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Comments

SPACE TIME

[(Anonymous)]

I'm considering a game. Sort of a Star Trek/Macross/Gundam feel. Basic gist of the plot is that there's a colony ship/fleet looking for a habitable world. There's a mix of military and civilians, but by and large it's pretty relaxed. If the military population says 'jump', the civilians ask 'how high', but the military generally lets the civilians govern themselves except during emergencies. They 'farm' asteroids and dead planets for supplies, etc.

Still working on where the players come from, but they're all unconscious or in comas, some of them just sleeping while others are on heavy life support. The colonists have enough resources to spare, even if there's some irritation that their stores are being used on strangers in some corners. When a player apps in and is accepted, their character wakes up and is officially welcomed aboard. Their personal equipment is in a footlocker near them, if they had a mobile suit or a starship, it's being studied, repaired, or generally upkept in a spare vehicle bay.

Here's the thing. Space is dangerous. There's ion storms, rogue meteors, space pirates, hostile planets, space stations filled with killer robots, and an alien empire that would really like the colonists out of their territory. So, while they have plenty of supplies, both the military and the civilian populations are slowly, but steadily, dropping. So, since they can't really say how the characters got there (Unless they brought them there), the colonists ask/tell them to help them out, either by serving essential civilian roles or joining the military. Whatever.

We can do this slice of life or adventure. If we do it slice of life, there can be weird things as a result of Q-like beings toying with the ship, Trouble with Tribbles-style plots, medical emergencies, etc. If we go with adventure, we'll have alien attacks, pirates, maybe a revolt from citizens who are tired of being under the military's thumb, and astro bears.

What do you think? Worth working on? I could use some help with modding and putting things together, if people are interested.

Re: SPACE TIME

[(Anonymous)]

That sounds pretty cool (especially with the characters being allowed mobile suits), although I don't see why it couldn't have both slice-of-life and adventure. I presume it would be an AU game?

Re: SPACE TIME

[(Anonymous)]

I could run it as an AU game. I was planning on having it with canon characters and figure out how the hell they got in later, didn't want to get too far into that without knowing if people thought it was a decent concept.

ayrt

[(Anonymous)]

To be honest, non-AU sounds even better! I prefer non-AU or partial-AU games, I just wasn't sure how you'd work it out with fully-canon characters.

As for the concept itself, I really love it. It sounds like there'd be a lot of things for characters to do, as long as you could stay on top of events and give characters some incentive to interact and progress.

Also: mechamechamechamechayes

Re: ayrt

[(Anonymous)]

I'm not sure yet either. I might claim that they were found in some kind of space/time rift or the colonists picked them up on a wrecked starship/space station that had been releasing a distress signal. I'm working on it.

Yeah, I'd need a bit of help running it, though. I'm a full time college student, so my time is for shit and my schedule is at the mercy of my homework.

One of my original ideas that made me think more on this was a bunch of X-Wings, Valkyries, and Zakus defending a colony against pirate raiders. I just thought it was a cool as hell mental image.

[(Anonymous)]

Maybe have a selection of entry routes? You could easily work in setting-AU characters, and as for fandom characters and OCs, the space/time rift sounds good. There's also always the classic 'malfunctioning dimensional-teleporter' route, or a prank by a Q-like figure (like you mentioned earlier). Possibly waking up from stasis where they'd been living their old 'canon lives' as a virtual reality, if you want a partial-AU method.

As for running it, I personally wouldn't mind helping out with basic modly-duties (updating lists and such), but I'm sure you'd find plenty of volunteers for this sort of game.

[(Anonymous)]

Actually, the setting-AU things sounds like a good idea. I'm glad I thought of itI'm not sure why it didn't really ping in my head. Oh well. The VR thing seems like it could backfire, though. Like, it's a good idea, but what happens when someone else apps from that canon and finds their buddy's basically just been playing it like a game or interactive movie?

Yeah, that sounds like about what I'd need. Just a bit of help with that kind of thing, maybe some volunteers for other stuff. I dunno, we'll see. I'm still in the planning stages now. You wanna talk about basic ideas, try to come up with a name or something? I could set up a tinychat or something, idk.

[(Anonymous)]

That was truly a brilliant idea, anon. The only problem with that is that keeping it fully setting-AU means a lot of people will be put off by having to write an AU history and not being able to play their characters with the usual canon pasts, which a lot of people prefer to do.

As for the VR game route problem, I actually think that could be an interesting dilemma. If you considered it like Distant Skies (the His Dark Materials rp), you could say say that one character actually comes from the fandom universe while the VR-immersed one is merely another version of their friend who happened to be in a VR that emulated the first character's world. Personally I think that would account for some interesting CR but hey, my head is a weird place.

I don't use tinychat, but I don't mind discussing ideas if you'd like! As fo the game name, you'd obviously want to have it in-keeping with the style. Would you want a futuristic, cool sort of name? Something punny? Maybe name it after the ship/fleet? Just don't call it Lost in Space.

[(Anonymous)]

BATTLESHIP GALACTI-no.

Yeah, I don't like fully AU games myself. They just feel awkward, to me. However, keeping it open to both the AU characters and the OU characters should work out fine.

As for the VR thing... Well, I guess I can poll players about it when I actually get some. I'm not too hot on the idea, personally, but if other people are, I'll find a way to implement it. I think my real concern is the possibility for canon puncturing. "Oh, you're dressed as a character from that Trideo game I was playing! How cute." ...Not that we actually see a lot of that in DWRP.

I'm still toying with the tech levels, though a happy medium between Macross or Galactica and Star Trek might be best. No transporters, but replicators based on 3D printer tech, personal starfighters/mobile suits, etc. Would it be better to explain how the tech works for all of the genius-types, or could I get away with a handwave and "It's Buck Rogers shit."

[(Anonymous)]

I prefer fully canon characters myself, so I certainly get where you're coming from.

Yeah, if I were to app here (which would be likely!) I wouldn't do the VR thing myself; what I was thinking was that it might be a happy medium for people who want the canon history but don't want their characters to have to do the 'WHERE AM I, HOW DO I GET HOME' spiel. Having them belong in the world but with the addition of their canon memories was a sort of compromise idea.

Personal starfighters and mecha would be absolutely amazing. As for the rest, I think you'd have to strike a balance between 'your characters have to do something to be accepted and comfortable' and 'everything is provided for you, lalala'. Like, is food provided by Star Trek replicators, or grown in hydroponics labs on some of the decks? Are there AI's running things on the ship/fleet, or are they illegal/not yet developed? For stuff like fuel and communications, you can probably just handwave, but people are going to want to know how things like supplies and comforts/entertainment are provided aboard. If it's a giant colony fleet of thousands or millions, they'll need a lot more supplies than a single ship of only a few hundred people, after all.

Also, is magic a complete unknown to this universe? If canon characters are coming in with weird powers, are they going to be thought of as aliens or psychics (and if so, are they going to be shunned or admired), or are the natives just going to shrug and not really care? Presuming the characters keep their powers, of course.

I'm probably thinking about this too hard.

[(Anonymous)]

Okay, yeah, I see where you're coming from with the VR stuff now, and it makes some sense.

The fleet would, understandably, I think, have their own mecha and starfighters. Starfighters for dogfights, speed, and taking out other ships, mecha for close combat, repelling intruders, construction/repairs, etc. I like the idea of people farming and having gardens, so the replicators might make some simple tools and machines just fine, but the resources are limited and the replicated food is mostly blandly-flavored protein gruel. Thus, the need for farming, growing animals, trading for food at various neutral outposts, etc. And this way, we get to have people cook, clean, etc.

On the replicator limits, replicated items are almost always inferior to the real thing (Food is bland, materials aren't as flexible or tough, clothes wear out more easily), but replicated goods are very quick and can do the job in a pinch. They break down garbage and waste on the ship in order to build up their atomic bases that they use to make items.

There are limited AIs that can assist in specific tasks, but the colonists are wary of fully-sentient AIs due to... I dunno, maybe there were rogue AIs in the past. They know about robots and may even still have a few, but they're of limited intelligence and bound by Asimov-like Laws to prevent rebellion. More like dogs that know how to fix a meal or repair a car than an R2 unit.

I'm still toying with the population, but the more I think about it, the more I like the idea of it being a colony fleet rather than a singular colony ship. Perhaps a ship there just for farming and labor, a few military vessels, a factory ship, and one for the general population to live in.

As for magic... Well, I think that if the colony's been out there a bit, they might have seen some things they just can't explain. Some will blow it off as sufficiently advanced science, others will call it psionics, another group might consider them mutants, and more might think that there are actual gods and magic floating about the universe. Maybe they don't all agree on it and have different views? Eh. It'll be something for me to sit down and think out.

I like the idea of the characters keeping their powers. I might ask/come up with a reason for some folks to tone it down if their characters are too ungodly powerful, but I don't think we're going to have any planet-crackers app in. I like to think that most people can govern themselves and not wave their power peen around, anyway.

No, no. This is the kind of thing I was thinking of exactly.

[(Anonymous)]

Starfighters as well? Anon, this is my dream game...

I think that's a good idea with the food, etc; it'll stop people from just having their characters sit back and do nothing while everything's supplied for them. Perhaps if they just stay as a passenger, they get bare minimum in terms of replicated food and a dorm room, and get more luxuries/better rooms the harder they work? If you're having all those various types of ships (perhaps scout, cargo and mining ships as well?), that means there's a massive selection of potential jobs/training, which I love.

The magic I don't have much to add to; that all seems sensible and could work for potential plots/events as well.

Another thing to consider is medical augmentation technology. Is adapting your body banned/impossible, or can it be done? There might be people with their DNA altered to live on planets with different atmospheres/gravities, or just with things like their senses/physical abilities improved, if it's allowed. In that case, there might be required enhancements for certain things, like having surgery for perfect vision before you could pilot a mecha. (Now I really am thinking about this too much.)

The main problem I can foresee is communication. Firstly, languages - is the main language English, for example, or something native to that world? Will characters perhaps have the language uploaded into their head (which opens the possibility for other training to be uploaded?) or will they have some kind of implant translating for them? You'd also have to have a fleet-wide network if people are going to be split over different ships; probably most of the communications would end up on a network, unless a lot of people stuck to one ship. (It would be a lot of fun to split the fleet up and have them have to try and get back together.)

Also, why ARE they looking for a habitable world? Was their homeworld/s overcrowded? Were they exiled, or just split off from their homes because of some kind of political/religious schism? Maybe their worlds were destroyed or going to be? If they left because they were threatened by someone or something, that could be a major plot possibility, especially if they're being chased or followed.

[(Anonymous)]

Yeah, I don't figure that the people there would much appreciate you waking up after they've spent so much time on you, and then not doing anything in return. I was thinking that the folks in charge would give them a week or two to acclimate, then start gently pushing them towards getting a job. Even if it's something like washing dishes or training to be a pilot. One of the possibilities I'm considering is the population's been dropping enough thanks to various attacks/disasters, that they desperately do need people to fill in certain positions.

Medical augmentation technology... I'd say cybernetic and biological enhancements are probably a thing, but they have to consider resources, time, and compatibility with people. Maybe the entire population is lightly enhanced in some way or another, maybe some of them are outright aliens. Actually, I find myself liking the idea that a good chunk of the population isn't quite human. Whether they've got non-human ancestors, or they're aliens themselves. Honestly, that's something I want to sit down and think about, come up with an answer after I've considered everything.

Language-wise, I'm considering two major possibilities. One is that they've been taught while they sleep, kind of like how some people used to suggest playing things in a foreign language while you sleep, so your brain always has that input? I dunno what it's called. But I figure that they could probably be taught a few languages that way. Or we could handwave it with some kind of universal translator. But I like the idea that there's a Galactic Trade Language that most everyone knows, and that would handle communications with aliens that aren't from the convoy.

I'm currently wavering between their planet was overcrowded/they're trying to spread out an empire. I might claim that their navigational systems got trashed somehow, so that's why they ended up in hostile territory. They're repaired now, but their star charts don't match up with their surroundings, and they don't want to take a risk of ending up shunting into a star.

One thing I'd like to avoid is a feeling of "We were misunderstood!" or general angst amongst the colonists. They might be depressed over their mission, but I'd kind of like the feel of the NPCs to be a general feeling of excitement over exploration/looking forward to finally settling down and having a new planet. Maybe they have that because they've been in the fleet for a few generations, which could lead to the players having to help out with repairs and adapting alien tech to their ships?

[(Anonymous)]

why would you want to rip off trans_9 tho

da

[(Anonymous)]

because it was a good idea for a game, it's been dead for months, and there's still no fun space adventure game that's not ataraxion.

[(Anonymous)]

I'm not purposefully trying to rip off Trans 9. I'm not really seeing the similarities, other than people being on the ship already and that the replicators can't make food taste good.

Thing is, Stacy was a converted prison ship that was being used for Nefarious Purposes by the 'benevolent' aliens that built her, and would have ended up with the multiverse destroyed and a grand battle to restore everything.

My thing is a fleet of colony and medical ships that are pretty much benevolent. They're not as advanced as Stacy, no insta-cloning body parts and machines that read your mind. There's no real mystery as to what they're doing. They're not even traveling from dimension to dimension, just other planets and solar systems.

So... I'm not really getting the T9 vibes here? I mean, the feel's different, the setting's different, the entire goal is different. Is there something I should be doing to avoid the whole "This is the other Trans 9 knockoff" thing?

[(Anonymous)]

Oh god if this is an AU, or if there's at least a strong AU element and the OU stuff makes logical sense in-game, I'm all over it. I'd personally prefer something with an overarching plot with lots of character involvement (mmm space politics and waaaaaar) over random wacky events.

[(Anonymous)]

I'm not a huge fan of random wacky events, though I'd run those if my playerbase wanted them. Politics might be necessary for some parts, given that the colony is passing through other alien territories, and war/ship invasions/space battles are kind of a given.

I would really prefer to have it open to OU characters, though now I'm kind of interested in having AU-based counterparts for them.

Re: SPACE TIME

[(Anonymous)]

yes do want.

Re: SPACE TIME

[(Anonymous)]

Well, that's two. Maybe I should actually think up a name for this thing.

Re: SPACE TIME

[(Anonymous)]

good fucking GOD yes please

Re: SPACE TIME

[(Anonymous)]

I'll probably have it set up by early December, at this rate. I need to decide on names for everything, hammer down some minor, but important, details, type it all up, and get the comms set up. I'll also need to work on maps or something. Fucking maps.

I have a friend who can help with my comm needs. I'll need to track down some co-mods, if not just for help on dealing with apps and handling lists. That can wait until I have most everything else set up, though.

So far, my biggest stumbling blocks are the names and the designs of the generic mecha and starfighters that they'll already have on board (Gotta give the people who don't come with their own Gundams or tailfighters something to pilot, yeah?). And the maps of the various ships in the colony fleet. Goddamn maps.

ayrt

[(Anonymous)]

keep us posted, please, anon! i would really love to be a part of this, huge space geek that i am. i'm not much good with designing mecha but if you need an extra hand with anything i CAN do this anon would be happy to help.

Re: ayrt

[(Anonymous)]

I appreciate that! Right now I'm still in the designing phase and, well. I'm not too experienced in what makes a successful game. (I made one in the past and it died within two months.)

With that in mind, what do you think of the stuff I've got so far, idea-wise? Is there anything in particular you think we need? Anything big that you'd love to see?

Re: SPACE TIME

[(Anonymous)]

I keep wanting to throw in space dwarves. Practically every other science fiction show has some kind of space elves, but fuck elves and their prancy ways and pointy ears.

Space dwarves. Who mine asteroids. And have laser axes.