. Amid

the easy morals of life in Versailles, she had responded to

the needs of a sensual king, yielding to him during an em-

brace. This combination of facts explains her psychological

willingness to offer her own son in sac-

rifice. Amelie Ladoucette loved the King

as a husband and loved the King’s son,

the Dauphin, as her own.

Moreover, as demonstrated by DNA

analysis 200 years later, the son she sac-

rificed in order to spare the Dauphin

was in fact an illegitimate child of the

King, and of the same age. Thus, an-

other mystery is explained. The child’s

corpse in the Temple, whose heart re-

mained for centuries in its hiding place

at the St. Denis Basilica, may not have

been the Dauphin destined to take the

throne and continue the line, but he had

indeed descended from the king. Inci-

dentally, the fact that she knew and

loved the Dauphin, and had a son the

same age, were other factors which

probably made it easier for her to be-

come an instrument of destiny by per-

forming the sacrifice.

M ICHEL DE N OSTRE -D AME

But one other factor contributed to

things turning out precisely the way they

did. The Dauphin’s half-brother might

have seemed just as adequate a substi-

tute. As far as the affairs of the King-

dom go, that’s doubtlessly true. But the

Dauphin possessed a unique character-

istic, a genetic oddity that made him a

long-awaited “Chosen One” to fulfill a

grand plan. Louis XVII, the Dauphin,

was a hermaphrodite.

Who, then, could have been so in-

terested in one of nature’s whims? Who

could have attached such importance

to a young victim of sexual deformity?

And who had the ability to pursue this

goal across the centuries?

Amelie Ladoucette was one of the many com-

mon women who expended enormous effort try-

ing to bury the traces of their past, because any

former servant to the Court would be an obvious sus-

pect to those who hunted down counter-revolutionar-

ies. Her instinct for survival would more likely have

encouraged her to keep a low profile, and avoid con-

flict by any means necessary in these difficult times. So

a guide would have to come to her to show her what to

do. He came in the guise of a man of mature age, by no

means old, but already thoughtfully contemplating the

threshold of life. He claimed to be a doctor, and in fact

was able to identify her complaint after only a brief ex-

amination. With a few gentle but very firm gestures, he

brought the calm back to her feverish son’s face. He seemed

to know all about her. She should have been afraid, but

the serenity he exuded inspired confidence. She was will-

ing to do anything for him, and he revealed to her that

she could do him a great service. Then,

he told her his name: Michel de Nostre-

Dame.

“It has been written in the stars!”

he repeated constantly. In a pedantic

tone, he would continue: “My precious

child, the conjunctions tell us it must

be so in order for great work to occur.

The young Dauphin is intended for the

throne, but the history of mankind is

inconstant. However, he must rule at

any cost. I cannot tell you more, but

be aware that he has been awaited for

all eternity, and that humanity is de-

pending on you to ensure that one day

he may take his rightful place.…”

She may not have understood all of

the alchemist’s plans, but Amelie

Ladoucette was convinced. She would

make the exchange. She was commit-

ted, and would sacrifice her son for the

endeavor. On the eve of the day she

would visit the Temple to recover the

young Dauphin, Michel de Nostre-

Dame (also known as Nostradamus)

spent the day inside, preparing long

lists of symbols and making cabalistic

diagrams, all of them confirming his

intuitions. At the end of the night, he

wrote a new quatrain in his notebook,

entitled “The Centuries”:

O UT OF THE T EMPLE , BORN IN GLORY

UNATTAINED ,

S TATELY , AND BY OINT OF HOLY OIL , SOON

SUBLIME

S HEATHED IN GOLD , AS CENTURIES PASS

H IM BY ,

D AUPHIN WILL BE R EBIS : ANOTHER , YET

THE SAME .

Golden Oil

While perusing the story

of the Trans-Bourbons and

their legendary lineage, some

may be surprised to learn of

Rosemonde I the Rebis’s ex-

ceptional longevity. For

Rosemonde I the Rebis only

ceded his throne after hav-

ing exercised his power and

influence for almost 10,000

years. However, when look-

ing attentively at the genesis

of this extraordinary family,

the consequence of Michel de

Nostre-Dame’s great act be-

comes quite obvious.

Nostre-Dame, who

was Rosemonde’s mentor

and founder, plunged

Rosemonde into Golden Oil,

the alchemic fruit of the

Philosopher’s Stone, whose

miraculous virtues procure

exceptional wealth, health,

and youth for those sub-

merged within it. Handed

down through his spirit’s

flesh and blood, these leg-

endary virtues are perpetu-

ated in his descendants (Im-

perial couples, twins, broth-

ers/sisters, mothers/fathers)

who owe their existence, en-

during several thousands of

years, to the Philosopher’s

Stone.

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