When trying to make the 3345 setting RPG focused I had first thought to move combat from Mech centric to Warship centric. I then realized something very important. Mechs are cool. But how do I make it so players can experience all aspects of the setting. The Mary Sue super character who can do everything is unappealing. And then I realized that there was another option. Sub characters, instead of having just a single character per player have many who are all unified in purpose, like an entourage, where the primary character, ie Mech commander, or fleet Admiral and then have sub character to represent the tasks that the main character would never do.
This way a warship could be run by four players, each who have one of the main officers as characters, and then each having a sub character from each part of the ship, so a fighter pilot, a Mech pilot, a technician, an engineer, a marine etc. This allows for compelling and deep storytelling. Makes for a ton of work for the GM, having to intertwine specific encounters and having to be prepared to kill sub characters as a result of PC/NPC interaction. But handled well it could make for an excellent campaign.
Showing posts with label setting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label setting. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Military Structure
In most house militaries there are three types of units. Planetary militias, provincial/regional forces and the Armies of the House Lord.
Planetary militias generally by definition are made up of hard to move forces, tanks, infantry, artillery and support vehicles all make the core of a planetary militia. Mechs exist in most Militias in Battalion strength on average but they are usually hand me down designs left over from previous wars and in many cases built from battlefield salvage that is left behind when regular forces come to the rescue as the proverbial calvary charging over the hill.
The provincial or regional forces are are made up of units that owe their loyalty to a Duke, or Prince or Warlord, they can range from forces that would be embarrassing for local planetary militias to put on parade to cutting edge forces that are comparable to a House Lord's pet units. In many states the political reality is one where the Dukes are all vying to increase their domains to compete against their fellows and in the hopes of some day supplanting their lords. When the Victora Davions supplanted the Steinier-Davion line on the throne of the Federated Suns it was a shock that changed one of the fundamental balances of the Inner Sphere, but it didn't stop the Steinier-Davion line from reclaiming the throne eighty years later. Point is the regional warlords are competing for the same prize and as a consequence provide the first lines of mobile defence from foreign invasions.
The 178th Derion Regulars are a staple of the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery it is made up of a Mech Regiment supported by a heavy tank division. Currently the 178th is stationed on the Federated Suns boarder yet it hasn't seen action for the last couple of years.
The Armies of the House Lord usually range between 40-60% of the size of all of their combined provincial forces. These forces are highly mobile, highly trained and well equipped they form the backbone of a State's offencive operations and reinforcement to turn back and attacking force that has been pined down by regional forces. The other aspect of a House Army is its special forces. From the Sword of Light, to the Davion Assault guards special forces are smaller then conventional forces but much more deadly.
The Davion Assault Guards with their 162 Assault Omni Mechs and supporting 972 Battle Armor troopers are a good example of a special forces unit. They have their own Warship support wing, and are fully capable of executing a super jump to anywhere they could be needed.
Planetary militias generally by definition are made up of hard to move forces, tanks, infantry, artillery and support vehicles all make the core of a planetary militia. Mechs exist in most Militias in Battalion strength on average but they are usually hand me down designs left over from previous wars and in many cases built from battlefield salvage that is left behind when regular forces come to the rescue as the proverbial calvary charging over the hill.
The provincial or regional forces are are made up of units that owe their loyalty to a Duke, or Prince or Warlord, they can range from forces that would be embarrassing for local planetary militias to put on parade to cutting edge forces that are comparable to a House Lord's pet units. In many states the political reality is one where the Dukes are all vying to increase their domains to compete against their fellows and in the hopes of some day supplanting their lords. When the Victora Davions supplanted the Steinier-Davion line on the throne of the Federated Suns it was a shock that changed one of the fundamental balances of the Inner Sphere, but it didn't stop the Steinier-Davion line from reclaiming the throne eighty years later. Point is the regional warlords are competing for the same prize and as a consequence provide the first lines of mobile defence from foreign invasions.
The 178th Derion Regulars are a staple of the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery it is made up of a Mech Regiment supported by a heavy tank division. Currently the 178th is stationed on the Federated Suns boarder yet it hasn't seen action for the last couple of years.
The Armies of the House Lord usually range between 40-60% of the size of all of their combined provincial forces. These forces are highly mobile, highly trained and well equipped they form the backbone of a State's offencive operations and reinforcement to turn back and attacking force that has been pined down by regional forces. The other aspect of a House Army is its special forces. From the Sword of Light, to the Davion Assault guards special forces are smaller then conventional forces but much more deadly.
The Davion Assault Guards with their 162 Assault Omni Mechs and supporting 972 Battle Armor troopers are a good example of a special forces unit. They have their own Warship support wing, and are fully capable of executing a super jump to anywhere they could be needed.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Transhumanism
How far do I want to go with this?
Battletech already has cyborgs, genetic engineering, canister babies, a strong hint that universal health care is in part due to the Star League medical science involving a lot of genetic selectivity and a person's brain algorithms being used as a basis for AI.
Throw in some fan created hints of natural AI, Sybil, and many of the examples that were brought forwards during the WoB Jihad
Then lets bump the time line forwards 300 years, add in the fact that non military technology has moved forwards far enough to exceed the peak of the Star League but on a much broader scale.
What transhuman aspects should be included.
Cyborgs, everything from nanite enhanced neurons to visions of Robocop.
Gene-Engineered, Clan Elementals, longer lives, cybernetic adaptability enhancements, even specific "races"
AIs from scanned in human minds, to pure AIs to 2nd generation AIs
What you won't see:
Purely nanite built bodies.
Biotech ships.
People uploading from one body to the next.
Cylons
Right now my transhuman themes are vague. I haven't properly defined them. I want to make sure that any themes I include allow me to maintain the Battletech feel while improving the RPG opportunities. This is after all a RPG setting, because if I wanted a wargame setting I'd play any of the current Battletech eras.
Battletech already has cyborgs, genetic engineering, canister babies, a strong hint that universal health care is in part due to the Star League medical science involving a lot of genetic selectivity and a person's brain algorithms being used as a basis for AI.
Throw in some fan created hints of natural AI, Sybil, and many of the examples that were brought forwards during the WoB Jihad
Then lets bump the time line forwards 300 years, add in the fact that non military technology has moved forwards far enough to exceed the peak of the Star League but on a much broader scale.
What transhuman aspects should be included.
Cyborgs, everything from nanite enhanced neurons to visions of Robocop.
Gene-Engineered, Clan Elementals, longer lives, cybernetic adaptability enhancements, even specific "races"
AIs from scanned in human minds, to pure AIs to 2nd generation AIs
What you won't see:
Purely nanite built bodies.
Biotech ships.
People uploading from one body to the next.
Cylons
Right now my transhuman themes are vague. I haven't properly defined them. I want to make sure that any themes I include allow me to maintain the Battletech feel while improving the RPG opportunities. This is after all a RPG setting, because if I wanted a wargame setting I'd play any of the current Battletech eras.
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