I've been reading Doc Smith's Skylark and Lensman books, and am considering running a game with some space opera elements. I'm thinking a TL 10 realistic interplanetary setting with the recent discovery of a ^ or variant tech based on recent breakthrus in gravitics. The players would be the crew of the first interstellar drive based ship, built by a private corporation.

Just for fun, and because FTL comms and sensors are still down the road, and because it would be nice if the players didn't die by flying into a sun they couldn't see, the drive will be inertialess, more or less.

Any interest?
This message was last edited by the user at 15:34, Tue 15 July 2014.

Interested.  What point level did you have in mind?

Out of curiosity, what are key elements to you that make up space opera?

How do you want to handle rank, if at all?  One issue to consider is that if rank is purchased with CP, then the higher the rank the otherwise less able the character is as those points won't be available for skills, attributes, or other advantages.  One possible work around is for rank to have a matching disadvantage that must be taken but is not available to those without rank and does not count against the disadvantage limit - sort of a "rank template".

In reply to otghand (msg # 2):

Inertia less drives, mostly. Or z warp drive, if you prefer. Lots of super science. Silly fast speeds while tooling around the  galaxy. Or Galaxies, depending. Which is why I appended the "-ish".  It's going to be early days, yet, for the variant techs.

Ad to rank, that's a non issue. As I said above:  the ship is built by a corporation. The PCs will be employees, not soldiers. Any ship board rank will be designated by the employer when the time comes.

But, I do.consider the ability of one character to give commands to others that could lead to a loss of patronage if ignored to be an advantage. Of course bad commands could lead to a loss of rank, as well. Negating q cost for being the guy in charge would simply make for too many bosses.

Point level would likely be in the250 range, with some requirements for employment to limit certain sorts of disadvantage, and to ensure certain minimum skills were present. It would be.nice, for instance if someone was a trained pilot, and if his eyes and hands worked, and he didn't stress out and become someone else if the flying got hairy.

For all that I don't think I'll ever actually play a game of Prime Directive, the minimum training packages and crew certifications are actually pretty nice for this kind of thing.

What would be the primary thrust of the game?  Are the PCs going to be on the ship most of the time, or visiting new worlds and going groundside a lot?  I find that the points get kind of stretched thin if the group is going to be doing a whole lot of both, as most of what you use on the ground and in space don't intersect.

I'm provisionally interested.

In reply to swordchucks (msg # 4):

Well, that kind of depends on the players. I'll leave it semi sand box. When they reach a star system I'll generate it. There WILL be a landing craft, but that doesn't mean it will be used.

The system may or may not have habitable planets, but one will eventually. It may or may not have intelligent life. But one will eventually. That intelligent life may or may not be more advanced., but one will be, eventually.

Now, at 500 G acceleration, 4 light years only takes 2 months....if you don't stop. Stopping and starting can slow things down. Of course, after about 17 hours you will be going too fast to see anything worth stopping for. I haven't run the numbers for anything farther than  4 light years, yet.

However, its a safe bet that some of  the characters will have been part of the design team, and may be able to.make improvements. But that will takr time, too.

Again, the players will have a ship and  no real goal but a test flight to the next star, at least originally. What they do on that flight, or at that star is on them. They won't have to answer for it until they get back.

What do you have in mind for the size of the ship's crew?  Do you expect all or most of the crew to be PC's, or will the ship have dozens or hundreds of crew and the PCs are just a few amongst them?

In reply to otghand (msg # 6):

It's a prototype ship. It will be small. Crewed by PCs. Exact size and freeing dependant upon submissions, but size am +8 or am+9, based solely on need for habitat units

How developed is the Sol system in the setting?  How common diverse is the "human" race?

I'm liking the concept more and more, I think.

In reply to swordchucks (msg # 8):

Well, tl10 implies, to me, at least, a degree of colonization, if just satellites at strategic places, and domes on Luna and Mars.

"Strategic places" would be orbits around those two and Earth, the asteroid belt for mi.I.g, Saturn for mi.ing and ice asteroids to Mars, and, possibly, Luna for and air envelope and green house effect, and Neptune for Ammonia asteroids to Mars, etc for atmospheric bulk.

Again, as the ship would be the first prototype, humanity would be the only race, hence common. Diversity depends on the company doing the hiring, and the places they can find or train skilled labor, SMS may vary from Satellite station to Satellite station. Most independants souls likely.be from western cultures, or acclimated to the same, as that's likely the background or the companies willing to deal with wildcatters. Of course, the larger western.culture nations are quite diverse, and companies expanding into space would probably.be multinational to start, certainly soon afterwards, mostly.

Unless I've misunderstood the question?

Ultra-tech gives terraforming Mars a 1000 year timespan at TL10 (though you would only need light protection after a decade or so), so I can see that.  Venus is apparently TL11.  Space habitats also look like they'd be suitable for the other planets.

My question about diversity was actually targeted at genetic engineering.  Bio-Tech has dozens of TL 9 and 10 offshoots that could be valid.  For instance, heavy worlders might inhabit cities floating in the atmosphere of Jupiter.

What sort of point level are you thinking of?

Are you planning on allowing cybernetics or AIs?

Interest growing ...

In reply to otghand (msg # 11):

In keeping with a Space Opera like feel, no genetic engineering and no fancy cybernetics. Doc Smith allowed for replacing.missing parts before a soldier was placed in semi retirement or printed out of the field, but that's about it. I'm thinking its best to keep to the old school feel, rather than mix in cyberpunk or transhuman.elements. and, yes I realize the Lensman series was transhuman, basically. Thus is going to be more Skylark.

AIs at TL 10 are fairly stupid, really. You need much too big a computer to get even an IQ of 10, unless all you want is an audio interface. So I'll likely allow them, depending. However, if your focus is going to be to.optimize an AI ally or robot, this might not be the game for you.

That being said, the ship's computer probably will be running an AI program. FTL navigation without FTL sensors is pretty much all calculation and luck.

As to colonies floating in Jupiter's atmosphere, gravstics are new. Too new. Once actual alien planets are found and colonized, genetic engineering might well be a factor. But, again, the game would focus on the FIRST prototype ship. Nothing will have been found, yet.

I had thought I had said above somewhere, but point value will probably be 250, asuuming more than 2-3 people express interest.
This message was last edited by the user at 22:03, Mon 14 July 2014.

If you post it, we will come.

For AIs I was thinking more about semi-intelligent recon drones and such, not Commander Data Androids.
This message was last edited by a moderator, as it was against the forum rules, at 19:54, Mon 14 July 2014.

In reply to otghand (msg # 13):

Well, if/when the game moves from testing the engines to sending alien probes down to a planet, we can discuss that. But, really, you know what they say about aliens and their probes.   Perverts.

OK, I've gone ahead and created the game. I've only had 3 expressions of interest, but let's see if we get enough to start it up.

It should be at: link to another game