Hopeless said:
Been wondering about this.
Lets say you're using the core rules what options would you like to see included in a game?
I'll answer this with my published setting, Outer Veil, in mind.
Hopeless said:
Would you prefer a Star Wars style background or a Star Trek type where you're in a largely peaceful environment rather than the upheaval of an Empire in the throes of rebellion?
Neither Star Wars nor Star Trek (or Mass Effect, for that matter, but Firefly and Alien(s). Large, all-out interstellar wars are difficult to ignore and tend to dominate the setting and its narrative, and thus are more fitting to a story-driven game than to a sandbox (Outer Veil was designed with the sandbox in mind). Large wars also favour big armies with big 'toys' (battleships, deathstars, carriers, large troop formations) and sometimes there is much less focus on the 'little guy'. I prefer brushfire wars, pirates, terrorism and counter-terrorism, corruption, corporate intrigue... There could be multiples in the same setting and they could be ignored or focused on as the Referee and players wish.
While Outer Veil has only one official government, the Federated Nations of Humanity, the fact that communications are limited to the speed of travel and that travel is 2 parsecs per week at best (with a brand-new TL11 ship) prevents it from having too much centralized control over the periphery. Space is just too big to be dominated in such a monolithic manner with such slow communications. Even the megacorporations are forced to rely on trusted agents and local managers with a lot of agency (that is, freedom of action and choice) rather than just have their board command everybody directly from Earth. Law on the fringes of explored space is virtually non-existant except for what the local authorities manage to enforce - with limited resources. This also makes corruption relatively easy to conceal and laws relatively easy to re-intrepret in a local manner, so the far colonies are highly varied in government style, culture and law despite the best efforts of the central government.
This also makes PCs matter. Big starships are expensive and you can't put a 1,000-dton cruiser in each and every star system. So the captain of a 300-dton Frigate - who might be a PC - might very easily find herself the ultimate governmental authority in several parsecs' radious with help several weeks away at best. A few PCs in a small trader might find themselves facing choices that could save or doom an entire colony.
Hopeless said:
Do you want alien races or a human only setting?
No living sentient aliens found so far, at least two dead alien civilizations known. Live aliens take too much focus from the game and did not fit the Outer Veil concept and state of mind, which is about the Human struggle to colonize the final frontier. Dead aliens are great plot-hooks for archeology, tomb-raiding and mysteries, but there are no inter-species politics in this setting.
Yet.
Hopeless said:
How much psionics do you want involved whether a monastic style background ala Jedi or something less benevolent like the Psi Corps?
Psionics are very new to the Outer Veil setting and can be easily ignored if the Referee and players so desire. There is a Psi Corps equivalent of sorts, but it is very young and not necessarily malevolent.
Also, psions are very difficult to regulate in the far frontiers where government authority is almost nonexistant.
Hopeless said:
Do you want a storyline or a series of one shots?
Both are possible in the Outer Veil setting.
Hopeless said:
Would you be willing to provide a background for your character like for example designing your character's home system and throw in subplots or prefer to keep things as minimal as possible rather than run the risk your gm will make use of your supplied details?
Most star systems and worlds in the Outer Veil universe are only sketched out in very general details. This allows for the Referee and players to flesh out details as they see fit, as long as they are in accord with the general theme of things.
Hopeless said:
More importantly how set are you with the Traveller rules?
Outer Veil uses most of the Mongoose Traveller rules as written, with a few exceptions, such as higher survival rates in cold sleep and a maximum productible tech level of 11. Other than that, it's Traveller.
Hopeless said:
If say Jump Drives don't use as much fuel as previously stated or you'd rather use the alternate systems of warp drives or hyperspace gates what would you view on all of this be?
I prefer to use Jump Drives as written. Anything faster and/or easier to use, not to mention FTL comms, changes the setting much. In fact, the Outer Veil setting was built around the comm lag, and faster communications might unravel some of its main themes.
Hopeless said:
Whats your opinion on a Traveller Sandbox?
I think that Traveller is a sandbox game at its heart. The rules are about generating a detailed universe and letting the players play in it, rather than building a core story and letting play revolve around it.