Ideas Are Easy

[RyanW]

Two ideas for some weird alien-on-alien action:

An alien species that has haploid genetics, and sexually reproduces to create a sessile and non-sentient "potted plant" creature. The "potted plant" then buds off a new generation of the haploid phase.

An alien species that are genetically genderless, but upon reaching maturity they undergo a meiosis event that produces a gendered haploid appendage. The children of a monogamous couple will be clones of one another, but genetically distinct from both parents.

[lwcamp]

Originally Posted by RyanW

An alien species that has haploid genetics, and sexually reproduces to create a sessile and non-sentient "potted plant" creature. The "potted plant" then buds off a new generation of the haploid phase.

Great minds must think alike -
http://panoptesv.com/RPGs/Settings/V...s/Jiangluo.php

Luke

[David Johnston2]

A supers world where humans aren't that special. Which is to say, the number of humans who have superpowers are greatly outnumbered by the animals and plants who have developed superpowers, devastating civilization except for a few city-states defended by teams of powerful supers.

[simply Nathan]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

A supers world where humans aren't that special. Which is to say, the number of humans who have superpowers are greatly outnumbered by the animals and plants who have developed superpowers, devastating civilization except for a few city-states defended by teams of powerful supers.

Yeah, just giving each species the same percentage of supers gives us a huge number of Mighty Mice and Atom Ants to contend with...good call on this one.

[tshiggins]

Originally Posted by simply Nathan

Yeah, just giving each species the same percentage of supers gives us a huge number of Mighty Mice and Atom Ants to contend with...good call on this one.

I might back it down a bit, from that. I'd go with mutations appropriate to the creatures.

So, for instance, ants and bees get hive-minds that allow them to achieve at least human intelligence:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phase_IV

Or for rats, simply make them larger and more aggressive.

I'd reserve true "super powerz" for beasts that are already large and smart, and which enhance what they already do well. So, perhaps leopards or mountain lions that gain camouflage fur and a scream that paralyzes with fear? Make foxes, coyotes and raccoons even smarter (and give raccoons better hands). Bears become cunning behemoths, and intelligent whales start killing Japanese fishermen.

Stuff like that.

[RyanW]

Originally Posted by lwcamp

Great minds must think alike -
http://panoptesv.com/RPGs/Settings/V...s/Jiangluo.php

I based it on algae, some of which have haploid and diploid generational alternation.

The ones with haploid junk use basically the same mechanism of plants, but limited to a single junk that sticks with them throughout their adult life, rather than dozens of junks that are regenerated each year. This makes them unusual (to us) because every individual is genetically both sexes but becomes a male or female (for reproductive purposes) randomly and permanently at maturity.

[lwcamp]

Originally Posted by RyanW

I based it on algae, some of which have haploid and diploid generational alternation.

The ones with haploid junk use basically the same mechanism of plants, but limited to a single junk that sticks with them throughout their adult life, rather than dozens of junks that are regenerated each year. This makes them unusual (to us) because every individual is genetically both sexes but becomes a male or female (for reproductive purposes) randomly and permanently at maturity.

My inspiration was a kind of jellyfish that alternates diploid polyp stages and haploid medusa stages.

Luke

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by simply Nathan

Yeah, just giving each species the same percentage of supers gives us a huge number of Mighty Mice and Atom Ants to contend with...good call on this one.

Scaling is an issue. An ant with ten times the strength of a normal ant may be a terror to predatory insects, but it's not going to take down a bird. Remember what Doctor Manhattan said about the smartest termite in the world.

[WaterAndWindSpirit]

Arcane Sex Crime Task Force: The PCs are members of an official agency tasked with hunting down rogue wizards/psions/whatever using mind control abilities to commit sex crimes. A mix of investigation with magical forensics and combat against formidable foes.

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by WaterAndWindSpirit

Arcane Sex Crime Task Force: The PCs are members of an official agency tasked with hunting down rogue wizards/psions/whatever using mind control abilities to commit sex crimes. A mix of investigation with magical forensics and combat against formidable foes.

A little too narrowly defined I think. There after all a lot of things you can do with mind control capabilities after all beyond roofieing your dates and the reason why sex crimes units exist separately (because victims of that kind of crime require some specialized interview approaches) doesn't apply so much to how you'd probably go about diagnosing a case of mental coercion.