> Date: Sat,  8 Jun 2002 14:21:58 CDT
> From: Jennifer Jackson 
>
> Hiya....
> 
> [snip]
> 
> I've gotten it into my head to work on a new game. I'm sure it'll be simply 
> ages in development as all I've got so far is one page scrawled in a 
> notebook with the basic "what if" premise. I must admit, though, that I've 
> gone and intimidated myself with the setting. I intend for it to be a sort 
> of basic space opera kind of thing (e.g. Star Trek, Bab5, etc.). Travel to 
> the stars. Encounters with aliens. New technology. All that fun stuff.
> 
> What I'm looking for is some advice on what to world-build into this. I've 
> gone out on the web looking for science fiction rpg's, and there seem to be 
> precious few. They appear to be largely overwhelmed by the fantasy sites. 
> Granted, I'm trying to stay away from anything that's from a more 
> established setting popularized in media (those same things I mentioned 
> above). And I haven't settled on a system to use, if I'm going to use 
> anything beyond homegrown. 

Don't even think about a system yet; a good background can be used with any 
system, with a little ingenuity.

> I guess the real question is what sorts of 
> topics does one need to cover in developing this sort of setting?

A few standard questions:

1) How does FTL work? Not the handwaving science, but the basics, like,
* is it instantaneous jump, or some form of hyperspace or warp travel?
* can you jump to 'any' system from the one you're in (ST), or are you 
  restricted by routes or something similar? (B5)
* is anything 'special' required for FTL travel, a psionic, a stargate, etc.?

2) How big is the governed area? A dozen worlds? Hundreds? Thousands? If it's 
large, you'll only be dealing with a smaller chunk, but knowing what's beyound 
the boundaries will help.

3) Is there FTL communication, or is communication via courier ship, and hence 
no faster than the speed of travel? This has a *huge* impact on government, 
trade, and many other aspects of the game background. This ties into #2 above; 
it's hard to govern a large area under a ship-based communication model.

Those three will define what the 'universe' is like, and from there, many 
other details will flow, like water from a spring.

> To what 
> level of detail does one need to define alien races and cultures?

First, what are the role on aliens in your campaign? You could do gobs of 
aliens (Star Wars), or lotsa aliens who look an awful lot alike (ST, B5), or 
maybe even NO aliens (Dune). Once you know the frequency, your question 
becomes easier: The less the quantity, the more the quality and depth of 
definition required.


> Do I need 
> a cosmological background (as I often use in fantasy settings)? 

Not in the same sense; what's more important is a history sketch; what's 
happened to create the interstellar government, what relations are like 
between the alien races and/or governments, is there a backstory (B5) or just 
consecutive episodes (ST)?

> And so 
> forth. I haven't really played in a science fiction setting myself, though 
> I've covered a wide range of fantasy and horror RPGs over the years. I 
> don't want to miss any areas, or gloss over anything important.
> 
> I'm in a very, very, very early stage of getting started on this, so 
> anything anyone can offer on any aspect of this would be appreciated.
> 
> Thanks,
> Jenn

Hope this helps!


-- 
Bob Slaughter, rslau@mindspring.com     http://www.mindspring.com/~rslau/
North Georgia Modurail: http://www.mindspring.com/~rslau/ngm/
In which language does the word 'taxi' mean "I cannot drive"?
e'osai ko sarji la lojban fo lonu pilno -- www.lojban.com


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