The Impossible Era: Referees, Rebellion, and Managing Chaos

[Liam Devlin]

Arsulon, have you tried this addy:
http://www.downport.com/bard/bard/gail/gail5009.html
This is the site of my CINET contributions to the RCES campaign. (Pkg 10) pakg 11 is also by me.

http://www.downport.com/bard/bard/dani/dani9002.html

This is my version of your Free Traders waking up to the Guild's practices and breaking off. (also on BARD site), www.downport.com/bard.

Tried sending you stuff via x-boat, but Hotmail has a max size limit for attachments. Gotta figure something else out lad.
Sorry.

 

[kafka47]

Kafka:
Given the inherent bias of CT and MT toward the Spinward Marches, it takes a lot of courage to attack the Domain of Deneb's response to the Rebellion: bravo. While I personally like and identify with the Marches, Norris' actions DO suggest a degree of moral cowardice. Harmles inaction is not moral simply because it is the opposite of harmful action. If Norris believed so fimly in the idea of the Imperium, why didn't he do more to defend it in its time of need? As an archduke, shouldn't he have taken a stand on the emperor's murder and Lucan's unilateral seizure of power, as well as illegal suspension of the Moot?

Indeed, certainly Norris was just playing it safe until either Dulnoir or Lucan emerge. Then he could play the card of protecting his own. And, because the Vargr closed off Corridor, he could whine and say that he does not have the resources to take it back. However, Norris' subjects were also in Corridor, albeit more Vilani than Solomani or Imperial. Therefore, was not wanting to take on the Restored Vilani Imperium because of the vested interests of the Corporate holdings there that he nationalized or Domainized...

The suspension of the Moot was the normal action in time of war, remember the 3I is not a democracy. Lucan decided wrongly to concentrate all power in his hands but he had an Empire to maintain didn't he. Dulinoir, as much as I supported his cause, was wrong to run away. Better have committed the murder of the entire family with his own hands, but alas this was no Brutus he was more inspired by Macbeth with his Brother-in-Law playing the role of Lady Macbeth.

 

[Elliot]

I'm glad that a happy few concur with me that the Rebellion and the Hard Times was worth the candle and that DN's RC was utterly bogus.

I ran a campaign throughout the Rebellion era - it grew out of a Merchant Prince CT campaign. The way I played was that the Rebellion was an opportunity for my fairly unscrupulous players to get rich by working on the borders of decency and good manners (i.e. which ever side has the £$£$£, the players will work for!). The campaign was set in the Solomani Rim and (following those darn TAS reports) my players naturally gravitated to the moderate Solomani position of Joshua Dahvin.

Since then (i've said this before in these posts) I can see that a campaign based in the territory of Archduke Craig would make a good integral campaign - the players representing agents of the Archduke fighting Solomani incursions and acting as diplomats to try to buy Craig some breathing space from his ex Imperial neigbours.

As to the Collapse - I did play TNE in the RC zone. I liked the idea of a shattered Imperium at first. The biggest hurdle was that nobody survived except one player who was very attached to his character (cold birth). Eventually we left the RC on a religious mission to Earth (and ran a modified Children of the Earth campaign).

I agree - TNE became too claustraphobic, jingoistic and morally self satisfied. Hope MJD does better!!

 

[Arsulon]

Elliot:
Greed is a great coping mechanism in times of crisis. Running the players as cut-throat free agents actually makes a lot of sense when ANY political alleigance is problematic at best.

That said, Craig does seem like a good choice with his "protect these people" stand: he essentially makes the choice that Admiral Hinchcliffe of the Old Expanses fails to make. By mobilizing the sector fleet against Dulinor, Hinchclffe really gave the secotor no choice but to capitulate to the Solomani (although that's where many of their sympathies lay already). Is Craig, however, to be criticized for not lending his support to the Vegan defence perimeter? Were leaders like Craig and Brzk too narrow-mindedly regional in their outlook?

Did you use DGP's "Solomani & Aslan" book to run your campaign? It seems to have a wealth of information on the Solomani Sphere (all those little sub-polities!) but I've never used the supplement in a game. How did the Children of Earth crossover work out? Did your player become a Gabreelist?