rohaun Posted February 8, 2008 Report Share Posted February 8, 2008 Sorry if this post is long.... This morning I hae been thiking for some reason about how to start my first Terran Empire Campaign. I have a brief outline and wanted to get some feedback on. It will start with the characters execution. They are all convicted criminals, some may have een framed, others in the wrong place at the wrong time, and others still may be actual bad guys. They are brought into a room and strapped to the electric chairs. At the moment of truth , the lights flash , people scream, and the room goes dark. After a few moments the lights come back on and standing in front of them is a man dressed in a military uniform. ( I will call this guy Mr. X for now ) Mr. X informs the PC's "You're all dead, welcome to the afterlife." He goes on to explain based on their skills they are the right people for a job he needs done. Six months ago the military lost contact with one of their research facilities located on a planet. ( I am still learning the Terran Empire setting and will flesh out stuff later. ) When the first rescue teams arrived, they found the planet devastated, no suvivors. The Higher ups declared a quaritine of the planet, noone is to land. Warning becaons have been placed in orbit to warn off anyone who comes close. They Empire also has setup a regular patrol of the system to catch any scanvengers, pirates, etc. Mr. X informs them that three weeks ago his people received a distress signal coming from the science facility on that planet. His requests for a rescue mission have been denied. Mr. X explains he needs a team that is off the grid so to speak and the PC's are it. He assures them they will be compensated for this mission. Also if any PC's refuse then thier original sentence will be carried out. Once the group accepts, Mr. X explains he can get the group on the planet unnoticed. He has the schedule of the patrols and other details. Once in orbit the PC's will take a shuttle down and land at the city. They will get a reading of the distress signal. What the PC's are going to find is that the planet is infested with zombies. The PC's will located the survivors, fight through a zombie infested city, they will locate a merchant ship they can use to get all the survivors off planet andas a bonus they can keep the ship for further adventures. The leader of the survivors will be the daughter of Mr. X. I know this is just a start and I have some work cut out for me getting more details, but this is what I came up with lying in bed this morning. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost-angel Posted February 8, 2008 Report Share Posted February 8, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... One of two things: Either quickly move to a situation where the PCs can take care of their own destinies and direction. Or warn them they will be playing a La Femme Nakita campaign where they will become MIBs under direction of Mr. X For the first, you don't have to tell them exactly how long before Mr. X stops ordering them around, a lot of fun can be had in planning their escape - just make sure it is a successful one. You can even say OOC after Mr. X introduces himself that you don't plan on keeping the campaign this way, but they'll have to get out of it themselves (this way if they actually want to become Mr. X's personal MOD Squad you can do that oo). For the second, some player buy in is usually best or you'll have a rebellion on your hands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rohaun Posted February 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 8, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... One of two things: Either quickly move to a situation where the PCs can take care of their own destinies and direction. Or warn them they will be playing a La Femme Nakita campaign where they will become MIBs under direction of Mr. X I was thinking about that. Mr. X could be financing this on his own or gone rogue since it his daughter. As far as Imperial records are concerned, the player's no longer exist and will not be hunted. Mr. X just wants his daughter back , if the players are sucessful, they will no longer hear from Mr. X again , but can use him as a contact. Again I have a lot of details to work out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atlascott Posted February 8, 2008 Report Share Posted February 8, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... Make sure the PC's understand that nanobots have been implanted in their brains which allow Mr. X to track them wherever they go, and begin eating their brains when he tocuhes...this...button. Then, allow them to discovery more and more info on Mr. X, to discover what a total b@st$rd he is, and let them figure out a way to get rid of the nanobots. Stellar radiation flying too near a blue dwarf? Radiation only found in a comet's tail? As a result of black market procedure performed by a legendary and reclusive surgeon? Sounds like a nice start tome! Have fun! Scott:thumbup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thia Halmades Posted February 8, 2008 Report Share Posted February 8, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... g-a is exactly right, and I've said this on multiple occasions. You need to guarantee player acceptance so you aren't facing a bunch of really dissatisfied people who want to open a cheese shop in Bora-Bora or something equally random. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Admiral C Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... A servicable idea for sure. Makes for a good starter if every's willing. But I couldn't help but to notice you mentioned a quarantine of the planet. What if there is a virus or genetic plague causing this. Or if really want to get technical self replicating nanos like (If I remember correctly) the Retilin V (spelling?) nanovirus from TORG Tharkhold that animates the dead but without the magical overtones. What if Mr X's offer isn't a way out but a simple extension? The deal is that they drop you on the planet implanted with nano cameras implanted in them, or at least on their weapons, and the longer you find out useful information the more "drops" of supplies you get or get directed too as well as expert help on an orbiting military ship via internal/external transmitters. The catch is that PCs are told from the get go that they will be turned loose after 48-72 hours anyway. Or least they will be on their own. But they will be left on that planet whatever happens even if their area needs to be "saturated" from orbit with "radioactive firestorms" via "explosions." There is enough orbiting defenses that no ship the PCs could hijack could get away and with constant communication the experts can make up their minds and if the PCs are dead in 20 minutes no big loss. They were expendable and they knew it. So the PCs know from the beginning they are expected to die anyway but better to die 48-72 hours later trying to survive than being killed outright. Of course there is lots of ways for sneaky PCs to live. Hijacking a ship the Terran Military didn't anticapate being there like a blockade runner or a intersystem interceptor. There is always surviving whatever happens. If the PCs know their zone is soon to be nuked they could find cover like an underground storage facility, bunker, or deep monorail system. Of course while the nuclear firestorm rages they'll still be trapped underground for days fighting zombies underground. Or worse. The deep ground could cut of their monitoring and the EMP could ruin it completely. Fighting their way to a submersible used for long term undersea mapping could be a way to sruvive too. And then you go the underwater city populated with zombies, kinda like Bioshock (sort of). Beyond this they could just head for the hills and live of the land if that's possible. Surviving long enough to reach something remote like a arctic weather station or something. If you really want them to leave sooner and not have sessions tied up with survival rolls (especially if they stink at that) there could be some sort of short range stealth vehicle. The Terran Military may consider it expendable as well and not of any real use to expendables because of it's short range. But the range is long enough to make it to an orbiting space station/dock. You could add zombies there too, but at that point they could be tired of zombies. The station could be occupied by survivors who are infected but the zero-G enviornemnt they are using has slowed the virus allowing a certain plucky scientist to avert everyone's fate. Or everyone could be slow painful death into zombification, which becomes a quick death for others. Just some thoughts. EDIT: Ooh, what if the short range stealth vehicle were a shuttle or dropship and the PCs forcefully boarded a small Terran Empire military ship with FTL and their entire compartment is pack with zombies the PCs have rounded up to release as aboarding party to confuse, shock, and disorient the crew? The PCs could even strap remotely detonated explosives like mining charges if they were mean and demolition inclined. And then take over the ship and escape. You can't fail to get Hunteds with ideas like this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost-angel Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... While I like that premise as a Post-Apoc type campaign, it sort of bypasses the Mr.X wants to save his daughter plot line. I'm writing that plot down though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Admiral C Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... While I like that premise as a Post-Apoc type campaign, it sort of bypasses the Mr.X wants to save his daughter plot line. I'm writing that plot down though. Oops. I missed that. My eyes must be tired. I have a knack for the dark stuff. If you wanted to keep any of the angles I laid out Mr. X could string along the promise of a cure/vaccination increasing the chances of escape if they go to a specific location and use a certain machine that looks like a giant MRI machine. Provided they find his daughter first and let her use the machine first. After she's he informs them he has uploaded a copy of her and a braintape so he can clone and remake his daughter over again. But that would be mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rohaun Posted February 15, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... I want to thank you guys for the input. This has given me some things to think about. Take care. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Monster Posted February 17, 2008 Report Share Posted February 17, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... Pretty good start - though the opening line could be. "You are now dead. Welcome to Purgatory." ("Where you will be given the opportunity to atone for your sins.") Here's another possible twist on Mr. X, which could be easily blended with previous ideas: Mr. X is actually a senior executive (head of state/cabinet member/CEO/board member) of an agency or corporation responsible for the 'unfortunate' release of the zombification process (virus, nanobots, q-bomb, whatever). In order to keep a lid on the situation, he's arranged for the heavy quarantine. However, the reports from survivors has him running scared; if someone is still alive who can witness the (deliberate) mishap, the repurcussions ouwld be catastrophic to his career at least, or his entire power structure (think The Broadcast from 'Serenity'). That's not his 'daughter' down there; it's actually one of the chief scientists on the project, who had warned him of the dangers in the first place, and who he's afraid (or knows for sure) that she kept records in some unknown place to cover her own butt, or just to turn whistle-blower*. If X deploys known military or governmental assets to hunt down and destroy the survivors, there will be too many records of the event, and someone will ask the wrong questions; if he sends in a bona-fide rescue team, they might succeed, and that's the last thing he wants. So he recruits the PCs, has them verified as dead, and sends them off as a rogue operation while keeping his true identity secret from them. X can provide them with the info necessary for penetration - patrol schedules, scan frequencies, and the like, and even a ship (with the clear understanding that the ship itself will not survive landing, due to extreme measures necessary to get past the blockade; maybe even an apparent crash landing will work as an additional layer of deniability!). X will, of course, provide detailed instructions on how to signal the pickup ship - frequencies, time windows, etc. Depending on how deep X plans, there may be no such thing as a pickup ship; or the ship may be equipped with a screamer, which will identify the ship as a spy ship or a dangerously unstable reactr, something that should ensure detection and destruction by the nearest patrol (of course, if the ship is piloted by robot, this allows additional deniability, since no additional humans are necessary, and incidentally allows a creative/skilled PC to hotwire the thing). Assuming the PCs get through all this, they are really on their own - X has set them up to die; they have no usable identity (i.e., no way to get licenses, credits (or credit), or anything), if anyone finds out who they are, they'll be tagged as escaped convicts (the phrase 'dead or alive' comes to mind). A likely outcome is that the campaign becomes a quest for revenge against Mr. X. For a less 'yer skrooed' note, the woman they pick up from the planet does turn out to be very knowledgeable as well as pretty decent, and might be persuaded to continue relations with the PC group, acting as contact/fixer/liaision for future situations. * OK, it could be his daughter, if he's that cold-blooded; in any case, it's someone with a dangerous combination of data and conscience. Daughter, mistress, trophy wife, receptionist, secretary, rival executive... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rohaun Posted February 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... I want to thank you all for your input. This has given me a lot of things to think on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Major Tom Posted February 24, 2008 Report Share Posted February 24, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... Sooo... the Umbrella Corporation's still up to its dirty business even in the future, eh? Major Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rohaun Posted February 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... Sooo... the Umbrella Corporation's still up to its dirty business even in the future, eh? Major Tom That didn't even cross my mind, but hmmmmmm........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Major Tom Posted February 28, 2008 Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... That didn't even cross my mind' date=' but hmmmmmm........[/quote'] Major Tom "BWAAH-HAA-HA-HA!!!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Weapon Posted March 11, 2008 Report Share Posted March 11, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... Sorry if this post is long.... This morning I hae been thiking for some reason about how to start my first Terran Empire Campaign. I have a brief outline and wanted to get some feedback on. It will start with the characters execution. They are all convicted criminals, some may have een framed, others in the wrong place at the wrong time, and others still may be actual bad guys. They are brought into a room and strapped to the electric chairs. At the moment of truth , the lights flash , people scream, and the room goes dark. After a few moments the lights come back on and standing in front of them is a man dressed in a military uniform. ( I will call this guy Mr. X for now ) Mr. X informs the PC's "You're all dead, welcome to the afterlife." He goes on to explain based on their skills they are the right people for a job he needs done. Six months ago the military lost contact with one of their research facilities located on a planet. ( I am still learning the Terran Empire setting and will flesh out stuff later. ) When the first rescue teams arrived, they found the planet devastated, no suvivors. The Higher ups declared a quaritine of the planet, noone is to land. Warning becaons have been placed in orbit to warn off anyone who comes close. They Empire also has setup a regular patrol of the system to catch any scanvengers, pirates, etc. Mr. X informs them that three weeks ago his people received a distress signal coming from the science facility on that planet. His requests for a rescue mission have been denied. Mr. X explains he needs a team that is off the grid so to speak and the PC's are it. He assures them they will be compensated for this mission. Also if any PC's refuse then thier original sentence will be carried out. Once the group accepts, Mr. X explains he can get the group on the planet unnoticed. He has the schedule of the patrols and other details. Once in orbit the PC's will take a shuttle down and land at the city. They will get a reading of the distress signal. What the PC's are going to find is that the planet is infested with zombies. The PC's will located the survivors, fight through a zombie infested city, they will locate a merchant ship they can use to get all the survivors off planet andas a bonus they can keep the ship for further adventures. The leader of the survivors will be the daughter of Mr. X. I know this is just a start and I have some work cut out for me getting more details, but this is what I came up with lying in bed this morning. Thanks. This guy better be offering free plastic surgery and fingerprint alteration (at least, best he throw in genetic as well). If not he's obviously going to throw us out the airlock on the return trip. Even if he does it's 50/50 he'll do it anyway. Unless the setting isn't like that? I don't know the TE. The characters should make sure they specify they're only doing one job otherwise they're in for life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost-angel Posted March 11, 2008 Report Share Posted March 11, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... This guy better be offering free plastic surgery and fingerprint alteration (at least' date=' best he throw in genetic as well). If not he's obviously going to throw us out the airlock on the return trip. Even if he does it's 50/50 he'll do it anyway. Unless the setting isn't like that? I don't know the TE. The characters should make sure they specify they're only doing one job otherwise they're in for life.[/quote'] The TE as presented can go pretty much any direction - from Dark to Optimistic. Some era's are more suited to one side or the other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Weapon Posted March 11, 2008 Report Share Posted March 11, 2008 Re: My first Terran Empire Campaign idea... Or he has no connection to the planet at all. This could be a "proof of concept" test that's designed to implicate his corporate/political rivals in letting death row inmates escape if it's discovered. He is impersonating the father of one of the survivors. If she is saved he'll deliver an anonymous note to the real father to go along with the story in return for getting his daughter back and covering up what really happened. He can fake being daddy for a single meeting. If the mission is not discovered then he knows that the system works and he can start using it to do his own dirty work. Or maybe the work isn't really "dirty" it's just pretty much illegal. He could actually be a good guy trying to run a secret society of do-gooders. If he is there's a lot better chance he won't simply kill the characters to cover up the project. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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