QUICK-START SCIENCE FICTION ROLE-PLAYING

Never done any Science Fiction gaming before? Are you a Fantasy fan and fancy a change of scenery? Here are a few handy quick-start tips to make the transition smoother.

By Jonathan Hicks

DEALING WITH TECHNOLOGY

It's not necessary for a GM to know the ins and outs of how space gear works; such as communicators, lasers and space suits as these items are simple tools to aid the players and nothing else. The functions will be explained in the core rules of the system you are using.

There comes a time, however, when these items need to be addressed in game terms to ascertain an outcome.

For example, let's say Boris and Frank are floating around outside a spaceship - suddenly Frank hits Boris with a spanner - but what kind of damage would a spanner do to a spacesuit? How much protection would Boris get?

Most items are covered in sci-fi games and they're damage limitations are detailed, but not all are given that kind of attention. To deal with this, consider the following -

1 - How large is the item and what is it's function? The bulkier the item, the more damage it can take, but remember that an item can still be delicate no matter what its size so allow for that.

2 - What source is it taking the damage from? Being hit by a fist or blasted by a plasma cannon? The destructive force of the hit should have a say.

3 - What is the item made of? Plastic, cloth or molecular aligned steel? Its resistance to damage is a major factor.

TECHNOLOGY AS A GAME AID

There comes a time in every GM's experience where a piece of technology seriously unbalances a game. These can either one of three things:

1 - An item in the game that is powerful and the PC's get it.

2 - An item designed by a GM.

3 - An item designed by a player.

The item can be anything, from a really powerful weapon to a really good scanner, so to help balance the game here's a few ideas on how to deal with it:

1 - The item is good in one respect but bad in another. For example, a riflescope - good at zeroing in on static targets but terrible at tracking moving ones.

2 - The item is vulnerable. It may be a handy bit of kit but it's really prone to damage from even the slightest source.

3 - Prone to failure. Excellent machine, bad breakdown rate or in danger of exploding, making the PC's unsure whether to use it.

4 - Everyone wants one. The item is so good; it's prone to being stolen.

MAKING SPACE VOYAGES INTERESTING

Those long treks between stars can be over in an instant or spread out over days depending on what galaxy you're in, but in any case the PC's will be spending time on board starships in those games that span across star systems. The words 'right, you're there' may work in some respects but hardly helps the players suspend their disbelief.

There are things you can do to make the journey interesting.

1 - Just ask what the players will be doing for the duration and describe the journey in detail. If there's nothing important happening just give a description.

2 - If the journey is a long one, then get some interaction between the players and NPC's. Conversations so that the game up to that point can be reviewed and plans made. Describe the hum of the deck plates, the flashing of the panel lights, the swirl of the stars outside the hull.

3 - Create a problem. An NPC turns out to be dangerous, an alien life form is loose on the ship or the vessel is attacked or hits something. Whole scenarios can be played out with panic on a starship and makes for some genuinely scary games - after all, where can the PC's run to?

4 - Choose a starship with character. Perhaps the vessel is old and broken and a cause for concern. Or the vessel is new and expensive and woes betide anyone who scratches it. Or it is huge and glamorous, like a liner, with plenty of games, shows, NPC's - and intrigue. Or it's a battleship, crisp and clean, or a pirate vessel, hunted and feared. Or it's so alien that the PC's don't know what to make of it! Give the ship some internal character, like a gurgling conduit that everyone knows that if they tap it it'll stop. The names of vessels are important, too. What ship would you board? The Soaring Angel or the Third Time Lucky? Add to that the fact that names can be deceiving...

CREATING, GAMESMASTERING AND ROLE-PLAYING ALIENS

Creatures from outer space! How can a GM effectively portray something that has no place in human consciousness? Well, in truth, they can't, but here are a few ideas on how to give your aliens that slight edge that makes them out of this world.

1 - Concept. What is the alien's purpose? Is it part of a human-like society or is it a beast with teeth and claws? This is like giving a alien an intelligence level, from the ignorant beast to the highly developed being.

2 - Visual. What does it look like? Mammal, Reptile, Amphibian? Natural History books and even tomes about dinosaurs is a must - you can get some great visualisations and simply saying 'it looks like a walking ant' can do the trick.

3 - Personality. Is it friendly with human traits? What does it like or dislike? Aliens may have a moral outlook on life that vastly differs from human, such as finding gladiatorial games acceptable or eating their mate! To the alien this is perfectly normal so there may be conflict there. Basic emotions may be shared, such as love, anger, hate etc. but how the alien acts on these feelings may be different. Perhaps the aliens don't know the concept of hate, or lying? Just a few notes on what the alien understands can make a lot of difference.

4 - Society. What kind of world does the alien come from? Is it a democracy, or a dictatorship, or even some kind of monarchy? Perhaps the world has no leaders and they simply live there. Maybe they share a hive mind and only function as a group. The environment can make an impact on how the alien acts and reacts, or how they view their surroundings or fellows.

5 - Sound and movement. Do they have any physical traits you can re-create yourself. A tick, maybe. Or perhaps they have arms that bend in different ways when they converse. Perhaps heads and limbs jerk with insect-like movements, or they permanently have their mouths down turned like they are constantly upset.

Remember that giving the alien personality is the key thing but that personality must be influenced by the aliens environment and view on life. You don't want men in rubber masks with quirky things that make them appear like aliens - you want a fleshed out being or creature with a reason for existence. Think of it this way - you're a TV show with a limitless budget. Don't restrain yourself.

HOW TO CREATE SPACE GAMES IF YOU’RE FROM A FANTASY BACKGROUND

The truth is, designing a space-based campaign is relatively simple and follows pretty much the same rules as a fantasy-based campaign. You have your plot, your setting, your players and your goals. If you think of the 2D to 3D rule then that makes it simple - in a fantasy game you're pretty much limited to a 2D landscape, trekking across fields and woodland and over mountains fighting and being a hero. In space games you're in a 3D world, where you can also go up - far, far up.

What is the difference between two kingdoms and two planets? Nothing, other than the means of transport to get to either one. Change the horse for a hovercraft, change the tall ship for an interstellar spacecraft and you're already halfway there.

Then you've got the technology. Most of it is window dressing so don't worry about what it does. How does it work? Who cares? As long as it does what it's supposed to do then it doesn't matter.

Then swap swords for blasters, bows for plasma guns, shields for energy protectors. A suit of armour can be a power suit, a catapult a piece of plasma artillery. Your castles are your fortresses, your dungeons your mountain research complexes, your way stations your space stations.

Wizards become psychics, necromancers become re-animation scientists, and alchemists are simple chemists. Your Orcs, elves and lizard men are your aliens; your dragons, demons and wyverns are your beasts on the moons and on the unexplored planets.

Kings are Stellar Emperors. Knights are Space Marines. And your lowly kitchen boy is the floor sweeper on an interstellar starship, blasting from star to star with an eye for discovery and adventure.

The two are not that different. There are very few things to change, except for the following -

1 - It's handy to have some knowledge of what lies between the stars; nebulae, asteroids and the like. This is mainly for descriptive purposes but can be handy in certain situations.

2 - Make sure you're familiar with the setting and what the players can/cannot do in general terms. Many technical questions will be asked and can be answered with a simple 'yes' or 'no', but there's bound to be surprises.

3 - Have the available locations handy. With faster than sound planetary travel and faster than light space travel the PC's can get to where they're going pretty quickly.

4 - Be descriptive. In fantasy games the landscape is quite standard and easy to visualise, but in sci-fi there can be a vast amount of alien worlds and settings in space that are vastly different from our own world. Even if you just say the grass is brown and the sky is pink - alien landscape. In time you could be talking of natural glass spire formations, crystal waterfalls, and acid lakes and phosphorous clouds without a second thought...