SOTU Playtest Design Document

[jontheman]

Hi, everyone,

On another thread about what D6 projects people are working on I left some details about a setting I'd designed called SOTU - Scum Of The Universe.

I've managed to dig out all my old notes and writings, I've bundled them all together into one document with some artwork, I've copied in the novella I wrote it was all based on, called 'I Do Not Remember The Stars Of Old', and tidies it all up. All in all it weighs in at about 70 pages, just over a meg as a PDF file.

So, if anyone wants a free, almost completed D6 setting using the original first edition Star Wars D6 rules as a template, then drop me an email at farsightgames@yahoo.co.uk, subject header 'SOTU D6', and I'll answer it with a PDF copy attached as soon as I can.

Give it a playtest, see what you think. You can game with it in any way you see fit, and any feedback is welcome - I'd love to hear what creations and designs people have made for it, if any. If it takes off and if enough people are interested, I might look into doing a full version.

[The Game Guy]

Hi, everyone,

On another thread about what D6 projects people are working on I left some details about a setting I'd designed called SOTU - Scum Of The Universe.

I've managed to dig out all my old notes and writings, I've bundled them all together into one document with some artwork, I've copied in the novella I wrote it was all based on, called 'I Do Not Remember The Stars Of Old', and tidies it all up. All in all it weighs in at about 70 pages, just over a meg as a PDF file.

So, if anyone wants a free, almost completed D6 setting using the original first edition Star Wars D6 rules as a template, then drop me an email at farsightgames@yahoo.co.uk, subject header 'SOTU D6', and I'll answer it with a PDF copy attached as soon as I can.

Give it a playtest, see what you think. You can game with it in any way you see fit, and any feedback is welcome - I'd love to hear what creations and designs people have made for it, if any. If it takes off and if enough people are interested, I might look into doing a full version.

Hey I am going to email you because I would like to see what you have come up with and perhaps playtest it with my local group.

[Kalzazz]

Email heade dyour way

[The Game Guy]

Hey, I got it. Thanks. I am curious, how much of a disadvantage are you if you do not have the companion book?

[jontheman]

Hey, I got it. Thanks. I am curious, how much of a disadvantage are you if you do not have the companion book?

None, really - it works perfectly well without the companion. I always used the companion in my Star Wars games and they were better for it, so it seemed natural to include that. I always felt the scaling in the book was really helpful.

In fact, I've just noticed a glaring omission. I was meant to include the following under Starship Propulsion:

All starship stats remain the same, but the type of drive is meant to replace the Hyperdrive Multiplier of SWTRPG. So, where you would have written Hyperdrive Multiplier: x2, you would replace it with Drive Engine: Hyperspeed (or Jumpspeed, or Fold, or whatever).

All Windor and Genoin starships have Fold drives.

[The Game Guy]

None, really - it works perfectly well without the companion. I always used the companion in my Star Wars games and they were better for it, so it seemed natural to include that. I always felt the scaling in the book was really helpful.

In fact, I've just noticed a glaring omission. I was meant to include the following under Starship Propulsion:

All starship stats remain the same, but the type of drive is meant to replace the Hyperdrive Multiplier of SWTRPG. So, where you would have written Hyperdrive Multiplier: x2, you would replace it with Drive Engine: Hyperspeed (or Jumpspeed, or Fold, or whatever).

All Windor and Genoin starships have Fold drives.

Ok that is good to know. I just saw the notice about needing that and I was just curious how big of a deal it was.

Thank you for the answer

[Kalzazz]

I got the file!

Will be reading it as soon as I get the chance

[Grimace]

Jon, did you get the email from me? I have yet to receive the file from you, so perhaps my email never made it to you.

[The Game Guy]

I got the file!

Will be reading it as soon as I get the chance

It's some good information. If it is put together and put into a full game I think it would be awesome and sell really well.

[Lee Torres]

Jonathan,

I've just finished it - rules and the fiction.

Outstanding work!

Here's my recommendations, for what they're worth...

First and foremost, I'd never, never, ever let them find Earth or find out anything about it, or much detail on human history.

Here's why: SOTU can more or less plug into anything - far future of the Traveller Universe? Just add a few familiar aliens, Hivers, K'kree, Aslan, and go - same for Uplift, if you wipe out our Tymbrimi allies and leave us at the mercy of the Tandu and Gubru - one idea I had was this would be an interesting transition setting if a referee wanted to return Tekumel (from Empire of the Petal Throne) to the normal universe, and meet the Pe'Choi and Ahoggya and other Tekumelani races in a space opera setting.

Trick is, just do what you've done, and let gamers make it their own - The Windor are a fine enemy, and if a referee wants to add their favorite alien baddies later, so the players can have their "end of 'Planet of the Apes' moment," where they realize that it's been the Star Trek universe (or whichever) all along - I wouldn't limit that with an "official" history of the future, if you take my meaning...

It's also excellent exactly as it is, with nothing else added - the alien species you've created are interesting and massively diverse, but for those that like to mix 'n' match their setting materials, it's tailor-made.

If you put it out just the way it is, with a mystery you never reveal, I think it could become one of the best loved (and most adaptable) settings in gaming.

I hope you keep going forward with this - it's really fantastic.

[jontheman]

Jon, did you get the email from me? I have yet to receive the file from you, so perhaps my email never made it to you.

If you sent it last Friday/Saturday I may not have as Yahoo! were down doing maintenance. Send me another mail and I'll get it back to you today. Sorry about that.

[jontheman]

It's some good information. If it is put together and put into a full game I think it would be awesome and sell really well.

Thanks, Game Guy, that's appreciated.

[jontheman]

Jonathan,

I've just finished it - rules and the fiction.

Outstanding work!

Here's my recommendations, for what they're worth...

First and foremost, I'd never, never, ever let them find Earth or find out anything about it, or much detail on human history.

Here's why: SOTU can more or less plug into anything - far future of the Traveller Universe? Just add a few familiar aliens, Hivers, K'kree, Aslan, and go - same for Uplift, if you wipe out our Tymbrimi allies and leave us at the mercy of the Tandu and Gubru - one idea I had was this would be an interesting transition setting if a referee wanted to return Tekumel (from Empire of the Petal Throne) to the normal universe, and meet the Pe'Choi and Ahoggya and other Tekumelani races in a space opera setting.

Trick is, just do what you've done, and let gamers make it their own - The Windor are a fine enemy, and if a referee wants to add their favorite alien baddies later, so the players can have their "end of 'Planet of the Apes' moment," where they realize that it's been the Star Trek universe (or whichever) all along - I wouldn't limit that with an "official" history of the future, if you take my meaning...

It's also excellent exactly as it is, with nothing else added - the alien species you've created are interesting and massively diverse, but for those that like to mix 'n' match their setting materials, it's tailor-made.

If you put it out just the way it is, with a mystery you never reveal, I think it could become one of the best loved (and most adaptable) settings in gaming.

I hope you keep going forward with this - it's really fantastic.

I like your ideas about integrating it into existing settings and giving it that Planet of the Apes feel. I'd never considered other settings but if I leave it open enough that would give more than enough leeway for groups to do that.

My aim was to give it a sandbox kind of feel. I make up the central premise and the gaming group takes is from there. I never decided whether the game was in our galaxy or another, or if there even was or still an Earth to find, but the idea of the Long Walkers was to give the game focus if the players needed it.

Thanks for the kind words - I'd like to do something with it but I'll wait to see what happens with the D6 system first. I've got product I need to finish for Farsight Games so it's having the time at the end of the day. If I felt that there was a definite product at the end of it I'd give the time it deserves.

Cheers, dude.

[Lee Torres]

My aim was to give it a sandbox kind of feel. I make up the central premise and the gaming group takes is from there. I never decided whether the game was in our galaxy or another, or if there even was or still an Earth to find, but the idea of the Long Walkers was to give the game focus if the players needed it.

Cool - that's the one thing I was up in the air about, that people not interested in any other setting might want to find Earth, or find out what happened to it, in any case. If you did a sourcebook for the Long Walkers, you could put in any "official secrets of the setting" while leaving the SOTU Core Rules intact with the mystery - so if someone wanted a Long Walkers campaign, it's available as well - the best of both worlds!

As a follow-up thought, a Long Walkers Sourcebook could include multiple possible answers, as well as how that information might spin a campaign in a new direction - for instance, in a setting like Isaac Asimov's Foundation novels, humanity may have been moved to another universe (by our AI creations) to allow humans to flourish while avoiding the depredations of the other powerful races - and the SOTU are the descendants of the handful of us that accidentally got left behind, meaning that in an alternate universe there are humans powerful enough to challenge the races that have oppressed us for so long... if only we can find a way to reach them. A similar notion is found in Harlan Ellison's "Demon With A Glass Hand" in which humanity evades extinction at the hands (tentacles?) of the Kyben by uploading the entire human race into a coil, which is then entrusted to an android and sent back in time, so that when the Kyben arrive, the humans are gone. Beyond the "Humans in hiding" scenario above, there are plenty of other possible fates for mankind.

Were that scenario presented as option 1 in a sourcebook, option 1A might be that the whole story was concocted by desperate survivors attempting to buy time before they were annihilated by the Genoin or the Stubians, passed along by rumor throughout the galaxy after that point - thus leaving a moral issue for the players if they ever find out: do they tell the others seeking a way to reach the alternate universe or mysterious android that it's a waste of time? When you're at the bottom of the galactic heap, is truth more important than hope?

A Long Walkers Sourcebook could present a whole menu of possibilities, and let the referee choose which one works best for them...

[The Game Guy]

Thanks, Game Guy, that's appreciated.

Not a problem. I hope you go through with it and publish it.

[Grimace]

Just sent another email to you.

Looking forward to seeing what you've got.

[jontheman]

Cool - that's the one thing I was up in the air about, that people not interested in any other setting might want to find Earth, or find out what happened to it, in any case. If you did a sourcebook for the Long Walkers, you could put in any "official secrets of the setting" while leaving the SOTU Core Rules intact with the mystery - so if someone wanted a Long Walkers campaign, it's available as well - the best of both worlds!
As a follow-up thought, a Long Walkers Sourcebook could include multiple possible answers, as well as how that information might spin a campaign in a new direction - for instance, in a setting like Isaac Asimov's Foundation novels, humanity may have been moved to another universe (by our AI creations) to allow humans to flourish while avoiding the depredations of the other powerful races - and the SOTU are the descendants of the handful of us that accidentally got left behind, meaning that in an alternate universe there are humans powerful enough to challenge the races that have oppressed us for so long... if only we can find a way to reach them. A similar notion is found in Harlan Ellison's "Demon With A Glass Hand" in which humanity evades extinction at the hands (tentacles?) of the Kyben by uploading the entire human race into a coil, which is then entrusted to an android and sent back in time, so that when the Kyben arrive, the humans are gone. Beyond the "Humans in hiding" scenario above, there are plenty of other possible fates for mankind.

What I enjoyed running about this setting is that I was always asked questions about the history of the human race. I answered every question with the phrase 'You Don't Know'. It got infuriating for two of the players because they really wanted some kind of identity, some kind of history to draw their personalities from. It's where the idea for the Long Walkers came from and it gave them focus. In fact, after half a dozen games adventuring blindly in known space, the sudden idea that there might be answers invigorated the whole game.
This made me actually ask myself what secret history did the human race have? Was it a Dan Simmons Hyperion/Endymion kind of society, vast and fragile? Or maybe a fledgling species, surprised and overwhelmed by the sudden appearance of multiple species? A Long Walkers supplement, like you say, could take each idea and run with it so that the GM can take their pick.


Were that scenario presented as option 1 in a sourcebook, option 1A might be that the whole story was concocted by desperate survivors attempting to buy time before they were annihilated by the Genoin or the Stubians, passed along by rumor throughout the galaxy after that point - thus leaving a moral issue for the players if they ever find out: do they tell the others seeking a way to reach the alternate universe or mysterious android that it's a waste of time? When you're at the bottom of the galactic heap, is truth more important than hope?

One of the ideas I was working on when I was writing 'I Do Not Remember The Stars Of Old', which was originally meant to be a full novel, was that the Long Walkers had been involved in a one hundred year scam concocted by the Windor, and all clues to the home of the human race were a lie developed to get all of the species into one location so that they could annihalate the lot of them in one foul swoop. This was because they were planning galaxy-wide domination and they didn't want psychic humans giving the game away. What would someone do once cornered, after a hundred years of hope and questing for a better life? Accept their fate, or fight? If they knew there was a chance of death, would they still stumble blindly into the trap in the hope that they were going home? And what if they survived the trap? What then?


A Long Walkers Sourcebook could present a whole menu of possibilities, and let the referee choose which one works best for them...

Giving GMs the choice is a great option as they can change it to suit their group style. That's always the best thing and it's what this game is about. Like I said in a previous post, it's a sandbox setting. You've just proved that with the wealth of great ideas you've just presented!

[jontheman]

Just sent another email to you.

Looking forward to seeing what you've got.

On it's way now.

[The Game Guy]

Just sent another email to you.

Looking forward to seeing what you've got.

Grimace, I really think you will like what you see. It is pretty good.

[Lee Torres]

I agree that you've created a hell of a sandbox with the setting.

Keep us posted on how it's going - even though it's all somewhat tentative based on the future of D6, this one will be on my radar until it either is available to buy or gets shelved (hopefully the former).

[Lee Torres]

Something that seemed like a natural fit with your setting, although in the novels presented on a much smaller (i.e. planetary) scale, is a concept from Jack Vance in his "Planet of Adventure" stories set on Tschai. The planet has been conquered and reconquered many times over its long history, and the conquerers generally settle in, are conquered by someone else, and then wait for the next one to come along.

Where I think there's a synergy here is in the notion of the human servitors of the alien races;


The insect-like Pnume are the original inhabitants of Tschai. Their history goes back ten million years and they view the invaders as welcome additions to the pageantry on their world stage. They were forced underground by the coming of the more powerful species. Related to them are the Phung, solitary sentient predators with bizarre habits. The somewhat reptilian Chasch arrived a hundred thousand years prior to the tale's start, and are divided into three warring factions, the decadent Old Chasch, the Blue Chasch, and the barbarian Green Chasch. The birdlike predatory Dirdir and the amphibious Wankh (or Wannek) are comparatively recent arrivals and had warred with each other in the past, but subsided into an uneasy peace due to their relative military parity.

The human client races, the Pnumekin, Chaschmen, Dirdirmen and Wankhmen resemble their alien patrons to some degree. This is due to selective breeding, surgery and the desire of the humans to emulate their respective masters. The Pnumekin are kept docile by drugs; the Gzhindra are ostracised and exiled Pnumekin who act as agents for the Pnume. The religious fiction that their dead are reborn as Chasch keeps the Chaschmen obedient. The Dirdirmen view themselves as degenerate Dirdir and strive to minimize their differences. The Wankhmen, on the other hand, act as the sole interpreters of the Wankh and as a result, are able to manipulate the alien race to their own advantage.

Vance's depiction of the human race after thousands of years on Tschai aims to show how foreign humanity can become in alien surroundings, but his delineation of the four non-human races has them motivated by drives that are truly bizarre and original.

Quoted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_of_Adventure

I think this notion could fit your setting as well - a family enslaved by the Windor, for instance, might consider themselves inherently superior to a human enslaved by a different ("lesser") race, or a human in the service of the Skavot might have cyberlimbs added to mimic his patrons. The short lifespans of the F'ruk could make a human servant seem like an immortal butler, serving six or seven generations in their lifetime. Certain aliens may only utilize Blanks as servants. Templates could be created for Freemen, that have never been enslaved for generations as others have, which may be a reasonable default option for most PCs, unless they're intrigued by any of the servitor groups.

Could add a little spice to the setting, if you like the idea.

[jontheman]

I know this is an old thread but I see no harm in thawing it out, especially with the news of Open D6.

Now that it appears that D6 is going open I'm getting some people on board to do a full version of SOTU (and perhaps renaming it!) to be released as a full game, including rules, setting and adventures. I'm in discussion with writer friends who are helping, I may have a great conceptual artist on board, and I've pretty much got the setting down as I want it.

My general ideas are this:

- Produce a PDF and a POD book (most likely through www.lulu.com) so that people can order the book as required.

- Utilise the Star Wars First Edition rules, with perhaps some of the second edition stuff and work from the Rules Companion. I want to keep the rules simple and easy to use and I've never had any major problems with 1st edition Star Wars. I want to recreate the original rulebook as close as possible as I think it's an excellently presented game, great for new gamers especially.

- Keep page count down as much as possible, hopefully to about 150 pages. This will mean a smaller font than, say, the original Star Wars book. This will keep POD costs down, and the printing of the PDF won't shock anyone.

- Set up a dedicated message board so that players can share new alien races, ships, locations, adventures and characters they've created. The general idea behind SOTU is fan and community created content and I think to keep the setting alive and continually fresh and enjoyable is to let other people create for it, and who better than the people who play the game.

If I was creating a whole new rules system I probably wouldn't go over the top like this, but the D6 System is tried and tested so all I have to do is make sure I haven't made a hash of the setting.

All in all, the prospect of Open D6 is quite exciting for me!