Star Army

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New Plot Planning

Whisper

Retired Staff
Inactive Member
Hey all!

I'm working on a plot idea and have a handful of questions that go with it. I'm thinking a Yamatai plot with a Plumeria, but at this point the faction/ship isn't settled or crucial. The intention would be to take a crew and drop them off somewhere else in the universe, then have them journey home on their own merits. Think Odyssey, Homeworld, Space Battleship Yamato, etc. I have a handful of original races, enemies, techs, etc, in mind that this ship would encounter and have to solve in various ways.

None of this stuff has to make it into the rest of the setting at large - unless people want it to. I know people have hopped 'dimensions' in the past (ie, gone off to other settings) and this isn't quite like that - it's just somewhere that the current factions are unfamiliar with and has its own set of problems.

So, to that end, my questions are..
  • What kind of freedom do I have in running the plot from a 'setting' perspective? If I want to introduce a few alien races, new tech, locations, etc, do I need to do anything about those beforehand or can I simply do it and reveal things via the plot?
    • I can make supplemental articles for this stuff as I go in a namespace under its own thing. If it gets 'accepted' into the broader setting, I could also handle the moves and such. I'm flexible. :)
  • What do I need to do, GM-wise, to get approval to launch the plot?
  • Any restrictions on the crew I can make for the plot itself? Captains, etc.
I don't yet have a guess on when I'd want to kick this off- still got a handful of details to work out and need to see if there's enough interest to get it going once I do. Pre-planning is a good thing, though. :D

I'll be out of town next week so if I'm slow to respond, that's why.

Thanks all!
 
  • Freedom - if you want the stuff to become canon, make sure to post plot plans in the GM forum as you go so that people can object to anything that seems to create issues (if necessary) and you should submit articles on the species/planets/etc you encounter to the wiki so that they become a part of the universe. This also acts as a filter to make sure the stuff you invent is deemed as compatible with the overall setting (stuff that breaks everything could get denied). You can also run your plot as soft canon (forum only) and just not submit anything but the downside is your footprints aren't permanent and other GMs won't acknowledge what happened in your RP (because the wiki is where we put the common universe for reference and it wouldn't be there). With the preceding caveats in mind, you can basically do anything you want. In simple terms there's a safe method (wiki stuff then RP using those elements) and the fast and loose method (RP stuff and then wiki it later).
  • GM - Post an interest check in the OOC and Plot Planning Forum and if you get players you're good. After the first RP thread is completed you can ask for GM status (lets you see the GM's planning forum where we coordinate plots and factions) and when you have multiple RP threads you can request a subforum if you want one (or just keep playing Open RP or the Faction top-level forum. By the way, Open RPs are the kind where people are encouraged to join in at any time.
  • GM NPC characters can be posted for approval by a faction manager and are basically made to suit whatever their role is.
 
The intention would be to take a crew and drop them off somewhere else in the universe, then have them journey home on their own merits. Think Odyssey, Homeworld, Space Battleship Yamato, etc. I have a handful of original races, enemies, techs, etc, in mind that this ship would encounter and have to solve in various ways.

A suggestion:

An idea of relevance, if you went the direction of using a SAoY vessel (such as the Plumeria) you mentioned. The ship could be assigned to a Task Force bound for Kevexian Space to battle/disrupt the enemy in which could be hit with tragedy (ship being destroyed) which requires the crew to overcome obstacles (being in enemy territory, unknown planets, unknown space, etc) and a potentially long journey home.

Since Wes answered your other questions, I will leave you with just that.
 
I like the suggestion, Andrew! I could work with that.

Are there are any nebulas in the area that haven't been used for plot purposes? My plans for it would be fairly drastic, so if it needs to be even further out that's all good.

I may take some of my ideas to PMs if that's alright, just to see if my premise is sound. Spoilers, etc.

Thanks for the answers!
 
Kuvexian space has been relatively unexplained and to my knowledge, there is no star map yet of it. So in truth, the sky is the limit!
 
Annnd I'm back. I'm thinking, to help tie things together, that the ship will be pursued by a handful of Kuvexian ships - mercs, likely - to add to the drama, give some more combat opportunities, and help tie it in more with the current plot. Thanks again for the suggestion!
 
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