What Alien Threat?

[Mithras]

Version 1:

The aliens enter human space as if from nowhere, not using jump drives. Captured ships show some kind of antimatter powerplant, plus some kind of FTL drive akin to the smashed and barely understood hypergate that brought humans to the Cassieopean cluster 200 years ago. Ergo: the ship uses some kind of portable hypergate, a hyperdrive.

Aliens are always blobs of goo, disintegrated when ships are opened up so humans do not know what they look like. But they aren't humanoid from corridor sizes and the types of floor hollow control beds that are dotted around.

Colonies attacked are often littered with headless human corpses.

There is some evidence that these aliens can land on planets from space without ships, indeed that the aliens can survive unprotected in space. There is also evidence they have some kind of light emitting cells allowing them to look like humans, but touch with give them away. Once killed or badly wounded, they turn to mush resulting in no alien body to be examined.

What do they want? Mining of exotic and barely understood or detectable minerals or particles - hypermatter??? Infiltration of human colonies. Excavation of very ancient artefacts considered curiosities by human archaeologists. Sometimes the extermination of vulnerable colonies or ships. Sometimes aliens are encountered in a human system, and if the humans pose no real threat the aliens continue about their business...

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In essence, version 1 is a combination of AE Voigts' Rull and Lovecraft's Yuggoth....

I think I like the lower illustration best

 

[ShapeShifter]

General Threat Roster:

* Nano-tech gone awry. (It always does.)
* Religious Extremists want to take over the universe (or blow it up). Think Jonestown Massacre, but on a planetary scale.
* Eco-terrorists throw a big monkey-wrench into terraforming projects.
* Space Pirates. (Everything's better with space pirates.)
* Rabid space-hamsters on crack.
* Penguins.

 

[Ran Targas]

A little broader scope but this could be fun:

A mass of ships of a multitude of designs appears at the borders of Terran space paying no attention to any attempts to communicate with them or impede their transit of human space. The aliens pouring into Terran space are refugees running from an even badder bunch of aliens. The Terran military forces a confrontation and battle erupts. Eventually, there is a truce but the refugees won't/can't communicate any real details of why they are running except what is coming is really bad.

So a stalwart band of adventurers are chosen to jump counter to the direction of the exodus until they eventually run into the really bad guys (many, many months). In that time they could meet numerous groups of refugees (some friendly, some not, but all desperate), some of the baddies' scouts, allies or traitorous guides, and explore abandoned or partially destroyed ships, stations, and worlds, etc.

I think letting the team gather intelligence and explore, all while under constant threat of discovery, could be a very stimulating gaming experience. And when they do figure out what is coming, the stern chase all the way back to Earth with the secret means to defeat the scourge could be even more exciting.

Some twists:

- To help, one alien offers, as payment for some life debt he owes to a player, to guide them back to his homeworld; unfortantely he dies a few weeks in diving in front of a bullet for the player, leaving limited information on where to go next. Think Morgan Freeman in Robin Hood.

- Many of the species they encounter have no experience with humans (not even old TV signals) and treat them with tremendous distrust, even sending them off in the wrong direction. But maybe luck is on their side and they find a species who plan to fight the threat instead of running (potential allies?) or the remains of a high tech civilization with technology that could help. Or maybe they find an Eden, hidden away in a system far away from the path of the threat, where refugees could find sanctuary.

- Because of language and political issues, they never really know if the information they are gathering is right or wrong; finding the truth could involve a lot of good roleplaying and utilize some of those soft skills players never think are important.

- They routinely encounter technologies that humans haven't developed yet but are common place to the refugees; this could allow them to improve on the combat capability of their ship or as individuals, but without the right suppliers, the affect is very limited duration (gotta save this last planet-buster for when we really need it). When they eventually encounter the threat, they may actually stand a chance.

It might sound a little like Enterprise, Voyager, Crusade, Space:1999 or any of a number of similar stories; so mine them for ideas to flesh this out even more.

 

[Blue Ghost]

What, no one digs my Gamera vid?

 

[fiat_knox]

A terrifying invasion from duplicates living in a parallel universe next door. Their ships look kind of like your universe's, but they have disturbingly different markings, they have their own language, and while many of them look like familiar NPCs, they remember things that never happened, and have no memory of prominent events that did.

Also, the other guys are a lot more ruthless, and will take out anyone who gets in their way or identifies them as doppelgangers or figures out their plans. Their ships and weapons include alien disintegrators, which can take out an object as small as a pistol at a 1,000 km range, and which can be used to make people disappear without a trace. The captain goes into his quarters to retrieve his cover, door closes, ZAP, he's gone.

They also have teleportation technology - which they can either use to beam their duplicates aboard your vessels or to swap your characters with theirs, or which can be used to transport your characters into their universe.

And all your clean-shaven good guys have beardy counterparts.

 

[Mithras]

Now where have I seen that done before

A terrifying invasion from duplicates living in a parallel universe next door. Their ships look kind of like your universe's, but they have disturbingly different markings, they have their own language, and while many of them look like familiar NPCs, they remember things that never happened, and have no memory of prominent events that did.

Also, the other guys are a lot more ruthless, and will take out anyone who gets in their way or identifies them as doppelgangers or figures out their plans. Their ships and weapons include alien disintegrators, which can take out an object as small as a pistol at a 1,000 km range, and which can be used to make people disappear without a trace. The captain goes into his quarters to retrieve his cover, door closes, ZAP, he's gone.

They also have teleportation technology - which they can either use to beam their duplicates aboard your vessels or to swap your characters with theirs, or which can be used to transport your characters into their universe.

And all your clean-shaven good guys have beardy counterparts.

 

[Enoki]

In terms of a party there is always a variant of the Lotus flower you can do...

That is, the party goes to some world and runs into floria there that has pleasant "side effects" when touched, eaten, etc. They may figure out that it has economic value as a recreational 'product' shall we say. But, of course' the side effect is that it is horribly addictive in some particularly nasty way or something similar.

They may or may not get addicted themselves depending on how cautious they are and then there is the problem when the authorities decide to outlaw their new money maker..... Are they winners or are they :toast:

 

[far-trader]

Now where have I seen that done before

Why only in Star-Trek TOS episodes 11, 24, and 27; the third Movie; TAS double episode 7-8; TNG episodes 3, 12, 18, 26, 27, 28 and maybe 36 unless it was a dream (and I probably forgot some); DS9 season 3; Voyager episode 17 (and bearded Kate was hawt!); Enterprise episode 36 (never aired)...



I couldn't resist. We all recognized it and I'm sure most will know I made up the above* of course but that it is soundly based on Star-Trek's (in)famous ability to... recycle scripts (especially TNG) and other general Trekkie/er stereotypes.

* a real Trekkie/er would actually have the real episode numbers memorized, and could if not quote the entire script at least provide a detailed plot synopsis

 

[Mithras]

I'm glad your joking, I never pegged you as a full-on Trekkie Far Trader!

 

[snapshotbygdw]

This could be fun:

A mass of ships of a multitude of designs appears at the borders of Terran space paying no attention to any attempts to communicate with them or impede their transit of human space. The aliens pouring into Terran space are refugees running from an even badder bunch of aliens. The Terran military forces a confrontation and battle erupts. Eventually, there is a truce but the refugees won't/can't communicate any real details of why they are running except what is coming is really bad......

Wow this is one of the best campaign plots I heard of in a long time I will definately be stealng this (will credit), thanks man.

 

[whartung]

Or just the mundane that there is no external threat, and the Space Navy is little more equipped than a Coast Guard, in charge of management, inspection, search and rescue, and law enforcement of commercial shipping.

It kind of depends on how much of a thought you want the players to put in to the space travel aspect vs using it more as simply airlines today.

Or you can add in a small Scout service out there exploring, planning, developing and expanding.

Which leads to an earlier suggestion -- "nobody knows" why the Fed Navy is secretly on a crash course to build large ship with huge weapons when there is "no one to fight".

 

[saundby]

General Threat Roster:

* Nano-tech gone awry. (It always does.)
* Religious Extremists want to take over the universe (or blow it up). Think Jonestown Massacre, but on a planetary scale.
* Eco-terrorists throw a big monkey-wrench into terraforming projects.
* Space Pirates. (Everything's better with space pirates.)
* Rabid space-hamsters on crack.
* Penguins.

Or combine them. Subsector's humans are caught between warring rabid space hamster religious extremists on crack and eco-terrorist space pirate penguins. Each side blames the other for the release of weaponised uncontrolled nanotech. And the humans are the subsector's only source for crack, eyepatches, and bar soap.

 

[Starviking]

How about having your Federation facing a large, but nebulous 'threat'. Have it abut a large area colonised by an ancient race in the past. You could have them well past their prime, fractious, and with individual worlds or even groups of world no threat.

The problem could be individual worlds of the Federation, or factions of society (colonisers, traders, militarists) wanting to exploit some prime real estate - causing enough outrage/worry from the worlds of this cultural area for them to move towards uniting as a government - becoming an actual threat to the Federation. They could even have access to much higher technology than the Federation, relic at first, but becoming newer and more reliable once they set themselves the goal of rebuilding to their lost peak.

This way you not only have an external threat - but an internal threat which must be limited once the powers that be realise what they could be facing.

 

[hdan]

What, no one digs my Gamera vid?

Gamera is really neat, he is made of turtle meat!

 

[nats]

A little broader scope but this could be fun:

A mass of ships of a multitude of designs appears at the borders of Terran space paying no attention to any attempts to communicate with them or impede their transit of human space. The aliens pouring into Terran space are refugees running from an even badder bunch of aliens. The Terran military forces a confrontation and battle erupts. Eventually, there is a truce but the refugees won't/can't communicate any real details of why they are running except what is coming is really bad.

Isnt this the film Apocalypto? If so surely the bad guys coming behind the refugees will want to do some very evil things to the Terrans. Probably involving some kind of biological experimentation. Further developments will probably include a spurious escape from imprisonment, a long chase through the galaxy whilst picking off the baddies one by one Rambo style, before finally the remaining bad guys get distracted by the much larger worlds of the Imperium and leave the Terrans alone.

 

[Mithras]

The battlefield is finalized, my aliens will be harassing the good folks of Mizar subsector;

http://www.TravellerRPG.com/CotI/Gallery/images/1713/1_mizar-subsector-map.gif

 

[karakris]

If anyone is interested at all

I have a Sci Fi Game running on another Site ( Play by Post ) which kind of Fits the original premise.

It has run since January 2011 - and I have been G.M. since mid / late April. I am also a major Player.

Riight - Timeline

2130, Humans on Sol have developed a very fast FTL Drive ( 100,000 times Light Speed ) - Two Planetary Systems have been found and Colonisation begins. Population growth in the new Colonies is helped by Modified Cloning - creating horders of individual Persons.

2131 - The small Fleet finds a System ( Zeta System ) where ammonia-breathing Aliens ( the Zetans ) have started Colonising, whilst destroying all life on Carbo-Oxygen Worlds. The Alien Ships seem to be using RADIO in the KHz Bands as a Weapon, beamed against Planets. Communication is attempted - but unaccountable our Ultra Radio kills all of the Aliens.
Further investagation reveals that these Aliens can be KILLED by Radio Waves.

2131 - A Diplomatic Mission is sent to negotiate with the Aliens - but the Diplomatic Ship is captured and the crew kidnapped.
A Rescue Mission is sent to the destination indicated by the tracking device. A gigantic Alderson Disc is found - but the Diplomatic Ship breaks free and escapes, doing considerable damage to the Alderson Disc.

We discover that more than half the Crew have been killed in inhuman tortures and painful experiments - and that the Captain only escaped with the help of Peaceful Aliens ( air-breathing ) who are used by the Zetans as Slaves.
We then hear from the Peaceful Aliens - that the Zetans are a hive-culture species, like Ants - mindless Drones directed by a central "Hive Mind" somewhere deep in the Galaxy, using some form of Telepathy.

The biggest worry is the discovery that the Zetans have already conquered more than two thirds of this Galaxy - in an empire built on complete and total Slavery. Any Species which they have not conquered, they have exterminated completely - any Species which is of no use to them, they have exterminated completely.

The Peaceful Aliens who helped, are rescued - and begin building up their Species in freedom, using Modified Cloning - on Colony Planets on New Systems.

2132 - One of our Colony Systems tries to break away from Sol control - leading to amn extremely brief Civil War, in which several Billions of lives are lost, and terrible damage is done. However, Peace ensues - and a new Confederation of semi-independent Dominions replaces the old Sol Directorate.
Rebuilding, Recovery and Rehabilitation of the badly damaged Worlds begins.

2132 to 2137 - The Human and Alien Colonies grow dramatically - with major Defensive Bases, and a massive fleet is Built. Human and Alien Colonies now number some 22 Planetary Systems.
A new Alien Species is discovered - who are "refugees" from attemped Genocide by the Zetans - only 1% of their People have survived, and taken refuge in a Planetary System near to us.
The Zetans attacked in force - attempting to complete the Genocide of these Friendly Aliens - but our Second Fleet completely destroyed them, with little loss of life on our side.
New Technologies have been developed - including methods to store individual DNA and Memories - People who die can be "resurrected". The Nano-Bot Industries have now created automatic Bio-Medical Repair Nano-Bots, which can repair any injury, and cure any illness.
Mars has been almost completely Terraformed - and Venus is being Terraformed.

There are around 12 active Players in this Game - but more are very Welcome. Planetary Governors, Fleet Commanders for all of the Fleets.

Weapons are now - Neutron Pulse Cannons, Railguns, Plasma Guns, Lasers, Neutron Missiles, Thermoncuelar Missiles, Nano-Bot Weapons.
Armour is high-strength Boron Carnbonitride, Aluminium Nitride, Carbon Lattice Materials and other substances - and there are energy Shields.

 

[Jame]

A splinter group of K'Kree who are radical religious (not radically anti-meat-eater, just radically religious) who are in search of a home - they can take enclosed spaces for longer but still want worlds of their home.

Why are they a splinter group? Because the rest of them aren't leaving their territory, which is far enough away to not be a threat to humans (and they aren't so radically religious at that).

Gamera is really neat, he is made of turtle meat!

Turtle on the half shell, TURTLE POWER!

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

 

[Princedarkstorm]

Pehaps having feline humanoids hunting humans for food and breeding ?

 

[77topaz]

The battlefield is finalized, my aliens will be harassing the good folks of Mizar subsector;

http://www.TravellerRPG.com/CotI/Gallery/images/1713/1_mizar-subsector-map.gif

You do realise Mizar is the name of a completely different subsector in Zarushagar Sector?