Setting Concept: North Moors

[Firebrand]

So, I was just thinking, and I had an idea.


Why don't. to improve opportunities for roleplay, we take the northern part of SARP: Look at it. Besides the Iroma, its empty. Now, why don't we just, for fun and all, say that that whole area up there, from the 40 LY line to the 120 LY line, is inhabited by multitudes of settlements, colonies, habitats, and what have you. Allows for the Iroma and Abwehrans to get into the political game without being crushed by Nepleslia and Yamatai, and it opens up opportunities for roleplay.

Like PCs serving as Mercenaries to help one planet fight another!

Or Iromakuanhe "peace-keepers" helping the ruler of a planet with precious natural resources stay in power in the face of a popular rebellion.

Really, the possibilities brought on by this are endless.

 

[Wes]

It could be interesting if done right. I'd like to see most of the NPC colonies be human (maybe with some anthro and alien ones thrown in for variety's sake). If Nepleslia is America and Yamatai is Japanese-Norse, maybe each NPC colony could also have a cultural flavor (be it overt or subtle) like Latin American, African, or Indian styled nations that PCs would visit.

 

[Firebrand]

It could be interesting if done right. I'd like to see most of the NPC colonies be human (maybe with some anthro and alien ones thrown in for variety's sake). If Nepleslia is America and Yamatai is Japanese-Norse, maybe each NPC colony could also have a cultural flavor (be it overt or subtle) like Latin American, African, or Indian styled nations that PCs would visit.

I was thinking mostly the same thing.

 

[Nashoba]

My biggest concern with this, is that it will probably result in a plethora of 'new' cultures with little to no substance. I definitely would want to see a criteria put in place for these 'colonies'. We've had too many instances of someone creating a new 'race' just so they could make a single character.

After all with the new Cluster Map in work, there is a lot more free space, I just don't want to see a one page creation for colony X. Does not mean it needs to be as fleshed out as a faction, but have enough information so that any player can get a proper feel for the colony, the flavor of it and what to expect.

Examples of what should be included,

a) System details
b) Cultural information, are they monogamous, polygamus, religious devotees, do they practice scarification, tatoos, or other body modifications
c) Production (what they make and or need)
d) What the norm is for the people. Even if they are human descendents, what are the 'evolutionary and cultural' facets. What is the typical height and weight, dominant hair and eye color.

 

[Fred]

Ehh.

I was personally hoping to tie in those crystal-based circuit boards the Miharu's crew salvaged out of Amaya's Gate to that empty region, especially considering how it was empty and that barely anyone used it. It involved 2 newer alien species I might have used within the scope of my plot's continuity, if it ever got that far.

In light of this, I'm really not fond of the 'speckle space with more colony worlds' idea. I was really looking forward to actual unexplored space where new things could be discovered. I really don't want these to be pre-established this way.

I already had a region of space I was looking forward to expand on yanked under my feet by simple star system charting on Wes' part with that fleet positioning fiasco on Wes and Andrew's part afterwards. I'd really would like it if we could keep this toned down and keep our unknown places unknown until we actually have a plot-related need of them.

 

[Firebrand]

My biggest concern with this, is that it will probably result in a plethora of 'new' cultures with little to no substance. I definitely would want to see a criteria put in place for these 'colonies'. We've had too many instances of someone creating a new 'race' just so they could make a single character.

After all with the new Cluster Map in work, there is a lot more free space, I just don't want to see a one page creation for colony X. Does not mean it needs to be as fleshed out as a faction, but have enough information so that any player can get a proper feel for the colony, the flavor of it and what to expect.

Examples of what should be included,

a) System details
b) Cultural information, are they monogamous, polygamus, religious devotees, do they practice scarification, tatoos, or other body modifications
c) Production (what they make and or need)
d) What the norm is for the people. Even if they are human descendents, what are the 'evolutionary and cultural' facets. What is the typical height and weight, dominant hair and eye color.

I'm going to have to agree fully with this, Nash.

 

[Gabriel]

Here's my two cents:

I think it would be acceptable as long as none of the colonies were pre-made or pre-discovered. Meaning, these colonies won't be created or charted on the star map until a plot has physically gone and charted these colonies. I'm not really sure if all that was implied or not which is why I said it.

Secondly, I feel like you could really work around the large-scale wikis on each settlement depending on the size of the settlement itself. For instance, if on this "colony world" it has a single small town as the central hub, and some farms scattering the rest of the planet, this would give you a total population of a couple thousand for the entire planet. In this sense, it would be easier to write a wiki for a population of 2000 than a population of several hundred million, simply because most beliefs, traditions, etc. would be almost identical for every citizen.

Lastly, I feel like this could be an opportunity to expand the blandness of technology. Everything right now is civilized and advance (depending on your definition of civilized). This could provide some in-game opportunities for characters to interact with completely unknown styles of civilizations. For instance, maybe a discovered civilization is of the same technology level as the Ancient Egyptians, maybe they have mildly advanced technology, but dozens of different warring tribes, and now factions must begin siding with the right tribes, bringing back a diplomacy aspect to SARP.

 

[Soresu]

-Already has plans for a section of the northwestern section of space. He's just being slow about it.-

 

[Wes]

What about just having a really complicated random generator that GMs could use as needed when they come into contact with one of these worlds? It would automatically come up with concepts for all of the stuff Nashoba listed and could be tweaked by the GM and posted to the wiki.

 

[Nashoba]

That would be a handy tool. Before the war I had wanted to make a plot with the SSS and exploring worlds was going to be part of it.

 

[Scot]

I believe back in the day they were called Frontier Settlements, since this is not an entirely new race, or a section of the race that has been isolated for many generations, more than likely they remain connected somewhat to their home empires until they expand in their direction.

UOC and Nep's southern expanse are similar cases of this, the difference with this kind of settlement may be that it isn't patrolled by an army but rather by locals, sort of like illegal settlements, or settlements not sanctioned by the government.

A nuetral faction would be nice for many things, though would the Mishu pass up on those planets simply because the inhabitants lack anything interesting? From what I can tell the Mishu randomly show up and attack stuff.

 

[Gabriel]

Wes, if you would like, I can begin to get some starter information for this generator. Basically, I feel that I could come up with a sufficient number of categories and some starter information for each of these categories. It wouldn't be something 100% ready to use, but a decent start that would just require some small additions. In fact, I'll start now.

 

[Cy83r K0rp53]

Phu, I'll have to get to work on the Llrynni again. Let's see, what is left? system & planet data... ccg... and some basic tech, eugh, that's 4/7 uncompleted. Aaand I need to find a Co-GM and come up with a plot... maybe some sort of... exploration thing? nn, sounds good, but do I have the time... maybe.

 

[Wes]

Sounds good, Gabriel.

 

[Gabriel]

Alright, here's what I have so far in terms of a possible random civilization generator. Please keep in mind, this is only intended for an organized society and is not meant for barbaric or tribal societies. I do realize it's a lot to read at once.

"The civilization is [Sustenance]. The current form of government in this civilization is [Government] and the society currently operates with [Classes]. The civilization uses [Currency] in its [Economy] economic form, with [Economics]. Its main exports are [Export 1] [Export 2] while its major imports are [Import 1] [Import 2].

Within the civilization there is a [Level 1] level of architectural innovation, a [Level 2] education system, and a [Level 3] system of health care. The legal system is currently [Legal]. Also, in this civilization, slavery is currently [Slavery], and slaves are mostly [Slavery 2]. The main religion is [Religion], and common religious traditions include [RT 1] and [RT 2].

The current literacy rate is roughly [Literacy]. The language spoken in this civilization is [Language]. Additional languages known only by high intellectuals or religious leaders are [Language 2]. There are currently [City] large cities in this civilization, [Village] small villages, and [Town] very small hamlets. The current total population is [Population] with roughly [CityP] of citizens located within the cities, [VillageP] of citizens located within the small villages, and the remainder being located within the hamlets.

The civilization is currently in a time of [State]. The military technology level is [Tech] compared to that of other similarly sized civilizations, and roughly [Pop] of the population are serving in the armed forces. The current technology for extraterrestrial military operations is [Space]. This civilization is [Aggressive] when it comes to international relations and foreign policy."



Sustenance:
- agriculturally based with a low level of agricultural innovation
- agriculturally based with a medium level of agricultural innovation
- agriculturally based with an advanced and modern level of agricultural innovation
- agriculturally based with a superior level of agricultural innovation
- sustained through the consumption of domesticated animals, and has a low level of domestication innovation
- sustained through the consumption of domesticated animals, and has a high level of domestication innovation
- sustained through the consumption of domesticated animals, and has a superior level of domestication innovation
- based off of both agriculture and the consumption of domesticated animals, having a low technology level in each of these fields
- based off of both agriculture and the consumption of domesticated animals, having a medium technology level in each of these fields
- based off of both agriculture and the consumption of domesticated animals, having a modern technology level in each of these fields
- based off of both agriculture and the consumption of domesticated animals, having a far advanced technology level in each of these fields

Government:
- Authoritarian
- a Communism
- a Constitutional Monarchy
- a Constitutional Republic
- a Democracy
- a Military Dictatorship
- a Constitutional Dictatorship
- a Monarchy
- a Theocracy
- Totalitarian

Classes:
- no social classes
- an upper and lower social class divided by wealth
- an upper and lower social class divided by intelligence
- an upper and lower social class divided by strength
- an upper and lower social class divided by birth
- a noble, upper, lower, and servant class divided by wealth
- a noble, upper, lower, and servant class divided by intelligence
- a noble, upper, lower, and servant class divided by strength
- a noble, upper, lower, and servant class divided by birth
- a complex social hierarchy divided by wealth
- a complex social hierarchy divided by intelligence
- a complex social hierarchy divided by strength
- a complex social hierarchy divided by birth

Currency:
- a barter systems
- silver coined currency
- silver bars as currency
- silver items as currency
- gold coined currency
- gold bars as currency
- gold items as currency
- a credit system
- printed standard money
- electronic money

Economy:
- Capitalist
- Communist

Economics:
- a poor understanding of modern economics
- a decent understanding of modern economics
- an excellent understanding of modern economics
- a more advanced version of modern economics

Export 1:
- crops
- cash crops
- animals
- weapons
- armor
- technology
- miscellaneous goods

Export 2:
- as the only exports
- and luxuries
- and fabrics
- and metals
- and furniture
- and construction materials

Import 1:
- crops
- cash crops
- animals
- weapons
- armor
- technology
- miscellaneous goods

Import 2:
- as the only imports
- and luxuries
- and fabrics
- and metals
- and furniture
- and construction materials

Level 1:
- low
- medium
- high
- superior

Level 2:
- poor
- decent
- advanced
- superior

Level 3:
- dismal
- adequate
- exceptional
- far more advanced

Legal:
- based off of monetary bribes
- a multi-level court system
- nonexistant
- formal mediation by village elders
- informal mediation by village elders
- formal mediation by village intellectuals
- informal mediation by village intellectuals

Slavery:
- illegal and relatively nonexistent
- illegal but run underground by using other races as slaves
- illegal but run underground by using any possible victims as slaves
- illegal but run underground by using enemy citizens as slaves
- illegal but run underground by using enemy combatants as slaves
- legal but relatively nonexistent
- legal, using other races as the main source of slaves
- legal, using criminals as the main source of slaves
- legal, using the indebted as the main source of slaves
- legal, using enemy citizens as the main source of slaves
- legal, using enemy combatants as the main source of slaves
- legal, using orphaned children as the main source of slaves

Slavery 2:
- imported
- exported
- domestic

Religion:
- Animism
- Shamanism
- based off Ancestral Worship
- Polytheistic with multiple equal deities representing nature
- Polytheistic with multiple equal deities representing the elements
- Polytheistic with multiple equal deities representing society
- Polytheistic with a few chief deities and multiple lesser deities representing nature
- Polytheistic with a few chief deities and multiple lesser deities representing the elements
- Polytheistic with a few chief deities and multiple lesser deities representing society
- Atheistic
- Monotheistic with the deity controlling all things
- Monotheistic with the deity affecting nature
- Monotheistic with the deity affecting society.

RT 1:
- prayer
- fasting
- alms giving
- daily worship
- weekly worship

RT 2:
- tattoos
- animal sacrifice
- human sacrifice
- self-harm
- selflessness
- complex rituals

Language:
- unknown
- similar to Yamataian
- similar to Nepleslian
- nonexistent
- similar to new Saalsari
- identical to old Saalsari
- identical to Yamataian
- similar to the Norian languages
- similar to Abwehran
- similar to the old English language

Language 2:
- also unknown
- similar to Yamataian
- similar to Nepleslian
- nonexistent
- similar to new Saalsari
- identical to old Saalsari
- identical to Yamataian
- similar to the Norian languages
- similar to Abwehran
- similar to the old English language

City:
- 0
- 1
- 2
- 3

Village:
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8

Town:
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15

Population:
- 10,000
- 30,000
- 60,000
- 100,000
- 150,000
- 250,000
- 300,000
- 500,000
- 700,000
- 850,000
- 950,000
- 1 million
- 2 million
- 3 million
- 4 million
- over 5 million

CityP:
- 60%
- 55%
- 50%
- 40%
- 35%

Village P:
- 35%
- 30%
- 25%
- 20%
- 10%

State:
- peace, with some colonies
- peace, with no colonies
- peace, currently being a colony
- armistice with occupied territory
- armistice with no occupied territory
- armistice and currently occupied
- war, with occupied territory
- war, with no occupied territory
- war, being currently occupied
- civil war

Tech:
- nearly nonexistent
- extremely poor
- poor
- sub-par
- adequate
- above average
- excellent
- extremely advanced

Pop:
- 75%
- 65%
- 60%
- 55%
- 50%
- 40%
- 35%
- 25%
- 20%
- 10%
- 5%

Space:
- nonexistent
- extremely poor
- poor
- sub-par
- below average
- average

Aggressive:
- aggressive
- passive
- cautious
- trusting
- suspicious
- defensive
- withdrawn
- welcoming
- isolationistic

 

[Doshii Jun]

1. Lower-case all those forms of government; none of them carries an upper case.

2. Communist is more economic than government, and doesn't explain a society in any case (Russian communism? Chinese communism?)

Instead, go with "single-party state."

3. democratic, sted democracy; theocratic sted theocracy.

4. If we're discovering new worlds, with races with which we are completely unfamiliar, the classes make sense. Otherwise, they don't.

5. Replace "Communist" with "centrally planned." in Economy. Communism is a specific, RL invention of Earth, so it wouldn't carry into SARP. Central planning is what you're getting at.

6. Instead of dividing between gold and silver, just say "minerals as currency." They might value onyx above gold, for example.

7. The exports and imports part bugs me, but only because I don't know if these are supposed to be colonies or entirely new worlds with entirely new races. If they're new races, it makes sense.

8. The legal system portion could do without the informal mediation parts. Those aren't legal systems, just politics.

9. OK, the Slavery portion makes me think we're discovering completely new worlds.

I'd take off the "orphaned children" part at the end, simply because this can be covered under "enemy citizens."

Also, why the distinction between citizens and combatants? It raises more questions than it provides in answers. It's easier to just say "enemies."

The "illegal" portion in general poses a lot of problems depending on the legal system. If they're illegal, how are they used? How are they hidden from authorities? How big is the slave trade?

10. The Religion portion is too rigid. The Greeks had gods representing parts of society as well as elements and nature (which aren't different enough to have their own categories). This could be pared down so the GM/player/reader is left with a vague outline and can fix the rest to their liking.

11. I'd remove the first part. "Worship" and "prayer" are pretty close across all religions, as is alms giving. ...

12. You could stick fasting in the second part, however, remove selflessness (describes a tenet of a religion, not a practice).

13. If these races are indeed new and alien that we're finding, their language should not be similar to Nepleslian or Yamataian outside of "it is verbally spoken." "Old English" should be completely removed, considering it's referencing Earth and that's not something we're supposed to do.

It seems easier to say they speak with [body part X] or via telepathy. The language itself should be decoded.

Also, it's easier to just say "main language" instead of including two.

14. I would remove the population, or at least up the numbers. Five million's not a lot of people for an entire planet.

15. On State, how do we define a colony? They somehow branched out to other planets, other land masses on their planet, other places on the same land mass?

It's a crucial question to me because saying it's at "war" with someone means there's more than one government being talked about with this generator. That means the generator's only telling, at max, half the story.

Understandably war happens, so you can't ignore it, but this just leaves me with a ton of questions.

16. The part about tech doesn't make sense to me. "Similarly sized civilizations"? What civilizations are we talking about? Ones from Earth's past? SARP ones?

17. The space question should be the first one answered, in my mind. For GMs and players, the first question is likely going to be, "Are they going to know what a starship is?"

Overall: Too many options, many of which could conflict with each other or generally frustrate a reader/player. I'd rather things be more vague and I, as a player-in-charge or a GM, define things myself.

This seems to be a new race generator. Nifty, but hopefully gets labeled as such. It does not directly have much to do with North Moors as the kind of concept Five was talking about.

In the end ... I hate generators. So take what I saw with a grain of salt.

 

[Gabriel]

My only rebuts are this. Unfortunately, since a civilization is such a complex thing, when you make a generator for it there will sometimes be things that conflict, but its up to the GM to decide what they want to use and what they want to tweak. The generator isn't meant to be the only information, it's meant to give you a start.

Also, I created this generator on the basis that:
A. These are essentially single-world colonies, usually not covering the whole planet.
B. There is a very strong possibility of there being multiple of these colonies on one planet.
C. They are usually of lower technology, excepting in some rare and special cases.
D. They are developing civilizations, far from their potential.

Basically, when I created this, I had in mind civilizations such as the Romans, Ancient Egyptians, or even late Midevil Aged Civilizations. They're not meant to be at a technology or society level as the "normal" SARP civilizations.

EDIT: Also, please keep in mind that I never intended to spit out a finished generator on one sitting, I just intended to create some sort of foundation, a decent start, which is what I have. From where it is, it can be easily improved.

 

[Doshii Jun]

Fair points. I'm sorry if I went overboard; I wanted to treat your foundation with the credit it deserves. A lot of work went into what you did.

 

[Gabriel]

Perfectly acceptable, you only wanted perfection out of what was being presented, which is completely reasonable.

 

[Wes]

Here's a work-in-progress generator, using a trimmed version of Gabriel's data.

https://stararmy.com/generators/civ.php