Alien Invasions - Page 2

cptbutton · 01-12-2019, 11:43 AM

One option is to pick a second-rate power and give them technical assistance and fire support while they conquer and rule the world with your backing. You can't completely control the planet, your puppet government will have a mind of its own and its own agendas, but they have to stay on your good side lest you withdraw support or give it to some other second rate power.

Nereidalbel · 01-12-2019, 11:46 AM

The best stories I've read involving alien invasions of Earth take place years afterwords, and focus on small resistance movements. You know, groups that are just small enough to be hard to find, while just big enough to cause problems.

Everything from IED's to stolen alien tech can be put to use, so long as the aliens don't want to glass large areas of the planet to swat a few flies.

AlexanderHowl · 01-12-2019, 11:51 AM

Always a possibility, I just like the idea of seeing the human reaction as represented by the PCs. The aliens would really not want the Earth for anything, they can get resources from the limitless supplies of material in space, and they invaded as an insurance policy to prevent humans from becoming a problem a century or so later. They acted mercifully from their own perspective because it would have been cheaper to have redirected Eros 433 or Ganymed 1036 on a collision course with the Earth.

An additional question for the PCs would concern whether they would desire to resist the aliens. Imagine if the aliens say that humans will become full citizens of their Empire if they behave themselves for a few centuries in order to prove that they are civilized. With a carrot (citizenship for the entire human species) and a stick (annihilation of the entire human species), the aliens offer powerful incentives for the human authorities to suppress revolutionary sentiments.

The aliens could even sweeten the pot by giving access to TL9 technology to humans who behave themselves and TL10 technology to humans who actively cooperate (though they would make sure to keep superscience from the humans until they become full citizens). Collaborators could even gain full citizenship for themselves and their families early, allowing them to leave the Sol system to travel on commercial spacecraft throughout Imperial space, and gain the right to serve in the military. With adequate service, they might even earn command of their own military spacecraft and help conquer another emerging species.

At that point, does it make sense to resist or does submission make more sense? Do the PCs help the resistance when they understand the benefits of submission and the penalties of resistance. Or do the PCs play the long game, hoping to get citizenship for humanity in a few centuries, so that humans will become an important element of the Empire and, eventually, once again forge their own course?

Nereidalbel · 01-12-2019, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

At that point, does it make sense to resist or does submission make more sense? Do the PCs help the resistance when they understand the benefits of submission and the penalties of resistance. Or do the PCs play the long game, hoping to get citizenship for humanity in a few centuries, so that humans will become an important element of the Empire and, eventually, once again forge their own course?

Read plenty of stories on humans playing the long game. Gotta set the plans in place really, really early, though. This includes setting up "resistance" groups that human authorities "help" to put an end to. Decent setting for a multi-generational game, actually.

cptbutton · 01-12-2019, 12:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nereidalbel

The best stories I've read involving alien invasions of Earth take place years afterwords, and focus on small resistance movements. You know, groups that are just small enough to be hard to find, while just big enough to cause problems.

Everything from IED's to stolen alien tech can be put to use, so long as the aliens don't want to glass large areas of the planet to swat a few flies.

A good book for this is The Course Of Empire by Eric Flint and K. D. Wentworth. The Jao centauroid race has conquered the Earth, and there are both resistance movements and sepoy collaborationists. But there is a larger universe out there...

Legitimately available for free here.

jason taylor · 01-12-2019, 03:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cptbutton

A good book for this is The Course Of Empire by Eric Flint and K. D. Wentworth. The Jao centauroid race has conquered the Earth, and there are both resistance movements and sepoy collaborationists. But there is a larger universe out there...

Legitimately available for free here.

In that one it is more complicated. It is not a black and white story and both the humans and the Jao are good guys kind of. The real bad guys are an exterminationist alien race of eldritch abominations that arrives at the end of the book and both have to ally against them.

AlexanderHowl · 01-13-2019, 06:23 AM

What type of games would you run in such a setting? Would you run a group of collaborators who seek to earn full citizenship for themselves and their families in the Empire while working to gaining humanity full citizenship within the Empire. Would you run a group of rebels who seek to throw off Imperial domination despite the risk of human annihilation? Would you run a group of appeasers who hunt down rebels and assist collaborators in order to buy time for humanity for the long game?

cptbutton · 01-13-2019, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

What type of games would you run in such a setting? Would you run a group of collaborators who seek to earn full citizenship for themselves and their families in the Empire while working to gaining humanity full citizenship within the Empire. Would you run a group of rebels who seek to throw off Imperial domination despite the risk of human annihilation? Would you run a group of appeasers who hunt down rebels and assist collaborators in order to buy time for humanity for the long game?

Conspiracy to assemble people and supplies, steal a starship, and plant an independent colony way out beyond the alien empire. Complicated by the fact we really no nothing about how big the empire is, how common usable planets are, etc.

cptbutton · 01-13-2019, 10:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

What type of games would you run in such a setting? Would you run a group of collaborators who seek to earn full citizenship for themselves and their families in the Empire while working to gaining humanity full citizenship within the Empire. Would you run a group of rebels who seek to throw off Imperial domination despite the risk of human annihilation? Would you run a group of appeasers who hunt down rebels and assist collaborators in order to buy time for humanity for the long game?

Contact the enemies of the alien empire and get their assistance in throwing off the alien yoke. But would that be jumping from the frying pan into the fire?

Nereidalbel · 01-13-2019, 11:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cptbutton

Contact the enemies of the alien empire and get their assistance in throwing off the alien yoke. But would that be jumping from the frying pan into the fire?

That depends entirely on how subtle you are, and if this is a multi-generational plan or not.

01-12-2019, 11:43 AM	#11
cptbutton Join Date: Jul 2007	Re: Alien Invasions One option is to pick a second-rate power and give them technical assistance and fire support while they conquer and rule the world with your backing. You can't completely control the planet, your puppet government will have a mind of its own and its own agendas, but they have to stay on your good side lest you withdraw support or give it to some other second rate power. __________________ -- Burma!

01-12-2019, 11:46 AM	#12
Nereidalbel Join Date: May 2013 Location: Ellicott City, MD	Re: Alien Invasions The best stories I've read involving alien invasions of Earth take place years afterwords, and focus on small resistance movements. You know, groups that are just small enough to be hard to find, while just big enough to cause problems. Everything from IED's to stolen alien tech can be put to use, so long as the aliens don't want to glass large areas of the planet to swat a few flies.

01-12-2019, 11:51 AM	#13
AlexanderHowl Join Date: Feb 2016	Re: Alien Invasions Always a possibility, I just like the idea of seeing the human reaction as represented by the PCs. The aliens would really not want the Earth for anything, they can get resources from the limitless supplies of material in space, and they invaded as an insurance policy to prevent humans from becoming a problem a century or so later. They acted mercifully from their own perspective because it would have been cheaper to have redirected Eros 433 or Ganymed 1036 on a collision course with the Earth. An additional question for the PCs would concern whether they would desire to resist the aliens. Imagine if the aliens say that humans will become full citizens of their Empire if they behave themselves for a few centuries in order to prove that they are civilized. With a carrot (citizenship for the entire human species) and a stick (annihilation of the entire human species), the aliens offer powerful incentives for the human authorities to suppress revolutionary sentiments. The aliens could even sweeten the pot by giving access to TL9 technology to humans who behave themselves and TL10 technology to humans who actively cooperate (though they would make sure to keep superscience from the humans until they become full citizens). Collaborators could even gain full citizenship for themselves and their families early, allowing them to leave the Sol system to travel on commercial spacecraft throughout Imperial space, and gain the right to serve in the military. With adequate service, they might even earn command of their own military spacecraft and help conquer another emerging species. At that point, does it make sense to resist or does submission make more sense? Do the PCs help the resistance when they understand the benefits of submission and the penalties of resistance. Or do the PCs play the long game, hoping to get citizenship for humanity in a few centuries, so that humans will become an important element of the Empire and, eventually, once again forge their own course?

01-13-2019, 06:23 AM	#17
AlexanderHowl Join Date: Feb 2016	Re: Alien Invasions What type of games would you run in such a setting? Would you run a group of collaborators who seek to earn full citizenship for themselves and their families in the Empire while working to gaining humanity full citizenship within the Empire. Would you run a group of rebels who seek to throw off Imperial domination despite the risk of human annihilation? Would you run a group of appeasers who hunt down rebels and assist collaborators in order to buy time for humanity for the long game?