Ian Mackinder

Re: Pulp Fiction ! 'Doc Sidhe' and the sequel 'Sidhe Devil', by Aaron Allston (sound familiar?). Well worth reading, IMO. Parallel world circa 1930s, with magic. "Doc" has a great deal in common with a certain other well-known character from the pulps, but there are significant differances as well. Not hugely original (as one might expect), but well done and very entertaining. Look forward to further books.

Re: How long does tech last after The End? Further to that line of argument is that cavemen need less-than-minimal training to successfully operate said jet fighters in combat

Re: How long does tech last after The End?

Re: How long does tech last after The End?

Re: Coming To A Western Front Near You Of definite personal interest. I am a very indirect non-blood relative of the Red Baron (Manfred von Richtofen to his friends).

Re: How long does tech last after The End? Personally, I doubt it. Consider the following pairs as extreme examples. Which of these are more likely to continue operating with little more than blacksmiths' tools and some improvization? A Ferrari Testarossa or a Ford Model-T? A 747 or a Ju-52? An M-1 Abrams or a Sherman tank? A nuclear sub or the USS Consitiution?

Re: How long does tech last after The End? Whilst not actually asked about (and it may be that cyst13 already knows this), I would point out that stored petroleum goes "off". As I understand it, the modern stuff lasts 6-12 months at best. Older stores (fewer additives, less refined) might last longer, but probably not forty-odd years. On the upside, the original concept for the diesel engine was as an internal combustion engine that would run on just about anything (diesel oil is actually the leftover of petroleum refining). A suitably skilled mechanic might possibly rig up an older model diesel engine to run on, say, vegetable oil.

Re: Seductive combatant powers? There are certain phrases from the book 'How To Be A Superhero' that would seem to have certain ... potential here.

Re: Quote of the Week from my gaming group...

Re: Jurassic Park If I recall correctly, in the movie that option was specifically referred to as "the Lysine Contingency". In the movie and the book, it was meant as a last-resort safeguard against the beasties getting out of control (as in escaping).

Re: Hulk vs Superman

Re: Humans are "Special"

Re: Best and most Pointless superbattle of all time Most Pointless: IMO, those numerous early Marvel stories involving the meeting of two different heroes. A sudden inability to communucate invariably led to idiotic misunderstandings (sometimes exacerbated by some villain). Said heroes would immediately start beating the living cud out of each other and their general surroundings. For somebody as short-fused as the Hulk, perhaps this was the most probable course for events to take. But using the same approach for just about everybody else got real old way fast, and was the main reason why I was VERY slow to get interested in Marvel.

Re: Humans are "Special" I really don't buy into the grossly overused assertion that any race sufficiently advanced to acheive interstellar travel MUST be peaceful. I really don't. For all we know, when compared to other starfaring sentients, the entire Human race may seem like long-haired, tree-hugging, folk-singing, peacenik hippies.

Re: Humans are "Special" Never watched Ben 10. If you go by Larry Niven's 'Known Space' stories, then the primary schtick of the human race is Luck. The other alien races are bigger, tougher, smarter or whatever; yet humans keep squeaking by, no matter what. Personally, I think humanity's strongest attribute would be something to do with gadgeteering, MacGyvering, kit-bashing, making-do, improvisation and general inventiveness. Just think of all the nifty little gadgets that are continually being devised for everyday living, for instance.

Re: Did someone say pirate minis? Nope, not a line of minis. I run a '7th Sea' campaign. To that end, I have been collecting (and painting) 25mm minis of a Pirate-y nature from several different lines. Up to 100 minis or so, and still going. Most fantasy miniature lines include at least a couple of token swashbucklers - AND a few ninja /martial artists for good measure. Ninja and Pirates, a very cool combo.

Re: Military Campaign that morphs into Sci-Fi or even Horror Destroy the Great Pyramid how? Probably need someone with a mondo 'Demolitions' skill, a ####load of explosives and a LOT of time to carefully place said explosives. May be easier to steal a nuke from someplace and set that off in the guts of the Pyramid. The Marines have special powers which they have kept secret. Clarification needed here. Kept secret from the Corps and each other? Which raises the apparent "coincidence" of them all being in the same unit - possibly explainable if their villainous CO somehow knew about said abilities beforehand. Or are they some kind of specially-established paranormal-type unit? Seem like several gaps in the aliens' logic to me, not just the ones mentioned. For instance, why would one basically turn traitor to his/her/its entire species? Maybe need to expand on this - maybe there are much MUCH bigger stakes involved somehow. Plus the incredible inadvisability of deliberately making a potential foe much tougher - bad bad idea.

Re: Oh, Su-SAN-o!!! (Or: Pre-painted Ninja Hero figures) Nice. Hopefully, around 25mm to go with my Pirate-y minis.

Re: Pirates : An amusing question. I referee 7th Sea, so always enjoy this sort of thing. Trouble is that it would certainly take a LONG time to set up. Instead of actually digging out an underground lair, why fool other would-be treasure-hunters into doing the job for you? Basically, plant evidence (faked maps, rumours, "clues" at the actual site, etc.) purporting to be of a fabulous treasure trove. Sit back and watch as the treasure-hunters start arriving and commence digging. Plant the odd item or two in the excavations, just to give them some encouragement. If you play your cards right (and given sufficient time) you could get maybe an entire dungeon complex dug this way. Hmmm. Maybe the treasure trove could include the 'Head of Vecna'?

Re: 17thc Sailling ship Yeah, the original was wrecked just off the coast of Western Australia on her maiden voyage. Dutch ships commonly made the run to Java that way, and more than a few came to grief there (and indications that, in at least a couple of cases, survivors then joined local Aboriginal tribes). The whole 'Batavia' story is a wild mix of incompetence, mutiny, betrayal, murder and heroism - most Aussies know something about it. The replica made a long stay at the Australian National Maritime Museum here in Sydney a few years back. I got the chance to go over her several times, and it was worth it.

Re: Pirate Hero http://www.all-model.com/ This website has some very nice deckplans, a few of which are even free. Mostly intended for model-making, but definite RP possibilities. I particularly recommened Frigate 'Roter Lowe' ("Red Lion", I think). Had those printed to A0 size, which turns out to be pretty much the right size for 25mm figures. The quality is very good - had a regular print job done instead of photo-quality and, with lamination, the results were BEAUTIFUL.

Re: Historical Nexus Points The Mongols WERE a maritime power! Your assertion, not mine. Furthermore, the zenith of China's maritime capabilities came in the early 1400s. Well after the Mongols were booted out of rulership of China - and in fact had devolved into a vassal state. Consider the discussion let go.

Re: Historical Nexus Points

Re: Historical Nexus Points The Mongols' attempted invasion of Japan used a fleet that composed predominantly of river craft and/or vessels built in considerable haste. Well-suited to calm waters, NOT to serious oceanic crossing - and a recipe for disaster in any weather that turned unpleasant or worse. Not quite the hallmark of an established maritime power, I think. Genghis Khan conquered China circa 1279. China rebelled in 1352, and pushed out his successors, replacing them with the Yuan Dynasty. The third emperor of that dynasty, Zhu Di, was the one who formed the Treasure Fleet in the early 1400s, which is KNOWN to have sailed as far as east Africa and the Persian Gulf several times (and may well have travelled considerably further). I refer you, sir, to a book I have previously mentioned on a number of other threads - '1421 - The Year China Discovered The World' by Gavin Menzies - which covers the events you mention. Yes, China was a maritime power by the 1400s, the Mongols had attained a reasonable impact on them, culturally and genetically. By the same token, the Mongols still existed at that time as a separate land-locked state, their status with Imperial China being that of somewhat recalcitrant and rebellious vassals. Not a maritime power. Not by then, anyhow.

Re: Historical Nexus Points In all likelihood, Japan's sunsequent history would have altered to the extent of being almost unrecognizable. Possibly, it would have either integrated into China OR become a vassal state (as were most other east Asian nations / cultures at one time or another). On the other hand, Japan was pretty much a Chinese vassal in the very early 1400s anyhow. Not through being conquered militarily, but due to China's economic and cultural dominance at that time. Not sure where this one could have led. Historically, Japan spent much of its time in isolation anyhow. So, after some time under Mongol rule (with attendant cultural changes), could Japan (or whatever it became) have gone a different way? Dunno. Also, the invasion could have had positive or negative effects on the Mongols. Success may have encouraged them to become a maritime power, with the possibility of exploring and (attempted) conquest of other regions in the Pacific basin (the Philippines? Indonesia? Australia? The Americas?). On the other hand, the effort in taking and holding such (comparitively) remote locales could have sped up their decline.