Ideas Are Easy

[tshiggins]

I don't particularly care for superheroics as an RPG genre (it's not bad, or anything, it's just not my thing), but this is a cool idea.

It's remarkably dystopian, based on the brief sketch, and it would be fun to create characters fighting against the despotic superhero overlords.

[David Johnston2]

As I conceive it, no more dystopian than the real life early 19th century (outside of the Machine Empire which is all kinds of horrific). Of course that means in general quite undemocratic but it's not like the kingdoms and principalities of Europe are hyper-controlled surveillance states or "state of nature" anarchies. But yeah there is reason for the strong revolutionary sentiment in places like France, Italy and Spain, and it isn't unknown in England

[tshiggins]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

As I conceive it, no more dystopian than the real life early 19th century (outside of the Machine Empire which is all kinds of horrific). Of course that means in general quite undemocratic but it's not like the kingdoms and principalities of Europe are hyper-controlled surveillance states or "state of nature" anarchies. But yeah there is reason for the strong revolutionary sentiment in places like France, Italy and Spain, and it isn't unknown in England

Yeah, I could imagine myself as a revolutionary, in such a setting (or in 19th Century Europe in OTL, really...), which is what makes it so interesting. Who the character is, and what he or she is supposed to do, just jumps right out, and that's the sign of a good idea for a game.

[jason taylor]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

As I conceive it, no more dystopian than the real life early 19th century (outside of the Machine Empire which is all kinds of horrific). Of course that means in general quite undemocratic but it's not like the kingdoms and principalities of Europe are hyper-controlled surveillance states or "state of nature" anarchies. But yeah there is reason for the strong revolutionary sentiment in places like France, Italy and Spain, and it isn't unknown in England

It is noticeable that pretty much every era has been called dystopian by some and idyllic by others.

[David Johnston2]

Transhuman Fantasy: Almost all of humanity long since uploaded themselves into a gigantic computer laced into the planetary crust, leaving behind a few Luddites and constructs to repopulate the planet. Now the TL is 4, sans gunpowder, but they have "wizards" who can communicate with the omnipresent nanotechnology thanks to their implants, and "priests" who have had one of the intelligences of the planetary computer take an interest in them and thus can be heard by them,

[(E)]

A sci-fi race that was sufficently advanced to have discovered mature robotics and digitized consciousness but not interstellar space travel. Their world has a sterilization event, all life ends. Most of their race is uploaded and can freely download into robot bodies. However they cannot create new consciousness' when they discover other species they are very keen to get hold of some organic material. (Or technology).

For contrast they should have evolved in a high biomass environment. Predators without prey maybe

[David Johnston2]

Earth has been invaded by strangely humanoid aliens who, despite their advanced technology seem to be lacking any art, fiction, poetry, music, history, mythology, or nonmilitary traditions of their own. In fact they seem to be a little foggy on the whole idea of sex and none of them remember anything that happened to them longer than five years ago. And they all seem to be the same age. And none of them are civilians.

[Mark Skarr]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

The Age of the Superhero started in the 18th century. As a result Europe is filled with super powered nobles and royalty, many of whom have a lot more authority than in real life. Meanwhile the United States Constitution never happened. Instead the not especially United States still operate under the Articles of Confederation as fundamentally autonomous political entities. Weirdly autonomous political entities, what with the one that was influenced by a superheroine to remove the vote from men, the one that had a successful slave rebellion and is dominated by the descendants of the slaves, and the one that is a theocracy. And elsewhere the Machine Empire rules what used to be the empire of Russia, and Europe and the Empire of China watch it with dread.

Originally Posted by tshiggins

I don't particularly care for superheroics as an RPG genre (it's not bad, or anything, it's just not my thing), but this is a cool idea.

It's remarkably dystopian, based on the brief sketch, and it would be fun to create characters fighting against the despotic superhero overlords.

I'd really have to sit down with MAGOne and hash this out, as MonkeyFist and I are big fans of the Supers genre.

[jason taylor]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

Earth has been invaded by strangely humanoid aliens who, despite their advanced technology seem to be lacking any art, fiction, poetry, music, history, mythology, or nonmilitary traditions of their own. In fact they seem to be a little foggy on the whole idea of sex and none of them remember anything that happened to them longer than five years ago. And they all seem to be the same age. And none of them are civilians.

On Earth even the most warlike peoples have art, poetry, music, history, and mythology. Usually largely about war, a habit which has not ceased as is shown by the fact that we are discussing a fiction about war. Fiction as opposed to legend, and history as opposed to court-flattery are more subtle concepts that not all cultures on Earth quite have.

If such aliens invaded, I would conclude they had been brainwashed or genetically pre-programed clones. The thought that they were simply the descendants of abductees raised as slave soldiers occurs. But if they were humans the best way to make good soldiers out of them would in fact be to encourage them to evolve art, poetry, music, and mythology peculiar to them. As they don't know about sex they are probably clones.

Or possibly you will find out that they do have all those things, just that they are peculiar to themselves, and perhaps hidden in secret ritual. For instance perhaps breeding is a reward saved for unusually distinguished soldiers, and therefore all the ones that have done so have retired. Or perhaps the ones that have not been gelded are not docile enough for military discipline while the best strains are saved to increase the herd, much like war horses.

[Disliker of the mary sue]

Me and my friends joked about a comedic star trek campaign where we are in a crew of people so incompetent that it was considered safer to just put us on some back end of the galaxy with no life where we can't possibly **** anything up until our service contract ran out. Probably not cannon friendly but it was an amusing premise to me though.