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Ebonstorm

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  1. Given my recent exploration into creating alien characters with BRP, it is safe to say that game balance will be the province of the Gamemaster, not the game system. It is unrealistic in games whose power scales are greater than Epic or Superhuman to even worry about balancing the game. There are sufficient powers, mutations and other abilities that the most effective means of balancing the game will be HOW the GM deals with the players and their circumstances, and less on what the players start the game with. The basic rule always applies: These rules are a guideline for the development of characters in a roleplaying setting. The GM has the final say as to what appears in his game. End of Story. So if a player decides that he wants to create something that defies the spirit of the game that the GM is creating, then the GM has to evoke his right to deny said character construct until it resembles something the GM wants to be dealing with in his game. Balance is not real when you get players who can do incredible and fantastic things without effort. The Spirit of the Game is what matters most. Can everyone have fun without anyone taking too much of the spotlight? If not, then something went wrong somewhere...
  2. Update: Using Excel, I made some major changes to the character creation process because I felt that the first description of the character did not jibe with the racial description of the character. Yes, I know there is a bunch of other stuff I need to finish but I wanted to revise this first. I think it will help me in defining how other races will be made later. Changes include: 1. Using mutations to describe species characteristics and abilities 2. Using superpowers to describe technological devices I will (as soon as my son will let me sit down at the computer again): 1. Rewrite the racial profile to improve its overall quality showing more descriptive information about the Corva and its attendant races and technology. 2. Include a profile for the Diplomat whose character is described in the PDF to round out what a potential character might look and sound like in terms of the game. I was mainly trying to show how I generated a character using the BRP ruleset. I have included a link to the PDF below so that the formatting of the Excel document would remain unchanged. Any ideas YOU might have on generating alien races using BRP would be greatly appreciated. I will get the other stuff here done as quickly as I can. Thaddeus Updated Corva Character Description
  3. The dust form is one of its low metabolism methods of movement and interaction with more delicate species, since it takes less energy to create and maintain the cloud form than any of its others. It can easily subsist from thermal molecular energy taken from the atmosphere, or from the radiant energy of the local star. Other forms of energy, even the heat of a living creature would be enough to sustain one for a time. In this form, it is not radioactive, so it is the form most likely to be used around creatures vulnerable to its more radioactive solid forms. When it is using the crust of a planet as a transport mechanism, it is binding its consciousness to the motion of atoms and electrons so it is in a more dreamlike state during this transition, more like a bit torrent, growing more aware as more of its consciousness streams to the new location. For the record, there is magic in the Galaxy, this just does not happen to be one of those places. The Mariovel believe in things beyond their comprehension, but feel that what they comprehend is already enough for them to handle so they leave magic to other races with an interest in such ephemeral phenomena.
  4. I did not mean to slight anyone if I have not answered in a timely fashion. I have just started a new job and have been there about a month. I am an IT Administrator and it keeps me working odd hours. When I get home, I have an autistic young son who demands time and attention. I have to sneak writing in on the train or at lunch or really late at night. When I post, I often have only a few minutes before my brain goes offline without warning. I have compiled my notes and have been working on developing a product called the Twenty Moons of Toranor. It has been very slow going as I have been trying to work with the new rules of Basic Roleplaying and when they don't provide something I need, I have to create new rules or rule options to cover that topic. I am also having to provide a setting that spans a galaxy and a couple of hundred thousand years or so. Big task, little time. Ever the conundrum. I have great respect for Jason who managed to get BRP done despite all of the obstacles he had going on at the time. I will try and be more mindful of the board and the questions posed in the future. Thaddeus
  5. Clean and makes good sense to me. I will be plucking this for my GM screen....
  6. I am still revising the Corva notes that I got back from you guys, so I thought I would go ahead and introduce a partner species that works with the Corva, the silcon-based Corva, planet-shapers and mechanical engineers. The Mariovel The second most influential race of the Old Galactics, the Mariovel are masters of industrial technologies and planet-shaping. A silicon-based race, they are an even-tempered and focused people with an unusual physiology. Biology: Formed of crystal that coalesced around superhot sulfurous vents in their home oceans, the Mariovel began as single crystals structures that interacted with electrical signals in their electrically active oceans, and bound with other crystals with similar chemical and physical structures. These crystals grew more complex and over a period of 2 billion years developed rudimentary intelligences. Initially immobile, the Mariovel grew to immense size, similar to coral reefs on Earth. They maintained this size until a planetary catastrope reduced the depth of their oceans and their survivors were force above the seas for the first time. The introduction of new exotic radioactive matter (believed now to be a part of an exploding neutron star) caused a transformation in the species introducing a higher level of intelligence. With chemical transformations in the lithosphere, differing electro-chemical crystalline structures competed for rarer materials and this competition also increased the overall species intelligence. The Mariovel learned to combine similar structures and these combined structures were more intelligent than their lesser combined brethren. Each 'cellular' structure can perform any process required by a 'single' body and the communal intelligence retains a sense of self, preferring to work with others who share its physical and 'quantum entanglement'. The Mariovel developed tools that allowed them to harness more of the raw materials of their hellish world and their tool building allowed them greater mastery over their environment and later themselves. Resistant to heat and pressure, able to communicate using chemical, electrical, sonic and photoelectric means directed through their crystalline molecular structures. Appearance: Appearing in a variety of sizes, shapes and textures, the Mariovel are as diverse as the chemicals that comprise their collective intelligences. They are capable of movement by extending pseudopods over land binding their molecular information into the strata of a planet and moving through the crust of the planet until they reform at their desired destination, or by breaking itself into a cloud of electrically charged dust and floating through the air. The Mariovel form is quite dynamic! Physiology: A creature comprised of complex silicon and carbon molecular chains that uses environmental, radioactive and chemical energy to maintain its lifeforce. A member of the specie is capable of adapting itself to live in extremely hostile environments (as long as there is sufficient energy available to sustain it). With sufficient energy, the Mariovel are almost immortal, constantly renewing from the chemical and crystalline structures available to them from the environment. Since most worlds have silicon, the Mariovel can live on almost any world if they can bring their own energy sources. They have the ability to reduce their life activity until they resemble little more than stones if they should find themselves without sufficient energy to support themselves. This extended hibernation can last for millenia. Technology: The technology of the Mariovel is crystalline in nature and they use crystal structures to move information, store and convert energy, and transform matter using fission and fusion. Their technology and physical abilities allow them to harness the energy of a world, both at the surface and at the core. They are extraordinary miners, immune to pressure and heat, and have as a culture, devised unique methods for creating worlds capable of being lived on by a variety of races. Their crystalline technology is used by the Hegemony for any number of computational devices and mechanical intelligences use them to augment their already considerable mental abilities. They also have an affinity for creating megastructures composed of complex crystalline structures. Many Corva vessels are composed of a single complex mega-molecular chain woven over a composite endoskeleton, making their ships incredibly structurally sound and nearly impregnable. It also allows the Mariovel to move their consciousness throughout the ship nearly instantly to see and repair damage. Temperament: Highly intelligent, the Mariovel have developed unusual methods of intellectual development; one of its more signature methodologies is to have a single creature splitting its intellect into a multiple intelligences in order to have more than one point of view on a particular topic. Multiple members of the species can also perform a gestalt and merge their minds for an increase in processing capabilities. There are several subspecies variants of the Mariovel race based in different chemical and physical crystal structures, but they are overall more alike that different, with differences in culture on how to work and live with a world. Culture: The Mariovel were not a star-faring race when they first encountered the Corva, but they had managed to send crystalline bundles to planets in their star system to colonize all of the worlds in their solar system. Once they had trade with the Corva, their additions to the computational abilities of the living ships of the Corva allowed the two races to achieve a level of interstellar travel that benefited both. Despite the Mariovel minor cultural groups, they are in a strong bond with the Corva with both groups gaining benefits from their relationships. The Mariovel consider planet-shaping a holy cause and enjoy the creation of new natural environments even if they cannot live in them easily. The Mariovel live on hundreds of worlds and asteroid habitats. They don't tend to live in more racial adapted environments unless they are able to utilize shield or advanced nanotechnology to protect others from their naturally radioactive and chemically active physiologies. I dont have a character profile yet, but I would be interested in knowing what you think. Thanks again, Thaddeus
  7. Actually, now that you mention Shuma Gorath it would be an adequate mental representation of the Corva, with a few choice technological bits and multicolored photo-chromatasphores (light emitting, pigment changing cells in their skin) that they use for communication thrown in. I am ashamed to admit that I did not even remember him from my Marvel arcade days... Thanks for the refresh. Thaddeus
  8. Hello everyone, I am in the middle of testing some ideas and needed some help. I have included a brief overview of a character race for my Twenty Moons of Toranor Space Opera, but because I am not versed in this forum, I had to include the document as a PDF attachment/download. Please don't let that dissuade you from taking a look. I have tried to generate a complex character using the rules from the BRP manual. It can be difficult and confusing so please forgive the document complexity. Thanks for your help. Thaddeus The Corva The race that created the current Galactic Hegemony and is one of the primary maintainers of the industrial and military might of the Hegemony. A relatively benevolent race with a strong sense of order and desire to create a stable and harmonious galaxy, it has been their goal for millennia. As a member of the Galactic Council, they are a powerful influence for law and order in the Galaxy. -Biology: A carbon-based life form with two shorter arms, two longer and more sensitive tasting and sensing limbs and two legs and believed to have been descended from an aquatic ancestor, the Corva are now amphibious able to live both on land and in water and their worlds and habitats reflect this dual nature. -Appearance: Standing 4.5 to 5 feet tall and resembling a Terran octopus or squid, their muscular bodies come in a variety of native colors and they have the ability to change their skin color with pigment altering chromatophores. They are also able to emit light from their bioluminescent pigment organs. Their bodies are supple but resilient. -Physiology: The Corva have large and complex brains within their carbon-fiber based cartilage and super-dense muscular central body and have tentacles with strong and dexterous cilia at the end of them. Able to speak multiple languages, both sonic, kinesthetic and photochromatic, they were the creators of the Galactic Trade Languages in use in the Hegemony today. Their bodies are covered with an organically flexible sheath that holds water within their bodies and processes their oxygen for them. Physically robust, the Corva have genetically engineered their species to the peak of their genomes capability. Able to remain submerged indefinitely, strong and powerful swimmers able to reach speeds of 100 mph for short bursts, capable of moving over land at speeds of 35 mph for periods of hours, able to suspend their body's functions for weeks and remain alive, and with their technological enhancements, the Corva have one of the most adaptable militaries in the Galaxy. -Technology: The Corva have a diverse range of technology and are generally at the forefront of technological development. They have been a space-faring race for well over 1 million years colonizing their solar system and nearby stars with generation-ships before their creation of a faster than light propulsion system. They created their fast interstellar drive over 50,000 years ago allowing them to colonize over fifty percent of the Milky Way Galaxy during the peak of the Hegemony. Adaptive and creative, the Corva are constantly pushing the envelope of new sciences. Capable of Corva-forming worlds, there are thousands of planets that are now able to support the Corva and their attendant species. Their technology allows them to build super-dreadnaughts that are the equal of the fleets of other species, so their ability to maintain the peace in the Hegemony has been relatively unchallenged until the First and Second Galactic Wars. With their development of Pulse technology, the Corva have the fastest sentient ships in the Galaxy and the most effective weapons of any other of the Old Galactic Races. -Temperament: The Corva are a relatively nonviolent species but in their background war has been a part of their development, so they have the ability to wage war but believe themselves to be beyond the need for war and aggression. With their amazing communication abilities, they attempt to interact with alien species diplomatically, culturally and socially before they would consider warfare of any kind. -Culture: When two Corva are in total communication, they will emit, light, colors, sounds and kinesthetic information. Their language can be communicated completely in any single one of those but when they are using all of them they are using their most advanced multi-tonal, photo-chromatic language. Their overall culture has over 3 million years of recorded history. Servitor Races -pending Uplifted Races -pending Machine Intelligences -pending The Corva PDF file. Includes an attempted character creation using BRP.
  9. I am working on some ideas for vehicle and overall technology creation that might be very different from the ideas being used in the new BRP. I find the superpowers section to be very difficult to use and the way you would have to build things cumbersome. I am hoping to reduce that difficulty down just a bit. I will keep you informed. I am glad this could help you in any way.
  10. I went through my entire BRP collection and found almost nothing on vehicle creation. I did find these notes from an old module created in 1987 and have copied those rules here so that a base of vehicle rules could be stored while new ideas are bashed about. Basic Rules for Vehicles Created in The Shattered Isle – Rebels against the Mutant Master (Chaosium product 2107 – 1987) These basic rules were created by Steve Perrin The most important vehicle characteristics are: speed, cargo capacity (including passengers and crew), armor and weapons. Six types of vehicles are present in this scenario: ancient Irish battle tanks, ancient Irish armored personnel carriers (APCs), ancient Irish military helicopters, a Dark Empire burrowing machine (the Mole), combat ornithopters, and cargo ornithopters. All are described below. When attacking a vehicle, one must state what part of the vehicle he is aiming at. Choices include turret (if any), wheels (or treads), engine compartment, crew compartment, etc. Figure out how much damage penetrated the armor and then roll 1D10 for each piece of vital equipment in the target area if your roll is equal to or less than the penetrating damage, it was hit. “Vital Equipment” includes crewmembers, engine, fuel containers, ammo, weapons, transmission, etc. It is possible to penetrate armor and not hit anything. In general, if a piece of equipment is hit, it is destroyed. Dangerous substances such as ammunition and fuel explode if hit by a flamelance or other explosive device. Otherwise, they only explode if the D10 roll was an even number. Any such explosion kills everyone inside the tank, and gives anyone nearby outside 3D6 damage. Example: The New Fenians fire a flamelance at the turret side of one of the Elephants’ tanks. The side armor is 15 and a 17 is rolled. It penetrates! The turret holds two weapons, two crew members and a supply of ammo for the two weapons. Hence 5 D10s are rolled, one for each potential target. Any roll of two or less indicates a hit. The results indicate that the autocannon is hit, as is one of the crew members. The tank crew breathes a sigh of relief. If the flamelance had struck the ammunition, the tank would have exploded! The autocannon is taken out of action, though it might be repairable with a Mechanical Lore roll (up to the gamemaster in general, the more damage that has been done, the less repairable an item is). The crewman that is injured takes 2 points of damage that is easily absorbed by his plate armor. Examples of Vehicle Technology using these Rules Ancient Eirish Battle Tanks These ancient turret vehicles are smaller than 1980s tanks, and represent an advanced equivalent of light tanks or reconnaissance vehicles. Two parallel weapons project from the front of the small turret. Speed: up to 44 kph cross-country, 2x that on smoother roads Cargo: 3 men, 2 in the turret (commander/spotter and gunner), 1 driver in the hull, no extra internal space but up to 300kg can be strapped to the top without affecting suspension Armor: 30 points of armor on the front, 20 everywhere else Weapons: Flame Cannon and autocannon can be fired separately or together. But if fired together, they can only be fired at the same target. The autocannon can fire either high-explosive (HE) or armor piercing (AP) shells at the whim of the operator. HE shells do less damage but explode, doing damage to everything in a 3 yard radius. The big advantage of the HE shell is you don’t have to hit the target directly, you can hit the area near it which adds a +20% to his chances of success when firing. Weapons Damage Range Shots Flamelance 7D6 200m unlimited Autocannon (AP) 3D10 100m 60 Autocannon (HE) 2D6 100m 40 Ancient Eirish Armored Personnel Carriers (APC) These vehicles are intended to carry infantry into battle and support them in combat. They are about the same size as the tanks, but with a larger hull and a smaller turret containing only a single weapon. Speed: up to 45 kph cross-country, 2x that on smooth roads. It can float and travel across water like a boat, at a speed of 5 kph. Cargo: can carry up to 8 passengers, a crew of two (driver and gunner) and up to 1000 kg of cargo inside. Armor: 10 points of armor all around Weapons: One man turret houses an autocannon using the same ammunition as the tank. Ancient Eirish Combat Helicopter These light helicopters are much like the military helicopters used in Vietnam. Each carriers two rocket pods and has a nose turret in front. Speed: up to 190 Kph Cargo: has a crew of two (one pilot and one gunner), and can carry up to 400kg extra. Any passengers must be included in 400 kg limit. Armor: 10 points of armor all around Weapons: The nose turret uses an autocannon similar to the one on the tanks and APCs. The rocket pods each hold 4 rockets and the gunner can fire any number of them at once, from 1 to all 8, though if all are fired simultaneously, they must all be directed at the same target. The rockets explode, doing 6d6 to everything within 5 meters. Like the HE shells for the autocannon, chances to hit human targets are increased by +20 percentiles. A rocket must hit a tank or APC directly to harm it. Helicopter Weapons Weapons Damage Range Shots Rocket Pod (2) 6D6 300m 4 (8) Autocannon (AP) 3D10 100m 60 Autocannon (HE) 2D6 100m 40 Dark Empire Mole Machine This device resembles a gigantic screw with mechanical clawed feet extending from the sides and rear. It is intended to dig, and does that well. The mole is waterproof, though it cannot float, and has its own air supply. Speed: up to 20 kph above ground or in an open tunnel 1 Kph while burrowing. Cargo: has a crew of one operator. It can carry up to 1200 Kg extra. Any passengers must be included in the 1200 kg limit. Armor: 10 points of armor all around Weapons: The Mole is unarmed. Dark Empire Combat Ornithopter The two war ornithopters sent by Huon are made to look like bats. The pilot sits in the bat’s mouth. Speed: up to 70 kph Cargo: has one pilot. Can carry up to 1000 kg extra. Any passengers must be included in that 1000 kg limit. Armor: 10 points of armor all around Weapons: twin flame cannons extending from the machines “shoulders” out past its “head.” The pilot normally fires both cannons at once, at the same target. Dark Empire Cargo Ornithopter The two cargo ornithopters owned by Clyd are made to resemble winged oxen. Speed: up to 60 kph Cargo: One pilot. Can carry up to 3000 kg extra. Any passengers must be included in that 3000 kg limit. Armor: 2 points of armor all around Weapons: none. Rules Extensions – Automatic Weapon Combat Two types of automatic rapid-fire weapons are presented in this adventure: The autorifle (for infantry use) and the autocannon (mounted on tanks, APCs and helicopters). Both weapons use the same rules. Automatic weapons may fire more than a single shot on the user’s DEX. For each shot fired in a burst, the chance to hit is increased by 5%, with the exception that no matter how many shots are fired, the chance to hit cannot more than double. Roll once for all attacks against a single target. If the attack succeeds, roll an appropriate die to determine how many bullets or shells actually hit the target. For instance, if 8 shots are fired in a burst, roll 1D8 to determine the number of rounds that hit the target; if three shots are fired then 1D3; and so forth. Only the first bullet or round criticals if a critical hit is rolled. All other rounds hit normally. Clarification: Since no examples of this skill are given, it is assumed that the number that cannot double is the player’s base chance to hit with the weapon. Example: So if a lowly soldier-slave of Granbretan with an autorifle base skill of 20% were to fire a full 10 round burst on a cave demon that surprises him, he would only be able to add +20% to his skill base since he was inexperienced with the weapon and the rule says that he could not add more bonus percentages than would double his base skill. He would be able to roll a D10 to determine the number of rounds that strike the target, however. If he were in danger of running out of ammunition, he would fire only a four round burst and gain the maximum bonus possible for his skill level (4 rounds at +20%). A ten round burst should add up to +50% to the weapon skill of a user that uses 10 rounds (+5% per round), in the hands of a skilled infantryman with 75% in autorifle, using 10 rounds would increase his ability to 125%!
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