New Home Grown Campaign setting - Space 2199

[2330ADUSA1]

Hello everyone,

I have joined a new company and have discovered I am surrounded by old timer RPGers that have plared Traveller in the past and would like to do it again. SO being a true GM for Traveller and liking my own In House rules and etc...I have decided to design a campaign for the players that fits thier flavor and interests here at my work for our weekly night campaign that will played in the conference room.

Here is my concept, based off Space 1999:

In the year 2199 the Earth has finally matured enough to unite under a united world government called The United Earth - UE. The world has formed a united space program called The United Earth Force - UEF. The UEF has a large Star Port on the planet located in the middle of the former USA, with two large Space stations about the Earth in the Lagrange Points one between the Earth and the moon and the other on the other side of the Earth. Now mankind has spent a lot of effort to set up operations on the Moon. The primary colony there is call Moon Base Alpha. There are many different outposts and installations all over the moon and the total everyday population on the Moon is currently slightly over 25,000+ Pop.

The moon has turned into the primary research and production ship yards for many of the world’s space vehicles, making the moon’s ship yard a very important and key operation center for the UEF. Much of the exploration and support flights come from moon base Alpha. The base has become pretty self sufficient over the years, with very little needed to imported from Earth.

The UEF maintains 250 Eagles, their main work horse spaceship on the moon. There are 150 Cargo, 50 Transports, 25 Medicall, and 25 Scientific Eagles. Along with the Eagles, there are 25 Mk IX Hawks, 6 Super Swifts, 3 Long Range Explorers, with the first UEF Cruiser being built in the Luna/moon shipyards. There are a number of other ship types that are either being developed or being constructed in the shipyards on the base. All production of any Eagle types, Super Swifts, and Mark IX Hawks are built out of these shipyards.

Currently the Research Farm/Think-Tank of UEF is working on a new project to form a shielding that will encompass the moon and defend it from any attack and bombardment. The goal is to create a planet wide shield that could defend the moon and other planets against any bombardment by meteors from orbit. A system of 30 Super Shield Generators have been built on the surface to enable the shielding to totally encompasses moon. These large power complexes have been completed and are now linked together, and the project is managed
from Moon Base Alpha main control.

So on (September 9th, 2199 at 12 noon local Luna/moon time) they powered up the system and linked all 30 of the Shielding Generators together and created a shield surrounding the moon. At that same time one Eagle was on the far side of the moon at the Nuclear Waste storage facility and was in the process of delivering a cargo of nuclear Waste. In the process it had an accident and crashed causing a massive explosion that set off that storage facility and it went critical and in the process a mega explosion happened.

Now part of the effect of the shielding was to actually make the moon or anything inside the field to actually move into Hyper Space (this was not known to the scientific team) and when the massive explosion happened, it acted like an engine and set the moon in motion. The moon to the rest of the world disappears, fazed and seeming vanished. On the moon everyone was thrown to floor where they were and when they got back up they were moving through Hyperspace. The base Commandeered ordered the system to be shut down and when they fazed back into normal space they were no longer within the Sol Star System. The moon was moving through space towards another star system, in which they were unsure where they actually were.
It was NOT Sol solar system.

After much debate by the scientists, they tried the shield again and they went into Hyperspace again and when they shut the system off again they materialized in a totally different star system. They were able to eventually figure out where they were and that they were heading towards the heart of the Milky way galaxy. They had no way to stop the moon from moving, but they figured out whenever they turned on the Shield it fazed the moon into Hyperspace and that the moons movement as caused by the massive explosion was acting as the drive system sending the moon through space.

So begins their journey of Moon base Alpha in 2199...to find their way home or to find a new
home!!!

The players will end up being a team that will explore the many new systems they end up flying through, and I will have new races and tech for them as they go on.

What are peoples thought?

Penn

 

[IanBruntlett]

Looking Good

 

[Renny]

I like it, but then I always was a sucker for the original i.e. Space 1999. Your concept of the gravimetric shielding creating a makeshift hyperspace shunt is interesting, and better thought out than the original ;-).

You mention in your write up that the shield was developed to protect the moon and other worlds from bombardment. Does this mean that other intelligent species have already been encountered?
It's not clear from the description. Personally I would rewrite it to imply that the shield was to protect from asteroid collisions and leave the discovery of strange new worlds and alien life to the brave souls of Moonbase Alpha. Don't forget to work in the subplot of the Meta probe. In the original show, the Meta probe was being prepared to launch and investigate a signal of possible extra-terrestrial origin from the planet Meta. You could use this as your over-arcing plot. Might want to rethink the flares though. Seriously, though, i'll be following this with interest.

 

[Hopeless]

Interesting, how about it was a field test of a new shield generator that was initially only going to protect a limited part of Alpha base but an overload brought on when the nuclear waste area blew up caused a short circuit with a long forgotten prototype drive intended for Project Meta but discontinued because they couldn't get it to work properly unaware that a design flaw was the real problem.
The shield overload set off the drive which reacted to built in safeties that detected the nulcear blast and immediately activated the drive sending the moon to safety unfortunately it wasn't calibrated properly and locked into the coronasphere of another star system reentering space safely.
I don't remember the name of the main scientist and friend of Koenig but I figure he worked out what had happened and managed to get it operational but they're still having trouble with directing their jump back home...

 

[2330ADUSA1]

Hi everyone,

The UE/UEF has not encountered any Alien life yet. Also the shielding is to protect against asteroids only. They built it on the Moon first, if it worked there, then the next step would be to build it for Earth itself. BTW Mars is also big in this same timelibne too, as the UE/UEF is involved in Terra Forming Mars now for 100 yrs with some success.

I like the smaller multiple power shield complexes (30) about the moon, for added plot lines. Actually I have all sorts of instalations and etc on the moon so there is plenty there. BTW at time of the game start, there are NO kids on the moon. It was a scientific and service base, and not a civilian colony. Nature does seem to happen though.

Penn

 

[Hopeless]

How are you going to handle the problem of extended exposure to zero gravity?

In Traveller 2300 they had a gene therapy that helped abate the problems with zero gravity and human physiology.

 

[2330ADUSA1]

Yes I am going to use the Gene therpy...aka...GST shots that aid the humans in this light. It is still a shot and yearly booster just to be a pain to all!

Plots within plts within plots....

Penn

 

[AndrewW]

Yes I am going to use the Gene therpy...aka...GST shots that aid the humans in this light. It is still a shot and yearly booster just to be a pain to all!

Plots within plts within plots....

Penn

Will they be able to make that on the moon?

 

[Sturn]

Excellent idea. Sounds like a SyFy channel show I would watch.

Have you considered what the closed environment upon the Moon would mean for the survival of the population? I would imagine that when the Moon passed through each system, ships would be sent out not just to explore, but to gather missing resources. Mining or "Refueling" teams would grow to be very important since the Moon is lacking in many essential resources. When the campaign gets repititious, this could be an entire new adventure arc. For example, the colony is running out of hydrogen/oxygen/xxx for fuel/air/food (pick one) due to the last few systems passed through having only desert or rock worlds. It has grown to become a near catastrophe as the colony has begun severe rationing. Adventures would include reactions to riots upon the Moon settlement, defending against "terroristic" raids on stockpiles from desperate people on the colony, and sending out the players in a last hope to find the resource that is needed. Some Battlestar Galactica elements there.

Sounds fun!

PS: I've always liked the idea of a reaction drive Traveller game stuck in the Sol system. My only worry was how it may become boring quickly with only a few worlds to explore, none of them being Gardens except Earth. Your scenario solves the problem of new worlds to explore while still allowing reaction drive mechanics without jump drives.

 

[Dave Chase]

Interesting concept.

Now for the flip side of the situation.

Earth no longer has a moon. Do you realize what will happen on Earth because of the lack of a moon?

Earth is looking for the Moon. They (the few in the know) realize (seriously) consider what happened to the Moon. But what they don't realize is that not only was the Moon's orbit (direction and speed) part of the equation but the explosion, so when they do create a few quickly put together ships to make the Jumps to search for the Moon, they are no where near it.


As for the Moon and it's situation. The explosion caused some fault line issues. With out the gravity of the Earth and the Sun to help stabilize (keep in the normal that is has been for eons) the Moon is slowly starting to fall apart. Each time they 'Jump' a bit more of the Moon seperates and the fault lines grow bigger and longer.



Dave Chase

 

[Sturn]

Interesting concept.
As for the Moon and it's situation. The explosion caused some fault line issues. With out the gravity of the Earth and the Sun to help stabilize (keep in the normal that is has been for eons) the Moon is slowly starting to fall apart. Each time they 'Jump' a bit more of the Moon seperates and the fault lines grow bigger and longer.

...revealing some underground chambers and artifacts (in later adventures, but before the Moon arrives at the center of the Galaxy to meet the Builders whom have set the entire campaign in motion).

A little more tweaking and Penn needs to find a TV executive.

 

[Sturn]

Here's a campaign timeline for your to pilfer what you like. Sorry I got a little carried away with your ideas:

(don't let the players know anything in advance)

1. Players are engaging in their current career(s) or just retired and received new jobs. Something pulls them all to the Moon. They have no idea what is coming or are directly involved in the Moon field experiment.

2. The Moon Stars Moving. The players don't know what is happening yet. Chaos ensues while the mystery of what just happened is solved.

3. Exploration. Passing from system to system. Gathering resources. Exploring new worlds. Meeting alien races. Solving problems. Have the players discover a primitive alien race early on. Note their architecture. I'll call them the Saurons.

4. The Moon is Cracking / Sauron Enigma. What to do over the rifts forming on the Moon? Players engaged in preventing a catastrophe when a rift threatens a colony. Discovery of some more advanced Saurons in another system. Mystery of what this means. The Saurons have artifacts of advanced technology. Perhaps these can be taken from these protagonists and used to help delay the Moon cracking. Some kindly Saurons warn that bad stuff awaits at the end of their trip to the center of the Galaxy.

5. Rioting. Lack of resources leads to riots, attempts to gain more resources. All while being hampered by a group of "terrorists" who wish to seize power and those pesky Saurons. Some Saurons have infiltrated the Moon? A hidden base hastily built in one of the cracks.

6. Moon Crack Exploration. Searching the cracks to find the hidden Sauron base. Discovering chambers with architecture and artifacts similar to what has been discovered on passing worlds. The first indication of the "Builders" who are feared and revered by the Saurons whom they call the "Judges" in their own language.

7. Climatic arrival at the center of the Galaxy. Meeting the Builders as a player group. Discovering the Builders/Judges are testing Humanity by bringing the Moon to them. Revelation that the Saurons were already judged, and their civilization was destroyed when they were deemed not worthy.

8. The Moon Turns Around. With the Judges failing to deliver their verdict, the Moon starts heading back to Earth. Panic of what this means. New Builder/Judger technology has been attached to the Moon (beneath?). Trying to unravel what the devices are. Are they devices that are guiding the Moon to destroy Earth? Bombs? Something benificial?

9. The Trip Home. The Moon returns through the same path visiting the same systems. Possibly at a quicker rate? The players get to visit worlds that may have been changed by their prior visits. This can lead to even more adventures such as combating a disease the Humans had brought to an alien world. Perhaps a once primitive civilization is now becoming advanced due to technology introduced, etc. Problems upon the Moon. Clashes for control. Calls for destruction of the Builder technology. Human terrorists attempt to destroy the Moon to save Earth. Some Sauron, which have joined the Moon colony (imprisoned perhaps) turn out to be useful (NPC?).

10. End Game. The final Judgement is up to the referee once the Moon arrives back at Earth. If the players did well, a boon for the human civilization, if not civilization on Earth is doomed.

 

[2330ADUSA1]

Many good ideas guys. Actually I had not considered the total end game plot line yet, BUT I usually allow the players to guide some of the plots and directions the campaign might take. For me the players in this campaign would begin to discover new technologies that could be added to humanities technology base as well. I was considering early on that the Moon would encounter a failed colony ship of a Alien race that was simular to humans and have them join the humans in their great adventure. About 250 or so of this Alien race and together they would begin to explore and unlock many plots. Unlike SGU they would have much more ability to effect matters. In time they will be able to do more than what they can at the beginning of the campaign.

So for me if I can have the campaign last for 2-3+ yrs I will be extremly happy. For me I have been playing and GMing Traveller for a long time and I do know how to make a good plot RPG game that keeps players involved and roleplaying. I always liked Space1999 and like its feel and flavor and feel that I can in this campaign deliver that same feel. Heck most of my players are in their mid to late 40's or early 50's. Also we are all IT/MIS folks and yes that means techno IT Unix/Linux geeks working for a Software Beta test and Bleeding Edge shop (OS, Hardware, Software, Storage, and Oracle rdbms). We all grew up watching Space1999 when it first came out and tell you show by show the action and plots. Heck I even remember UFO, and the Thunderbirds shows both also done by the same guys. All had their plus sides, but Space1999 was the best. I would love to see a modern remake of the show, and just feel what I defined here would work for todays critical minded viewer. I would never want to see the show go on SciFi as they would kill it after it become popular and replace it with some stupid reality based crap!

Penn

 

[daryen]

One other thing to think about on this: How much control do the Moonians have on their jumps? Obviously, they have no control over where they jump. But do they have control over when they jump? The reason is because, if they don't jump, they can spend quite a while in a given system. (From a game standpoint, pretty much as long as they want.) So, if they control when the jump happens, that can lead to a whole new set of issues:
- Have them meet a hostile system early on, forcing them to race to get everyone back so they can trigger the jump to avoid a takeover by the system powers.
- Have command conflict on how frequently to jump.
- Have them find a very nice system (could be populated or not). Do they abandon the moon?
- Have a subset abandon the moon in one system. How is their knowledge replaced? How is their skill replaced? What are they allowed to take?

But that is one of the defining points of the setting you will need to determine up front: How much control do they have on the timing of the jumps? And, assuming they don't jump in system, how long can they "linger" in any given system? (A month? A year? A decade? A lifetime?)

And, really, you don't need an endgame. If you let them jump ridiculous distances (a la the Sauron idea), sure. But, if you just go system to system, then it will take multiple lifetimes to get to the core (assuming they don't settle down at some point).

 

[2330ADUSA1]

Ok the Base Command on Alpha can't really steer the moon but they can control how long the moon stays fazed and thus in hyperspace. They have not been able to gauge yet how far they will travel by how long they are in hyperspace. Another thing gravity wells (pull from a sun) does have a effect on the speed and direction of the moon. So they could shut down the system and come out of Hyper Space and appear back in Real Space between systems or in a solar system. I have worked out a random roll chart system that I am still tweaking for what base area they will appear in. For plot lines they could be in a system for a couple of months, but then the moon will always be being pulled towards another gravity body (planet and/or sun) and they will need to go back into hyperspace or risk problems.

As for plots...they will encounter a Alien colony ship in a system that the Aliens are alot lite humans in many ways. They will look slightly (elven in nature) and have minor PSI abailities. Depending on the first contact efforts of the players, that will set the mode for how the two races will react. If they play as would be planned, this ark that needs help might join the humans on the moon. Thus adding their knowledge and 250+ pop to the mix. The Alien race, is slightly more advanced in some ways than mankind. This will allow me through ingame play to add new technology and systems to the players.

Another plot is that they will discover a crashed and covered Alien space craft on the moon, and they will be able to discover that this alien race was conducting tests on pre-modern humans. They will discover other signs about this same race as they travel, and will discover that Humans look alot like this ancient race. They will encounter another Alien race that will call humans Allinarr and flee from them, only to discover they look exactly like the Ancient Aliens whom were called Allinarr. They will pick up more technologies here and there expanding their technology in some areas. They will also eventually get resupplied and have a group of these 2nd Alien race join them as well on their great quest and that race will resupply the moon with resources to aid them all.

My goal is to keep it going and running for 2-3 years of weekly game play.

Penn

PS: Yes I love the civil disorder and unrest as well too. The Red Faction plot line will be used as a secret organization that surfaces too. Nothing like good old hatred to add to the color of things and muddy the waters.

 

[Dave Chase]

I am not an astro, space or even general physics trained kind of guy, but

Unless the Moon gets real close to those other gravity bodies, there will be only minute to no influence on the moon's path in the short amount of time that they are in or near a system.

Unless there is possibly some alien tech that causes the Moon to move closer to another spacial body.

Another unless, is that the farther the distance traveled per jump, then the greater the deflect at the end will be.

Ie. 1 degree over 100 miles is nothing, over 1 million miles you notice something, over 1000 parsecs you really notice that you are slightly off course. It could be a way to mess with the space gear heads mind, once they think they have figured things out.

Dave Chase

 

[2330ADUSA1]

Well first off, since none of us can jump into our own spaceship and then faze into Hyperspace and test out if what I am describing actually works, I think I am pretty safe. The laws of the universe work differntly in Hyperspace, but sadly no one knows what those laws actually are. No I as the GM have my own difined laws that I am using, but the players will not know those.

Remember to this is all SciFi with some footing in real world laws/tech. My focus is the game and having fun through RPGing, not explaining tech 100% I do strive to try and relect realistic fantasy but at some point one needs to just go with something and believe.

Penn

 

[Hopeless]

One other thing to think about on this: How much control do the Moonians have on their jumps? Obviously, they have no control over where they jump. But do they have control over when they jump? The reason is because, if they don't jump, they can spend quite a while in a given system. (From a game standpoint, pretty much as long as they want.) So, if they control when the jump happens, that can lead to a whole new set of issues

Just a thought but what if the initial explosion charged up whatever actually caused the jump in the first place?

Perhaps after they arrive their investigation reveals that the nuclear blast has been absorbed by whatever was intended to serve as the power source for the jump drive and its slowly cycling back to full power whereupon it'll jump again BUT taking care to release this power in micriscopic amounts reveals how far they can jump the moon normally, nothing like what they initially experienced but gradually after having it work a few times they figure out how to at least estimate how far they'll travel, but that leads to the problem of how insure they don't rematerialise inside a star or within the gravitational pull of a gas giant...

Perhaps a better option is that the initial blast was a one off and they spend the first few sessions in the first destination system until they uncover an alternative means of travelling but this one only allowing trips between solar systems and they have to slowly figure out where Earth is to have any hopes of returning?

 

[Dave Chase]

Well first off, since none of us can jump into our own spaceship and then faze into Hyperspace and test out if what I am describing actually works, I think I am pretty safe. The laws of the universe work differntly in Hyperspace, but sadly no one knows what those laws actually are. No I as the GM have my own difined laws that I am using, but the players will not know those.

Remember to this is all SciFi with some footing in real world laws/tech. My focus is the game and having fun through RPGing, not explaining tech 100% I do strive to try and relect realistic fantasy but at some point one needs to just go with something and believe.

Penn

Nothing at all wrong with that (what you said). Me, I guess the years exposed to gearheadness of others (and sometimes my self), I find that I need to have some ready made explaination for those that dig deep into the little things like math, physics and such.

Been some time since I played a SciFi RPG game with others that RL facts didn't come into play.

LOL

Dave Chase

 

[2330ADUSA1]

I meant nothing by it, other than my GMing style is to focus on the plots, and roleplaying. Plus I have been extremely lucky to have the same core player group for 12+ yrs playing in either my Home Grown D&D v2.5 campaign or my Traveller campaign. Now this time I am starting a new group at my job with unknown players that are returning to gaming after stopping for a long time. They all seem like roleplayers and that is what I enjoy the most anyway.