Etherscope

[Angel Tarragon]

I've been contemplating for a while now, getting my hands on Etherscope. I am curious though about the general flavor of the game, for some reason I have it stuck in my head that it is a blend of Victorian era roleplayying with advanced steamcraft.

Please tell me all you can about it.

 

[Crothian]

It's more of a modern Victorian feel to me. But it is also a horror game of sorts. Good books though, I really enjoyed them.

 

[Galieo]

I agree with Crothian; the game mechanic is more modern rules, but the social aspects are definitely Victorian.

BTW, I have never GM'ed an Etherscope game, but I'm trying to get a PbP game started here: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=193116

 

[Stormborn]

The setting is an alternate history's 1984, where Vicotrian ideas and politics still exist with only slight changes. Ethertech takes the places of both steamtech and cybertech, but blends the two together very succesfully while retaining the best flavor of both. Horror elements do exist, mainly related to the etherscope and in keeping with some of the Victorian era lit, but can be used to the degree that you wish.

Most PCs are baseline humans, but variations exist created by A Brave New World-esque form of eugencis. Cybernetic analogs are also possible. Classes are modifications of the d20 Modern system, only in the sense of progressing through 10 levels with feats and talent trees, but are far more setting specific and flavorful. Two single classed PC of the same base class can prdocue widely different character concepts easilly throgh skil and talent choices. Combine base classes or add in advanced classes for more specific concepts. The game is worth it for social mechancs and fighting styles alone in my opinion.

You can easily play a wide variety of games with just the core book:
-martial arts(seeting wise primarilly in the west, but need not be completly so)
-occult investigators (with or without horror)
-espionage and covert ops
-pulpy swashbuckling adventure (complete with zepplins)
-social and political intrigue
-criminal gangs and organized crime
-cyberpunk (even a whole game spent in the 'scope)
-no doubt many more but it has been a while since I looked at the book.

 

[malladin]

In terms of general flavour we were trying to achieve a synergy of Victoriana and cyberpunk themes, with a cthulu-esque horror element underneath it all. The main themes of Victoriana and cyberpunk we think mesh very nicely - both have strong dystopian themes, and technological progress, and the human price of such progress, is key to both genres. We wanted to create a world where you can do all the usual cyberpunk stuff (netrunning, megacities with flying cars, matrix-style combat, etc) whilst still retaining Victorian themed technology and society, but pumping up the volume on the inhuman aspects of victorian society in the same way that gibsonesque cyberpunk does for the 1980s greed-is-good culture. Further reading on the cyberpunk ideas behind it in particualr can be found in my blog - http://www.malladinsgate.com/designblog/blogitem.php?ReportDate=2005-04-13&Item=1&.

In terms of the games you can play with Etherscope we wanted to be as broad as possible - Etherscope is as "real" and "whole" as we could make it and being so means there's loads of different possibilities.

Aside from those mentioned by Stormborn, you can also play military games (with cool steam-tech power armour), or Savage South (Wild West with added cyberware).

Cheerio for now.

Ben