Discussing other SFRPGs, including your own settings?

[Trent]

I'm designing a medium/hard SF setting with as little "Space opera" as possible and would like to get feedback, suggestions, etc, from other traveller players.

Now it seems that this site is mostly just for traveller, I was wondering if a "general SFRPG" forum could be created (Hey, I'd volunteer to mod it, if need be) that could be used to discuss any SFRPG since one can reasonably surmise that many people here might be into other SFRPG's.

If we can't discuss other SFRPGs here I'd ask that people here come to another open RPG site I know (Better than rpg.net or therpgsite.net) to discuss other SFRPGs as it might be nice to discuss them with traveller players.

So, could we get a forum here for general SFRPG discussions since we can assume most travelelr players might also like other SFRPGs and if not could the mods refrain from complaining when I start such threads on another site and invite people here to come over to it?

 

[Border Reiver]

There is already a very good general SFRPG forum with an active membership and it can be found in Gruffty's sig.

Well worth a visit.

 

[Trent]

There is already a very good general SFRPG forum with an active membership and it can be found in Gruffty's sig.

Well worth a visit.

Didn't know that, BR. Thanks, I'll look into it.

Edit: I looked at it, looks nice but a little underused, I was hoping a SFRPG site would get more use. Hopefully Grufty will make it more obvious in his sig someday, and see if it can get advertised on other sites like (ugh) rpg.net (SPIT!) and a few other general RPG sites where users might want a SFRPG site.

You're a good guy, BR. No wonder you got kicked off SJG's forums.:rofl:

 

[Gruffty]

Note that, under the T&C of these boards, posters here are not allowed to mention any other boards (of any kind, anywhere) in a post with a view to obtaining members. Doing so will result in an infraction being issued. We are, however allowed to "discuss" other boards. BTW, Trent, SF RPG is a relatively new board, hence its "underuse".

 

[Vile]

So, could we get a forum here for general SFRPG discussions since we can assume most travelelr players might also like other SFRPGs and if not could the mods refrain from complaining when I start such threads on another site and invite people here to come over to it?

I don't think the mods can start new forums (I may be wrong) and the admins are not around, so I doubt if you'll get your wish for a non-Traveller board here. CotI is, after all, a forum attached to a corporate site for the Traveller T20 system.

The mods are in fact required to stop you from inviting people to other forums, so you should probably refrain from doing so.

 

[Gruffty]

The Mods hereabouts have limited powers - I asked to have my username changed and was told that only an Admin could to do it (and there are no Admins around ). I suspect that setting up new forums needs an Admin as well.

Other boards have Mods that can do these things...

 

[Border Reiver]

Normal service will be resumed........... eventually.

Or is this normal service?

 

[tim_manley]

Though this is a traveler board many, if not all of us, have played quite a few other games. I know in my case it ranged from traveler, to space opera, star trek, star wars (both d6 & d20) and Star Frontiers.

I'm designing a medium/hard SF setting with as little "Space opera" as possible and would like to get feedback, suggestions, etc, from other traveller players.

What do you mean by "hard" SF? How will you create drama and tension? What "non hard" things will you add?

Bear in mind that "real" hard SF means just things that are predicted to occur, no aliens, no "magic" type tech, everything has a purpose for its function and current theory supports it.

Traveller is definitely not 'hard' in this regard.

 

[Trent]

Note that, under the T&C of these boards, posters here are not allowed to mention any other boards (of any kind, anywhere) in a post with a view to obtaining members. Doing so will result in an infraction being issued. We are, however allowed to "discuss" other boards. BTW, Trent, SF RPG is a relatively new board, hence its "underuse".

Well, I would issue a respectful appeal to reason and ask the mods to reconsider their view on not letting other boards be discussed here, especially if those boards are meant to feature something not normally allowed here, like discussing other SFRPGs.

Doing so would be a service to the board members and not 'steal" current members who come here mostly for traveller stuff since they would moslty be discussing other SFRPGs there and discuss traveller here.

There really seems to be no rational reason for the current policy, it seems to be based just on primitive territoriality. I'd hope the mods might examine it in the light of reason and change it to a more enlightened policy.

 

[Trent]

Though this is a traveler board many, if not all of us, have played quite a few other games. I know in my case it ranged from traveler, to space opera, star trek, star wars (both d6 & d20) and Star Frontiers.




What do you mean by "hard" SF? How will you create drama and tension? What "non hard" things will you add?

Bear in mind that "real" hard SF means just things that are predicted to occur, no aliens, no "magic" type tech, everything has a purpose for its function and current theory supports it.

Traveller is definitely not 'hard' in this regard.

Well, hard SF means keeping it from being like "star wars", which is really just pure space opera with nary a wisp of science in it. Compared to star wars and to a lesser degree star trek, traveller is quite hard sf.

As to what I want in my setting, there will be FTL and AG, as I believe neither is actually impossible, especially after the quantum gravity experiments in london last year. (Not only did a rapidly spinning superconductor produce a gravitational effect, but it was 10^20 times more powerful that current quantum theory predicted(!) )

The FTL will have limits and effects, but is necessary for the setting.

A major alien race will have limited telepathy, but that's necessary for the storyline.

Asides from things that are absolutely essential, I want science to be in the science fiction, with the laws of physics and such respected.

I'm not sure about AI yet...

 

[tim_manley]

Well, hard SF means keeping it from being like "star wars", which is really just pure space opera with nary a wisp of science in it. Compared to star wars and to a lesser degree star trek, traveller is quite hard sf.

As to what I want in my setting, there will be FTL and AG, as I believe neither is actually impossible, especially after the quantum gravity experiments in london last year. (Not only did a rapidly spinning superconductor produce a gravitational effect, but it was 10^20 times more powerful that current quantum theory predicted(!) )

The FTL will have limits and effects, but is necessary for the setting.

A major alien race will have limited telepathy, but that's necessary for the storyline.

Asides from things that are absolutely essential, I want science to be in the science fiction, with the laws of physics and such respected.

I'm not sure about AI yet...

I'd love if you could post a link to the experiment you mentioned.

Star Wars is what I call "science fantasy" which is basically a fantasy story with some sci-fi elements tossed in.

But, in my opinion, tossing any psionics into it means you leave even a whisp of hard SF and start approaching fantasy. But, don't let that hold you back. A good setting, story and campaign are all it takes.

 

[Drakon]

I'm not sure about AI yet...

I would argue that AI is doable. Given enough time and a neural net that can rewrite itself, I think it is inevidable.

The problem with science fiction is that what is sci fi today, is fact tomorrow. I just read a report of scientists who have repaired a diabetic mouse's pancrease, changing some cells into the kind that produce insulin. All without removing the pancrease.

Regrowing healthy organs inside a living person may not be fiction much longer.

 

[Trent]

I'd love if you could post a link to the experiment you mentioned.

Star Wars is what I call "science fantasy" which is basically a fantasy story with some sci-fi elements tossed in.

But, in my opinion, tossing any psionics into it means you leave even a whisp of hard SF and start approaching fantasy. But, don't let that hold you back. A good setting, story and campaign are all it takes.

Here's a link to an article re the "quantum gravity" experiment: http://www.scienceblog.com/cms/scientists_find_evidence_for_artifical_gravity_10282.html


As to psionics, if they don't overwhelm everything else and play a limited role, they're tolerable. I do not believe that putting them in in an extremely limited sense for one alien species will denude my setting of even a whisp of hard science, especially if the tech is solidly plausible.

 

[whartung]

I don't know why this stuff can't be talked about here, either in Lone Star or somewhere else. With all the "MTG is a generic SF RPG", then how is it not appropriate? Besides, much of it sounds rules agnostic, save some new FTL drive (FF&S has Stutter Warp, and warp gates, why not something else?).

Doesn't seem to be a big deal to me.

 

[mike wightman]

Traveller was originally intended as a genertic rule set for sci-fi gaming. Heck there was no 3rd Imperium setting back when I got my first box set.
Referee's had to make stuff up, and if that invlved changing some of the tech assumptions no big deal (warp drive, phaser, teleporter, light sabre, laser pistol, blaster, hyperdrive - all stuff I had in my early games).

 

[Icosahedron]

As I understand the site rules, they prevent you from saying "CotI is crap, come over to this site instead," but they don't prevent you from saying "Hey, if you like Traveller and CotI, you'll love this too."

Maybe I'm misinterpreting the rules, maybe others are, but it doesn't really concern me, and in the absence of the Admins I suppose it's down to the mods (right or wrong) to decide what you can say.

EDIT: Ah, I see this issue involves other threads besides this one. I stand by my statement above that mods make the decisions, but I disagree with the use of thread locking by mods (or admins?) to stifle rational free speech. IMO it should be used only to call it a day when a thread has degenerated into puerile argument. As an outside and relatively uninterested observer, I have to agree that if Hunter doesn't get his ass into gear soon, he's not going to have a board or business to defend. Especially if good Citizens are not permitted to express their opinions calmly.

 

[Andrew Boulton]

The prohibition is against trying to pull members away from here to other boards, and has been in place for many years. If you have any concerns, PM a Mod before posting.

 

[Trent]

The prohibition is against trying to pull members away from here to other boards, and has been in place for many years. If you have any concerns, PM a Mod before posting.

OK then, since inviting people with an interest in other SFRPGs would not be pulling people away from a traveller-specific website then people doing so are not trying to pull users from here, so it's not a violation of the rules and there's no problem.

After all, we don't discuss, say, blue planet, space 1889, twilight 2013, transhuman space, battlestar galactica rpg, etc here, so inviting people to discuss them on www.sfrpg.org.uk isn't trying to steal users from here.

 

[aramis]

OK then, since inviting people with an interest in other SFRPGs would not be pulling people away from a traveller-specific website then people doing so are not trying to pull users from here, so it's not a violation of the rules and there's no problem.

After all, we don't discuss, say, blue planet, space 1889, twilight 2013, transhuman space, battlestar galactica rpg, etc here, so inviting people to discuss them on www.sfrpg.co.uk isn't trying to steal users from here.

Except for the fact that people have been touting said site as a replacement for COTI...

 

[mike wightman]

Replacement?

I don't think so.

Escape boat for when CotI eventually goes is how most people have touted aternative sites, and if you put them into the context in which people have announced them (Hunter AFK, Hunter not honouring orders, web site approaching reneal dates etc.) it's a fairly sensible idea to have somewhere where the community can continue when this empire falls.