Best use of alien culture shock in a campaign.

[cgriffen]

Taking a page out of Liam's methods of message board interaction, I thought I'd ask this question: What's the best example of alien culture shock you've ever portrayed or experienced in a Traveller campaign?

I'd have to say that in my own campaign it involved the K'kree. The K'kree are an easy mark when it comes to culture shock because they're so very hard to get along with. Only the Hivers are more alien when it comes to culture and appearance.

The merc unit of my campaign, Helical's Hessians, were hired by the human envoy of a K'kree diplomatic mission to provide security for a K'kree temporary settlement on Northammon/Vincennes.

Most of the mercs were avid omnivores, and as such had the "stink of meat" on their bodies. All non-vegetarians were required to take a drug that cleansed their system of all carnivorous taints and to embark upon a vegetarian diet for the duration of the ticket. The drug made them extremely sick for a 24-hour period but enabled them to work with the K'kree who would, for obvious reasons, be unwilling to work with them otherwise.

For the duration of the ticket the carnivore issue played a big role. The K'kree were attacked by terrorists at their settlement on Northammon and one of the terrorists was captured by the mercenaries. The K'kree were livid about the prisoner's presence in their camp because of the smell of meat on his person. It made for some great roleplaying.

My favorite line came from the player who played the part of Luther, the merc unit's second-in-command. The prisoner, upset at the K'kree's violent reaction to his presence asked his captors, "What's wrong with them?"

"You stink," answered Luther without a moment's hesitation.

Any similar experiences roleplaying other alien races in your campaigns?

 

[Shadowdancer]

I don't know about an alien (race) culture shock, but I did inflict an alien culture shock on my players once.

They were overdue on their annual maintanence, and they were exploring on the fringe of the Marches. I prepared something special for them, just waiting for a misjump roll. It came, and they pop out of jump into a system, but they had no idea where they were -- it wasn't on their star charts. Fortunately for them, the system was inhabited, and had a spacefaring culture.

So they landed at Graceland Downport on New Memphis, stepped outside their ship and saw a planet full of -- Elvis wannabees. There were pompadours, long sideburns and gold lame everywhere. And women with beehive hairdos. Everything was influenced by Elvis Presley, his career and his life. Right down to the fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches served at the starport cafe. They had to sleep at Heartbreak Hotel. Everyone was wearing blue suede shoes.

They couldn't get off the planet fast enough.

They should have known something was seriously wrong when the control tower ended their landing instructions with the phrase "Thank yew. . . thank yewverimuch."

 

[Liam Devlin]

Paraquat Johnson wrote-{"So they landed at Graceland Downport on New Memphis, stepped outside their ship and saw a planet full of -- Elvis wannabees. There were pompadours, long sideburns and gold lame everywhere. And women with beehive hairdos. Everything was influenced by Elvis Presley, his career and his life. Right down to the fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches served at the starport cafe. They had to sleep at Heartbreak Hotel. Everyone was wearing blue suede shoes.

They couldn't get off the planet fast enough."
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NOW thats an alien atmosphere! Right down to the Heartbreak Hotel! Niiiiiiice touch PJ!

I wrote a scene at Warinir up, "The shrine of St, Elvis"...a spy hang out for drop-off messages.
But this...outstanding!

 

[Liam Devlin]

For (alien) culture shock entry tho..

I had the RCES PCs from my 93-96 campaign land on Futok. Having been overseas, it was easy to do as GM to relate how the folks were dressed, acted, walked, talked, etc.

Repressive Islamic-style chauvinist regime. Women in burqas, unable to speak to men, unless spoken to first; Made em appreciate their freedoms more. Female PCs had to go veiled, and not speak or the secular priests with their ash canes would be right there to whip up on em.
Ran this mission to set up aide to the desalinization plant.
Next time they came back it was on the heels of "The Prophet" seizing all offworlders that led to a decap strike and rescue mission.

 

[Shadowdancer]

I did have the players encounter a Hiver artist once. They were crew on a ship he took passage on. He was searching the Marches for materials for a multi-media artwork he was working on. That was pretty interesting, since Hiver art incorporates most, if not all, of the senses. And he wanted some funky smelling materials.

And one time they did visit an Aslan brothel -- a "cat house," if you will. One of the PCs was coughing up hairballs for a week.

 

[Liam Devlin]

PJ wrote-"I did have the players encounter a Hiver artist once. They were crew on a ship he took passage on. He was searching the Marches for materials for a multi-media artwork he was working on. That was pretty interesting, since Hiver art incorporates most, if not all, of the senses. And he wanted some funky smelling materials.

And one time they did visit an Aslan brothel -- a "cat house," if you will. One of the PCs was coughing up hairballs for a week."
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Escorting the Hiver Trade mission to Mueller/Shenk was wher the PC's really got the culture shock alien wise imtu. Seems Hiver dietary provisions came from spoiled food--some of it purposefully starting to sprout molds and mushrooms. Made one Pc ill enough to leave the table describing what he was serving on the galley trolley down to their quarters!

 

[TheColonel]

I don't know if you would call this culture shock or not but here goes. My good friend ran an adventure that was a ripoff of the movie Alien. He designed his own race called the Dyson. Being an artist he even did renderings. This race was intelligent. The one that the group met was a pregnant mother for a new group of Dysons. What made this adventrue so interesting for the group was the level of detail my friend developed for the Dyson. It resulted in a very intense adventure. One of the few times that PC's actually had fear. PC's ended up letting NPC's and other Pc's! die out of fear alone.

They failed in stopping it and if I remeber correctly abandoned the ship it was on. Of course they had to revisit this theme again for the sequal! That one allowed the players a certain level of revenge and learn quite a lot more about the Dyson race.

 

[Liam Devlin]

Cross posted from Mentor NPC archetypes;
"In one of my current TNE era split offs, I have this boat load of Raccoonids, who left the Marches in 1115 on a sojourn to Terra, from Dentus/Spinward Marches.
They dropped off their new Speaker at Capital, six weeks before Strephon was killed, and proceeded rimward on their Journey, beariing back the older statesman for their Planet to the Imperial Moot, one 'Stoneclaw Farflinger', and his mate, 'Redfisher Crabcakes'.
They were in Khulam's main/P-Diaspora in 1117 when a Solomani scouting force attacked the system they were in, and they learned about the War, Rebellion, assassination, held a fishfling in the cargo bay of their TL-12 800dtn Far Trader (J3/2G), and voted to turn back for home. They misjumped while under attack.
They went into low berths provided for the trip for them (Racconids have shorter life spans than humans. They re-emerged in 1131 at Raziira, a large world with no gas giants. The jump drive was shot.
Farflinger was the mentor for the PC's of the Raccoonids marooned there. The humans of the crew had vanished. (An apparent jump-space embolism occured during the 14 years "in the hole". They contacted the starport via radio, and got directions. First they did an ocean refuelling, and met one of Raziira's deep water denizens the hard way (it ate three Raccs on deck fishing while the ship was taking on H2O).Three days after they landed the humans 'reappeared in the ship, all gruesomely dead (ala Event Horizon).
Fortunately, there were enough former Belters and Scouts amongst the Raccoonid passengers to man & run the ship. Unfortunately for them, on day 4 their ship buttoned itself up, and took off for the starport, leaving their six 10dtn launches marooned at their landing site.
Their Jupiter class merchant had become infected with Virus. They noticed also their perscomms and hand computers were re-writing themselves or burned themselves out. and another fishfling was held. They decided not to utilize the radioes any more. a group was selected to take a launch and scout out the downport.

They met up with the Vampires running the place, and took off into the Jungles. They met up with the dozen or so survivors left there.
In a reversal, the former Safari Hunting guide, Joshua Hilliard became their mento for life as they stuck with it on Raziira (a Vilani word I decided meaning "Sixfold". Something odd about the world, that it should be a T-prie world but so low populated. It was a Game preserve/ hunting world., and the sole satellite around its single star.
The Vilani discovered it rich in flora but the fauna had apropensity for hexapodalism. And, (ala Jurassic Park), dinosaurs, all of which were six-limbed. even the mamalian life-forms had six limbs. Terrans took to the place, and transplanted herbivores and big game animals. In three generations, they too exhibited six legs (a Bear ie, can run at 35mph. Now give it two more useable limbs to chug along..see what I mean?)'
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The alien culture shock was from being a dominant life form to being viewed by all the flora and fauna as "lunch"!.