From: Dominic Mooney (iB) [dom@cybergoths.u-net.com] Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2001 1:23 PM To: blue_planet@lists.ient.com Subject: Re: [BLUE PLANET] - Long John and 'Psi' powers.... At 12:13 -0400 17/10/01, blue_planet-digest "Charles" > Just don't expect the ending of the 'Night's Dawn' Trilogy to live up > > to everything trailed in the first two books. It was a major let down > > when I read it. I think he wrote himself into a corner, and it just > > didn't deliver compared to the earlier volumes. > Actually, I rather liked the ending. He accounted for just about every >thing and every one (note, however, that the UK hardcover was actually >missing a part that was in the US hardcover), even if it did seem a little >cobbled together. But he also seemed to be leading up to it anyways in the >previous books, even if only "Well, I'm not sure how I'm going to want to >eventually end this, so let's stick in a couple options ahead of time." The US hardcover only had additional sections because the US copy of _the Neutronium Alchemist_ didn't have all the sections the UK version did. > > If you like the background, I recommend you have a look at 'The > > Confederation handbook', which is Hamilton's writer's notes detailing > > the back ground done up as a standalone volume (like an RPG > > sourcebook but without the stats!). > Yeah... Saw it in hardcover in a Canadian bookstore. VERY pricey there, >even if it was just toy mon -- I mean, Canadian money.. >;) Some sources >claim that a paperback edition will come out some time before next summer in >the US, so I'll wait until then. Paperback is out in the UK already @ 5.99 GBP. Amazon should be able to get it. Dom ----dom@cybergoths.u-net.com---- *************************************************************************** To unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.ient.com with the line 'unsubscribe blue_planet' as the body of the message. From: Rusty.Neal@Bull.com Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2001 11:13 AM To: blue_planet@lists.ient.com Subject: [BLUE PLANET] - Creature combat In my last couple of sessions of Blue Planet there has been a good deal of interaction (and some combat) between humans and creatures (large stonesnake, baby stonesnakes, blood hunters). I ran into a couple of things that I haven't been able to answer using the rules as they stand now- 1-how many dice do creatures get to roll for their attacks? Possibly should this be based on threat level somehow? I was using 3 dice for each creature. 2-is the 3 dice system for damage reasonable for very large creatures? If a human manages to get a successful hit on an orca should there be the same chance of getting a critical wound as if hitting a human? What about if it had been a greater white? One modification I was thinking of was to increase the number of dice rolled for big creatures, then remove the lowest rolls until you have 3 dice. The number of dice rolled would be based on Build. It might look something like this- Build from 8 to 15, roll 4 dice for damage, discard lowest die. Build greater than 15, roll 5 dice for damage, discard lowest two dice. One could also probably justify a modification for damage to things with really low Builds. For that I was thinking that if the Build was -10 or less, Minor wounds from a human sized opponent are moved up to Major. Would this work? Thoughts? Rusty *************************************************************************** To unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.ient.com with the line 'unsubscribe blue_planet' as the body of the message. From: Charles [chalz@earthlink.net] Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2001 6:03 PM To: blue_planet@lists.ient.com Subject: Re: [BLUE PLANET] - Long John and 'Psi' powers.... > The US hardcover only had additional sections because the US copy of > _the Neutronium Alchemist_ didn't have all the sections the UK > version did. Actually, according to Hamilton's website, if anything's missing it's the UK print of The Naked God, missing text dealing with the fate of Darius. > Paperback is out in the UK already @ 5.99 GBP. Amazon should be able to get it. Eventually, anyways. That's still UK5.99 more than I have at the moment ;) -C > > Dom > > ----dom@cybergoths.u-net.com---- > *************************************************************************** > To unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.ient.com > with the line 'unsubscribe blue_planet' as the body of the message. > *************************************************************************** To unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.ient.com with the line 'unsubscribe blue_planet' as the body of the message. From: Jason Hockley [jh39@ukc.ac.uk] Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2001 6:00 PM To: blue_planet@lists.ient.com Subject: [BLUE PLANET] - A few thoughts and questions Hello all, It's been a while since I contributed anything worthwhile to this list, but the prospect of possibly getting to run Blue Planet after all my years of waiting has caused me to start thinking about various things once again. First of all, I was looking at the sky on my way home from a game recently and I got to wondering about what the night sky might look like on Poseidon. I've very little knowledge of astronomy myself, so could anyone tell me if they're likely to see constellations similar to those on Earth? And if not, does anyone have any ideas for designations or names the natives might have used in the pre-Recontact years? I presume that the view is going to be clearer due to the lesser problem of 'light pollution' and so on with Poseidon, but would we be likely to see more or fewer stars in the sky? I thought I remembered once seeing something in a BP book that said they knew where the Serpentis system was (though I seem to be unable to relocate it now so possibly it was a figment of my imagination), so does that mean that on Poseidon you can pick out the Sol system in the sky? Secondly, a friend of mine said he was looking at the figures given in the Player's Guide and he had worked out that it would be cheaper for the GEO to give rejuvenation treatments to Shock Troopers nearing retirement than it would be to train new replacements and give them the appropriate biomods. This came up because I was telling him about discussions on this list as to whether or if they would be allowed to fully retire from active service or not. I imagine that at this point in most people's games the issue isn't particularly important frankly because often they may not even get to survive that long. Considering that there (theoretically) should be fewer instances now where the GEO needs to deploy such heavily armed forces on Poseidon (Sierra Nueva cluster excepted, probably) then no doubt it's going to get to the point where some of them start getting old and thinking about retirement. Does the GEO just let them head off and settle down somewhere, or would it make a concerted effort to keep those valuable veterans rejuvenated and available for duty? Especially as one might assume that those who do survive to that point are likely to be those who are extremely good at their job. And third, just how the hell do you people out there get a game started anyway? I've got people interested in playing but the background is so broad and detailed that I'm pretty much at a loss as to where to start. I don't want to let them go off and make a random bunch of characters and then try come up with plausible ways to drag them into a contrived situation. I'd much prefer it if they could sit down to character generation together with a concerted theme and some idea where things might be going. About the only real certainty I got to was that there are some aspects I'm not even going to try involve (being vague because I'm too lazy to include spoiler warnings) for quite some time. Anyway, your thoughts and comments would be greatly appreciated. If nothing else it gives me something to read when I'm supposed to be writing essays. Jason p.s. Oh, and one last thing. Does anyone still have a copy of that film script that Tun Kai Poh wrote for a short introduction to Blue Planet? I had it a couple of years ago but I seem to have misplaced it somewhere in the meantime. *************************************************************************** To unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.ient.com with the line 'unsubscribe blue_planet' as the body of the message. From: DarrenKng@aol.com Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2001 6:28 PM To: blue_planet@lists.ient.com Subject: Re: [BLUE PLANET] - A few thoughts and questions Lambda Serpentis is 35 light years from our Sun (see PG page 9). In galactic terms, that isn't very far at all. The stars seen from the surface will be the same one that are seen from earth's surface. The constellations will be skewed out of shape, though, and some stars (the nearer ones) will appear on the other side of the globe as they would on earth. Not being an astronomer, I don't know how significant the "distortion" of the constellations will be. I think they'll still be vaguely recognisable, though. When considering astronomy on Poseidon, one of the main points to consider is whether Sol (our sun) is visible from the pacifica archipelago- if so, I imagine that would definately be the first star anybody learned to recognise! Also, when thinking of native names for the constellation, bear in mind that their grandparents were scientists, and that quiet a few people in the original colony would have known the correct name for most of the stars. They may well keep the same ones we use. Finally, for starting a game, I think the best way would be to ask the players what style of game they would prefer to play. Then, have them come up with a character concept each... and design a campaign that fits them in. For example, if they want a typical cyberpunk mix of action and investigation, you could play them as GEO Marshals, Incorporate Agents, High-Tech Mercenaries, or members of an organised crime syndicate. The "fighter" concept that one of the players wants then becomes a SWAT-team member, an Incorporate bodyguard, or an Assassin based on which you choose. DarrenK *************************************************************************** To unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.ient.com with the line 'unsubscribe blue_planet' as the body of the message. From: Ml10@aol.com Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2001 6:53 PM To: blue_planet@lists.ient.com Subject: Re: [BLUE PLANET] - A few thoughts and questions In a message dated 10/17/01 6:08:07 PM Central Daylight Time, jh39@ukc.ac.uk writes: > Secondly, a friend of mine said he was looking at the figures given in > the Player's Guide and he had worked out that it would be cheaper for the > GEO to give rejuvenation treatments to Shock Troopers nearing retirement > than it would be to train new replacements and give them the appropriate > biomods. Long John treatment is only good for the physical part of being a trooper. The psychological wear and tear is pretty hefty as well. The other thing to consider is the need for a training program. If a war occurs, the troopers will suffer losses that will have to be replaced quickly. If there isn't a well run training program, then the overall effectiveness of the troops will drop as the new replacements will be substandard. Think of sport teams. When a large number of a team's good players leave, they have to go into a period of rebuilding. A good example of this is the Chicago Bulls. After Jordan retired (for the second time), almost every single member of the starting lineup left the Bulls. So the following season the "world champs" was composed of rookies and second stringers who didn't have a chance at a repeat. > And third, just how the hell do you people out there get a game started > anyway? I use the common employer method. All of my characters work for the Doer Detective Agency. To start off the game, I used the Natural Instinct adventure on the Biohazzard site. It is a great adventure to introduce everyone to Blue Planet slowly without everyone running off into a dozen different directions. The common employer method also allows me to control the amount of money in the game as all the PCs earn a wage and don't get money from loot. Mike Z *************************************************************************** To unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.ient.com with the line 'unsubscribe blue_planet' as the body of the message. From: Charles [chalz@earthlink.net] Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2001 10:47 PM To: blue_planet@lists.ient.com Subject: Re: [BLUE PLANET] - A few thoughts and questions > First of all, I was looking at the sky on my way home from a game > recently and I got to wondering about what the night sky might look like on I was watching a bit on the Discovery Science channel about colonizing Mars, and how the sunset there is actually blue. How does the sunset look on Poseidon? I imagine roughly the same, but with certain variations. This is a unary solar system, right? Only one star? > Poseidon. I've very little knowledge of astronomy myself, so could anyone > tell me if they're likely to see constellations similar to those on Earth? > And if not, does anyone have any ideas for designations or names the natives I think this would make for a very interesting catalog on a website. If I knew how to work POST and database stuff, I'd set something up like that; say, where people could submit constellation name ideas, even little diagrams. > might have used in the pre-Recontact years? I presume that the view is going > to be clearer due to the lesser problem of 'light pollution' and so on with > Poseidon, but would we be likely to see more or fewer stars in the sky? I Does anyone bother with stellar observatories anymore in BP? (Mind you, I haven't read the entire PG yet, and that's the only book I have; however, feel free to distribute MG stuff to me; won't matter.) > thought I remembered once seeing something in a BP book that said they knew > where the Serpentis system was (though I seem to be unable to relocate it > now so possibly it was a figment of my imagination), so does that mean that > on Poseidon you can pick out the Sol system in the sky? That would be a trip. I asked my brother once if he knew why, for instance, we couldn't see the galactic core at night. He didn't really know. A couple days later, I read something about how, if you consider the bright center of the galaxy, "we're on the planet that it's farthest from". ;) There's so much other matter between us and the core, that we just can't see it - well, that and the distance. We can see the rim of the Milky Way, though. It was suggested that if we hadn't all of this excess matter between us, the surface of Earth (if it were allowed to /have/ a surface) would basically be a bubbling, molten mass thanks to radiation. Kind of limits where we could find life, and where we could colonize. > service or not. I imagine that at this point in most people's games the > issue isn't particularly important frankly because often they may not even > get to survive that long. Considering that there (theoretically) should be Well, here's part of my take on the matter. First off, not every trooper is going to want to stay in the service. Secondly, the treatment isn't cheap, and the more you use it, the rarer it's going to get, the more expensive it's going to get. Add in things like seniority and insurance policies - we're talking troopers with salaries exceeding GenDiver profits here ;) Course, if you simply took lower-level soldiers, rejuve'd them and gave a mind wipe, they might think they're back in basic. Hmmm... Also take into account that the prices listed in the book are, so to speak, MSRP. GEO might (probably) get them much cheaper. Question: Are there sections on augmented security troops/armies run by the Incorp? Or is this in a book to come? Similarly, how about corporate mercenaries, such as in Gibson's books, to assist in defections? (Or is that meant for the PCs? ;) > veterans rejuvenated and available for duty? Especially as one might assume > that those who do survive to that point are likely to be those who are > extremely good at their job. Or are desk jockeys or tend to stay out of fire. > And third, just how the hell do you people out there get a game started > anyway? I've got people interested in playing but the background is so broad > and detailed that I'm pretty much at a loss as to where to start. I don't I'm no GM, but it seems to me... well... pick a topic. If you want something relatively one-track-minded, have your players, say, a smuggling group who happen to come across some very bizarre tech which they try to deal, and end up being hunted at every turn after fences repeatedly reject it, and try to figure out why they're being hunted. Set your players up as an Omega squad type deal of elite specops in the GEO ranks. They're resistance fighters, trying to stop Biogene from wiping out a specific creature's mating grounds through their continued development. Corporate defection assistants. Hunt the great white. Make your characters unwitting pawns in a power struggle. > want to let them go off and make a random bunch of characters and then try > come up with plausible ways to drag them into a contrived situation. I'd Again, I'm no GM, and I haven't even played that many games. But the first real game I *did* play (Palladium Fantasy), over a year ago, was sort of this. The GM gave us an outline of the areas and environments in which we'd be dealing, and to create appropriate characters with some suggestions. I kept asking through the whole first couple sessions just /why/ we were all together. A couple humans and a couple elves picking up a package for some alchemist and delivering it. Why us? How did we get together? Considering the people IRL seemed incapable of trusting each other too much, it was even worse with our characters. I think that, for any game I run, I will dictate certain boundaries to the players. Unless you want to run hack&slash, in which case... choose a less fatal system ;) > much prefer it if they could sit down to character generation together with > a concerted theme and some idea where things might be going. About the only .. Which would be wonderful. If you could get a mailing list going (if they all have email and work it semi regularly), that would be a help. I set up a mailing list, but only about 3 of the people even read it with any regularity. :/ For our first BP game, three of us actually got together often for lunch to work on our characters. There's always pregenerated characters which you can hand out, let them choose, run a lottery, etc. > Anyway, your thoughts and comments would be greatly appreciated. If > nothing else it gives me something to read when I'm supposed to be writing > essays. Heh. Hope I've supplied some helpful info. Oh, and I have to say this.. You're the GM; you're god; what you say, goes; if they don't like it, tough; feel free to nudge your characters around. And for crying out loud, limit access to certain things :P Heh. --Charles > > > Jason > > p.s. Oh, and one last thing. Does anyone still have a copy of that film > script that Tun Kai Poh wrote for a short introduction to Blue Planet? I had > it a couple of years ago but I seem to have misplaced it somewhere in the > meantime. > > *************************************************************************** > To unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.ient.com > with the line 'unsubscribe blue_planet' as the body of the message. > *************************************************************************** To unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.ient.com with the line 'unsubscribe blue_planet' as the body of the message.