non lore-Sci-fi, gamma world, fantasy-ish mashup

[devinpatterson]

I'm really tired today, so bear with me if this post seems a little disjointed.

 

So a while back GreenKnightFury wanted to do a Gamma World type mod and I wanted to do a sci-fi mashup for some non lore ideas I had (tech gods, walking city etc). You can see a little bit of that in post 361 This got both of us to thinking about a large scale mod incorporating those elements, plus many more.

 

My knowledge of Gamma World is a rather shallow, but I picked up a crapload of RPG stuff at a garage sale and I'll be browsing through the Gamma World stuff as time permits. But going off what I read I have several different areas/regions that have just minimal mixing on their boarders. The are;

 

GAMMA WORLD MASH UP

The first is based off of playable mutant races. I (and I'm sure many other players) always thought there should be more variety to player races...especially in a setting where mutations are rampant. Gamma world has many quasi human races (composed of humanoids and mutant animals). I'd like to incorporate that as well (to teh best of my modeling abilities and available assets). I think many races are possible, with additional attributes like mutations within races to further customize your character. It has a sci-fi setting more along the 1960-70's(?), so it's more retro, but not as much as fallout.

 

SCI-FI FANTASY MASHUP

But in addition, one humanoid race that resembled pixies, started me thinking along a particular course. Going with the idea of some mutants resembling fantasy races (like hobbits, dwarves etc) we could come up with a setting somewhat like Wizards that incorporated post apocalyptic with a fantasy setting.

 

For instance one aspect of that technology would include advanced gene manipulation. Assuming a very decadent pre-war world, much more advanced than fallouts, people may have changed their genes like we do cosmetic surgery. And their choices could include anything possible in nature. Through a failure in the gene copy protection (corps would copy protect their intellectual property) or the wonders of evolution a tiny fraction of these genes were inherited by descendants.

 

An example could be a dominatrix that had bat wings, sexual phermones and increased strength (among other cosmetic attributes like little horns, glowing eyes etc) for her job or just a decadent expression of her personality. And now we have a sucubai.

 

My idea wouldn't incorporate fantasy based magic, but rather technology would *be* the magic. ie all wizards are actually technomancers. This technology portrayed as magic would encompass very wide fields. From gene manipulation to advanced physics to lethal pre-war weaponry. The pitch is that it is all interpreted as magic of the ancients and has the same mystique and legend cloaking it.

 

This would also allow "Gods". Beings so advanced that they would be indistinguishable in their technology from gods.

 

One idea we were discussing was genetically and cyberneticly enhanced, pre-war beings in the images of the Egyptian gods. Something akin to a story in the heavy metal magazine (sci-fi/fantasy, not the musical genre) I was reading (thanks to my garage sale score) by Enki Bilal called La Foire aux immortels. It was later made into a (not so great) movie called Immortel (ad vitam).

 

The "gods" each have their domains in the same way Egyptian deities did. So say Horus is the ruller and protector of the people. Anubis has domain over the ccryogenically frozen dead etc. Within their city on a lush river (within a barren desert) their mirrored black pyramid floats 20 or 30 feet above a giant reflecting pool.

 

SCI-FI CYBERPUNK MASHUP

And last (for teh moment) would be a sci-fi much more closely aligned with modern authors from the cyberpunk genre forward, but place in a post apocalyptic setting. Greg Bear, Gibson etc. This is the sci-fi I grew up in and am most comfortable with. But I'v run out of time so I'll touch on that later.

[greenknightfury]

Awesome you have it up! *chuckles* You know if you want I have PDF versions of the D20 Gamma World books I could send you copies of, full of wonderful twisted things we could riff on for this.

 

I also have a number of other rule books like it for other scifi and modern settings.

Edited September 26, 2012 by greenknightfury

[devinpatterson]

You know if you want I have PDF versions of the D20 Gamma World books I could send you copies of, full of wonderful twisted things we could riff on for this.

 

I guess they renewed the game in 2010 and I have no idea about the copyright B.S. so we should probably play it safe. But it's not a problem, I'v got a ton of it. There was like 4 big card board boxes full of rpg, fantasy mags like heavy metal, epic etc. I do appreciate the offer though.

 

Good news! B3w4r3 has given permission to use his jetpack in our projects. A little flight (whether jetpack or a vehicle) might just be exactly what hte player needs to get past some nightmarish FEV mutants in the toxic jungle or to shoot down a mech. We'll make a height limit though. An automated meteor/enemy defense system that shoots down anything that gets too high, so we don't have to make anything beyond the crater.

 

On a related note. That also means the wingies (is that what they were called?), the gamma world pixies, can now have flight. I'm not sure how many people would want to play them, but maybe they could have good sneak skills plus high crits from surprise (even if there base damage is low).

[VaultPi]

hey I loved the old Gamma World so you have my moral support, now if I can get a microphone, I'll be happy to send you my voice, but that's another story....

[devinpatterson]

I'll be happy to send you my voice, but that's another story....

 

Cool, I'd appreciate that. I picked up a Sony ECM DS70P and it was really cheap. I see it the net for $5.

[devinpatterson]

hey I loved the old Gamma World so you have my moral support,

 

And of course I'd appreciate ideas, plots and lore. I like what I'v read so far, but I know very little so far.

 

Right now I'm particularly interested in how I can keep multiple technology levels separate or with very little bleed through. So we can societies that are very different in culture and knowledge in close proximity without one wiping out the others. I'm thinking technological powerhouses might just exclude themselves from the "primatives", same with teh pure blooded humans and muties. Muties might be able to hold their own due to ferocious or unique mutations that give them a serious military might, even though they don't have advanced weaponry. Lots of space in teh form of deadlands between the groups. Etc etc.

 

Some sort of equilibrium so I can include a lot of variety, but make it plausible.

[VaultPi]

ok being an old robert howard fan I would suggest a group of mutants (not supermutants but descendants of humans that didn't make it to the vaults), who think they are Picts. I'll post more given time, I'm busy after a month of moving stuff and having no internet. s

[devinpatterson]

who think they are Picts.

 

Could fit really well, as I noticed a lot of primitive armor and weapons (everything from your typical spear to chainmail). Apparently many tribes have devolved in terms of knowledge and culture.

 

I'll post more given time, I'm busy after a month of moving stuff and having no internet. s

 

Cool. It's a fun topic/mod, because it's limited only by the in game resources...

[VaultPi]

well from my fallout texas fanfic, "Murder Birds",

Base Strain: Emu or Ostrich (Though the FEV devolved them into featherered "Dinosaurs", Nasty talons, limb removining sharp beak, strong leaps (often disemboweling folks), they love to eat Brahmin including the texas Longhorn variety. often domesticated by certain raider gangs. Hiss really loudly, run very fast. THEY ARE NEITHER CHOCOBOS OR VELOCIRAPTORS.

 

Texas Brahmin: long horned variety of two headed cattle.

Mutant Armidillo (aka ARMOURDILLO) very high DT, can beused to craft reinforced armour...

[greenknightfury]

*chuckles* Well the terror birds could work, they were residents of South and Central America. Also a big part of Gamma World idea was using genetic and nano tech to create custom lifeforms and revive old lifeforms.

 

There are lots of fun things to play with idea wise with it. One that strikes me every time is machines designed to create/maintain custom gardens/oasises, some of which went mad and started creating plants that could care for themselves (by being able to metabolize toxins or eat anything that tried to mess with it).

 

The number of different things that were wandering feral or just eccentric A.I.s was fun as well, in fact I'd love to see one of the A.I. sodamachine things (with the right materials they could create any liquid compound, from soda to explosives).