Earth-2 Anyone?

[starblaze]

Originally posted by Supreme

I wrote an article about this for Digital HERO called "Classic Bits." I defined three basic types of "Alternate Earths."

1. Divergent Earth.

This is an Earth created by some change in a historically significant event. This Earth exists in a timestream divergent from ours, which is effectively like a parallel dimension. The main difference is that, as time passes from the historical pivot-point, the Divergent Earths become increasingly different from each other.

Example: The Aztech Empire from "Tom Strong"

2. Parallel Earth.

This is an Earth that exists in another dimension. There isn't a specific historical pivot-point in which this Earth diverges from ours. Its a world where there may be differences that are minor, or radical. Either way the amount of difference is generally static and stays the same (hence their "parallel" nature).

Example: DC's pre-Crisis multiple Earths.

3. Other Earth.

This is another planet in the same universe that has had a highly similar, but never exact duplicate, of our Earth.

Example: Marvel's Counter-Earth from "Adam Warlock", Mirror Earth also from "Tom Strong", the Earth ruled by a modern Roman Empire from "Star Trek"

Don't forget the other Star Trek episode "Miri" that also had another earth.

[Superskrull]

Originally posted by starblaze

Don't forget the other Star Trek episode "Miri" that also had another earth.

 

Or the other other episode where they have some post holocaust Earth and Kirk reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. Star Trek seemed to have a number of duplicate Earths lying about the galaxy. Heck, Trek hits all these classic genre buttons; time-travel alterations, evil twin universes, and spare Earths the writers leave lying about. Man, I love Classic Trek.

Now, if only my players hadn't all seen these dozens of times as well, I wouldn't have to invent my own stuff.

[Superskrull]

Ah, multiple earths. I love that stuff. I tend to try cramming it into whatever superhero games I run. I've used the Champions in 3-D stuff, been inspired by an old article in Space Gamer detailing Aaron Allston's original campaign ( I didn't recognize it at first when I found Strike force later), had evil duplicates from mirror dimensions, based villain strongholds on empty Earths with no natives, swiped old V&V module ideas for prison planets where evolution barely crawled out of the sea, built a fused Marvel/DC Earth & timeline for campaigning that I wound up revising three times, built the corollary fused world blending the Crime syndicate, Squadron Supreme & Extremists into a nasty metahuman dictatorship, rebuilt that too, let Champsguy and friends run amok in time and space, crossing from current campaign world to old game settings to my fused earth and over to brawling with Thor from Asgard to Oerth . Only thing I haven't done yet is make my players visit a world where superhuman alien nobles protect the natives of a decimated future Earth from ancient evils & the spacefaring enemies the nobles fled from. That'd be as cruel as sending them to another world where a mysterious mystic warrior defends his homeland while feigning helplessness and/or incompetance in his secret identity.

[Supreme]

Yeah, Trek, the original series, had lots of "Other Earths". "Miri" was one. The post-holocaust "We the People" episode was another. The Roman Empire episode I mentioned was another. Then they also did a couple of trips into "Parallel Earths": "And What of Lazarus", "Mirror, Mirror". Star Trek, like any good sci-fi/fantasy yarn, held a funhouse mirror up to society.

[Thag13]

My sons Favorite game is my "Sliders" game where I got a bunch of TV shows and movies and mixed them up .

 

My sliders Move to different Earths using Star gates. Yep those Stargates from SG1.

 

Right now the Roster for SG -13 is

 

Riddick - Vin Desels Character from Pitch Black. My son plays him very well. For those that dont know...He can see in the dark and is ruthless and cunning.

 

Scorpius - Yep, our Favorite Man in Black from Farscape.

 

Jack Morgan - An Indy Jones clone.

 

Tezz Kawasuki - Famed hacker and ninja.

 

Jackie Chong - Comic relief Fighter and nearly unkillable, but goes to the hospital a lot.

 

Burst, Cyborg Dwarf from ShadowRun Seattle. Meanest being in the multi worlds.

 

Fasial - Mystic from New Cairo. Magic really works there.

 

Best moment, When Burst needed repairs on his Cybernetics, the only one qualified was Scorpius. Lets just say that Scorpy added some Extra Value componnets for a rainy day.

 

This was one crazy game.

 

They visited Dead world, where the living dead had taken over.

 

Gang World, where goverments were shut down and crime lords ruled the land.

 

New Cario, where they battled Mummys, Desert Bandits, and Chinese Paper magic Demons. And met Clark Savage JR.

 

Whats next .... Barsoom!!! for the Second war of the worlds

[Supreme]

Nice! I like "Dead World." I can just picture a world full of lifeless corpses eternally waiting... until... they smell...

Brains!!!

[Space Cadet]

Ah, Supreme, I hate to be a real nit-picker about things, but

the Star Trek (TOS) episode you referred to as "And What of

Lazarus" is actually called "The Alternative Factor".

 

Space Cadet

[Supreme]

Originally posted by Space Cadet

Ah, Supreme, I hate to be a real nit-picker about things, but

the Star Trek (TOS) episode you referred to as "And What of

Lazarus" is actually called "The Alternative Factor".

 

Space Cadet

Sure you hate to be a nit-picker...

Touche. I was remembering the last line of the episode.

[dbsousa]

Originally posted by Supreme

Yeah, Trek, the original series, had lots of "Other Earths". "Miri" was one. The post-holocaust "We the People" episode was another.

 

go to http://www.eplebnista.com

 

you can thank me later...

[st barbara]

As I have mentioned in the past I am currently playing in an "Alternate Earths" type campaign. Our first alternative was known as "Earth Halo" and , apart from some different physical laws (See Scotty , you CAN change the laws of physics !) which led to "St Barbara's" energy blasts being MORE powerful, there were a number of changes including a much more repressive U S government headed by President Joe McCarthy. Team Zenith 3 (including "St Barbara") helped change that ! We also had a Soviet Union still dominated by Joseph Stalin, albiet a Stalin kept alive by machines ! Our next stop is something called "Earth Regency" in which the British Empire is still the dominant political force. I will be interested to see what havoc we can wreak (oh sorry !, what adventures we can get into) in this alternate reality, but it looks like it will be at least six months, probably longer (that's six games, we play this campaign once per month) before we get there. It also looks as if "St Barbara" may be the only original character left from the group that first started playing !

[RevHooligan]

I have used this plot device over and over in almost any Champions campaign I've done. I think it's from my admiration of the "Cross-Time Caper" in the much maligned Excalibur comic.

I've done Christain theocracies, Nazi Americas, sword and sorcery worlds, and a dozen others. It's a fun way to reimagine villians and NPCs who may have gotten stale after months of regular continuity.