Dead Stars : A Sci-Fi RPG

[VO]

It is the far future. Long ago, humanity expanded exponentially across the stars, colonising world after world. They found a great wealth of habitable planets, some populated by alien races which were subsumed into the Human Hegemony. Eventually the Hegemony came into contact with other powerful species with their own empires in that feudal age, but instead of invasion or war were invited into a unified galactic fold - a vast sprawling landscape of alien cultures and technology, united in repressing of anything that would spoil the status quo of the galaxy. Trade and integration became free and encouraged, humans spread far beyond the confines of the Hegemony to strange regions uncharted space full of unknown species and powers. Tyrannical, xenophobic, or simply isolationist powers are consigned to their few local systems, unable to threaten the might of Unity, as the galactic alliance came to be known, each constituent system responsible for managing it's own space in such a way to ensure the power of a combined starfleet would never rest in the hand of one individual or organisation.

In three thousand years of integration, humanity has splintered into a hundred million factions, reaching far from the forgotten human homeworld of Earth to the edges of Unity Space and wild, uncolonised worlds beyond. Humans, fairly unremarkable among the other galactic races, breed quickly, allowing them to be found in most inhabited systems in all walks of life. Technology has plateaued at a level that has remained unchanged for years since the formation of Unity, faster-than-light travel easily accessible with no wonder-weapons threatening Unity's control. Although high-technology is the norm, there are still dark corners of the universe, lawless abandoned arcologies and grim underbellies to planet-wide metropolii, worlds where the local brand of justice is notoriously lax and criminal syndicates control vast swathes of planetary governments.

There are also the uninhabited worlds on the edge of the galaxy, places where colonisation bubbles never reached, the galactic frontier. Mercenaries make much of their trade on this fringe of civilisation, scientists and archaeologists catalogue unknown species and empty ruins of long-dead civilisations. Fuelling stations and asteroid bases are heavily armed to protect their wares from pirates in these wild regions of space, for Unity-constituent patrols are rare. This is wild space, untamed by Unity or any other minor empire, unknown and unexplored.

This is where we find ourselves. The world of YDIX-13 is insignificant enough to be known as anything other than it's standard designation, typical for this sector of space and almost completely covered in thick boreal forest except from a tepid equatorial ocean and thick polar ice. Circled by a ring of rocky moons, it has three significant settlements- a small colony by a esoteric religious order on it's northern continent, an archaeological camp investigating ten-thousand year old ruins on the fringes of a spur of southern mountains, and a heavily armed frontier town populated by mercenaries and big game hunters.

This is where the rpg will unfold.

Characters may be human, robot, or any of the numerous and entirely up-to-you (as long as they aren't obvious godmodded) alien species that populate the galaxy.

Technology will be limited to what's already on the planet.

You will not be able to leave.

This RPG should be easy enough to jump into, and is open to anyone and everyone who is interested in it, RPG veterans and new players alike. I'll put up some more background if people are interested, but to be honest the galaxy is a big enough place that most ideas should be able to be incorporated. Please post in here if you want to play, as if I don't get enough people I won't do any more work. :p But yeah. Players should be mercenaries or scientists or anyone else who has a decent reason to be around. Generally this RPG will be sci-fi violence, and for those who don't like doing violent posts, other sci-fi related fun :color3:

[AI]

Woo! Robots! I'm SOLD! :D

[Wesforce]

Humans and Robots. Does that include Cyborgs then? The idea of being part human and part machine appeals to me somewhat

*everyone faints with surprise*

[VO]

Humans and Robots. Does that include Cyborgs then? The idea of being part human and part machine appeals to me somewhat
*everyone faints with surprise*

sure! Definately Cyborgs :D

[AI]

Humans and Robots. Does that include Cyborgs then? The idea of being part human and part machine appeals to me somewhat
*everyone faints with surprise*

NO!?!

*gasp*

*Faints with surprise*

[VO]

Here's some background, seeing as I have a couple of players (although they're all RPG forum regulars, I want new people :p)

Technology - Technology in the galaxy is fairly stagnant - there have been few major leaps and bounds in available technology in the last few millenia. Faster than light travel is readily available, made possible by exploiting folds in space time to 'hook' onto and pull a starship across the universe. The fastest that Unity space can be crossed with this method is about a month, although in practice it often takes longer. Using 'normal' wormholes is also possible, but not often exploited due to the high cost in producing anything larger than molecular transport technology. Other methods of travel include 'gates' which were constructed many millenia ago by some extinct race at the solar focus of stars and break down anything that can fit through them (gates have about a kilometre diameter) and beam the information at just under lightspeed to another gate where the object is reconstructed. This method is not used where available due to the considerable time lag ('gating' is MUCH slower than FTL), and the fact that in the galactic core, where the stars are close and many civilsations arose long ago, the gates have been overused and have now ceased functioning. Many races have developed their own methods of FTL.

Laser technology is freely available, although many prefer conventional 'slug' weapons with solid ammunition. A typical laser pistol has a powerpack which lasts for about 100 shots, while larger semi- and automatic versions may take much larger ammunition to maintain their fire. Grenades and rocket launchers to deliver an explosive or chemical payload are commonplace, although banned in many starsystems. Rail and Gauss guns are also preferred by some species, individuals and organisations. Ion and EMP blasts that disable electronics are known, but are highly illegal almost everywhere. There are many other weapons available - some even prefer melee combat knives and even superheated swords, although these would fall easily before an armed opponent except in very specific conditions.

Synthesisers that can produce many foods are commonplace, but require a regular supply of organic slurry and power to function. Some people refuse to eat such produce. Power itself comes from a wide variety of sources from solar power to nuclear fission, and is generally free for on-world habitation. Most small spaceships use a chemical propellant, while large cruisers often carry a nuclear reactor.

Most individuals will not own a starship, the largest available to characters being a light freighter. Corporations and Planetary governments are the only organisations to own anything larger. Light atmospheric speeders exist, and are fairly easy to pilot if you have the standard training.

Cyborg augmentation is fairly common, although not often seen in the 'civilised' galaxy. Limbs that cannot be artificially regrown may be replaced by prosthetics. On the fringes of known space, cyborgisation would be morre visible, with more outlandish 'ammendments' to individual's body on show.

Psionics - Psionic powers are rare but not unheard of in the galaxy, most races displaying some psychic propensity but many much more than others. Psychic powers tend to be very specific, few indivuals being able to master more than a very specific disipline. Psychic sight or other boosted senses are far commoner than powers such as telekinesis or other 'physical' powers. 0.1% of the galactic population are rumoured to have a tangible psychic affinity, a great minority of these harnessing it in their lifetime. Some races are 'naturally' psykers, albeit normally in a very limited sense.

If you want to suggest changes to any of this, go ahead. It's all fairly flexible.

[BlckWyerve]

You've piqued my interest. Not sure if I can commit right now though.

[ImageKlonoa]

heh...pretty cool concept. Me likes.

wonder if i can roleplay this "wolf with bunny ears" char of mine :shifty: or my avie.

[VO]

heh...pretty cool concept. Me likes.

wonder if i can roleplay this "wolf with bunny ears" char of mine :shifty: or my avie.

well, AI gets his robotic monkey as long as it's not obviously referred to as a robotic monkey in a hat... so you can be a furry (and this does NOT apply to everyone, DESO, we don't want loads of furries :p), as long as it makes some concession to being an alien species (like having different internal structure or something), and doesn't look like a cartoon character. :p :)

[ImageKlonoa]

'furry' is such a strong, ugly word. I like to think of it as an alien species which may or may not look like your household pet. :p

and whats wrong with them looking like a cartoon? maybe they came from a planet where everything is animated...bah nevermind.

ImageKlonoa, the Bashiir mage with an afro :p or something.

[BlckWyerve]

Let it go. Please, dear god, let it go. :p

[VO]

Because I'm just so hard working when I get down to it and I didn't do my essay tonight, here are some species.

Sample Races :

There are more races in the galaxy than anyone could ever catalogue. Some are more common than others.

Human - Humans are a very widespread race, found all over the galaxy, and at a rough estimate, make up 5% of the Unity populace. Humans lend their name to the common "humanoid" body morphology, meaning one head, a bipedal gait, and two other limbs, which has proven very effective and is visible in at least 60% of spacefaring species.

Ichanza - The Ichanza are an avian-descended race, although their feathers have been lost from most of their body apart from their heads and pubic regions. Ichanza bones are light and fragile, but their modest frame makes them excellent scouts and survivalists, requiring very little to survive and being able to eat almost anything. Ichanza take the classical humanoid form, albeit with short webs of skin beneath each arm and only three digits on each limb. The skin webs are just enough to glide, although no flight can be achieved.

Gnorks - Gnorks are notorious, if only for the fact that they breed even faster than humans, and can be found in most inhabited star systems. They may be counted the most numerous race in the galaxy, if they didn't almost always occupy the lowest level of the social scale and thus missed off many surveys. Gnorks are squat humanoids about four and a half feet tall, with aquarian adaptations including vestigal gills and a slimy, insulating skin.

Borass - The Borass evolved in one of the most extreme conditions imaginable, a world with a wild elliptical orbit which took them through a scorching season of fire as it swung into the heart of their binary star system, and a season of ice while it's orbit took it far from the sun. Thus the world, quite uniquely, evolved an entire ecosystem able ot cope in periods of almost complete vacuum and extremes of both heat and cold as their world continued on it's path. The Borass are large, two metre long insectoids, able ot retract into their heavy shells and survive about two hours in airless space, as well as rendering them very hard to hurt. Borass generations may last many thousands of years, and the species has been slow to disperse across the galaxy, making them very uncommon.

Sishvna - Sishvna follow the basic humanoid body pattern aside with a pairs of extra limbs connected to their torsos. Sishvna have pale blue skin, and live for six or seven hundred years, and have a reputation for being very intelligent, albeit in a practical, rather than spiritual way.

'Arboreans' - The Arboreans were one of the first races discovered and absorbed by the Hegemony, their common name a relic of the ancient human moniker given to the species. Arboreans are unique in being descended from their world's equivalent of plants, having thick, stubby green limbs, internal phloem and xylem instead of blood vessels, and every skin cell containing photosynthetic pigment to allow Arboreans to synthesise their own energy from sunlight. Arboreans are basic humanoids standing about five feet tall when adult. Under optimum conditions they do not need to eat, only drink a thick nutrient broth.


There are MANY more races than this. These are just a few I made up. Feel free to post your own.

[VO]

A short history of YDIX-13 under UNITY space

YDIX-13 is, given it's Galactic Standard Definition, the 13th significant sattelite in orbit around the Yellow Star DIX (DIX in itself being an abbreviation for DIX13AR74-2, the system's own Definition). In the two millenia that YDIX-13 has featured on Star Charts, no permanent name has become attatched to the world, thus it is referred to as YDIX in this text. YDIX is located on the very edge of UNITY space and on the borders of whatever lies beyond.

YDIX is a heavily forested world with a circumfrance of approximately 1,500 million kilometres. It's surface is roughly 60% water, mostly occupying the equatorial regions of the planet, although a significant reserve of fluid is locked away as polar ice. It's orbit is fairly stable, with a slight fluctuation providing short periods of exceptionally harsh winters every 3-4 thousand years. The world's origianal discoverer noted the ancient ruins dot the surface, (some even visible from orbit), which are even evident on the planet's ring of small moons, although not on it's large main sattelite. Scientific and archaeological surveys have mapped a very small proportion of the planetside ruins, and no investigation into the sattelites has yet been constructed.

There planet has a well developed ecosystem consisting primarily of mammal-analogues occupying most terrestial niches, apart from warm island chains in the semi-tropical sea which are exclusively colonised by lizards. Birds have not evolved on YDIX, but large reptiloid flyers are common, migrating with the seasons. Eight-limbed insectoids are common, with six and four limbed variations somewhat less so. There are no mollusc analogues. The large divide between the north and southern continents has provided ample space for wildly varying species on each landmass.

The world is geographically mediocre, the majority of it's landmass being pine-analogue forest. Mountain ranges feature on both continents, including a large southern formation stretching from the polar ice to the sea and a cluster of active volcanoes on almost the opposite side of the planet. Small areas, usually skirting the sea, are grasslands. There are very few areas dry enough to be classed as desert, except on the polar icecaps.

The first colonists arrived on YDIX almost a millenia ago, noting the impressive Tomb Valley on the southern continent, visible from orbit, and the numerous other less impressive ruins scattered on the surface. The first settlement was built on the tropical islands far from these remains of ancient civilisation, but was destroyed by a hurricane barely a hundred years later. In the next thirty decades, YDIX was visited occasionally by fledgeling scientific and archaeological teams, providing a very basic survey of the species count and alien artefacts on the world, before another settlement was started, this time on the southern coast where a primitive spaceport was established. This new settlement was named Jarvisston after it's founder, and soon grew to a size of about 20,000, suppling the archaeological base camp which waxed and waned with available funding a few kilometres from the Tomb Valley. A sizable industry centred around hunting the south continent's considerable stocks of game beasts (including the formidable 'Mastodox' ), and people from all over the galaxy seeking an escape from the galactic core ended up on YDIX, on the very fringe of the galaxy.

With the Fringe Accords the population of YDIX took a drastic fall as funding was cut for the archaeological research teams and many moved off planet, bankrupting many of the industries that had grown up around it in Jarvisston. Within two years, there were only 4,000 sentinents on YDIX, when previously there had been more 30,000. In this state of confusion, sustained raids by the Grim Skull Warlord's pirate fleet cluminated in the burning of Jarvisston to the ground and the deaths of most of it's population. Those that survived scattered into the wilds.

Barely a hundred years before, with the repeal of the Fringe Accords and the sucessful defeat of Grim Skull's sucessors by a UNITY taskforce colonists began to return to YDIX. Scientific missions were reestablished at Tomb Valley, the growing population expanding to investigate more of the strange ruins across the planet. The game industry returned, and Jarvisston was refounded on it's origianal site. A religious sect known a the Order of the Celestial Wisdom established it's own colony amoungst the ruins on the northern continent, staying largely self-sufficient and seperate from the southerners.

As it stands today, YDIX has a population of at least 20,000 (~1,000 scientific staff, 15,000 inhabitants of Jarvisston and it's outlying settlements, and an estimated 3,000 Order colonists.) It is unknown if any survivors of Grim Skull exist in the wilds, which still are mostly unexplored. The main way on and off planet is the small spaceport at Jarvisston, although the Tomb Survey maintain an emergency shuttle capable of reaching the system's Gate in the event of an emergency. For civillians without a ship to leave they would have to pay for passage on someone else's vessel. Atmospheric and vacuum-capable craft are fairly commonplace, although all have limited fuel supply. The main source of fuel are the Deutronium stores at Jarvisston, and the Survey's own reserves.

[VO]

Note on "anthropomorphic" characters :

If you want to take one of these, be aware that we are not going to refer to the character as the species he's based on. Thus if you somehow get a giant talking lion passed by me, in the rpg he won't be described as lionlike etc.

[masterblaster]

ok then but why is there humoniod then considering thats is an earth term

also i would be a human because there are no good humans i just read a book and the good person shot a guy in the head and he was unarmed and mr.good dident care so thats why im a human:gnarly: :freek: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

[masterblaster]

:evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

i would also be a merc equiivlant to a green beret :color1:

[AI]

I think what VO is getting at is, that lions, tigers, monkeys in hats are now extinct. As there's no more Earth. So the terms haven't survived very well over the hundreds of years since it's been forgotten about. The general terms, such as reptilian, avian, simian in headgear, etc. are still there. But spefifics, such as wolf, dog, lion, monkey in a hat are long gone.

[SW Freak]

Woo...I want some o' this.

[VO]

I think what VO is getting at is, that lions, tigers, monkeys in hats are now extinct. As there's no more Earth. So the terms haven't survived very well over the hundreds of years since it's been forgotten about. The general terms, such as reptilian, avian, simian in headgear, etc. are still there. But spefifics, such as wolf, dog, lion, monkey in a hat are long gone.


Exactly. Terms like humanoid etc are used so we can visualise our alien friends.



i would also be a merc equiivlant to a green beret

Go to the profile thread then and fill something out.

[VO]

HAPPY FUN BACKGROUND TIME

The Esoteric Order of the Celestial Wisdom

Founded many decades before Humanity's entrance to UNITY, the Order has gained a recent surge in popularity in the last millennium due to the conversion of several high-status sentients to its beliefs. Founded by a wandering monk six thousand years ago, the main tenets of the Order are mastery of oneself and reverence to the Abstract Deity, whose spirit is fragmented and imbued in the biosphere of every planet with organics in the galaxy.

To further their goals, the Order set up many 'monasteries' on the planets of the fringe, hoping to gain greater understanding by placing themselves far from civilisation. On YDIX the monastery has been constructed for about three thousand individuals on a mountainous plateau on the northern continent, adapting the ruins of the planet's primeval inhabitants to provide reflection chambers, dormitories and halls large enough to house the entire faculty. Roughly one third of the Order's devotees occupy the YDIX monastery, with many more believers scattered in more mundane walks of life across the galaxy.

The Mesa, as the monastery has become known as, occupies almost the entire five mile diameter of the plateau, most of it being sprawling, half-renovated ruins. Although the Order is peaceful, the plateau is heavily armed, with enough weapons for all the monks, several atmospheric-capable fighters, and an orbital cannon to protect it from pirate raids. In addition to this there is a small shuttle capable of carrying around 100 passengers to ferry occasional essential supplies down from orbit, itself the relic of the original colonisation fleet which was scuttled in the planet's orbital rings or broken down to build the colony.

The High Abbot (second in rank only to the Abstract Prophet, who resides on a hidden world deep within the galactic core) benignly rules the monastery, the majority of the monks practicing meditation and basic agriculture, while about five hundred train in more martial disciplines which are famed throughout the galaxy. Most monks wear ritual red robes, although the Martial Caste is allowed more freedom. There is little contact with the other settlers on YDIX, apart from occasional traders from the abbey who come south to Jarvisston to trade foodstuffs in return for valuable Deutronium fuel or technological repairs.

[masterblaster]

ok sarry 'bout that :D hmmmm.... 'spose were not in the char development yet:| :tantrum: :irked: :squint: :hmm: :happysad: :) :cool: :rofl: :hyper: the complete emoticon angr cycle

[masterblaster]

found it