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Old 01-20-2023, 10:00 AM   #101
Pursuivant
 
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Default Re: Blending Star Trek and the World of Darkness (classic)

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Vampires seem to be persona non grata and in prison camps (except the ones that didn't get caught) in this setting, possibly understandably, given how drastically criminal they are as a group in WoD.
This might change over time. 22nd or 23rd c. Starfleet is stricter about some things, less strict about others than 24th c. Starfleet. Certainly any relatively old vampire is likely to be guilty of numerous crimes and would have to be locked up for everyone's safety. A newly-turned vampire might be innocent enough to serve, or continue serving, if they've otherwise proven themselves to be trustworthy and have skills Starfleet can use.

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(Possibly a few resourceful vampires might be able to rig up some kind of high-tech way of faking one that would fool a tricorder.
The trivially easy method is to have a small implanted pump & heater mechanism. At TL9+ it might be small enough to be mistaken for some other form of medical implant. By the early 24th century artificial hearts are common, so just an artificial heart implant with added heater would do the job.

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For that matter, depending what you rule the exact requirements of the curse are, synthetic blood might be possible.
Synthetic blood suitable for medical use is available by the mid-22nd c., IIRC. Certainly, it's available by the mid-23rd century and it's good enough that blood-drinking monsters accept it as a substitute for the real thing. The only way that vampires can't consume synthetic blood is if there's a requirement that they must consume living cells. That complicates things if you're using protein synthesizers or replicators, but doesn't rule out mass artificial culturing of blood cells. That would be easy by the 22nd c.

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So after this had been going on for a while there might be a lot of vampires trying to revert to living more or less normal lives. Some of them might try to argue that rounding up vampires for being vampires, rather than for any crime those individual vampires were known to have committed, was discriminatory, and they might have a strong case.
Given Federation ethics, innocent or reformed vampires would probably win their case, as long as they agreed to certain conditions such as regular medical treatment. Vampires which existed prior to the foundation of the Federation might be barred from Starfleet for the same reason that Augments are barred (superhuman attributes, suspect ethics). Vampires entirely "raised" within the Federation, especially those who made a point of attempting to be law-abiding, might get a waiver.

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Of course, as prospective Starfleet crew it seems like they'd have the same frenzy problem as the shapeshifters.
Which is why Starfleet medical and various scientific organizations would prioritize medical treatments or devices which allow conscious control of Frenzy and similar uncontrolled behavioral changes.

You can't risk a vampire going crazy with fear or bursting into flame when a spaceship's orbiting the sun, or a were transforming when a spaceship's orbiting a moon!
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Old 01-21-2023, 12:52 AM   #102
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Default Re: Blending Star Trek and the World of Darkness (classic)

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How would the presence of Mages alter the command structure? Would paranormal specialists be a separate branch. Would being a Mage or a Changeling prevent someone from gaining high rank?
The Federation seems to have a possibly-unofficial reverse Prime Directive policy, whereby they avoid contact with highly powerful advanced reality-warping entities as it would only lead to confusion and disruption of their civilisation. (Q, the Thasians, etc. - many of them seem to co-operate with this policy, Q was notable for not co-operating with it one little bit).

The appearance of entities like that among their own citizens might muddle that poilcy up a bit, and might lead to them having to invent a new policy.

With the amount of psychic phenomena that are a regular part of their job, it seems like it would make sense for Starfleet to have a paranormal/psionics branch already, possibly as a subdivision of the science division as Pursuivant said. Though if they have, it doesn't seem to be mentioned much in the series - possibly to prevent Starfleet from seeming too "alien". There are crew members with psychic powers, but any practical use of those in the line of duty seems to be on an informal, "what happens on Enterprise stays on Enterprise" basis.

As Pursuivant mentioned, Starfleet doesn't allow Augments, so the Changelings and Mages (and possibly other high-powered supernaturals) might come under the same heading, depending on what exactly the reasoning is for not allowing Augments.

If the rest of Starfleet really isn't making systematic use of psi, then Section 31 possibly is. Apart from anything else, the CIA is known to have gone there at least once, and Section 31 seems to be a CIA-expy sometimes.

There might be a serious incompatibility issue between the Vulcans and the Changelings (ironically, given the Vulcans' appearance).
It seems like the Changelings would see the Vulcans as Banality on two legs (for those not familiar, prolonged exposure to "high-Banality", i.e. hidebound and boring, things or people is actually harmful to Changelings' health).
And the Vulcans might see the Changelings, not only operating on dream logic but having the ability to inflict it on everyone nearby, as a direct threat to their sanity.
Still, it seems likely that it wouldn't be the first time Starfleet has had to deal with species who are literally allergic to each other.

Aside from Vulcans, though, Changelings might be quite keen to get on a Starfleet ship. "Seeking out new life and new civilisations", and exposure to humans who are doing so and excited about it, is the kind of thing that Changelings literally feed on.
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Old 01-21-2023, 05:00 AM   #103
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Default Re: Blending Star Trek and the World of Darkness (classic)

More powerful Mages would probably end up leaving Starfleet to work on other things. Being a higher level mage seems to be a full time job. But lower level mages would be very useful to have around. A few levels in the Prime and Life Realms (spheres) would be a great help in Sickbay.

The Augments had been at war with humanity and caused near genocidal wars. That would give anybody a bad reputation.
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Old 01-22-2023, 09:18 AM   #104
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Default Re: Blending Star Trek and the World of Darkness (classic)

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The Federation seems to have a possibly-unofficial reverse Prime Directive policy, whereby they avoid contact with highly powerful advanced reality-warping entities as it would only lead to confusion and disruption of their civilisation.
This isn't so much the Federation's choice so much as decisions made by ultra-advanced civilizations to not interfere in the development of "less advanced" species - their versions of the Prime Directive.

Individuals from the Q Continuum, the Organians, etc. will sometimes break this policy but as a whole the super-advanced species seem content to watch the silly primitive corporeal humanoids play with their starships and crude scientific technology.

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The appearance of entities like that among their own citizens might muddle that poilcy up a bit, and might lead to them having to invent a new policy.
More to the point, it might attract attention of super-advanced aliens, if only to determine that the super-powered humans aren't a serious threat to themselves or others and aren't a product of unsanctioned meddling by one of their own (or a rival species).

After all, there was a new member of the Q-Continuum secretly born on Earth, with nearly disastrous consequences (for Starfleet, not the Q) when her powers started to manifest before she knew her true origins.

For that matter, the whole notion of WoD meets Starfleet could easily be explained by meddling by super-advanced beings. Perhaps one of The Q's pranks from back in the day.

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With the amount of psychic phenomena that are a regular part of their job, it seems like it would make sense for Starfleet to have a paranormal/psionics branch already, possibly as a subdivision of the science division
It's certainly been hinted at. The Vulcans clearly have their equivalent of "Psionics Institutes" and, as of the 23rd century, they accept students of other species.

In some treatments of Star Trek RPGs psis get lumped into the Psychology Department of the Sciences Division.

I'd love to see a canon Star Trek "psionic adept," who makes Spock or Troi look like clueless noobs, but writing a series around a character who can blow holes holes through even the thickest plot armor at will would be a huge challenge. Transporters and superscience already cause enough headaches for writers (and GMs).

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There might be a serious incompatibility issue between the Vulcans and the Changelings (ironically, given the Vulcans' appearance). It seems like the Changelings would see the Vulcans as Banality on two legs
Good point. The same might go for members of other species with very disciplined or focused minds and not much spontaneity. Changelings would probably get along just fine with Romulans, however, and might really love the intensely emotional and passionate Pre-Surak Vulcans.*

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Still, it seems likely that it wouldn't be the first time Starfleet has had to deal with species who are literally allergic to each other.
Given that the Federation has a member species which can literally kill people at a glance they've faced worse challenges.


* Adventure Hook
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Old 01-23-2023, 04:37 PM   #105
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Default Re: Blending Star Trek and the World of Darkness (classic)

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How does Miles O'Brien qualify as a starship commander?
Decades of "been there, done that, got the medal/commendation to prove it" and a bad case of "Protagonist Exponential Competence Syndrome" which manifested by Season 5 of DS9.

He's never depicted as a long-term starship commander, but there are a number of episodes of DS9 where he takes the captain's chair aboard USS Defiant when Sisko, Dax, or Worf aren't present.

That implies that he's got Bridge Officer Certification, although in O'Brien's case he's primarily got the Engineering and Ops officer skill set, with enough Leadership, Navigation, Piloting, Shiphandling, and Tactics skill to get by in Command Department, and enough practical Astronomy, Engineering, and Metallurgy skill to get by in the Sciences Department.
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Old 01-29-2023, 05:17 AM   #106
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Thinking about it. Wouldn't there be a point for most Mages were you would have to make a choice? Being a high ranking Starfleet officer is a full time job. Being a high level mage is more like being an active scholar producing serious scholarship while teaching a full class load. At some point something would have to give.

A few Mages would both be high level officers and master Spheres, Starfleet would be glad to have officers like that. But those guys would be few and far between.
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Old 01-29-2023, 11:29 AM   #107
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Default Re: Blending Star Trek and the World of Darkness (classic)

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Thinking about it. Wouldn't there be a point for most Mages were you would have to make a choice? Being a high ranking Starfleet officer is a full time job. Being a high level mage is more like being an active scholar producing serious scholarship while teaching a full class load. At some point something would have to give.
Good point. Starfleet specializes in omnicompetence but there are even cinematic limits.

The would probably formal magical research institutions, on Earth for traditions which require a connection to the planet, possibly in space for traditions which don't.

Equivalent institutions in Star Trek canon would be the Daystrom Institute or the Memory Alpha library.
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Old 01-29-2023, 12:21 PM   #108
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Why would the Federation (or any other group) allow the creation of any other new vampire?

If new vampires are created without consent, this could be viewed by society as a barbaric and criminal act.

If it is legally allowed as long as its consensual, dont you think the impacts for society could be absolutely overwhelming? While some (maybe even most) possibly wouldnt want that for religious, moral or philosophical reasons, I can imagine some of the most... Greedy types of society - which by the way are also the ones to climb higher - to actively seek out for those benefits of immortality and supernatural powers.

Imagine politicians, bureocrats, military officers, businesses managers, all sorts of people with influence within society, doing shady deals and trafficking influence with vampire masters in exchange for their Dark Gift.

If synthetic blood is available, we could be looking to an explosion of vampirism in society - and maybe society slowly but surely turning into a "Vampire-tocracy", while if their curse demands it to be blood that came from a living sapient (for some arcane reason), despite the synthetic blood being exactly the same in every possible way (except in the mystic sense), this would create huge pressures for vampires to accumate "blood donators" and a massive competition between existing vampires as well as a massive competition between influent individuals thirsty for the Dark Gift.

Open vampirism could break society

On the other end, if "vampiric breeding" gets forbidden, they could either happen illegally on the fringes of society, or vampires could become an endangered species... Which some "Homo vampiricus" could not too be to keen on letting happen, thus becoming a minority group prone to revolutionary thinking...

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Old 01-29-2023, 06:18 PM   #109
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Given that World of Darkness vampires are what we are talking about, that assumes the likely moral degeneration of most Vampires. Guaranteeing the mental illness and corruption of a very powerful entity. A being that is cursed to see most intelligent beings as snacks.

It's clear that the creation of new vampires would always be forbidden.
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Old 01-29-2023, 10:12 PM   #110
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It's clear that the creation of new vampires would always be forbidden.
Yeah, that would be my take too. Im sure it would be forbidden, but that has problems of its own thou. What happens when it is find out a new vampire? Instant Death Sentence? Imprisonment? For how long, considering that they live forever?

How would this ban be seen by the "Homo vampiricus" population? Would some become rebels?

Those are no small questions
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