That sounds familiar - stealing from movies

[mbrinkhues]

The "Where Beagels dare" comment in "Planetary Meson Guns" made me think. What can be "borrowed" from classic literature as a plot for a single adventure/short campaign? We already have:

+ Guns of Navaronne (Alistair McLean)
+ Where Eagels dare (Alistair McLean)

I'd say you can also borrow:

+ The Far Side of the World aka Master and Commander (Just replace the US Frigate with a Sollie(1))

+ The Cain Mutiny (Would call for a short campaign)

+ HMS Ulysses (Alistair McLean)




(1)Yes, a US Frigate! In the original novel it's 1812. Makes a lot of things easier (i.e why didn't the Captain recognise he was talking to a French, why/how did the French buy ships in America etc.)

 

[tinker123]

The list seems endless. We also already have Ice Cold in Alex = Across the Bright Face. How about:
- any heist / caper movie you ever saw (e.g. stealing the ancient artifact from the museum)
- Posiedon Adventure translated to Oberlindes Lines (and ditto for Titanic, and liner-hijack movies)
- if you don't mind a high body-count, how about do-or-die films like The Wages of Fear (La salaire du peur) and 633 Squadron?
- mercs can do The Wild Geese or The Dogs of War on any balkanised planet
- if you've an excuse to travel across a planet, how about North-west Frontier?

Perhaps a better challenge would be to name an action film that doesn't translate into a Traveller scenario ;-)

 

[mbrinkhues]

633 Squadron would call for fighters going up against a Tigress or similar shaped battleship / Orbital Defence Station. Best settled in 1125 with the Station being one of Lucans Superweapons.

 

[Plankowner]

Murder on the Orient Express (Jump space adventure...)

Any good western would work with the players being the "unnamed drifter" who came to town and saved the day then went away, never to be seen again (until the sequal).

 

[mbrinkhues]

Murder on the Orient Express (Jump space adventure...)

Any good western would work with the players being the "unnamed drifter" who came to town and saved the day then went away, never to be seen again (until the sequal).

Okay so we take:

+ One alcoholic policeman/scout that tries to keep order in a border colonie
+ His old bounty hunter/pirat friend who declines a job that would force him to fight his friend and instead joins forces
+ A gambler/rogue who can't shoot but is good with a knive
+ An old Ex-Marine that fought in the 4th frontier war and assists the lawman
+ Another (female) rogue as a part-time PC

+ A bunch of locals that run a agrobusiness

+ A big megacorp that wants to drive said agrobusiness out and take over

And add a shotgun!

 

[far-trader]

Always had it in the back of my mind to do a sealed room murder mystery, there's so many good old ones I figured my old players had never seen. For example...

"Ten Little Indians" (1965) would be perfect.

(Agatha Christie tale of 10 people invited to an isolated place only to find that an unseen person is killing them one by one. Is it one of them?)

A patron invites the characters up to his remote mansion with the promise of a job. When the PC's arrive they find others there on similar business, and then...

So yeah, I have and will rip ideas, in part or whole, from movies (books, newspapers, whatever) but try to disguise it enough that the players don't immediately twig to the source.

 

[Gadrin]

I posted this a while back...

Ten little Mercenaries went up to the front line;
One choked on poison gas, then there were nine.

Nine little Mercenaries took the low passage gate;
One overslept himself and then there were eight.

Eight little Mercenaries traveling the heavens;
One didn't return and then there were seven

Seven little Mercenaries playing with sticks;
One blew himself in half and then there were six.

Six little Mercenaries playing with a hive;
A nanobee stung one and then there were five.

Five little Mercenaries going to Core;
One jumped the wrong way, and then there were four.

Four little Mercenaries going out to Class C;
A Sheol swallowed one and then there were three.

Three little Mercenaries walking under the blue;
A land mine got one and then there were two.

Two little Mercenaries sitting in the sun;
One got plasma burns and then there was one.

One little Mercenary left all alone;
He went and hanged himself and then there were none.

 

[far-trader]

Thanks Gadrin, missed that earlier and had been thinking of doing it myself. Now you've saved me the time and made my current bunch of (10) players just a tad more paranoid

 

[Fritz_Brown]

So yeah, I have and will rip ideas, in part or whole, from movies (books, newspapers, whatever) but try to disguise it enough that the players don't immediately twig to the source.

Or, don't use the same ending. Especially if the players do start to figure out the source.... :devil:

Now you've saved me the time and made my current bunch of (10) players just a tad more paranoid

Really? I hadn't noticed anyone being paranoid. Maybe excessively concerned with arming themselves and using high explosives, but not paranoid. (And, always remember and never forget: Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean noone's out to get you! :smirk: )

 

[Gadrin]

Thanks Gadrin, missed that earlier and had been thinking of doing it myself. Now you've saved me the time and made my current bunch of (10) players just a tad more paranoid

the idea I had was that a mercenary company has a reunion after several years (like the Odessa File) and of course certain of their members were involved in something sinister and someone's paying them back.

the tough part is getting them all to someplace where they'll sit still for the scenario to develop; so some of it might need to happen beforehand as needed.

the movie dealt with "all are guilty" justice, while a CT adventure might involve innocents.