What do you like or don't like in sci-fi rpg

[tzor]

For me, sci fi roleplaying is a lot like fantasy role playing; it has to be reasonable, consistant, and interesting. Of course it needs to generally fit the genre it is supposed to represent, but that is labeling more than anything else.

I have to laugh a little when I hear someone mention traveller as "realistic." Any attempt to protray the future beyond 25 years is never going to be realistic, one only has to look at 1950 literature about what 2000 was going to be like to see that. The important thing to traveller is that it is reasonable; the rules seem to make sense from general notions in physics. They are consistant, for the most part, and they are playable.

Once you bring in warp drive, jump mechanics, and so forth, you have broken the first and general rule of hard science fiction because they are plot devices not designed with the notion of using currently known physics. But when used reasonably, and consistantly, they can be accepted as well as magic can in a fantasy setting.

Likewise I consider variety to be an illusion, character concepts and reasonability I think are more important. One of my favorite semi-psudo sci fi role playing games has no classes, few skills, and all humans have the exact same stats. (It's a single book Dr. Who Role Playing Game called "Time Lords.") But it is designed to be a low rule, high story system and as such works exceptionally well.

 

[dougmander]

1) If you play sci-fi rpg, what do you especially like in your sci-fi adventures?, but also what you don't like and would like to see changed.

2) If you much prefer Heroic-fantasy games, and don't want to play in a sci-fi rpg, what you especially don't like in a sci-fi universe?

3) Whether you play or don't play in sci-fi rpg, what would be a very cool feature to absolutely have in a sci-fi campaign?

Thanks

I tend to like the same things about RPGs regardless of their genre -- a clear sense of what is at stake for the PCs; ease of play; evocative atmosphere; fully realized places and NPCs; potential for action, drama and mystery -- , but if I had to address some problems that seem to crop up particularly in sf games*, I would include:

--I've found that it's helpful to limit the number of intelligent alien species, and to take quite a bit of care designing each one, so you don't have your players running into a different race of lizard-people or cat-people every week. Aliens should never seem humdrum or unremarkable, unless you're running an extremely retro space opera-type game, where all the aliens are basically humans in funny costumes, a la Flash Gordon. In my first sf campaign, the first ever contact between humans and sentient aliens occurred in-game, with the PCs involved -- very exciting stuff.

--Limit the size of the game world to as many planets as you can design with a unique feel, and don't rely exclusively on rolling dice from a table to generate them. An unlimited expanse of star systems encourages the creation of generic-feeling desert worlds, ocean worlds, lava worlds, etc.

--Place limits on the number of star systems PCs can travel to directly from any given point. Use jump gates, hyperspace routes, anything you can to make some journeys longer than others, and to have each star system connect to a limited number of others, like cities connected by roads in a fantasy game. This will allow you to plan an adventure in several acts of increasing drama, rather than simply have the players zip ahead to the end. It forces players to choose from a limited number of options, and helps keep the campaign on track. Ditto for interstellar communications -- it shouldn't be too easy for PCs to contact help if they get into trouble, or to link to a Galactic Database whenever they need the answer to an obscure question.

*I'm assuming you are talking about far-future sf games and not cyberpunk/near future games, which have challenges much more akin to running a modern campaign.

 

[Jack Daniel]

When I want to play space opera, I pull out Star Wars d20. For more sci-fi wierdness, Farscape d20 is the way to go. If I want hard sci-fi, I'll wait for d20 Future to come out in the summer.

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

I would like to to have one game available off the shelf that's got:

Let's take a look at this with Transhuman Space in mind:

- no magic (psionics, force) or pseudo-magic (fog witches)

Check.

- no demonstrably real deities

Check.

- a small interstellar setting (10 to 100 worlds)

This one doesn't fit here - TS is interplanetary rather than interstellar. Still, there are so many settled moons, planets, astreroids and other space stations out there that the one hundred number is easily reached, if you stretch the definition of "world" a bit...

- plenty of usable setting and adventure material for busy GMs

Check. "In The Well", "The Deep Beyond", and "Broken Dreams" support some great locations for adventures, and the upcoming "Toxic Memes" (if I might plug a book to which I have contributed...) will have dozens of ready-made groups, cults, and movements with which your PCs might interact...

- a wide variety of tensions and dynamics at all scales in the setting

Check. Definietly.

- non-military focus

Check.

- a society in which it's not bizarre for private individuals be adventurers

Check. People in poor countries go on "adventures" to make the one big deal that will allow them to become rich; people in rich countries go on adventures because it's either this, or getting bored living on their investment or welfare support (which is very generous, but most people prefer to have a point for their existence...).

I can't think of any game on sale which supports this. One can hack exisitng games closer to it.

Well, TS comes fairly close...

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

Any attempt to protray the future beyond 25 years is never going to be realistic, one only has to look at 1950 literature about what 2000 was going to be like to see that. The important thing to traveller is that it is reasonable; the rules seem to make sense from general notions in physics. They are consistant, for the most part, and they are playable.

You can make some effort in trying to keep it within the laws of science as we currently know them, however. Transhuman Space is probably the best effort in the RPG market at the moment. Sure, the terraforming of Mars was portrayed as a lot faster than it is generally thought to be possible, but apart from that...

 

[Turanil]

--I've found that it's helpful to limit the number of intelligent alien species, and to take quite a bit of care designing each one, so you don't have your players running into a different race of lizard-people or cat-people every week. Aliens should never seem humdrum or unremarkable, unless you're running an extremely retro space opera-type game, where all the aliens are basically humans in funny costumes, a la Flash Gordon.

--Limit the size of the game world to as many planets as you can design with a unique feel, and don't rely exclusively on rolling dice from a table to generate them. An unlimited expanse of star systems encourages the creation of generic-feeling desert worlds, ocean worlds, lava worlds, etc.

--Place limits on the number of star systems PCs can travel to directly from any given point. Use jump gates, hyperspace routes, anything you can to make some journeys longer than others, and to have each star system connect to a limited number of others, like cities connected by roads in a fantasy game.

What I am doing go that way:

- Species: alien are really alien, looking like the Mi-go from d20 CoC not the Minbari or Centauri of Babylon 5. However, players like to have several races to choose from. So there is 5 archetypal humanoid races (Vulcan and Klingon-like types, etc.). They were seeded in a far distant past by a race of "Ancients" beings who departed but left some artifacts of their incomprehensible technology behind.

- As far as FTL is concerned, it happened that the Ancients left a great gate in the stellar system of each race, so they may eventually meet without having FTL means of travel. It also happens that each planet had been terraformed, so those five planets (and maybe a couple more) are livable by humans. Now as time passed humanoids eventually devised another way of FTL travel which is in fact Dune's space folding by navigators. Since they are a powerful guild with monopoly, and that there isn't navigator available whenever one wishes it, it complicate things a bit.

- There shouldn't be that much of livable planets (less than 10). But some really weird advanced alien species live on planets where humans need vacuum suits, etc.

- All in all this game should be Space Opera with some superficial scientific verisimilitude. Hard sci-fi is not for me; I got a look at Transhuman Space, it looks great and I will probably buy it, but it's not the game I want to run. I could say the same about d20 Star Wars: I have it, it's great and well done, but the universe is not to my taste for a rpg.

Anyway, it's great to hear your comments and suggestions.

 

[milotha]

What I would like to ask to you all here is:

1) If you play sci-fi rpg, what do you especially like in your sci-fi adventures?, but also what you don't like and would like to see changed.

2) If you much prefer Heroic-fantasy games, and don't want to play in a sci-fi rpg, what you especially don't like in a sci-fi universe?

3) Whether you play or don't play in sci-fi rpg, what would be a very cool feature to absolutely have in a sci-fi campaign?

Thanks

I love science fiction, but the problem that I've found with it is the science part. I've gamed with a lot of science majors, from physics, mathematics, biology, chemistry, psychology, computers, geology, etc... The one problem is that, the GM cannot be an expert in all of these areas. They cannot know all of the minutia of scientific details that the expert can. I've seen so many games descend into scientific jargon, disputes, and eventual handwaving by the GM and frustration on the expert's part. It's just not fun.

Yes, we all know the GMs always right but the same drive that causes someone to want to understand their discipline and teach others, can often drive them to this behavior at the table. This is especially true when the GM begins making claims like "This will be the most realistic game ever."

So, what I've seen work best is science fantasy. Pulp science fiction. Something where you admit beforehand that it isn't going to be a reality simulation. And you know what. The same is true of D&D. Let's face it. It's pulp fantasy. You can't spend days walking around in full plate mail swinging a two handed sword. No one went out adventuring in the coutry side to slay monsters.

So, give me space opera. Don't try to explain everything. Just say, pretend it's the movies and ignore the plot holes. Give me space ships with artificial gravity. Give me explosions in space with sound. Give me surviving without a space suit for a few seconds. Let me eat food from another planet. Give me aliens that a somewhat humanoind. I don't care. I want to have fun. Don't try to explain why. Just say it works, period.

 

[pdkoning]

Give me surviving without a space suit for a few seconds. Let me eat food from another planet. Give me aliens that a somewhat humanoind. I don't care. I want to have fun. Don't try to explain why. Just say it works, period.

I totally agree with you, this is the point that holds me back from any non-heroic-fantasy game type. There are always people who want it to be 'real'. Example: you can't eat food from other planets: bad idea. It will only bring complicated problems.

Now there is still one problem: I can imagine what a character can do with a sword, because there are/were swords (I also have one). But it is difficult to imagine what a character can do with a X3423-Laser-Blaster-Pro or something like that. So it is difficult to imagine what you can do with equipment.
I can imagine how it is to walk in a castle, because I visited a lot of castles, It is more difficult to imagine how it is in a space shuttle or even on another planet. This is the main reason why I don't like sci-fi rpgs.

-- and please don't complain about a lack of imagination

 

[Morte]

Let's take a look at this with Transhuman Space in mind:

This one doesn't fit here - TS is interplanetary rather than interstellar.

You read my mind. That's the closest thing I know to the game I want. I'd play it if it had multiple star systems.

I'm vaguely thinking about taking G:TS, adding a stutterwarp FTL drive (handwave), and reducing the (IMHO fanciful) nano-transhumanism. Push it to about the year 2150, add 10 colony worlds, and you have a post-cyberpunk but pre-transhuman interstellar RPG.

 

[d4]

Now there is still one problem: I can imagine what a character can do with a sword, because there are/were swords (I also have one). But it is difficult to imagine what a character can do with a X3423-Laser-Blaster-Pro or something like that. So it is difficult to imagine what you can do with equipment.

on the opposite side of the coin, it can be equally difficult to imagine what a charater can do with a wand of magic missiles or a horn of blasting or other kinds of magic items.

sci-fi technology is really no different from magic items. if you have no problem wrapping your mind around them, the tech shouldn't give you much problems. (especially if you stick to more pulp / space opera type sci-fi as opposed to hard sci-fi.)