Fourth Imperium

[kafka47]

There ought to be at least one interstellar power that represents decay (IMHO, 4th Imperium), one represents a shade of grey and a very tiny pocket of light that for other reasons the players are repulsed by its existance [like the Hivers in TNE, they were there but nobody really wanted to play them as characters].

Naturally, the contents of the black curtain, but make it like an onion, layers of blackness never reaching the core.

Once there was a discussion of Third Imperial Nomads, I think that they would be cool.

LOTS OF Descriptions of the dead worlds that have reverted back to the pre-intersellar age each competiting to make the Giant Step back into Space. With lots of pocket empires.

I think all this plus the prose I suggested are consistant with your vision.

 

[MJD]

To a point, yes. Though the 4I represents progress, not decay. The Throne is not vacant merely because dynastic matters have not yet been settled. But more I'm not telling.

 

[kafka47]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by MJD:
To a point, yes. Though the 4I represents progress, not decay. The Throne is not vacant merely because dynastic matters have not yet been settled. But more I'm not telling.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Sure progress compared to what has just happened to Charted Space with the complete collapse of interstellar powers. But, I am hoping that it has a dark seed buried deep.

The Vacant Throne sounds like a site for hommage and pilgrimage. That is where I get the idea of the Wars of the Roses, where nobles commanded a status above the commoner. Dynastic squabbles aside, it seems like the rise of competiting powers in your universe leads to a plurality of contenders to the mantle of 4I. ...interesting.

 

[T. Foster]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by MJD:
Okay, further to earlier commments... anyone want to share what they want from the M1248 book?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

What I do want to see:

1. <LI>History: Detailed chronology of the period 1130-1248, focusing on the development of all of the current Major Players, preferably related as a series of in-milieu 'historical' documents from various perspectives.
   <LI>Socio-political Geography: Descriptions of the culture and organization of each of the Major Players, including 'objective' overviews, in-character 'how we see ourselves' accounts, and 'how we see everybody else' sidebars, focused on those aspects of the society that affect travellers and adventurers (i.e. less 'how is their Grand Senate structured' and more 'how do they view foreigners' and 'what are their trade regulations like').
   <LI>Broad Overview: Large-scale maps showing political boundaries and major trade routes. Large scale overview describing current situations and possible game-able activities in each region, emphasizing diversity and wide-open scope.
   <LI>Detailed Focus: A single region of approx. sector size, thoroughly detailed as a 'starting point' for New Era campaigns, including detailed maps and UWPs, library data and world descriptions, personalities, campaign advice, plot hooks and rumors galore, and 1-2 sample introductory adventures.
   <LI>Dynamic Plots and Mysteries: Developing meta-campaign events and enigmas interwoven throughout the text, but prevented in such a manner to picque curiosity, encourage discussion, and build interest in further revelations, not to hold individual GMs hostage waiting to be spoonfed the next crucial tidbit.

What I don't want to see:

1. <LI>Lame jokes and contemporary (i.e. AD 2002) pop-cultural references
   <LI>Deconstructions of how the assumptions behind the OTU were flawed and need to be 'redeemed' by being reconstituted into something essentially unrecognizable
   <LI>Irony and/or postmodern theory used as shields from criticism
   <LI>A return to anything resembling the antebellum status quo
   <LI>Micromanagement of individual campaigns -- provide the canvas and tools to aid individual GMs in exploring their own areas of interest, don't try to force everybody into a single all-embracing meta-campaign

[This message has been edited by T. Foster (edited 16 April 2002).]

 

[MJD]

I want all of those things too. And I don't want *those*. We agree...

 

[adsm]

Originally posted by MJD:
Okay, further to earlier commments... anyone want to share what they want from the M1248 book?

I may be late, but one never knows
What I would like to see in M1248 is more technologies. CT has been written during the 70's, and technologies used in Traveller are still what was considered then as prospective.
I do not want a new jumdrive, or more effective contragrav or such, but I would like to see things like geneering, artificial intelligence (house broken preferably , cybertech more often. After all, there shouldn't be much left of the renowned Vilani conservatism, and one may say that times are ripe for a little evolution under pressure. I do not mean this evolution to be radical, just more commonly accepted and available.
And, maybe, a depiction of computers and IT which doen't look like a PDP-11 on steroids.

Just my .02C

CtW

 

[kafka47]

The era of tyrant God-Machine had come to end. It was now time to return to the Stars that had long been their birthright. Aloki looked up at the vacant void. Their grandparents said it was possible to cross the Rift. Those points of light were other Suns and other worlds. The answer lay out there...somewhere.

Aloki would train for the Space Force and hope that he would have the honour of stepping on Dukh, the nearby Earth-like satelite. To live out the rest of his days in the slums was not for him. Especially now as the colony's life support seemed to be failing.

There was a universe out there! He pointed his dewclaw to the heavens and charted his course.

 

[daryen]

Uh, should that be "Kuzu-like", not "Earth-like"?

 

[daryen]

MJD:

Another thought came to me just now: What could be completely cool is to find that Virus was completely misunderstood. No, I don't mean "they aren't really bad guys, just misunderstood", I mean that their *nature* is misunderstood.

I would love to see our current understanding of Virus completely turned on its head. The effects are the same, or similar, but the underlying reasons and/or constructs are completely misunderstood.

Here is an example. A common theme in modern scifi is the idea of making "machines" out of biological constructs. (E.g. Farscape's ship or B5's Vorlon and Shadow ships.) How about turning that on its head and having machines become biological creatures. In other words, they are completely mechanical/electronic, but they operate by biological rules with all that implies. This could be used as the "real" reason for Virus development and "evolution", and give rise to completely different motivators than currently understood.

Just an idea.

[BTW, on the wildly improbably chance I am even remotely close to an idea, real or imagined, I claim no rights or exclusivity on anything that MJD produces on his New Era effort.]

 

[MJD]

Heh. Virus isn't exactly like most folks think... but more I'm not saying.

 

[kafka47]

Originally posted by daryen:
Uh, should that be "Kuzu-like", not "Earth-like"?

Only if you want to give away the punchline...

But, seriously think where this world could be that an Aslan would begin to think like a human or humans begin to think like Aslan...We are talking about a bicultural world here. Think of the possibilities of a New Era starting from a memory.

MJD, we are not venturing into Transhuman Space realms here with the Virus???

 

[MJD]

I know nothing at all about Transhuman space... other than the fact that SJG recently published a book by that title and the TML got into a discussion about uploading people into computers.

My TNE direction was worked out some time ago, before I even heard of this. So... any resemblance to Transhuman Space is coincidental at best....

 

[doomhunk]

What do I want to see from M1248?

I appreciate the 'What my Grandfather told me' cultural snippets in RuneQuest, so something like that please. I think if a cultural opinion is expressed as a personal opinion in a sourcebook, it helps new and old players to engage with the stereotype *and* to automatically create the opposing viewpoint, and from there engage with all the potential persectives that exist in between. I prefer this, rather than 'Everyone from Oriflamme hates offworlders' type statements.

I like source material to be presented in ways that are as close as possible to the ways that players might encounter it. So I like travel brochures, news bulletins, current affairs tv, blockbuster movies, that nasty gossip columnist (handy for sidebars), Brenda's local action group against traffic blackspots, what the latest smash computer/console game is that everyone simply must have, the latest changing fashions, some typical names from each culture, some unfair law that civil liberties groups are up in arms about, Maggart's 10 year old daughter's sickeningly twee website about peace, unity, and everybody working together to help those poor people out there in the darkness... if you want anything written MJD, just get in touch...

Blank Lands - another old RuneQuest steal, but I like the idea of an area set aside for players to flesh out that you absolutely promise hope to die will not touch....

A few causes for the players to latch onto. I find that players new to Traveller have absolutely no idea what their characters aim in life is. I usually concoct a few philosophical movements, military societies, etc. It usually emerges as a mixture of En Garde! social rivalry, Talislanta cultural differences, a bit of religious cosmology, and a lot of contemorary politics. I weave these into the story and the players have fun fitting in and joining up for a cause or two, they feel a lot more comfortable and at home.

 

[wrandrews]

The events in our campaign is greatly affected by the players. We take what we like from official material, and ignore what we do not care for.

 

[wrandrews]

We do not use the TNE milieu, just the game system. The last campaign we started was begun in 1116 and is currently in 1186. The current characters are the third generation (the grandchildren of the characters began in 1116). The older characters become NPCs when the generation ends.

There was no virus, and the Third Imperium still exists. We have made some changes to the rules, such as going back to thruster plates for book keeping reasons.

I am looking forward to new material, but will discard any that conflicts with the history that we have developed.