Topic: A GM book for Harp SF

[Quasar]

So I'm wondering if there are any plans for some kind of HARP SF GM book?

I ask this because browsing the toc for HARP SF it seem pretty clear it was more focused on the default game, which is only fair, but I was wanting to see more GM focused stuff like Gming guidelines for a sf game, conversion guidelines, Alien creation guidelines, vehicle creation guidelines, etc. All the kind of stuff you might Find in a sf version of The Gamemaster Law.

This in part comes up due my interest in potentially ising the system for perhaps Classic SpaceMaster, Babylon 5 or Dark Space (the RM/SM one). Perhaps even Transhuman Space or Traveller.

[markc]

  I would think that it is on the drawing boards somewhere and the elves might be working on it. But working on it and done are two vastly different things.
  I am also very curious as to a vehicle creation system myself.


MDC

[NicholasHMCaldwell]

Yes, it will be called SysOp's Guide and it will cover all those topics. The table of contents is currently:
SysOp's Guide
1. Introduction
2. SF Genres and Themes [hard/firm/soft; milieu in terms of time: secret present, post-apocalypse, dystopia, future - near, distant, far; scope: planetary, interplanetary, non-ftl interstellar, ftl interstellar; themes -big ideas of sf: future, human evolution, strange powers, aliens, space travel]
3. Campaign Design [include types of campaigns: exploration, colonial, military (marine/naval, mercenary, rebellion, piracy), intrigue, trade, invasion; campaign seeds and any rules mods/guidelines]
4. World Creation [solar systems, worlds, artificial habitats]
5. Species and Culture Evolution [sentient races and their cultures, alien animal bestiary]
6. Technology Toolkit [equipment design, vehicle design, prototypes, different technologies]
7. Adventure Development
8. Integration with HARP Fantasy
9. Index

chapter 7 may actually be part of chapter 3. I've been a bit busy to think about SysOp's Guide for a while, and I always intended that HARP SF/SF Xtreme would have some time in the wild so that I could incorporate topics that people found needed addressing in their games.

Pre-transition, SysOp's Guide was on my writing project todo list and I made notes on some of the topics - I have a preliminary vehicle creation and solar system generator which were used in HSF & HSFX. Post-transition, SysOp's Guide is a project that I still intend to do myself.

Best wishes,
Nicholas

[markc]

  Great to hear! And looking forward to seeing it in ink or electrons.
MDC

[naphta23]

Count me in, I am looking forward to purchasing it. 

Can you "guesstimate" when the product is going to be available? To quote PJ Harvey: "I can hardly wait" 

[GrumpyOldFart]

Sheesh, I need chapter 8 now. 

[RandalThor]

Sheesh, I need chapter 8 now. 

And I can't wait for Chapter 9. 

[dutch206]

The Sysop's Guide is a must-have, but I also want the campaign setting to be fleshed out a little.  Dr. Nick--lock those elves in a room until they pound out some manuscripts!

[naphta23]

By the way, would it be possible to sell a so-called "alpha-version" on rpgnow.com and update it whenever it has reached a new version that is worth to be published?

Sure, at the beginning that product would be far from perfect for the first few versions, but you would already have earned some money and some of the buyers could help to improve the product with their feedback.

I would buy it as soon as possible. 

Just an idea. If that is not an option, that would be regrettable, but I would understand.

[NicholasHMCaldwell]

Probably, though I'd prefer to do that sort of thing at the beta version. Alpha tends to be rough on everyone. Not anywhere near alpha version yet.

Best wishes,
Nicholas

[TAK]

Sheesh, I need chapter 8 now. 

Ditto

Looking forward to it, in color HC, of course
Of course I need to buy SF first too, if I had all the money in the world...

[naphta23]

Suggestion: please consider including the principles of Relationship Mapping and Conflict Webs in the SysOp's Guide. I think they are great tools for Gamemasters to create complex and consistent adventures and campaigns.

Perhaps also a definition of player types, similar to the section in the RMFRP Gamemaster Law.

Sure, I already have those definitions and tools, but I assume that not every Gamemaster is aware of those tools and perhaps they could be helpful.

[dutch206]

I personally have never run a sci-fi campaign.  This book is vitally important to me.

[naphta23]

dutch206, in my opinion this is not so hard if you have some experience as a GM in a fantasy campaign.

Perhaps the most challenging differences are travelling, communication, information and NPCs. The PCs can travel a lot faster, talk to other people far away, most likely can access huge amounts of information and can meet and chat to a lot more NPCs in a shorter time than it is possible in a medieval campaign setting.

In Science Fiction campaigns all you have to be very sure about is the motivation. What is the whole point of an adventure? Why do the PCs have to act and why would they want to face danger? In my opinion we (in the Western Hemisphere) live in an Information Age and our concerns in the Bigger Picture are energy and ressources. Sure, on a small scale we are just wage slaves and mostly care about family, health, money and our (immediate) future. That should be about the same problems you face in the future. If your PCs are "small fish," their concers are quite likely much alike to ours. Otherwise, the theme revolves around ressources and livable space (or searching for that). Perhaps even survival during a war against another culture or some alien race.

Thus, your campaign needs a few decisions made; is the main stage a huge city on a planet? Then you can take a look at any science fiction movie or novel that plays on our good old earth. If you ask me, that would be a good starting point, for you can look at movies like Bladerunner and at games like Fallout or Deus Ex 3 and start from there. If it contains a lot of space travelling, then look at something else like Star Trek, games like Mass Effect or some science fiction novels.

Start small, then broaden your universe as soon as you think you feel confident enough to do so. If you are lucky, you have players with a constructive personality, who are tolerant and willing to help you make that campaign fly. In this case you should point out that you want to try out an SF RPG and would be grateful for their participation and (respectful and constructive) critique. And you ought to be thankful for that kind of critique.
Do not worry too much about it, SF RPG are not nearly as hard as they seem to be from time to time. 

But again, this is just my opinion.