Background and general campaign information
The sections are as follows:
The other available pages cover a more in-depth look at Jumpspace psi, a general list of equipment and technology for the characters,
and a look at auras.
The following books are in use: GURPS Basic Set, Compendiums I & II,
Martial Arts (yes, cinematic stuff also, although I may veto some stuff
as "not fitting the genre"), Psionics (with mods), Biotech, Ultratech I & II,
Robots, Vehicles, Mecha, and Cyberpunk.
This is a grit-n-style campaign, in the genre of "serious anime".
There is a heavy element of realism, but at the same time, if it looks
cool in the paint cel, we may overlook a few rules. The year is 2116,
far enough in the future that I can reasonably say any of the tech I want
is developed, but not so far that certain technologies I *don't* want
*have* to have developed.
For a good feel for the campaign style, the two biggest influences were
Ghost in the Shell and Macross Plus, with some of the less
cinematic elements/feel of Bubblegum Crisis, AD Police and
Dirty Pair. Those interested in it may also wish to watch some anime
horror for a better idea of what "serious anime" is about (Vampire Princess
Miu is very good, particularly the early episodes).
Ghost in the Shell is, for me, quintessential cyberpunk
anime... However, rather than copy the less-than-developed
world, I've just stolen heaps of "feel" from the movie.
Macross Plus is mech oriented, but the focus is on a
triumvarate character analysis that I was very fond of, as
well as touching on some of the frankensteinian fears
surrounding artificial intelligences.
Bubblegum Crisis is mostly about the Knight Sabres, a
small team of powered-armor weilding rock stars, but the
surrounding world is very rich and interesting. It also has
some focus on artificial intelligence, but the world view about
them is definitely more shallow than I care for. The search
for self identity is good, however.
AD Police is cinematic, is not particularly cyberpunk,
and is very kitschy... but if you read the scripts and ignore
the "cute visuals" it has a rock solid foundation in the
criminal mind, and the politics of an overpopulated city
where human beings are just numbers or animals,
depending on whether you're an accountant or cop.
Dirty Pair is just good to watch.
Vampire Princess Miu (I may be misremembering the
name) is good for the feel of a serious anime flick. Actually,
minus the fight scenes, so is Ninja Scroll.
What I have in mind is something akin to shadowrunners or "zeroed"
folks in GURPS terms - a small group of mercenaries (or even Bubblegum
Crisis style latter-day knights) who live in the fringes of normal society,
doing high and low profile jobs of an exceptionally difficult and often
secretive nature. Where it pays to have a rep with the right people, but
to avoid being well known...
The basic premise can be changed somewhat within these parameters
to include (if the players prefer), a crack corporate team, a group of
merc buddies, a loose collective of specialists who sometimes work
together (like many specialized burglars ;), or even highly individualistic
mercs with the right "spread of talents" for some corporate bigwig who
doesn't want to get his hands dirty. Heck, a garage band who moonlights
as kickass martial artists wouldn't offend me too much... just keep in
mind that the characters need to be survivable.
It looks like "highly individualistic mercs with the right 'spread of
talents' for some corporate bigwig who doesn't want to get his
hands dirty" is as close as I'm going to get?
Just so y'all know, half of the burden of keeping the party together
rests on you - if a character would, in character, leave the group, I
won't stop the character... I'll just let you create a new character. I
*will* contrive and plot and plan to get y'all together and on the same
side at the beginning, of course, but after that I'd rather concentrate
my talents on making an interesting campaign rather than herding
PCs back into the party
DEFAULT: Unless otherwise stated, the default is TL 9 verging TL 10, with
cheaper TL 8 stuff still available. TL 8 is 1/2 cost, TL 9 is full cost,
TL 10 is x20 cost (and experimental).
SENSORS: All sensors are half the weight and cost indicated. Bioscanners
are touch range only. Some sensors will be modified for realism.
Even low security areas have millimetric wavelength scanners with expert
computers that look for weapons - typically, if you come in with more
than a certain amount of hardware, the police are automatically called.
High security areas may have millimetric video cams hidden behind
sheetrock, a handprinter that includes a bioscanner, thermal and
imaging ladar face recognition systems...
BIOTECH: TL 7 is half cost. TL 8-9 is full cost. TL 10 is x10 cost.
TL 11 is x100 cost. Proteus nanoviruses take around two months per
character point of alteration to complete their transformation, with a
minimum of two months.
For character creation, modifications that have existed since early childhood
or earlier should be purchased during Phase I as a normal or "racial"
advantage. Later modifications purchased with money or favors by the
character in the course of her life should be taken in Phase II. For
example, if you were genetically engineered as a Panora-mod genius,
just take a high IQ, some eidetic memory, and a stutter, then wave your
hands and transform these ads into "Pandora-mod genotype, courtesy of
Aztechnology thinktank".
"Do governments/corporations do prenatal genetic manipulations, out
in the open or in the closet (or even in the locked subbasement with a
dozen guards outside)? What do they try to get: soldiers, jump psis,
telepaths?"
Aztechnology owns some corps that do that stuff. They don't bother with it
themselves. Mostly baby clinics where concerned parents with loads of cash
can ask Aztech to make sure their muffin has musical abilities.
China certainly has the resources, but has a public policy of "humans
only". It is possible that many of their soldiers are enhanced in some way...
Belters don't really have the resources, but many immigrants have begun
to show up with genetic predispositions.
Tetratech employees are more likely than most to have manipulation of
their children done. However, the corp culture still emphasizes human looks.
United Africa: Sure, all of the above. Why not? Are we not still human?
Do we not still bleed? Well, okay, so the nanopharmaco makes sure I don't
bleed, but I'm still human, okay?
On the other hand, psi abilities can not yet be switched on with genetics.
Also, supersoldiers built from birth generally don't happen. Despite what some
science fiction authors may think, it simply isn't feasible to raise your army
from children (and there is no forced-growth tech here). I mean "feasible"
in both a political *and* an economic sense. The cost per soldier is too
high on both levels, for a soldier who won't be around until the person
approving the spending will be dead in the ground.
POWER: Uses GURPS Vehicles power source rules. TL 8 is half cost, TL 9 is
full cost, TL 10 stuff is x20 cost and considered experimental (and thus
somewhat less reliable).
Power cells exist, but can only discharge a maximum of 1% of their energy
at a time. Thus, a power cell with 1,000 kilowatts stored in it could only
provide 10 kilowatts per second. A power slug can discharge its entire amount
in one second, but weighs four times as much as an equivalent power cell.
Example - a laser beam requires 1,000 kilowatts per shot, and the designer
wants to give it 10 shots. A TL 9 powerslug would have 10,000 kilowatts and weigh
0.672 kg. A power cell would need to have 100,000 kilowatts and weigh 1.7 kg.
COMPUTERS: TL 8 is 1/4 cost. TL 9 is 1/2 cost. TL 10 is full cost.
TL 11 is x10 cost. Ghostcomps are treated as TL 11. Different kinds of
computers can be extrapolated from these rules.
"Artificial Intelligence is possible at the computer TL you specify;
are there any sentient computers out there?" Yes, AIs do exist; however,
they tend to be fairly rare as they are very expensive to build and the
corps with the resources to build them prefer more... controllable
computer resources. Especially when an expert system is about as useful
as an AI, without all those pesky meaning-of-life questions.
AIs do not think faster than humans, although they often have
dedicated subcomputers that they can access easier than a human could.
The recursive logic systems that allow them to be sentient also slow
down their processing immensely. It is concievable that a corp might
build a supersystem AI that can think faster, but Frankenstein phobias
generally prevent the corps from doing that.
In most regions, AIs have no legal rights whatsoever.
ARMAMENTS: Beam weapons appear +2 TL later than indicated (any weapon
over 10,000 kilojoules appears only +1 TL later). Chemical lasers
appear at their normal TL. Generally, most beam weapons use power slugs
rather than power cells due to the poor discharge rates of power cells.
Armor is treated normally. I use GURPS Vehicles to build all weapons (you
can still pick one out of the books - I will just reconstruct it with GV,
and in most cases it comes out very similar).
MEDICAL: Chrysalis machines are available, but cost $1.5 billion
dollars and are the size of a single story house. A micromed is treated
as TL 10 and is doubled mass. Forced-growth cloning is not possible
without a chrysalis machine.
CYBERTECH: Cybertechnology follows a combination of the default tech,
medical tech (for biomods and availability of certain kinds of surgery),
and computer tech for certain kinds of implants. Also, the GM has
decided to build all replacement limbs and whatnot with GURPS Robots...
Regardless, anything which must be designed for use in the human body
costs five times as much as the same item that hasn't been
designed for such an interface.
Let me re-iterate here: cybernetics do not cost points. Yes, this allows
characters to "munchkin" a bit by taking "One Arm" in Phase I and then
buying a cyber arm in Phase II. However, keep in mind that cybernetics
have some disadvantages (such as being stopped at airports, maintenance
problems, etc.) which I will be bringing to your attention during
game play.
VAPORWARE: Several technologies which Ultratech and such include, but which
is not possible in this campaign, are three-dimensional holograms, force
fields, distortion belts, and similar Superscience technologies. The exceptions
are listed below.
REACTIONLESS THRUST: Reactionless thrusters are possible, but are
extremely weak: they get one kg of thrust per 150 kg of engine
weight. Yes, they are basically unusable in any kind of gravity field.
However, they provide their own energy and use no fuel -- they are
essentially free energy.
Reactionless thrust is rarely used in most aspects of the game world - the
only time it becomes particularly efficient is for extremely long
journeys, such as the recent exploratory mission to Alpha Centauri. Its
primary advantage is that it does not require the storage of fuel; it
provides its own power and its own thrust. If the fuel required for a mission
is less than 100+ kilograms per kilogram of thrust, it is simply more
efficient to use fuel.
JUMPSPACE: Certain cyber-enhanced psis can drag a ship (and
themselves) into jumpspace and guide it using gravity wells in realspace
as landmarks. Jumpspace distances are smaller, and indeed, seem to
become "smaller" the deeper a psi goes. Stronger psis can allow bigger
ships to travel faster. Jumpspace essentially multiplies the ship's
effective speed by gobs, while the psi sucks gobs of power per
second from the ship's power source. Although some exploration of other
star systems has occurred, these are largely scientific expeditions, and
have not yet had a serious impact -- even at FTL speeds, those other
systems are a long ways away.
PSI: There are two types of psi in this campaign: realspace psis
(telepaths, telekinetics, astral projectors, etc.) and the cyber-enhanced
psis of jumpspace. The two primary cyber-enhancements include a direct
neural link into a ship's computer (which acts as a sort of math
coprocessor for the psi's brain) and another quasi-physical link into
the power grid of the ship -- jumpspace requires more power than can be
supplied by the psi's own body. Astral projectors are essentially
operating in VERY VERY SHALLOW jumpspace. While in jumpspace, distances
are shortened, allowing the psi to travel much faster than normal and
sense things farther away (only gravity wells and other objects in
jumpspace can be sensed, however). However, jumpspace may warp one's mind
slightly (jumpspace psis say it "opens" their mind), and psis have been
known to begin hearing voices while in jumpspace. Realspace psis are
considerably less well developed technologically.
Psi in general has a few house rules that you should be aware of:
- Only Astral Projection (3), ESP (3), Healing (3), Psychic Vampirism (3),
Psychokinesis (5) and Telepathy (10) are available. The number in
parenthesis is the cost per level for those powers.
- The level of psi you buy at character creation is what you are stuck
with - a psi's Power can not improve except through Amazing
Circumstances.
- There is no UB to be a psi, but there is a 10 point UB (paid in Phase II)
to be trained. If not trained, skills cost double.
- EXTRA EFFORT: In GURPS Psionics, p. 7 sidebar, Extra Effort costs only 1 Fatigue
per +1 Power.
- Astral Projection (3 pts/lvl) - A psi with this ability is pushing his
mind into "very near" Jumpspace, where the physical world is still
visible and travel is considerably slower (on the order of a few hundred
meters per second). Astral space is dark, and travellers in
it shed their own "light". The Earth and Moon also glow, but only very
dimly - they provide the equivalent light of a dim, somewhat starry
night, while astral travellers typically look more like small suns. The
sun glows brightly, akin to a large, very distant lamp.
- ESP (3 pts/lvl) - Clairsentience ranges are expressed in feet, not
inches. Thus, a power of 5 gives you a 25 foot range, and you can percieve
an area 12 feet in diameter.
- Healing (3 pts/lvl) - No special rules.
- Psychic Vampirism (3 pts/lvl) - No special rules.
- Psychokinesis (5 pts/lvl) - No special rules.
- Telepathy (10 pts/lvl) - The non-range game effects of
telepathic powers are doubled; for example, 3 levels of Mind Shield
would provide a -6 to psi skills used against you. Also, Telescan is
x10 range.
- JUMPSPACE PSIS: It costs 25 pts to be a Jumpspace psi, plus 5 pts per level,
and you must be plugged into a massive power source to even use the
abilities. Check out the Jumpspace page for more details.
Posts should have subjects like "[PIKU] White Knight saves the day!"
with [PIKU] in front of every subject.
Someone asked, so I'm putting the answer here: "piku" is the sound an
anime character's eyes make when they blink. Or at least, in the less
serious anime - in serious anime, characters don't seem to ever blink
at all.
Players should post twice a week. Most likely, this would be once on
weekends, once during the week. This can and will change as we get a
feel for the group dynamics, of course, but it gives a good start.
Talking is quoted with "", as in Jane says "Oh my!".
Secret communication methods, such as subvocal mics, telepathy and
similar things is quoted with {}, as in Jane radios {we're in trouble guys}.
Inner thoughts, shared with no one In Character, are quoted with ~~,
as in Jane thought to herself, ~Better that Captain Boyscout take the fall
than me~.
Out Of Character discussion should be clearly marked. I generally
prefer something like [OOC: Hi guys!], but as long as it is clear I don't
care.
Game will be run in GURPS, all rolls will be handled by the GM, hit
points and similar things will be tracked by the GM. Nuff said.
Violence, Fatality, and Similar Topics
I generally treat combat as a nasty situation. Wounds are tracked
individually, and the long-term effects of damage are kept in mind. I've
had characters discover the joys of aging with old scar tissue and mended
bones, and other characters have lost limbs to veteran syndrome.
Fatalities are still pretty low, mostly because I choose the game system
and threat level carefully, and because I allow PC ingenuity to be
effective.
Still... your character could be permanently injured, scarred or
even killed. Except for the latter, think of it as adding some dimension
to the character. For the latter, I promise to make it as dramatic as
circumstances allow - Last Acts Of Defiance are a standard rule in my
games.
Characters are built in two stages. In the first stage, you have
50 points to create the "essential character". Attributes, inherent
ads/disads (like psi ability and poor vision) and so on are all bought
at this time. DON'T buy skills, background ads/disads, money, etc.
Also during this stage, appearance and reaction modifiers (such as
Charisma and Voice) are half cost. This is a style campaign, remember.
During the second stage, I will give you an undisclosed number of
time use character points which can be spent on skills, background stuff,
money, and so on. You can increase attributes at double cost. You can
also take background disadvantages at this point, to help bolster your
skills :).
Cyberware does not cost points, only money. Just keep in mind that
cybernetics do have inconveniences, and that I will abuse those things.
PHASE ONE
Players have 50 points to build their character with, plus any
number of points worth of disadvantages (see the Phase I Banned list,
however). I do not allow Quirks. However, I give points for writing about
your character. Appearance and reaction modifiers are half cost during
this Phase of character creation.
You may spend these points on anything. However, I recommend that
you do not spend them on skills, social advantages, wealth, and so on,
since you will be getting more points in Phase II that can ONLY be spent
on those things.
Banned Disadvantages
Basic Set
- Poverty
- Primitive
- Reputation
- Social Stigma
- Age (always banned - just lower your attributes as appropriate)
- Addiction
- Alcoholism
- Unluckiness (always banned)
- Weak Will (Will costs -5 pts per -1, or +5 pts per +1)
- Dependants
- Enemies
Compendium I
- Disowned
- Duty (Involuntary)
- Enemy (Unknown)
- Evil Twin
- Excommunicated (always banned)
- Extremely Hazardous Duty
- Ignorance (always banned)
- Mistaken Identity
- Secret
- Secret Identity
- Alcohol Quirks (always banned)
- Social Disease
- Terminally Ill (always banned)
- Timesickness (always banned)
- Amnesia
- Attentive (always banned)
- Broad-Minded (always banned)
- Careful (always banned)
- Chauvinistic (always banned)
- Distractible (always banned)
- Dreamer (always banned)
- Dull (always banned)
- Humble (always banned)
- Imaginative (always banned)
- Lover's Distraction (always banned)
- Nosy (always banned)
- Proud (always banned)
- Responsive (always banned)
- Staid (always banned)
- Uncongenial (always banned)
- Undiscriminating (always banned)
PHASE TWO
I will be giving out an undisclosed number of points which can
only be spent on the following:
- Skills
- Trained Ads (Combat Reflexes, Literacy, etc.)
- Social Ads (Wealth, Reputation, Allies, etc.)
- Reasonably Gained Ads (Appearance normal cost, DX x2 cost, etc.)
Also during this Phase, you may take social disadvantages listed
in the banned list above. Those disads which are listed as "always
banned" still can not be taken.
Cyberware does not cost points, only money. Just keep in mind that
cybernetics do have inconveniences, and that I will abuse those things.