Operation Dominoes 1: Moonshadows, Review

[Badbru]

It also occurs to me Bryan that if that is your belief vis a vis human society then you probably don't accept the psionic accepting, even embracing, society of Tiniyd, as presented in Opperation Dominoes. Surely there'd be a more spirited resistance somewhere on the planet, or is this comming in episode two, or three?

 

[bryan gibson]

As I've pointed out, the RC will need to come to a policy, and a law making decission about psionics as it applies to the general population. However as far as the general population is concerned they probably think the nearest mind peeper is four, or more, sectors away in the Zhodani Consulate, assuming it has survived, than at the next workstation surface scanning his current thoughts. This was the impression I got from the old cannon material. As Liam notes, there has not been a psionics institute in the region before.

That very lack is why I took the tack I did, and its absense has twin edges, after all.

Where psion acceptance is prevelant( publicly is as vital as at the policy level) inasmuch as it all comes down to open usage the Institues were at the forefront of that movement. Thus, while psions may not be well known, conversely they would not (IMO) be all that accepted, by the public.

Governmentally may be anothjer matter - ask any afroamerican about prejudice, as the black man, legal protections and policy makers edicts aside, can tell you the legal matters have very little bearing. Joe Shmoe may not make the policy, but he's the billions you have to deal with.

How many of the general citizenry would even know a small nondescript organization like the long range planning group, for example, even exists. Any psions in RC service would no doubt be confined to a top secret and highly regulated and controlled small group similar in both size and nature to this.

Refer my previous coment. Undoubtably the gov would maintain such a thing, its ssensible, and more importantly, too useful not to. Covert? I would expect so!

However it is approached though, I can see the issue of psions in the RC will be one that divides the population as much as Cyms.

and probably for similar reasons.

I'll perhaps revise my position to say that I don't feel the policy makers will want to be without psions in their arsenal, much as many militaries don't want to be without nuclear weapons despite the general populaces abhorrance and fear of them.

I concur, they are simply too useful a tool. In all probabilty, a unit no doubt attached to the intelligence services or even eilite elements of the Police Forces. ( FBI with telepaths? The possibilities are boundless)

 

[bryan gibson]

It also occurs to me Bryan that if that is your belief vis a vis human society then you probably don't accept the psionic accepting, even embracing, society of Tiniyd, as presented in Opperation Dominoes. Surely there'd be a more spirited resistance somewhere on the planet, or is this comming in episode two, or three?

Frankly, no, I don't - I regard it as fanciful, a mark of many writers and players that seem enamored of psionics with out consideration of its deeper ramifications. That said, Im also in the minority, there. ( shrug)

However, thats merely my take, and shouldn't be assumed graven in stone, after all, its the game of who's running the session.That said, I consider it weak.

On the other hand, resistance movements would make sense, but I can't address that, having seen niether of the upcoming books - I'm not on that writing team!

However, I think they would be missing a trick if it wasn't examined. Definite adventure potential there.

 

[bryan gibson]

My base issue with The Psion based gov on Trniyid is twofold - one, as an oppressive and dictatorial government, it could hardly be held as an ideal of "embracing" psionic acceptence, rathern thats like saying Nazis are acceptable. So long as the soldiers are on the streetcorners and the secret police are poised, I'd accept em too...but I sure wouldn't say it was enthusiastic, nor positive.

This is the sort of things non - psions the sector thru would point at and say "See?see? what did we tell you?"

I also have a real issue with the theory that there were enough Psions to effectively create such an entity...a dictatorial governemt, run by a chosen few? you bet!But I don't see they'd be as openly happy at seeing more psis out there, because if the idea is to keep the populace in line, its not about ideals, its about power and control.


I do like the whole thrust of the scenario, on the whole, but where it breaks down is the concept of Psions being so readily accpeted within the RC, when there is such a rampantly apparent example of what Psi in the wrong hands can be like.

This would reenforce prejudices, not allay them.

and that leads to the other concept- that the pacifictic psis would tolerate this sort of thing. Not becuase of pacifistic ideals, which is patently foolish given their neighbors ( how could they afford to be pacifists, given the potential threat? and why would a dictatorhsip not stomp them into the dirt at the first opportunity when they would be the only effective opposition?)but becuase good, bad, or indifferent, there just aren't enough of them, at least as described, there has to be loads more than seem indicated.

 

[Badbru]

I don't really want to get side tracked into a discussion about the Nazi Party, but were they not elected into power?
In any event it reminds me of the quote from, I think it's Levi, that is something like this...

"The greater tradgedy was not that one man was evil, but that an entire country could not find the will to be good."

I like to keep a fairly broad mind on these things. I might say, ok that's perhaps not the most logical, but is it possible? Germany in 1937/38 might actually be an appropriate analogy for Tiniyd for you.

 

[Liam Devlin]

Originally posted by bryan gibson:
My base issue with The Psion based gov on Trniyid is twofold - one, as an oppressive and dictatorial government, it could hardly be held as an ideal of "embracing" psionic acceptence, rathern thats like saying Nazis are acceptable. So long as the soldiers are on the streetcorners and the secret police are poised, I'd accept em too...but I sure wouldn't say it was enthusiastic, nor positive.

Uh huh. One minor note, Badbru--there are 10 Psionic governments on the planet, well, actually 3x states of Droyne with the same kind of alien "Mystic Autocracy" government, and seven Human governments, of which, only one accepts non psions as citizens worthy to share & hold power.


This is the sort of things non - psions the sector thru would point at and say "See?see? what did we tell you?"

I also have a real issue with the theory that there were enough Psions to effectively create such an entity...a dictatorial government, run by a chosen few? you bet!But I don't see they'd be as openly happy at seeing more psis out there, because if the idea is to keep the populace in line, its not about ideals, its about power and control.


I do like the whole thrust of the scenario, on the whole, but where it breaks down is the concept of Psions being so readily accpeted within the RC, when there is such a rampantly apparent example of what Psi in the wrong hands can be like.

This would reinforce prejudices, not allay them.

Uh huh.
And the original premise I told you of in the beginning of this thread still holds water sir: The Players can make the difference. It is THEIR reports being read by the LRPG back in the RC. The Players can save this world, its inhabitants, or damn it to interdiction, and continued xenophobic exile.


and that leads to the other concept- that the pacifictic psis would tolerate this sort of thing. Not becuase of pacifistic ideals, which is patently foolish given their neighbors ( how could they afford to be pacifists, given the potential threat? and why would a dictatorhsip not stomp them into the dirt at the first opportunity when they would be the only effective opposition?)but becuase good, bad, or indifferent, there just aren't enough of them, at least as described, there has to be loads more than seem indicated.

And the pacifistic psis sided with non-psions and formed the nation of Idsur, and have won and maintained their independence from the other more aggressive warlike neighbors..well, so far..

As to other thoughts of "resistance" in the other human led psion states...well, book 3 will touch upon that. So yes, we haven' neglected that angle--sharp of you two gentlemen to point it out, thank you! But lets not fast-forward the story just yet, shall we?


Liam

 

[Liam Devlin]

Originally posted by Badbru:
I don't really want to get side tracked into a discussion about the Nazi Party, but were they not elected into power?
In any event it reminds me of the quote from, I think it's Levi, that is something like this...

"The greater tradgedy was not that one man was evil, but that an entire country could not find the will to be good."

I like to keep a fairly broad mind on these things. I might say, ok that's perhaps not the most logical, but is it possible? Germany in 1937/38 might actually be an appropriate analogy for Tiniyd for you.

There is certainly in the history we wrote from the PoT's hints a fair amount of xenophobia & technophobia here, with an unhealthy backlash of scapegoatism versus the droyne for the collapse.

Definitely anti-alien prejudice. Analogous to Germany? Well...The last major power holding the planet was the Human-supremacists of the Solomani Confederation...of course its applicable!

The sideways thrust of the series is of course, can the players save the day, make a difference, reverse this bigotry vs. Droyne & slavery of chirpers? This is a very shoestring operation, as you shall see side by side throughout, the RC's build up of neighboring Marax for their eventual showdown with the Soleean Empire..
again I reiterate, the small ship, small crew, making a difference or not--all what TNE promised us.

 

[Liam Devlin]

Originally posted by bryan gibson:

It also occurs to me Bryan that if that is your belief vis a vis human society then you probably don't accept the psionic accepting, even embracing, society of Tiniyd, as presented in Opperation Dominoes. Surely there'd be a more spirited resistance somewhere on the planet, or is this comming in episode two, or three?

Frankly, no, I don't - I regard it as fanciful, a mark of many writers and players that seem enamored of psionics with out consideration of its deeper ramifications. That said, Im also in the minority, there. ( shrug)

Yep. You're in the minority.
Nope, I'm not enamored without ramifications. You know me better than that BG.

However, thats merely my take, and shouldn't be assumed graven in stone, after all, its the game of who's running the session.That said, I consider it weak.

The writing itself within the adventure, or the concept of psionics accepted as the next step of evolution for man as weak. Please clarify sir.

As to the "how and whys" the Pro-Psionicgovernments (plural--see above post, there are seven Human run nations, and three scattered Droyne ones) we built upon the loose frame work left by GDW's book Path of Tearsand filled in with whole cloth going back to 1124-28 of the Hard Times era prior to Virus' release of the secret Psionic Institute on Jeddel (Pasdaruu-H/Diaspora) and its attempt to infiltrate this region during the period known as the "Doomed Trade".

We did this to explain (as plausibly as we could) out of the sheer number of suddenly Psionic-using folks scattered about in the Wilds of the RC's AO.

Now in every instance of these Psion governments (khulam, Thoezennt, Shenk subsectors) none of them seemed to have managed a complete takeover of a planet in a unified way--again, just weak writing? Or a deliberate straw man set up for Psi vs. Anti-Psi?

(I omit the Psi-Gypsies who aide the "curing" of Cyborged human janissaries of the AI-Tyrants of Promise as they are outside the AO, and came out in a later book, Vampire Fleets)

Even on Tiniyd. Yet one was actually in the form of a government the RC could respect and not find fault with. This made Tiniyd UNIQUE amongst Wilds governments with PSi's in charge.

Check out Yontez/Shenk--a balkanized High Population (before the Rebellion era--CT High Passage magazine days, and still after the Collapse) warring TL6 world. The Psionic government of Branat (1.5 Billions) is not even one iota cruelty/ aggression/ corruption/ or xenophobia-wise better than the Totalitarian regime of the Iron Hegemony, the second most populous state (1.25 billions).

If the concept is weak, then we automatically fail due to the now canon-writing of others, and in that I cannot change your opinion, nor will I try.

If our writing is weak, then by all means explain why: improvement and constructive help is always appreciated.

Thanks again