Concept for a game, but need to find the right system
May 13, 2015 21:05:22 GMT -8
Post by tomes on May 13, 2015 21:05:22 GMT -8
OK, I've been wanting to run a space-themed game for my players. The concept can fit in a few sessions, maybe 4-8 depending on the amount of time it takes, and the arc can lead to another campaign if the players end up being interested. The problem is that I don't know which system to use. If you have the patience to read the synopsis, let me know what you think might work.
I'm asking you lot, cause my players aren't on this forum, and I trust your expertises.
My plan is to start with something a little mystic and political. The players have been raised as some of the lucky few who get to be trained. Trained in the mystic arts. They are monks in a school for the religion of this final country. All the other peoples of the world have died out, and this basically mankind's last stand. Order has been maintained, despite 60% of the population starving in the streets. But part of that order comes from a pseudo-military hierarchy, which is of course where you find yourself.
The ceremony that you are all training for must be performed soon. However, the best team needs to be created to perform it, as there will be only ONE chance to summon the god that will help this world. That means you monks need to work in teams. [And of course you, the PCs, would be one of these teams; you have been trained to work together: Engineer, Pilot, Captain, Weapons, Medic/Research]
The first few sessions would be about the PCs squaring off with other teams. Introducing them to the world they're in. For example, in the first few sessions they meet some opponents:
Have the PCs do a few "ship combats" or other skill tests with other trainees.
Then the game falls into some political intrigue, hunger riots, and a mad dash against other teams to be the ones who perform the ceremony.
If the PCs die, then so be it. However, to end this initial arc, and "win", they will be the ones to start the ceremony.
And that would start the next arc, where they are basically the crew for this starship. The planet only had the one, and had to train a crew to pilot it, against the pressure of a dying world. Also, it is known that humankind didn't come from this planet. They are now piloting a ship filled with the genetic material (10,000's eggs and sperms from the various people of this world; I mean you had to convince the people that something of them was getting off this world to fund such a project that would only save so few).
And so the next arc would be about them trying to find human worlds, hopefully populated ones. And perhaps they start to find a series of planets in bad shape… where did that come from? Was there a larger war? How long has it been since these planets last talked… 100 years? 1000 years? 10,000 years? That could be one set of mysteries.
Another story arc can be when they finally find a larger empire that spans a few worlds, actually has starships. Although maybe can't produce them anymore? or maybe they can? Are there non-humanoid races here as well? So forth...
So you can see I have a plan for a story arc, but the question is: what system to use... which one do you think would add to the story with the right flavor?
I tend to want to be a little light on mechanics so have gravitated to the hippy systems, but that wouldn't prevent me from using a system like Traveler or GURPs, if you think it might flavor this correctly. Let me know!
I'm asking you lot, cause my players aren't on this forum, and I trust your expertises.
My plan is to start with something a little mystic and political. The players have been raised as some of the lucky few who get to be trained. Trained in the mystic arts. They are monks in a school for the religion of this final country. All the other peoples of the world have died out, and this basically mankind's last stand. Order has been maintained, despite 60% of the population starving in the streets. But part of that order comes from a pseudo-military hierarchy, which is of course where you find yourself.
The ceremony that you are all training for must be performed soon. However, the best team needs to be created to perform it, as there will be only ONE chance to summon the god that will help this world. That means you monks need to work in teams. [And of course you, the PCs, would be one of these teams; you have been trained to work together: Engineer, Pilot, Captain, Weapons, Medic/Research]
The first few sessions would be about the PCs squaring off with other teams. Introducing them to the world they're in. For example, in the first few sessions they meet some opponents:
- "that Engineer on their team is Sarlesian. You know what happened to Sarlesia, right? It was bombed with nuclear weapons by the Trolheim Protectorate, before they themselves succumbed to the desert."
- "you've been warned about Zelites. They were said to be very aggressive. That's why the Sarlesians created an ethnic cleansing virus to put an end to them. It bonded to one of the genes that caused them to be so aggressive. The only ones who survived are the Zelites who were more like us, but they are very few of those left. It's said if we let them live, they would've bombed the planet to oblivion long ago."
Have the PCs do a few "ship combats" or other skill tests with other trainees.
Then the game falls into some political intrigue, hunger riots, and a mad dash against other teams to be the ones who perform the ceremony.
If the PCs die, then so be it. However, to end this initial arc, and "win", they will be the ones to start the ceremony.
And that would start the next arc, where they are basically the crew for this starship. The planet only had the one, and had to train a crew to pilot it, against the pressure of a dying world. Also, it is known that humankind didn't come from this planet. They are now piloting a ship filled with the genetic material (10,000's eggs and sperms from the various people of this world; I mean you had to convince the people that something of them was getting off this world to fund such a project that would only save so few).
And so the next arc would be about them trying to find human worlds, hopefully populated ones. And perhaps they start to find a series of planets in bad shape… where did that come from? Was there a larger war? How long has it been since these planets last talked… 100 years? 1000 years? 10,000 years? That could be one set of mysteries.
Another story arc can be when they finally find a larger empire that spans a few worlds, actually has starships. Although maybe can't produce them anymore? or maybe they can? Are there non-humanoid races here as well? So forth...
So you can see I have a plan for a story arc, but the question is: what system to use... which one do you think would add to the story with the right flavor?
I tend to want to be a little light on mechanics so have gravitated to the hippy systems, but that wouldn't prevent me from using a system like Traveler or GURPs, if you think it might flavor this correctly. Let me know!