Hi.
The most recent (at the time of writing) addition to the long-standing Gundam franchise is Mobile Suit Gundam 00 - and I'd like to suggest that both as a RPG and as a wargaming setting, it would be pretty cool!
Set in a 'new' timeline distinct from those seen in earlier Gundam series (such as the Universal Century and the Cosmic Era) the first season of the 00 anime begins in the year 2307. Earth has become dominated by three regional alliances, which while working together to develop a grandiose solar-collector project in Earth orbit, deal with both their own political rivalries and with the various smaller powers on Earth which are not a member of any of the three major blocs.
These alliances are the World Economic Union, which takes in the Americas, Australia, Japan and others, the Human Reform League, led by China, Russia and India, and the Advanced European Union... the location of which you might be able to guess the by yourselves.
In the midst of this appears Celestial Being - a paramilitary organisation which has been given significant levels of funding and research over the past two hundred years, founded by a man called Aeolia Schenberg who set in motion a far-reaching plan which was intended to live on beyond his death, but who only publicly reveal themselves in 2307.
There are many cells and sub-groups in CB - not all of whom know about the others - but the story of the 00 anime looks at the cell which becomes the primary face of the organisation, who operate from the spaceship Ptolemaios - a group known as the Gundam Meisters.
The Meisters, all using code-names to hide their true identities, each pilot a distinct Gundam - a powerful mobile suit equipped with advanced technologies, most notably a power source known as the GN Drive, a unique power source that can only be constructed at Jupiter, and of which only five are known to exist. The four lead Gundams are each configured for a specific role in combat, and intended to be operated by their Meisters as a cohesive unit.
However, the Meisters themselves are by no means flawless. Each of them carries the scars and legacies of their former lives, each of them seeking some degree of justice, or perhaps absolution, by attempting to follow Celestial Being's self-imposed remit of bring war to an end.
And as you might imagine, the various alliances do not take the emergence of what they consider to be a rogue terrorist organisation lying down - and their own reactions lead to a series of events which change the course of human history...
...as do the secret machinations of other groups seeking to lay a claim on humanity's future.
In game terms, one could easily run an RPG set in this universe, drawing from the source material presented on-screen, in print (there are several manga series which act as side stories, which take advantage of the presence of the dispersed nature of Celestial Being as an organisation) and on drama CDs.
Also, one or two scales of tabletop games could be run. One could picture a system designed primarily for duels, which could even use the range of pre-existing model kits from Bandai - and which could have detailed sheets for each mobile suit.
Alternatively, a larger-scale game could be set around the kind of tactical operations which the various factions, such as Celestial Being, the three alliances, and the new agencies and factions which appear in season 2 (set in 2011) would be involved in.
So, does this sound like it might be a fun setting?
The most recent (at the time of writing) addition to the long-standing Gundam franchise is Mobile Suit Gundam 00 - and I'd like to suggest that both as a RPG and as a wargaming setting, it would be pretty cool!
Set in a 'new' timeline distinct from those seen in earlier Gundam series (such as the Universal Century and the Cosmic Era) the first season of the 00 anime begins in the year 2307. Earth has become dominated by three regional alliances, which while working together to develop a grandiose solar-collector project in Earth orbit, deal with both their own political rivalries and with the various smaller powers on Earth which are not a member of any of the three major blocs.
These alliances are the World Economic Union, which takes in the Americas, Australia, Japan and others, the Human Reform League, led by China, Russia and India, and the Advanced European Union... the location of which you might be able to guess the by yourselves.
In the midst of this appears Celestial Being - a paramilitary organisation which has been given significant levels of funding and research over the past two hundred years, founded by a man called Aeolia Schenberg who set in motion a far-reaching plan which was intended to live on beyond his death, but who only publicly reveal themselves in 2307.
There are many cells and sub-groups in CB - not all of whom know about the others - but the story of the 00 anime looks at the cell which becomes the primary face of the organisation, who operate from the spaceship Ptolemaios - a group known as the Gundam Meisters.
The Meisters, all using code-names to hide their true identities, each pilot a distinct Gundam - a powerful mobile suit equipped with advanced technologies, most notably a power source known as the GN Drive, a unique power source that can only be constructed at Jupiter, and of which only five are known to exist. The four lead Gundams are each configured for a specific role in combat, and intended to be operated by their Meisters as a cohesive unit.
However, the Meisters themselves are by no means flawless. Each of them carries the scars and legacies of their former lives, each of them seeking some degree of justice, or perhaps absolution, by attempting to follow Celestial Being's self-imposed remit of bring war to an end.
And as you might imagine, the various alliances do not take the emergence of what they consider to be a rogue terrorist organisation lying down - and their own reactions lead to a series of events which change the course of human history...
...as do the secret machinations of other groups seeking to lay a claim on humanity's future.
In game terms, one could easily run an RPG set in this universe, drawing from the source material presented on-screen, in print (there are several manga series which act as side stories, which take advantage of the presence of the dispersed nature of Celestial Being as an organisation) and on drama CDs.
Also, one or two scales of tabletop games could be run. One could picture a system designed primarily for duels, which could even use the range of pre-existing model kits from Bandai - and which could have detailed sheets for each mobile suit.
Alternatively, a larger-scale game could be set around the kind of tactical operations which the various factions, such as Celestial Being, the three alliances, and the new agencies and factions which appear in season 2 (set in 2011) would be involved in.
So, does this sound like it might be a fun setting?
