Sci-fi games offer so many possibilities for adventure where do you even start to look at them? I am always on the lookout for a good hook or space idea to sink my teeth into but there are some things that I have noticed I tend not to use in my adventures. I then began wondering if that were the same across most games out there in the world.
The first trope that I tend not to touch a great deal is the idea of fighter ships. Be it the X-wings from star wars or the Vipers of Battlestar I have never taken my game into this zone. I am not sure that this style even interests a lot of players. Funny because the action of a fighter pilot should translate very well into the RPG arena. It is like being a mech warrior with more freedom after all. Has anyone out there run a sci-fi game in this style before, and if so, how did it go? Hit me up in the comments.
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| In space no-one can hear you scream |
Another thing that interests me is the way people run different planets. With the Classic Traveller system they give me the base skeleton of a planet and then they just say “You make it up.” I like that style and I try to be as imaginative as possible with my planets but I do get the feeling that my worlds is like travelling along a lunatic’s quilt where each patch is so unique it eventually makes your eyes and ears bleed. I do spend a lot of time in border areas though. So do any of you out there run cohesive worlds? Unified by the Imperium are there certain things that your players expect on every planet that allows them to feel the cohesiveness of the intergalactic empire? Again, hit me up in the comments.
Finally, despite having any imaginable terrain possible available to me I tend to run my games in small spaces like shipboard or a cave system or a space station. I very rarely allow action out in the open so to speak. I have a feeling that this may be because I like to use cramped spaces to highlight the horror and horrible things that occur in my games but should I break free of this? Should my players find themselves roaming the surface of a jungle planet? Should I have them welcomed onto the surface cities of a water world? Most of my water worlds all involve life below the surface but am I being narrow minded.
Please hit me up in the comments and share your experiences of the sci-fi setting. I do want to hear from you if you are similar to me and use the setting much like I do. But also tell me if I am crazy and that I should expand the horizons of my game. tell me what my game should look like and point me at books and other wonderful resources that will change my ideas from the Aliens inspired worlds I normally push out. Until next time, keep rolling!