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Star Brigade Relaunch (Interest Thread)

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1   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 00:30

To find the actual RP, click here.

"Captain, we're entering the accelerator field." said the pilot. "Clearance has been granted and we're ready to open the engines."

"Do it, Mr Faren. All hands, prepare for launch. Engage."

The Pious King groaned as the inertial compensator system kicked in. The slight tugging feeling dissipated as the ship reverted to normal gravity. Within the Jump Gate's accelerator field, the Pious King could be catapulted halfway across Union Space in a matter of weeks. For now, it was only three days to Devrost. Then, the search could begin for their missing vessel.

image

Welcome to the Relaunch of the Star Brigade RP. For the past few months, we have had members come and go, so we felt the time was right to open the RP to new faces. Everything you need to get started as the newest member of the crew will be laid out in this Interest Thread. This universe has been a collaboration of several people's contributions and ideas, all available for reference if you need a question answered.

Without further ado, let's get on with it.

The Setting

The year is 5202 and humanity is experiencing a new age of prosperity. In the late 21st century a terrible environmental disaster forced the human race to abandon Earth for Mars and endure a millennium of hardship. Upon their return to the recovering Earth, things became no easier. Rapid mutations had drastically changed the environment, rendering much of the planet uninhabitable for humanity. They also found the planet under new management. In their absence, humanity had been replaced by the Crelm, an intelligent aquatic race as the dominant species. Only through a tense agreement with the Crelm was Humanity able to survive and rebuild on this alien world.

Initially the crelm treated their co-species as little more than slaves to be exploited, holding a monopoly on food supplies. However, as time went on the two races grew to respect each other, and eventually the agreement morphed into an alliance. Once room on Earth began to tighten, the two species left together to find new planets in others system to terraform and inhabit. The alliance between all the planets under of the control of humanity and the crelm became known as the "Solanic Union" or SU. Through-out the galaxy the SU explorers came across numerous different races of alien, some friendly, others hostile, a few plain bizarre. Several species joined the budding Union out of a sense of security and mutual benefit.

Meanwhile as the SU expands, other races have their own trials to deal with. The rising tensions between the insect norg and simian durras species over the treatment of a third species, the gryale, threatens to erupt into open conflict. The Gyrale revered by the Durras, are regarded as a pest by the Norg. Both these species are valuable trading partners of the SU and it is in their interest, not to mention saving countless lives on either side, to prevent a war breaking out.

Your character is one of the crew of the Star Brigade, the newest vessel of the 7th Diplomatic Corps. The DC is an independent military organisation created by the Union to find diplomatic solutions to problems involving alien species. Unlike the regular SU military, the Diplomatic Corps hire members from as wide a range of races as possible to assist diplomacy and recruit from a variety of professions. Your character can specialise in finding peaceful solutions, combat for defence, scientific research, technology or even spiritual enlightenment.

In this RP there will be a number of difficult moral choices to make, often where there will be no right answer and your decisions as a group will eventually determine whether a war is prevented or not. Conspiracies will be unraveled, tensions will rise, and peace or chaos will depend on you, the players.

Playable Races

There are eleven species to choose from for your Player Character.

Non Playable Races

Sheets and Rules

Technically, JoJo is the overlord game master of this RP. However, as he is away until September, I and Avouleance2nd are running the game in his absence. The rules are the same.

 
2   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 00:31

Reserved for Accepted Character Sheets.

Accepted Characters

 
3   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 00:31

NOTE: None of the archived information is required to play. It is merely here for those who want to read up on the setting. You can get by just as easily on the basics alone.

Information Archive Part 1 (Further Links Link 1 Link 2 Link 3)

Ships, Technology, Organizations and Weaponry

Ships

Organizations

Technology and Weaponry

 
4   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 00:31

NOTE: None of the archived information is required to play. It is merely here for those who want to read up on the setting. You can get by just as easily on the basics alone.

Information Archive 2 (Further Links Link 1 Link 2 Link 3)

Histories, Nations, and Species

 
5   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 20:50

Sounds like fun - especially considering how highly avouleance2nd speaks of it.

I do have a few questions though:

1) Any rules I should know about? - you know, aside from the standard no godmodding, no flaming, etc

2) Is this a continuation of the existing game? If so, are there any important things I should know - key past events,

3) I am currently caught between 4 species - the Astrid, the Lallowen, the Ferrax, and the Norg. Thanks to avouleance2nd, I already know a fair bit about the Lallowen (as he played one in a different game). Where would I find more information about the remaining species (naming conventions, preferred climates, more detailed cultural outlooks, lifespans, etc)

 
6   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 21:56

Honestly I'm starting to be feeling a little disconnected since this had been on and off for a while.

I might give lime over as an NPC and roll a new character. See what I can come up with.

hiei82:

Snip

It's not a restart but to be honest I think that might make more sense so new players can feel more involved and to kick the plot back into gear.
Might also help explain the where the new players are coming from.
If you've any specific questions on Norg or Lallowen ask me for Astrid and Ferrax SH is your guy.

An advanced warning though Prail was alive several million years before this ever happened so a lot of the culture and biology has changed (to the point they are now extremely hostile to other members of their own species so most are brought up for raised by other species they've manipulated into caring for them).

 
7   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 22:11

hiei82:
Sounds like fun - especially considering how highly avouleance2nd speaks of it.

I do have a few questions though:

1) Any rules I should know about? - you know, aside from the standard no godmodding, no flaming, etc

2) Is this a continuation of the existing game? If so, are there any important things I should know - key past events,

3) I am currently caught between 4 species - the Astrid, the Lallowen, the Ferrax, and the Norg. Thanks to avouleance2nd, I already know a fair bit about the Lallowen (as he played one in a different game). Where would I find more information about the remaining species (naming conventions, preferred climates, more detailed cultural outlooks, lifespans, etc)

I'm in the process of moving over all the information I can to this interest thread. Until it is all moved, you can find more information by following the three links I've put over the archive posts.

 
8   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 22:38

Sounds interesting, I will peruse the races (this might take some time) and assuming this is open, get a character sheet up tomorrow or tonight.

*edit* Just did a quick scan, Astrids look cool.

 
9   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 22:55

Sounds interesting, once I've made it through the wall of text I'll give you a definite answer to whether or not I'll write up a sheet.

 
10   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 23:20

avouleance2nd:
snip

Soviet Heavy:

I'm in the process of moving over all the information I can to this interest thread. Until it is all moved, you can find more information by following the three links I've put over the archive posts.

I need to stop reading all these word docs... their giving me too many character ideas (and at least one idea for a species) - this can only end in walls of text. Also, I can't seem to get some of the information links to work - see below - are these still correct and my computer is just wonky or are other people unable to get them?

 
11   POSTED: 13 Aug 2012 23:53

hiei82:

avouleance2nd:
snip

Soviet Heavy:

I'm in the process of moving over all the information I can to this interest thread. Until it is all moved, you can find more information by following the three links I've put over the archive posts.

I need to stop reading all these word docs... their giving me too many character ideas (and at least one idea for a species) - this can only end in walls of text. Also, I can't seem to get some of the information links to work - see below - are these still correct and my computer is just wonky or are other people unable to get them?

These are all going to be introduced into this thread, don't worry. It just takes time, since I have to reformat them and edit.

There's a lot of information that we built up, so read at your leisure. The actual RP won't go too terribly deep into the minutiae, but the back story and species bio pages can give you an idea of what sort of character you want to play.

 
12   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 00:21

Soviet Heavy:

hiei82:

avouleance2nd:
snip

Soviet Heavy:

I'm in the process of moving over all the information I can to this interest thread. Until it is all moved, you can find more information by following the three links I've put over the archive posts.

I need to stop reading all these word docs... their giving me too many character ideas (and at least one idea for a species) - this can only end in walls of text. Also, I can't seem to get some of the information links to work - see below - are these still correct and my computer is just wonky or are other people unable to get them?

These are all going to be introduced into this thread, don't worry. It just takes time, since I have to reformat them and edit.

There's a lot of information that we built up, so read at your leisure. The actual RP won't go too terribly deep into the minutiae, but the back story and species bio pages can give you an idea of what sort of character you want to play.

I figured it wouldn't, but I like to stay true to a given material. My current thoughts are either an Astrid slowly dying from a disease trying to do some good before the disease wins, a Ferrax with a mind for mechanics (think army corp of engineers) - particularly the violent kind of mechanics, a Norg with a strange sense of individuality, driving it to do things no other Norg would do (but is it really individuality or just Frel "programing" making the character believe it is free) or a Lallowen trying to rediscover what a Lallowen really is.

The problem is that each of these bends the stereotype for the species (an open Astrid, a Ferrax engineer, a free-radical Norg, and a Lallowen trying not to mimic). Without a detailed view of their cultures, I cannot figure out how to make a character that is balanced in the middle of traditional and radical in a way that is interesting - after all, what beliefs we cling to and what ones we ignore/oppose are what make individual character more memorable/enjoyable

 
13   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 00:55

NOTE: None of the archived information is required to play. It is merely here for those who want to read up on the setting. You can get by just as easily on the basics alone.

Species, Detailed

 
14   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 01:01

NOTE: None of the archived information is required to play. It is merely here for those who want to read up on the setting. You can get by just as easily on the basics alone.

Species, Detailed Cont.

 
15   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 01:04

hiei82:
Snip

See the two posts above this one. That was a lot of text. I think I found the ceiling for how long posts can go on the Escapist.

 
16   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 01:11

Soviet Heavy:

hiei82:
Snip

See the two posts above this one. That was a lot of text. I think I found the ceiling for how long posts can go on the Escapist.

Many thanks.

 
17   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 02:41

This is a ridiculous amount of text. I thought the Culture had a big infodump. This is worse.

Not to be offensive or anything, I know people get attached to their homebrew settings. But you're expecting quite a commitment from any potential player. Moreso than is reasonable.

I'm on the fence. I'd have to see what everyone else does. In the meantime, here's a previous sheet. I'll pick a recently-contacted creature so that lack of setting knowledge is perfectly IC.

 
18   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 03:09

Asclepion:
This is a ridiculous amount of text. I thought the Culture had a big infodump. This is worse.

Not to be offensive or anything, I know people get attached to their homebrew settings. But you're expecting quite a commitment from any potential player. Moreso than is reasonable.

I'm on the fence. I'd have to see what everyone else does. In the meantime, here's a previous sheet. I'll pick a recently-contacted creature so that lack of setting knowledge is perfectly IC.

My normal strategy for undertaking this much info, is to simply focus on what I need for my character and learn the rest as the story progresses. If I never encounter a Maskerade, then the summary will certainly do.

 
19   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 03:33

Asclepion:
This is a ridiculous amount of text. I thought the Culture had a big infodump. This is worse.

Not to be offensive or anything, I know people get attached to their homebrew settings. But you're expecting quite a commitment from any potential player. Moreso than is reasonable.

I'm on the fence. I'd have to see what everyone else does. In the meantime, here's a previous sheet. I'll pick a recently-contacted creature so that lack of setting knowledge is perfectly IC.

I'm really not expecting anything. If you want to use the background information to mould your character, then you're free to do so. If not, you can still get by on the basics.

Hmm. Funny story however. Since you were unable to participate when the game started, we kinda had your character killed. But death is a minor issue, we can make it work. Retcons!

 
20   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 04:20

Soviet Heavy:

I'm really not expecting anything. If you want to use the background information to mould your character, then you're free to do so. If not, you can still get by on the basics.

Hmm. Funny story however. Since you were unable to participate when the game started, we kinda had your character killed. But death is a minor issue, we can make it work. Retcons!

Well... was it a good death? :D

I'll change it so he's a clone, a tankbred Schrier and so in an even worse position because he has no memories. (unless you can just flash knowledge into someone.)

BTW, what level of technology are you going for? I ask because, in science fiction, people often don't realize that we are potentially seeing intelligence that may be a million years ahead of our own. So, is yours something like

-Enderverse/Known Space (biological-controlled ships, FTL, ground units, etc.)

-Culture (biological immortality, AI that are millions of times more intelligent than humans, sapient ships with picosecond reaction times, and continent-destroying handguns).

-Xeelee Sequence (devices to change the laws of physics, ships made of folded spacetime that are indestructible to baryonic matter, hyperspheres that are the size of planets inside but only a few cubic meters outside, and humans modified to live inside neutron stars).

 
21   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 04:30

Off-topic, but did you draw those? 'Cause they are pretty good.

 
22   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 04:31

Asclepion:

Soviet Heavy:

I'm really not expecting anything. If you want to use the background information to mould your character, then you're free to do so. If not, you can still get by on the basics.

Hmm. Funny story however. Since you were unable to participate when the game started, we kinda had your character killed. But death is a minor issue, we can make it work. Retcons!

Well... was it a good death? :D

I'll change it so he's a clone, a tankbred Schrier and so in an even worse position because he has no memories. (unless you can just flash knowledge into someone.)

BTW, what level of technology are you going for? I ask because, in science fiction, people often don't realize that you are potentially seeing intelligence that may be a million years ahead of our own. So, is yours something like

-Enderverse/Known Space (biological-controlled ships, FTL, ground units, etc.)

-Culture (biological immortality, AI that are millions of times more intelligent than humans, sapient ships with picosecond reaction times, and handguns more powerful than 21st century nukes).

-Xeelee Sequence (devices to change the laws of physics, ships made of molded spacetime that are indestructible to baryonic matter, hyperspheres that are the size of planets inside but only a few cubic meters outside, and humans modified to live inside neutron stars).

He kinda got killed by explosive decompression during a failed terrorist attack on the ship. In the prologue. In his sleep. After his cabin was opened to vacuum.

As for tech levels, fairly high. There are worldships like the New Terra that are planet sized semi biological starships. Think botanical gardens on a massive scale.

Faster than light travel is done either through massive Jump Gate accelerator highways (think the system from Cowboy Bebop), first generation hyperdrives (giant engines that other ships latch onto like pilot fish), or wormhole travel.

The Star Brigade itself is unique since it features one of the first second generation hyperdrives, miniaturized so that it can be installed in an individual ship rather than a large thruster.

Things start to get rougher the further to the frontier you get, but the Colonies are heavily industrialized. There's lasers, particle beams, medical scanners, mimic technology, and other sorts of stuff.

So, we're sort of between Star Trek theoretical future tech and Star Wars "runs on the needs of the plot" tech. No immortal beings or mind cannons, but early steps towards new breakthroughs.

 
23   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 04:33

Boudica:
Off-topic, but did you draw those? 'Cause they are pretty good.

Yes I did. I'm not entirely happy with them, but I won't get any better if I don't keep it up. The Ferrax and Astrid I've got a better idea of how they look, since I wrote them up, but others came up with the other species, so I'm stuck interpreting as best I can. I'll put up more as I finish them.

 
24   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 05:17

But is it still biologicals that control these, or superintelligence?

If you consider them 'fairly high', then any capable civ shouldn't be physically operating their craft. Otherwise the fleet would be destroyed faster than the first neurons fire in their brains telling them that they are under attack. But I'm still comparing it to settings I'm familiar with, where battles play out in microseconds and a drone that fits in your pocket can take over a whole world, so I'll accept it in-setting. Curiously, I've noticed that UK scifi (Scottish for Culture, British for Dr. Who and Manifold, etc) tends towards godlike tech capability.

Oh, and nice art :)

 
25   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 05:45

Asclepion:
But is it still biologicals that control these, or superintelligence?

If you consider them 'fairly high', then any capable civ shouldn't be physically operating their craft. Otherwise the fleet would be destroyed faster than the first neurons fire in their brains telling them that they are under attack. But I'm still comparing it to settings I'm familiar with, where battles play out in microseconds and a drone that fits in your pocket can take over a whole world, so I'll accept it in-setting. Curiously, I've noticed that UK scifi (Scottish for Culture, British for Dr. Who and Manifold, etc) tends towards godlike tech capability.

Oh, and nice art :)

Judge Dredd and 40K aren't quite godlike tech. 40K's god tech was all lost anyways.

 
26   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 17:23

I should mention that this thread will be open all week, but I will not be able to respond between Wednesday and Saturday afternoon EST. I will be away from the internet during that time.

 
27   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 21:12

This does look rather interesting, mind if I submit a sheet?

Though as I prep for my character I'm realizing that I've got a few questions.

First on the Astrid: Are there any naming conventions (aside from having only one name)? And what is their rough lifespan/age of maturity.

Also, could I get just a little more detail on the Star Brigade's armaments? I was thinking of filling a ship's gunner position, or is that all handled by the A.I.?

 
28   POSTED: 14 Aug 2012 21:39

Fishtie:
This does look rather interesting, mind if I submit a sheet?

Though as I prep for my character I'm realizing that I've got a few questions.

First on the Astrid: Are there any naming conventions (aside from having only one name)? And what is their rough lifespan/age of maturity.

Also, could I get just a little more detail on the Star Brigade's armaments? I was thinking of filling a ship's gunner position, or is that all handled by the A.I.?

They live for around 70 years, reaching maturity at 20. Naming conventions are fairly simple. There are two current Astrid serving aboard the ship, NPCs Demexin (Dex) and Tilana (Til) Wing. Their names are often abbreviated for convenience's sake, given their pragmatic approach to communication. So if you are coming up with a name, try to find one that can be fairly complex in its full form, but abbreviated if needed.

The armaments on the Star Brigade are fairly new. In the current session, the armaments were installed after the first mission showed how vulnerable a ship entering a potential crisis zone would be.

There's also the slight problem of the ship being highjacked at the moment, but the current players are working on getting it back. Don't worry, there will be a way to integrate into the RP set up once the new players are chosen. The current crew is using a Union task force as a surrogate ship for the time being.

So, the Armaments. There are the two interceptors for close support, and the new particle guns and missile launchers. The Lisa AI system uses cyber warfare during combat situations, attacking weaknesses in the opposing vessels. The particle cannons are used for long range warfare, given the speed of the projectiles and their assurance to fire in a straight line. The missiles are for close defense, flying in erratic patterns to avoid being shot down, before erupting into cluster bombs to provide splash damage.

 
29   POSTED: 16 Aug 2012 02:06

My humble submission.

Let me know if I messed up any racial details.

 
30   POSTED: 16 Aug 2012 08:09

Thanks for the response to my questions, they're great though I've been thinking about tweaking my character a little.

All finished for now. If anything needs to be changed/expanded/whatever then just go ahead and tell me. Oh and by the way, I realize that my character has a somewhat limited use for certain missions; so I don't at all mind sitting on the sidelines for sections of the RP where there wouldn't be anything to do. Looking forward to having fun.

P.S. just out of curiosity: about what is the crew compliment of the Star Brigade?

 
31   POSTED: 17 Aug 2012 05:33

Alright, here's my submission.

 
32   POSTED: 17 Aug 2012 13:38

Phew, that was a lot of reading. Anyway would it possible for my character to be a stowaway?

 
33   POSTED: 18 Aug 2012 20:50

Hey guys, apologies for not getting back to you. My schedule will return to normal after next saturday. I'll look through your submissions and give you my opinions when I'm done, okay?

 
34   POSTED: 19 Aug 2012 05:42

hiei82:
Alia

Interesting choice. A bordering on the insane Astrid with a penchant for talking to non sentient species. She'll fit right in.

Fishtie:
Circe

I like it. It helps to replace lost crew members after the last mission, and her recent addition to the corps means that integrating into the story will be painless.

To answer your other question, the Star Brigade operates with a crew of 300. Small crews are a result of the space required to house the reactor and FTL drives, as well as the significant automation of secondary systems by the AI cluster.

alandavidson:
Grendar

Again, and interesting choice. The Durras are a monotheistic society, worshiping the Gyrale above all else. To see one so old that he would have been there when they first achieved sentience devote himself to another religion is a neat concept. He's more of an outsider to his own people than most would realize.

I also like the idea of having a contrast to Til Wing, the ship's other resident counselor.

 
35   POSTED: 20 Aug 2012 01:32

Soviet Heavy:
snip

So when and how do we join?

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