An Earth Less Ordinary (Content)

Earth, like Mars and Ceres, has been difficult to write.  The vision I have for Earth is the anti-unified government.  I'm tired of seeing the fractious nature of humanity glossed over for a literary convenience.  Frankly, unified Earth governments are boring.  I want an Earth that barely hangs together, with myriad of competing interests driving the powers-that-be apart.  I want the things keeping the motley band of Hegemons and Corporations together is the bureaucratic inertia behind the UN and the fact that the one thing the Hegemons can agree upon is how much they hate the idea of colonial Independence.

The problem with such a wonderful complicated political and social landscape is that you actually have to define that complicated relationship and give a unique face to the various powers.

This is my lame attempt at a start.  This is supposed to be Earth - I need a lot more content and detail to do it justice.

Humanity’s Cradle -- Earth: Earth is the most developed and populated planet in known human space.  It is the cradle of humanity and boasts the largest, most affluent, and most educated population in the Solar System.  Currently, the planet hosts just under 50 billion people, a number closely regulated by strict laws about population growth.  It also boasts the most diverse, and some would say, Balkanized population in the System.  Earth is home to 71 independent countries, eight Trans-National/Hegemonic blocs, and 17 corporate entities that have secured a special independent status for themselves.  These varied interests are often at each others’ throats, both on earth and off.  

Earth is dominated by a number of large political and economic entities that span much of the globe.  The many Trans-National alliances create a club of hegemonic blocs that dominate much of the planet’s territory.  Land ownership by individuals is a rare right offered in only a few of the smaller countries, with the nation states, and by extension the hegemonic blocs owning and regulating most of the land resources of the world.  Thus, despite the relatively advanced state of political theory and identity politics, the nations of earth are still very much tied to the land they claim.  The blocs, along with their member states, operate the largest militaries on the planet, able to project power into humanity’s home like none other.  The nations and blocs have also been the traditional lead in the colonization effort, and many operate and maintain extensive off-Earth holdings.

Earth is also home to a number of Sovereign Corporate Entities (SCE) that have the same rights and responsibilities as their nation-contemporaries.  These 17 corporations are often more liquid than the nation-states.  They operate their own, usually small, security forces and have seats within the UN and its committees just as any traditional nation does.  The SCEs can also grant citizenship – usually to its employees and their families.  Like the Hegemonic Blocs, the SCEs maintain off-world colonial holdings.

The third pillar of the political and social sphere of Earth is the United Nations.   Despite numerous existential crises over the decades, the UN remains the premiere venue for multilateral affairs.  Over time, it has seen some of its powers grow, especially in regards to the colonies.  Similarly, in Earth affairs it has seen its role and scope retracted as the Blocs and SCEs have maneuvered the polity to serve more as their own tool for securing their interests.  However, the UN still maintains a sizable political influence on Earth, and while difficult, still does intervene on the behalf of the General Assembly or Security Council in Earth affairs.

Earth is a mess of conflicting goals and shifting alliances. The times they do come together is against Mars or to pool their exploitative resources off-world... and even then, there are a number of on-world interests that are ready to take advantage if the Hegemons drop their guard.  While the Hegemons dominate, they do not act with impunity.  Even small states have a vote in the UN’s General Assembly and the renaissance of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a direct result of failed attempts by the Hegemonic Blocs to bully countries like India, Argentina, and Nigeria.  In fact, many in the NAM are sympathetic to the anti-colonial movement off-world (if only because the successes of the colonies come at a cost of Hegemonic power), and a handful of independent aggressively advocate for increased colonial independence.  While much of this maneuvering is simply a balancing of powers, some nations really do believe in the morality of self-determination and are willing to make principled stands against the Hegemons and the subservient UN.  

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Next up will be some expansion of Earth, I think.  That or a redefining of the term "diaspora."

Agents of Violent Change (Content, Mechanics)

Getting back to what the PCs do (and building off THIS post),, one of the really good pieces of advice I got from a writing buddy of mine is that I need to keep the setting focused.  Rather than just present a detailed setting, there needs to be a clear "this is what you, the player, is supposed to do."  Obviously, the setting will allow for a whole lot of options for the PCs, but I think my friend is right.  I have been working on a setting element that can facilitate the type of play I think TDE is built for.  I want to highlight cinematic action set against the backdrop of a realistic (and dynamic) Solar System.  I want the PCs to affect change.  I want them to pilot kick-ass mecha in the form of Jammers.

Sorta like this guy.  But with a big ass robot   

To all those ends, I am planning on the default campaign style to be that of futuristic CIA-like operatives.  I recall a few years ago I watched a show on Discovery that was stroies about the Afghan and Iraq wars before hey became full-on wars.  In that series (whose name I cant remember) it followed a number of CIA  and special forces operators as they laid the ground work for the invasions or tracked down terrorists/insurgents.  It was fascinating stuff (and probably sensationalized quite a bit).  Thats what I want out of the PCs - to be the very tip of the spear of whatever is going to go down.  I want them to have all the cool toys of a full-on military, without the restrictive hierarchy.

Enter CAID (aka "Fatewatch")..

CAID is patterned a bit after the crisis analysis organization in Peter Watts brillant SF Rifters Saga.  As always, rough draft, spelling errors, blah, blah, blah... 

Vanguard Social Science -- The Complexity Analysis and Intelligence Directorate (CAID): CAID is an elite and very specialized Martian intelligence organization that works to anticipate the development of chaotic events by calculating and statistically analyzing the likelihood of natural disasters, social upheavals, conflicts, and other major events.  It is also empowered to eliminate those threats.  CAID pulls on the best and brightest of Mars, and aggressively recruits throughout the System.  CAID researchers, scientists, and engineers are provided with generous budgets and support staff to facilitate their projects.  However, the core mission of CAID remains the correct prediction of threats to Mars and its people - and an unsaid aspect of that prediction is to do so far enough in advance of a catastrophe to be able to enact meaningful change.  

CAID is colloquially known as the “Fatewatch” and usually referred to simply as “Core” by CAID’s field agents and paramilitary wing.  For most of CAID;s existence, it was simply referred to in official Martian government documents as “Antevortia” -- a simple placeholder for budgets and bookkeeping.  “Antevortia” is still used by many in the Burt administration, and “Antevortian” is a common pejorative term throughout the System to refer to anything that involves an unbelievable or complex conspiracy.  

The resources at CAID’s disposal are significant.  To aid in forecasting, the Directorate has over 200 supercomputers, most of which are integrated, running statistical analyses and regression techniques to identify threats at various points in the future and apply percentages to the likelihood of the threat’s outcome.  From there, CAID’s researchers and analysts review the data and work up reports that draw on history, social and physical sciences, and good old fashioned logical hunches.  The reports are used throughout the Martian government (and, in rare cases, its allies) to identify the threat, its severity and its possible outcomes.  Its not quite a science, but its damn close.  

CAID’s operations cell is particularly feared - rumored to both enact events that CAID predicted but have not come to pass as well as prematurely end any events CAID fears it cannot control.  This often leads to the Ops Cell eliminating seemingly innocuous politicians or destroying “random” space debris that forecasting identified as particularly problematic for the future foals of Mars.  Fatewatch’s forces are staffed by the best and more experienced that Mars has to offer.  CAID operates a sizable Jammer fleet.  Jammers have proven their utility time and time again for the diverse set of missions Core demands.  CAID also operates a number of interplaetary assets -- including a handful of spec ops cruisers, frigates, an extensive array of detection and comms gear spread throughout the system, and even a full-sized carrier.  

In those times a threat is too large to be dealt with by CAIDs elite, but small forces, it can request aid through the Ministry of Defense, Ministry of External Intelligence, Ministry of Home Affairs, or just about any government organization.  The fact that CAID operates under the Administrator’s office and is funded by a special line-item in the Martian budget means that it has considerable latitude and high-level support when it requests aid.  

The Directorate has had its fair share of notable successes and abysmal failures.  They did not successfully predict the dangers the Huns presented - only realizing the threat to Venus after astrophysicists in the public sector revealed their findings.  This oversight still serves as, a major black mark they are seeking to correct through enactment of the Erinyes Doctrine.  On the other end of the spectrum, CAID successfully anticipated the Jovian L4-L5 War as well as predicted the level of involvement of TORA and OCRI.  Its notable that while it is publically acknowledged that CAID predicted the L4-L5 War, what, if anything, it did clandestinely about the war is unknown.  Another feather in CAID’s cap was its prediction of the 2188 Martian executive election.  CAID’s leadership, at the orders of Administrator Sugiyama, worked up a detailed analysis of the likely outcomes - and noted their belief that Sugyama would narrowly lose the election (with a 65% likelihood).  Sugiyama ignored the analysis, believing that the data confidence was still quite high.  History proved him wrong when the analysis was later revealed in a bit of a scandal after Burt took office.  

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Truckin' right along.  We've done game theory  setting design, mechanics... its starting to fall into place.

A Diplomatic Tool (Art)

Concept art for TDE - by Jeff Cram.  This is likely a Martian patrol frigate (its def. a frigate, though not 100% sure this will stay with Mars or if it will shift over to one of the Hegemonic powers).  Jeff did a great job - I had a number of changes from the original draft, and he made each one of them work.  

When diplomacy fails...

The goal was to have something that establishes its own aesthetic, but also stands on its own and is able to portray its mission by its look and weapons loadout.  

I'll go into more discussion on how this particular ship came to be.  For the time being, just enjoy.  

Its nice to finally have some art.  

Tweaking the ORE for TDE. FTW! (Mechanics)

Its time to talk about the baseline mechanics.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I plan to use the One Roll Engine (ORE) for TDE.  Tehere are a lot of things to like about the ORE.  Its a dicepool mechanic, with an upper limit so the dice and thee math never get too crazy.  Its a tried and true system, applied to a number of setting and genres.  Its also tied to a couple games I dearly love -- Monsters and Other Childish Things and Godlike.  Its also the house engine (to some extent) for Arc Dream Publishing -- which is home to some of my favorite people int he gaming industry.  So, all in all, using the ORE just feels right.

I am about to jump into some very weedy stuff on the ORE and its background mechanics.  If you are familiar with the ORE and how it works, check it out HERE

Of course, I can't leave well enough alone.  While I feel that the ORE is a very solid mechanic, there are parts that I don't like.  I don't like that the quality of a success is the most random part of the roll.  The Height of a roll is the part the character has the least control over.  Improved stats and skills lead to things being done quicker, not really done better (thats note entirely true, but its safe to say that the speed of an action is improved faster than the quality as stat+skill improves).  I strongly feel that as a character gets better at something, they should reliably improve the quality of their successes.

This leads me to a fairly drastic rules change (its no longer a tweak) - switching Height and Width and what they mean to success.  What I am exploring is the idea that a longer width means the quality of the success is better, and the Height dictates the speed by which something is accomplished (10 being fastest).  I;ve floated this idea to some people smarter than me, and the switch seems mechanically sound.  It does play with the probabilities slightly, and modified how Hard Dice and Wiggle Dice play with the results, but I can live with that.

So, thats our baseline mechanic.  Stat + Skill dicepool.  No more than 10 dice rolled at a time.  The gal is to get a pair.  Anything beyond a pair gives the roller (GM or PC) the ability add "extras" to the result (stuff like extra damage, a particularly skillful result, making something enduring, gaining back an expended resource -- whatever the roller can come up with that is appropriate to that challenge).

If you get a pair, the task was successful.  If the player gets two pairs (or more) - they can choose which matching set they want to use.

From here , I have a lot of ideas.  Complex challenges will remove dice from the dicepool along something like this:

No Roll = Easy Task
+1 die for an Easy but Dramatic Task
No Modifier for a Difficult task (this is the baseline modifier and assumption of challenge)
-1 die for something hard
-2 die for something really hard
-3 die for something that only an expert can complete, and even then with a good change of failure
-4 die for something extremely difficult, even for a veteran
-5 Hail Mary!

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Other ideas I am kicking around is that the players can voluntarily remove dice from their pool before a roll to get other advantages (called "benefits" or just "benes").  Remove (or "sacrifice") a die to add +1 to the final Height (including pushing a result over 10 on the Height).  Remove a die to attempt multiple actions (in this case, you pull out a die for each action you want to attempt and hope you get more than one pair).  Remove 2 dice to get a free Savvy Die (SD) starting at 1.  Add more Savvy dice to add another die at 2... and so on (so, 6 dice spent on a roll can give three SD - one at 1, one at 2, and one at 3).  No more than one SD for each value.  You might also remove a die to improve your defensive stat.

...stuff like that.

Then, when its time for action, all the players and GM pick up their dice, secretly remove their dice they want to spend on "benes"

Oh yeah, the kicker to Benes?  You dont have to declare before hand what you are spending your sacrificed dice on.  You can see the result of the dice and then decide what you spent the sacrifices on.  If you sacrificed 3 dice and the results weren't what you were looking for, you can change your plans and use those three sacrifices any way you want.

So, f'rex:

I have a dicepool of 7.  I initially decide I want to buy my first SD (a value of 1).  I pull out two dice from my dice pool (the sacrifices) and set them aside.  When the GM calls it, I roll the remainder of my pool.  The results come up 2,2,5,8,9.

Okay, so I didn't get a 1 and so that SD I was planning on is useless.  Instead, I decide to use the two sacrifices to improve the Height of my pair - moving the pair's Height to a 4 (rolled a 2 + 1 sacrifice + another sacrifice).  The GM looks around the table, identifies the highest pair - and asks if anyone is going to beat that pair's Height with spent sacrifices... my 4 is no where close to that result  so I wait for my turn.

If I had rolled a 1,1,3,5,6.  Then we are talking!  The SD matches the 1s - not only giving me a pair, but a triple Width match.  Though slow, whatever I tried to do I did quite well.  When it comes to my turn I tell the GM I had two sacrifices and use them for a SD.

Of course, you dont have to use your sacrifices if you don't want.

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These changes are pretty significant and range from tweaks to outright punches in the face of the ORE.  There is still a lot to consider mechanically, but so far, the baseline of switching the Height and Width seem to make sense.

Stay tuned, I got some more ideas up my sleeve.

Antimatter Matters (Development)

In one of the comments on an earlier post, Cutnose asked about the role of antimatter and matter in the game - specifically as a source of thrust.  My answer, frankly, wasn't the best and mostly danced around the question of the prominence/role of exotic power sources.  It something I have thought a lot about - especially today (Cutnose's question pushed the issue to the fore).  I'm still not sure how I want to deal with propellants and power sources.  Spaceships are going to play a critical role in how the setting is going to function as well as how the worlds are going to look.  The type of power source is going to dictate how fast ships move, how far they can go, what they will look like, and even how destructive their weapons can be -- all important stuff for a game that has aspirations of focusing on military-style campaigns.

I need to hash out what, if any, role antimatter will play in TDE.


The Case For Volatiles (aka Chemical propulsion):

Volatiles are the safe way to go (and BTW, "volatiles" is code for chemical propulsion right now).  They are what we use today to propel spacecraft -- and pretty much all other vehicles save for some navy ships.  Its a common and understandable technology.  Its plausible and easy to understand.  Its cheap.  Volatiles and the like are great economic macguffins.  If TDE is going to have a plausible economic view of the setting, and Volatiles will play an important role -- especially if they are the primary (or sole) way to move interplanetary ships.  Plus, Volatiles are found in a lot of interesting places int he solar system - providing a useful excuse as to why there are colonies in the proverbial ass-end of space (especially for Venus, Jupiter and the Belt).  Volatiles would also be useful as radiation shields - serving double duty of protecting the crew as well as providing delta-V.

The Case Against Volatiles:  

Volatiles as a power source are inelegant and a little boring.  The tech, by 2191 is going to be ancient and implies a level of technological stagnation I am not sure I am comfortable with.  Ships that rely exclusively on volatiles for delta-V will require some very bulky structures to make sure there is some plausibility to how much reaction mass is available to move some big ships.  I'll admit that I am not a big fan of the modern NASA aesthetic... and the realistic ships that build off that aesthetic aren't very appealing.

Boooring.  

The Case For Antimatter:

Antimatter is sexy.  Its plausible for the timeperiod -- more than 150 years in the future (especially since we can already manipulate small quantities today).  Giving Antimattter a prominent role in powering ships (and maybe more) frees up a lot of physical and aesthetic/design space.  Ships wont need those bulky fuel tanks since antimatter (AM) supposedly can yield upwards of 90% energy dividends when smashed against matter.  It gives ships longer legs and faster speeds as well.  Oh, and it makes for a good reason to get out to Jupiter and Mercury.

The Case Against Antimatter: 

Its expensive.  Antimatter may be a little too sexy in that it pushes some boundaries of plausibility.  If volatiles are somewhat implausible to still be the primary fuel source 150+ years from now, antimatter is somewhat implausible for only being 150+ years int he future.  I also dont fully understand the dangers and benefits AM presents -- which requires more research (what happens if a ship gets the crap blown out of it and it has an antimatter drive?  A big boom, most likely... but how big?  What about other commercial uses?).

Suck it Earth!  This is my playgorund!  

...and the Nuclear Darkhorse:

I also need to consider nuclear fusion and fission.  Its a known technology (fission moreso than fusion).  Its speculated to be quite efficient (though not as efficient as AM).  I think its plausible we could safely create and harness fusion as a power source.  They provide a nice medium between archaic chemical propulsion relying on volatiles and the Star Treky antimatter option.  Nukes really aren't a dark horse -- they will be a core propellant, but I thought the title for the section suitably dramatic, so I kept it.

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Right now I am leaning towards major military ships and some very advanced private/corporate ships using AM.  Most civilian ships use a combination of volatiles and nukes.  Jammers?  Jammers I am not sure of yet -- though I am leaning towards managed fusion.

Whatever the decision - the final setting will involve a number of different options.  Volatiles, AM and fusion/fission will all have their places - its just a matter of percentages and what mil spec ships will use (and Jammers, for that matter .  Likewise solar and magnetic sails will have a role to play.

The devil, as always, is in the details.

If anyone out there has a strong opionion one way or the other, please let me know.

Personality Politics Pt 1 (Content)

Revolution Comes With a Price...

I'm happy to report we are on our way to some art.  I have contracted an artist that can work with my budget and help add form to the swirling chaos that is floating around in my mind.  Hopefully in the near future we can have some original art on the blog -- something to help define the visual style of TDE.

Until then, lets talk about NPCs. For anyone that knows me,it will not be a surprise that I base the planets and the people that populate them on my travels.  Usually, the personalities of TDE are gestalts of various peoples from North America, Africa, and Asia... but sometimes not.  Sometimes they are the creation of people I think should exist - in terms of real world politics and society.  Certain social movements, or political events seem to have an unseen hand behind them.  In many parts of the world, people don't want to accept that policy and major decisions are made through happenstance and mistakes - they prefer seeing connections where there are none.  Its a more interesting and simpler world if its all the fault of some shadowy agency or clique.  South Asia, in particular, loves conspiracy stories.

The said (or maybe not so sad) fact is that the world isn't run by complicated conspiracies.  Its just not.  However, in the world of TDE I can mix real world experiences with real world crazy conspiracies to come up with personalities just plausible enough to be believable.  My gol is to populate TDE with a number of interesting NPCs and personalities to prompt the GM's creativity and campaign design, and the player's desire to explore the setting.

Here are two NPCs that help define TDE's setting for me:


Jacob K Sugiyama (Mars/Venus): The former OCRI Administrator of Mars.  Once considered little more than a tool of the Hegemons, his progressive ideas, fiery personality, and aggressive political tactics brought him fame and popularity - on Mars and throughout the System.  OCRI and the Hegemonic powers lost control of Sugiyama along the way, and Sugiyama morphed into the lead agitator for Martian independence.  His successes brought him even more notoriety and what has now become an inner circle that is more a cult of personality than a loyal set of advisers.  Sugiyama is considered by most of the Solar System as the father of Martian democracy and the current anti-colonial movement.  He is also corrupt as hell, and unexpectedly lost in Mars' first Prime election.  He seethes with anger and resentment privately, but publicly vows to "recapture the heart of the Martian Democratic spirit from the usurper."  Sugiyama lives on an aerostat in Venus, in part because he believes Martian forces loyal to his rival, Jeehan Burt, will assassinate him if they get the chance.

Jeehan Burt (Mars):  Jeehan is the first Martian Government's Prime.  He rose to power as a grassroots organizer, and for a time, worked with Sugiyama's Free Mars movement as a young advocate.  Burt became disgusted with Sugiyama's centralized decision making, and lost faith in the movement.  That Sugiyama's direction turned out to lead Mars towards its freedom, came as a major shock to Burt, who reconsidered his choice to drop out of politics.  When the first Martian elections arrived, Burt came out of retirement  spent a veritable fortune, and traded on his reputation as a successful lawyer for Martian rights to propel him to a shocking victory.  Now, Burt, whose main political experience is organizing protests against the types of leaders whose position he now fills, must struggle with the leadership role demanded of him.  Thus far, Burt has defined himself to the Martian people by claiming he is a fresh break with the autocratic tendencies of Sugiyama.  It remains to be seen if Burt can define his administration on its own merits and accomplishments. Worse, a number of powerful Earth political and economic entities lost significant assets during the Martian war for independence  and the last couple of years as the planet asserted its identity.  Now, those same Earth powers want their stuff back, and see Burt as less decisive than Sugiyama.  The powers of Earth smell blood and the sharks are starting to circle.



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I really need to pound out some words on Mars over the next couple days.  If you don't see me tomorrow - its because I am struggling with the marginal protagonist of the setting.

Dwarf Planets, Giant Problems (Content)

Something I talked about earlier - and I will talk about again - is the idea of "potential energy" for the setting of TDE.  What I mean by the phrase is that I want the setting, as written, to be a snapshot of a very dynamic place with a lot of things going on.  TDE should be a setting in motion once the players are introduced.  Like a held drawstring, there is a lot of energy waiting to explode once the right catalyst is added -- and the right catalyst should always be the PCs.

So, here is an example of that potential energy: the Huns.  The Huns present the PCs with a number of heroic (and challenging) things to do.  There is a looming natural disaster, a refugee crisis, and while not mentioned int he entry below -- some very dire political machinations that could mean social upheaval on Mars.

Its up to the PCs to resolve one or more of those crises -- for good or ill.


The Huns: Venus, which is the most recently settled inner planet, was just starting to hit its stride in 2126 when it was positively identified that a massive collection of migratory asteroids are heading right for Venus.  The asteroids, nicknamed the "Huns," were originally detected in the Oort cloud as early as the 2080s -- slightly off the ecliptic.  The significance of the discovery was not, at first, identified.  The odd behavior of the distant Huns was attributed to an eccentric orbit around the sun.  In the end, it was their unusual positioning helped mask the Huns until they began transiting close to the core system.  The danger the Huns present was finally confirmed late 2180s when scientists revealed that the Huns would travel into the inner system.  Numerous trajectory analyses were made, with most indicating that the Huns would miss the inner planets or possibly hit fast-moving Mercury.  Scientists were initially more concerned about the Huns’ gravitic influence on settled space.  Further study as the Huns started to transition past Pluto raised a number of concerns, as newer trajectory estimates had the likelihood of the Huns hitting Venus jump into the more-likely-than-not range.  

The primary Huns (Genghis and Attila) acts as sweepers for smaller planetary objects like asteroids and comets -- which are called "kith-warriors."   The leading theory on the appearance of the Huns is that they were larger planets that were ejected from a supernova explosion.  Their expulsion, many millennia ago, put them on a trajectory near to the Sun, which captured them and brought them into its gravity well.  

As of 2191 the Huns are between Jupiter and the main belt and continuing to head in-System.  There are about 4 years before the intersection of Venus and the Huns.  Thus, the System now struggles with a growing refugee crisis as a large number of Venusians seek new homes.  Of course, Earth doesn't want them (it maintains a very carefully controlled population numbers) and Mars/Mercury/Jupiter can only absorb a certain amount.  Cue low-level conflict by the desperate refugees, food shortages, looting, and whatnot on selected stations and aerostats.  

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I want a lot of bits of potential energy seeded throughout TDE.  Wars, political crises, hostage situations, peace keeping, social upheavals... they will all be in there.  I want to give the PCs and the GM a lot of ideas on what they can, and should, do with the setting.

Oh, and Canada? Where you at?  Since I am basically an honorary Canadian by now - more of you should be reading this blog.  Over the weekend I think I got 3 total pageviews from your great country.  Booo.