Xavier Onassiss

Re: Instantaneous Communications plus Time Dilation Equals ??? It's understood that communications using quantum entanglement defies current theory. But this is one of those cases in which I made a conscious decision to insert a bit of 'handwavium' into the campaign, because it has so much potential as a plot device. Quantum entangled communicators are extremely rare in this campaign -- some star systems can't afford any, most systems have one, and a very few have multiple units. They aren't gadgets for the PC's to buy at the Rigel Kent branch of Sharper Image; they're strategic assets, only used for government, military, intelligence, and sometimes high-level academic data transfers. The result is a distinctly two-tiered interstellar communications network. The 'Powers That Be' have access to instantaneous communications, while everyone else has to use courier vessels which take up to a month to reach the next system. These so-called fast courier ships are often derisively referred to as the "phony express." Sure, I could insist on scientific rigor and chuck the whole idea, but this set-up makes things...interesting. (The bad pun is also a nice bonus.) Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: A Thread for Random Videos Not 100% Safe For Work. Alanis Morisette doing a cover/parody of Black Eyed Peas' My Humps: Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: A Thread for Random Videos Best villain ever...the EVIL MIDNIGHT BOMBER WHAT BOMBS AT MIDNIGHT! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFpGtSwCPBs&feature=related And here's part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdGrWkDOrJY&feature=related Yeah baby, yeah!!! Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: If you Had to Pick, ONE (already) Setting, to Run in, What is it? But...his list goes to eleven!

Re: The cranky thread Same here. Snowing like crazy in MD, RPG cancelled. Shoveled our walk and got the the car dug out to go grocery shopping 'cuz I didn't go yesterday. (Friggin' migraines!) And now, I must go forth and pelt my room-mate with a custom-made snowball, just for him! Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: If you Had to Pick, ONE (already) Setting, to Run in, What is it? They said to pick one, but Susano's anime-cyberpunk list goes up to eleven. Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: Star Wars Weather Hey, guess which planet DC compares with today!

Re: A Thread for Random Videos Watching this, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. I don't think these interviews are staged.... "When you're right, you don't have to compromise! Compromise is for people who are wrong!" EPIC FACEPALM!!! Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: What Are You Listening To Right Now? With My Sorrows, Black Tape For a Blue Girl Depressing, but beautiful. Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: Announcing Kazei 5, Second Edition

Re: The First Photograph of an Extraterrestrial Lake Awesome!I can has low-G methane skiing! Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: What's in YOUR future history? Indeed. Rocket Punk Manifesto is also on my favorites list, right alongside the Tough Guide to the Known Galaxy. Surprisingly informative for a guide with so much humor. (Or, surprisingly humorous for such an informative guide. Take your pick.) This one also takes a very 50's look at future history, but the entry on 'cosmic background history' is more thorough. I'm going to have to work on this, too, but it won't be easy. Paging Stephen Baxter.... Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: What's in YOUR future history? Warning! Totally tasteless joke: On a more serious note...thanks, Nyrath. I've found your site extremely useful throughout the world-building process, especially concerning spacecraft. I hadn't gotten to the future history section yet, but now I'm giving it a good once-over, and it's very interesting. Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: Quantum Propulsion Machine May Lead To Propulsion Without Change In Mass The 'stutterwarp' drive of 2300 AD wasn't a reactionless drive. The defining feature of a reactionless drive is the production of thrust without the expenditure of reaction mass. The stutterwarp didn't actually produce any thrust, so technically, it's not a reactionless drive. Which doesn't make it any less useful or interesting -- I'm just clarifying the terminology here. Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: If you Had to Pick, ONE (already) Setting, to Run in, What is it? I've got that one, too. Much as I enjoyed Birthright, I'd have a hard time getting it all into a single RPG. So I went with Resnick's 'bounty hunter' stories; can't go wrong with a bounty hunter RPG! IIRC, Widowmaker and Santiago were part of that same time-line, although I'm not sure exactly which period they took place in. Ivory also had some interesting story ideas, some of which took place at roughly the same time. (And some before, and some long after....) Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: Instantaneous Communications plus Time Dilation Equals ???

Re: If you Had to Pick, ONE (already) Setting, to Run in, What is it? The future history of Mike Resnick: in particular the Widowmaker and Santiago stories. No, I wasn't terribly impressed with the books, but when I was reading them, I kept thinking "Wow, this could make one hell of an RPG!" Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: Instantaneous Communications plus Time Dilation Equals ???

Re: FTL Travel I've felt like the FTL travel power has been redundant ever since mega-scale movement was introduced. If you really want to break down End cost phase-by-phase, a standard movement power with mega-scaling might make things easier for you. Just scale it up until it exceeds light-speed. Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: What Are You Listening To Right Now? Goodnight, Demonslayer by Voltaire Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: Instantaneous Communications plus Time Dilation Equals ???

Re: Instantaneous Communications plus Time Dilation Equals ??? The wormholes used by starships aren't permanent, so this wouldn't be practical. I chose wormholes for FTL travel because I didn't want 'all that tedious mucking about in hyperspace.' In practice, the wormhole drive in my setting ends up functioning pretty much like a jump drive with a lengthy travel time. OTOH, permanent wormholes for communications wouldn't necessarily need to be big enough to traverse -- just wide enough to pass a signal.

Re: What's in YOUR future history? Heh. I'm in 100% agreement on Icehenge. Great idea; okay execution, poor ending. I'll stop short of spoiling it for anyone. As far as my campaign setting goes: good point. There are going to be a number of mysteries which will be considered 'GM only' material, but the time-line will at least point the players in the right direction towards discovering the truth. Gotta love 'deep cosmic mysteries.' Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Every SF campaign has one. (almost) I'm working on a basic future-history / time-line, and I'm wondering how others approach this project. Up to this point, the 'future history' has been rather vague; just enough information to say "Here's how we got to this point." But I've had enough requests for a more concrete time-line with actual dates on it to justify doing one. My list of basic elements to include looks like this, so far: First contact with aliens Technological breakthroughs Outbreak of Wars Ends of wars and their results Exploration milestones Colonization milestones Important legal precedents Natural disasters Technological disasters Socio-economic disasters Infamous crimes Founding of major organizations Actions of famous NPC's The question is: What else should be on this list? The floor is open. Many thanks in advance for your suggestions. Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss

Re: Instantaneous Communications plus Time Dilation Equals ??? Thanks! I'm strongly leaning towards traversable wormholes as the special effect for FTL travel in this campaign, so perhaps I should also look at a variation of that for FTL communications as well. But that raises still more questions. Suppose you have a pair of communicators linked by a wormhole; is it even possible to transport one of them via an FTL wormhole drive without destroying the link in the process? I'm thinking No. The resulting state of affairs reminds me of the Charles Stross novels Singularity Sky and Iron Sunrise. Both stories featured quantum-entangled communicators with interstellar range, and FTL travel, but the technologies weren't compatible. The entangled communicators had to be shipped at sub-light speeds, which made them prohibitively expensive. Don't look at me, Xavier Onassiss