New Sci Fi Setting Seeds

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by tshiggins

EVE Online!

https://community.eveonline.com/backstory/

True, but my use of the idea is different. And so will yours be.

[Astromancer]

"How did you beat the Mandarin army?

It was simple really. They know more history and technology than we do but we had a radio, our Madboy built one. We signaled the dam when they camped by the river. The opened the main gates and sent a flash flood down the canyon. Our inability to take any intact heads as trophies was the main drawback.

Yeah, our shamans like enemy heads too.

The peoples of the land know they came from Earth, someplace beyond the stars. Most folks say Earth is dead. That's sad if it is true. Here and there they keep the old knowledge alive and sometimes that sort of thing is useful. But most folks farm or herd animals, there are merchants and craftsmen too.

Towns are small and rare. Farms get raided to often so food is too scarce to feed many towns or any large ones. I hear in the south there are islands with farms and fishing villages and towns are more common and larger, they use more tech too. They may be a threat to us one day.

Meanwhile, the three peoples contend for the plains and the grass and water here. The First Peoples like us. We are divided into many tribes. The Mandarins farm the most and they have the largest towns (not very) and they weave silk. Most of the other first people herd large animals and live as nomads.

The Winged say they came with us from Earth and are of our blood. Our Madboys say this is true. That the Winged had their DNA ("Oh sacred spiral path of the Mother and the Father/ always bless us and our children.") changed so that they could fly by their own strength.

The third people are the Aristoi, who say their name means the best. They simply say that's what they were named, they are proud of being stronger, tougher, faster, more agile, longer lived, and more clever than most folk. Still they readily admit that the best of ours are an equal match for the best of theirs, the chance to learn more and gain more wisdom over the years is their main special gift. The Aristoi live in fortresses high in the mesas and grow crops up there. they use mirrors of mica to turn caves into gardens and wind mills to generate lightning power. Though strong, they do not challenge the first people, they won't risk their crops or fish ponds, because they need twice the food we need.

Basically a cross between Conan-esque Sword and Sorcery and Post-apocalyptic, but set on a colony world far across the stars. The general Tech Level is about two for the nomads and three for the towns. The Aristoi and little "University Towns" are a mixture of Tech Levels Four and Five with occasional random bits of Tech Level six. There are rumors that the southern islands are more advanced.

The population is growing (it's now around five million planet wide, like Earth around the year 5,000 BCE) to the point that civilization can be self sustaining.

The First Peoples are humans, they are all genefixed and have the Longevity advantage, as well as the Zero point traits (No Birthdefects, No Mental Illness, No Unattractive). Note: these are birth traits, accidents happen especially to warrior nomads.

The Winged are Parahumans that look like a cross between humans and bats. Unlike the Caramotz parahumans, the Winged are tough and robust. Their bones aren't hollow. Their designer figured out how Pterosaurs flew and improved the efficiency of flight. The Winged are still smaller and thinner than ordinary humans. The Winged herd animals (mountain goats and llamas mainly) and raise crops in secluded valleys.

The Aristoi are Parahumans of the Homo Superior type, but they aren't vain about it. They're plus Four to all stats, have the Extended Lifespan-1, Longevity, Senitive, Versatile, Language Talent, and Intuitive Mathematician advantages among others. They also have the Extra Lifesupport-1.5 disadvantage, they need twice as much food and water, and that of a higher quality, as normal humans.

The Mayboys and Madgirls (guess who I stole from) are technicians, herbalists, engineers, doctors, etc. They are the "Sorcerers" of the setting.

More later, I must go...

[Luke Bunyip]

Originally Posted by Astromancer

...Basically a cross between Conan-esque Sword and Sorcery and Post-apocalyptic, but set on a colony world far across the stars.

<Snip>

The Mayboys and Madgirls (guess who I stole from) are technicians, herbalists, engineers, doctors, etc. They are the "Sorcerers" of the setting.

If a portion of the colonists originated in Australia, they'd probably be called Uncle or Aunty, presuming it take time to learn what knowledge has been passed down.

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by Luke Bunyip

If a portion of the colonists originated in Australia, they'd probably be called Uncle or Aunty, presuming it take time to learn what knowledge has been passed down.

I agree that Mad Max blends with Conan very well.

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by Astromancer

Basically a cross between Conan-esque Sword and Sorcery and Post-apocalyptic, but set on a colony world far across the stars. The general Tech Level is about two for the nomads and three for the towns. The Aristoi and little "University Towns" are a mixture of Tech Levels Four and Five with occasional random bits of Tech Level six. There are rumors that the southern islands are more advanced.

More later, I must go...

"The Land" is a vast grassy plain much like the Eurasian Steppe. It does have more rivers and odd and as yet unexplained formations of high mesas, far more like Tepui of south America than the Southwest US Mesas.

Although the rivers allow agriculture, regular raids by local nomads greatly restrict agriculture to defensible areas. Trade though the area is based on furs, honey, wax, and hazelnuts, coming from the north, animal products from the locals, and silk and other types of cloth plus manufactured goods from the south. The whole area is salt deficient and the Aristoi have a near monopoly on salt. (The Aristoi boil brine in solar ovens to create blocks of pure salt.)

The Winged and the Aristoi compete for defensible locations to farm and live in and rarely work together. But they don't war with each other, they understand their vulnerability far to well.

More next year...

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by Astromancer

Basically a cross between Conan-esque Sword and Sorcery and Post-apocalyptic, but set on a colony world far across the stars. The general Tech Level is about two for the nomads and three for the towns. The Aristoi and little "University Towns" are a mixture of Tech Levels Four and Five with occasional random bits of Tech Level six. There are rumors that the southern islands are more advanced.

The first people speak multiple languages, most of which are clearly derived from English, although tribes speaking Spanish or Arabic derived tongues are common enough. The Mandarin speak a form of Mandarin Chinese. The Winged also speak an language derived from English as do the Asristoi. The trade language is based on English too, and most native speakers of English derived tongues find the Trade Language (Mercan) intelligible especially after a little practice. The Aristoi sound the most like contemporary English, but they are the most literate group in the land.

Spring and Autumn in the land are both lovely and brutally short. Summer is hot and muggy winters bitter cold and windy. The Winged practice Transhumanance and do not stay in the land in winter. This is largely because any clothing that would protect them from frostbite would prevent them from flying. So they migrate far to the south. Leaving only small numbers of shepherds behind. This is part of why they can't out compete the Aristoi for desirable highlands.

Horses and camels are the most common ways to travel the Land. Both the Aristoi and the winged keep netopýr (gigantic bat-like creatures genetically designed to be winged beasts of burden). The First people don't know how to breed these creatures and neither the Winged nor the Aristoi want the secret getting out. The rivers aren't navigable to large boats, but canoes and rafts are commonplace.

More later...

[YankeeGamer]

In that "Pail of Air" analog, there could be another faction, or a faction in one community or other. It would also work nicely on its own.

The people have accepted their position. They are adrift between the worlds, to see the sun no more.

So what? There are untold cubic miles of volume to build into communities. There is unlimited power from fusion and geothermal. Scavenging the surface is fine, but that will run out.

Build down. Build underground farms. Build enormous caverns for recreation and to grow the trees of times long gone. Learn from the science of the past, but build on it. Create a new civilization--everything you need is available. When the time is right, return to the surface to cross the distances to where rare minerals are available...but do not despair. Sure, one day, the stars might become available...but you need them not.

(Landing on Earth without an atmosphere is difficult...so when you set forth for the stars, it will not be easy.)

[YankeeGamer]

These are the voyages of the Ice Ship Enterprise. Its continuing mission: to explore strange new cities. To seek out surviving life, surviving civilizations. To boldly contact what no one has contacted before.

Set on a Pail of Air type world, the Enterprise, a fusion powered, utterly massive ice crawler (makes a Jawa sandcrawler look TINY) has left HOME on a voyage of discovery and recontacting. Home has several nearby colonies--mining, for example--so over the ice travel locally is semi-routine on charted routes.

Much like a starship, the environment is totally hostile, the crew is out of touch with home a lot of the time, landing parties need environmental protection, and discoveries and civilizations abound. Depending on how long it has been since there's been any contact, cultures will have evolved, and smaller societies that managed to survive could be decidedly primitive in every aspect except raw survival. Others could be hostile, or need to be negotiated with.

The Enterprise is armed, of course, and the crew well trained, but no one has fired a shot in anger in generations. Vehicle combat is purely from simulators and from training near home.

Away craft are mostly short ranged (fuel cell or battery powered) crawlers, but a couple of longer ranged fusion powered crawlers are carried aboard.

There are also some drones and/or short ranged rocket fliers, using cryogenic fuel that can be cracked easily from water.

Depending on the amount of contact you want them to have with base, there's options. A geostationary satellite is idea, but blocked by mountains when the craft is at higher latitudes. Contact might only be possible from the top of a mountain, or when a flyer is up. Worst case: contact is only possible at set intervals when Home sends up a flyer, and Enterprise sends one up at the same time.

When/if the campaign starts to grow wearisome, there's a light in the sky--First Contact! That might never be necessary. First Contact could be humans that left Earth long and long ago, and finally are able to return, or might be something else entirely.

First Contact could even be with Centrum or Homeline. Either one could have been there for years before discovering that there's a massive civilization beneath their feet--when someone in a small facility feels the crunching of a 250,000 ton juggernaut that dwarfs even the massive tanks of the Quantum 4 timelines known as OGRE-2 and OGRE 1.

[Astromancer]

The epic exploration of the frozen Earth is genius Yankee Gamer, pure wonder.

[YankeeGamer]

Originally Posted by Astromancer

The epic exploration of the frozen Earth is genius Yankee Gamer, pure wonder.

Thanks!
The Ice Crawler Enterprise is roughly statted out here:
http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=166970

Work in Progress.