Game Background for near future strategy game

Dauntless · 2002-02-28T04:07:58

I wasn't sure if it would be more appropriate to have posted this on the GDnet lounge, or in Game writing, but I figure this would a good a place as any....here's a little excerpt on my game background, more will follow: New Horizons New Horizons is a game of mechanized warfare in the not too distant future Unlike most sci-fi warfare games of recent times, New Horizons does NOT emphasize the usefulness of "Mecha". While a romantic notion, this author finds their usefulness only in limited circumstances. While such uses will come into play, they are not the be all and end all of futuristic warfare. I have attempted to construct the rules system into both a detailed tactical rules system, and a more simplified strategic rules system. In the endless balancing juggle between playability and realism, I have opted to lean in favor of the latter. Why? Because if a game situation is not covered, arguing is SURE to ensue. I also hate to have to make referee's make constant judgement calls on what should be the correct way to handle a certain situation. Also, I believe realism has it's own ability to make a game more enjoyable. When something is simplified TOO much, it loses a certain atmosphere. Also, a game too simple often is "dumbed" down, making victories more reliant on the better die-roll, or the better units. OF course, a balance still has to be maintained, therefore I tried to seperate advanced rules from the more basic rules. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Background New Horizons takes place in the year 2160, 100 years after a meteorite impacted Earth, killing well over half its population. The one-hundred years since The Impact has restructured the world into a society Earth has never before seen. It is one one hand very backwards for some, and for others, it is a virtual technological Utopia. The Impact In 2059, a meteorite was discovered by the De Gama Colony on Mars with a trajectory on a direct impact course with Earth. At the speed the meteorite was traveling, Earth had less than 8 hours to respond. Unfortunately, with time lag between Mars and Earth, the time Earth would be notified would be even shorter. The Naval Strategic Space Command on De Gama determined that the Impact was to be near Brazil. The size and the speed of the meteorite was deemed to be of a truly Armageddon scale. South America would be laid to waste, and the cloud created by the impact would create a Nuclear Winter which would last for nearly a hundred years. The Impact would also be strong enough to unbalance the tectonic plates, causing Earthquakes never experienced by any living being in Earth's history. Under such an impact, the UN decided to warn the citizens of Earth of the impending disaster. The UN realized that widespread panic and chaos would ensue, but they figured at least people would have a fighting chance of survival. Intervention At half an hour before impact, the UN received a broadcast message. The source was unknown, but the location placed it only 500miles away from Earth. It was only recently that the recorded transmission was finally deciphered, but it has remained a top secret. The stunned UN assembly had little time to worry about the nature of the mysterious warning sent to them. Although speculation ran rampant about the origin of the message, the reality of the impending impact pushed such ruminations far back on the priority-list. In the chaos that follwed, the message was nearly forgotten, but the UN council would find out its origins, sooner perhaps than they would care for. Devestation Instead several smaller meteorites impacted Earth. In a flash of energy high above Earth's atmosphere, the 5km long meteorite was smashed into many pieces. While the majority of the debris from the meteorite was vaporized by Earth's atmosphere, several pieces were large enough to wreak havoc on the planet. The first chunk impacted deep in the Atlantic Ocean in the Southern Hemisphere. The impact would literally vaporize almost 8% of the Atlantic Ocean. A tidal wave approxiametly 1500' high would scream towards South America and Africa at nearly the speed of sound. A water plume nearly 10 miles would be created, causing a secondary tidal wave, much like a ripple in a pond. While South America and Africa would fair the worst brunt, the Eastern seaboard of the US and Europe would not be spared from cataclysmic tidal waves either. Every city that lay on the coastal front was obliterated. Most cities hundreds of miles inland were destroyed as well. Washington DC was at one point under more than 300' of water. Nor would the rest of the world be spared. The second major impact occurred deep in the Indian Ocean, though not quite as powerful as its brother in the Atlantic. Still, virtually every island nation of Asia was for the most part destroyed. Japan's eastern coasts survived relatively intact, but the nation as whole was shattered. Australia's western coasts were wrecked by titanic tidal waves, obliterating Perth. The island nations of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Phillipines virtually ceased to be. While the western coast of the US did not experience the obliterating tidal waves that the east coast did, it too suffered monumental damage. The double impacts disturbed the tectonic as never had been before. Earthquakes wracked the planet as it had not since since it's geological cooling billions of years ago. While the water evaporated into the earth's atmosphere wouldn't not create a Nuclear Winter of the same type or duration as a dust cloud, the consequences were not much better. By scientists estimates, nearly 13% of the Earth's ocean's evaporated by the tremoundous explosions. Not only did Earth suffer earthquakes along fault-lines that no one knew existed, but weather patterns shifted into rainstorms Earth had not seen since the Great Deluge. The water vapor over the Earth created storms and hurricanes in places that had never seen hurricanes. For a decade, storms of unprecedented magnitude raged across Earth's surface. Aftermath The effects of The Impact were disastrous. First day casualities were believed to be approxiametly 25% of the world's population. The devestating storms and Earthquakes which followed the impacts caused untold casualties as well. Other factors included the breakdown of central governments, riots, disease, and outright bandit wars. In the chaos, groups banded together for mutual survival. Military units were split between remaining loyal to their central government, or in defending (or in some cases attacking) the local area which they were in. Within several years of the impact, many "clans", gangs, protectorates, and other groups coalesced to provide protection. These groups became the nucleus of the "Martial Houses" that exist today. While the stronger governments were able to maintain some control, for most of the world, it was LOCAL strength and government that mattered. Within 20 years, a new world existed, both physically and socially. Worldwide, a neo-feudal system was in place. Strong individuals or groups protected the many with their support. Within 20 years of the Impact, boundaries, and localized governments had settled down, often at odds with the former central government, or with rival territories or fiefdoms. No longer was race or religion barriers to communal harmony. The groups that banded together were focused more on establishing cultural unity, similar ways of thinking and acting. A xenophobia of sorts set in, with strangers not easily trusted for fear of being spies of a rival fiefdom. Survival united these clusters, even if they were made up of ethnically diverse groups. What mattered most was establishing a common principle of ruling to ensure the survival and defence of the community. The Colonies The colonies that Earth had established on Mars, Io, L4, L5 and the moon all watched in horror the devestation of Earth. The LaGrange Colonies at L4 and L5 and the Galileo Colony on the Moon were worried about the lack of support they would be receiving from Earth. Though Mars and the Io colony were both fully self-sufficient by the time of The Impact, the other colonies were not so lucky. The L4 and L5 colonies decided to move to the Galileo colony and share what facilities they could take with them. With support from both the DeGama, Hudson and Byrd Colonies of Mars, and the Igaki colony of Io, the Moon colony was able to survive. While there was nothing for the other colonies to do but watch in impotent silence, a few visionaries realized they were the only means of saving what was left of Earth from itself. Politics Both the Igaki and Mars colonies saw that to end further bloodshed and to pacify many areas of Earth, it needed to be under the protective umbrella of the Colonies. The two major colonies disagreed on the means to the end however. The Mars colonies wanted a One Government policy with itself as the designated head. The various factions would be allowed to exist but they would submit to the central authority of the Colonial government. The Igaki colony on Io however wanted a more confederated approach. They envisioned the seperate factions to be autonomous, but with the Colonial powers as a UN protectorate. The Colonial Confederacy would act as a central trade center and would maintain it's own military police force, but they envisioned far less central authority. The issue was hotly debated between the 3 Martian Colonies, the Igaki colony on Io, and the Galileo Moon colony. In the end, the Martian colonies won out, although the Byrd colony supported Igaki's solution. Indeed, the issue was a very bitter one, and alomst came to violence, and the political fallout exists to this day. Conquest 20 years, was not enough time to manufacture and mobilize an army strong enough to subdue any groups which would deny their place in the New Earth government. Although many people on Earth would have welcomed the Colonies with open arms as saviors, quite a few others would see them as yet another rival faction attempting to steal their resources. By this point, many of the local clusters enjoyed their sovereignty and would be very reluctant to give it up. The Igaki colony was well aware of this fundamental aspect of human nature. They cautioned that if there was to be a joint expeditionary force to unite Earth, they would need to understand this. THe other colonies claimed they were merely acting on the greater principle of providing relief and security through unity, which though may cause casualities with some groups, would be better in the long run for humanity. For the next 20 years, the Colonies geared up their forces to reclaim proper peace and security to the warring factions on Earth. So, 40 years after the Impact, a combined Expeditionary Force from Outer Colonies gathered their Naval Fleet several miles above Earth and gave the various political factions a general broadcast to lay down all arms and cease all fighting in over 30 languages. In the chaos after the Impact, the major governments on Earth paid little attention to the Outer Colonies. Because there were no landing facilities that survived the Impact, there was little the Colonies could have done to help Earth. With the announcement however, most of the factions left on Earth now realized they had a new rival to contend with. The Outer Colonies propsed a new government, a WORLD government with the Outer Colonies providing the central authority. The different factions would be subject to the new government and abide by its laws, but they could continue the customs and way of living they had before as long as it did not violate the Constitutional Charter of 2062. While the member states would have their own state laws, they could not go against the supreme charter of the New Earth government. Most factions asked for time to consider, while some outright told them to go back to their colonies and mind their own business. Only a handful of factions accepted the Outer Colonies solutions within the first day. With 40 years of technological advancement, while Earth had suffered a massive catastrophe and was still trying to get back on its feet, the Outer Colonies had a definite advantage in military equipment. However, they lacked any fighting experience, and though at first the Outer Colonies enjoyed tremendous success, they soon learned that 40 years of combat experience was nothing to underestimate. Indeed, the "War of Salvation",as it would come to be known, was taking far longer, and consuming far more resources than the Colonies would have predicted. Under increasing pressure from the Igaki colony to let the still free factions have their own way, the Colonies continued their attacks. ----------------------------------------------------------------- To be continued BTW, I'm going to be putting this up on a website when I find the time that will include my design docs for both a tabletop game and a computer game. It will be totally open source, in other words, I want people to feel free to take from my ideas, although giving credit where credit is due would be nice. Edited by - Dauntless on February 9, 2002 6:40:30 PM

Tacit

122

February 10, 2002 04:00 PM

Dauntless, that is really some very interesting and detailed geo-political hypothesizing. Well done!

In my design, I focus less on fleshing out too much of the pre-history, although I think it''s very important to go through the exercise of working these things out, even if the player doesn''t really know half of it. It will help to come up with amazing scenarios later on.

What type of game will it be?

_________________________The Idea Foundry

Dauntless

Author

314

February 10, 2002 05:15 PM

Okay, here''s a little more history on the various Factions within the New Horizons game world. Right now, I''m just giving the backdrop to the world so that you have an idea of what''s going on. Ideally, I will cover these main categories:

Background
a) History
b) Factions
c) Technology
d) Origins of the War
e) Social, Economic and Cultural conditions

Military Analysis
a) Tables of Organization & Equipment
b) Styles of Warfare
c) Conventional and Irregular forces

Game Design
a) Design Docs
b) Table Top rules
c) Computer Conversion

I will also give a special emphasis on the Human Augmentation Project as it is the main focus of the both the war, and the storyline that I have. I personally don''t mind someone taking my design ideas for the game, although it''d be nice to be credited. And if someone wants to steal my game world without giving me credit, hey what can I do about dishonest people?

I have my own storyline that goes along with my game world that I WILL keep to myself and may eventually sell if anyone ever is interested. In some ways I liked the Battletech concept of an ongoing storyline that drives the game. So I''ll keep the game world and background free for the world to see, but I''m going to keep my storyline to myself. Unfortunately, the most interesting elements to my game world are actually revealed through the storyline (want to know what that transmission was about? Want to know who Ian McAlpin really is? How was FTL really discovered? What are the Ascetics and Adepts really after?, etc.) So someone can steal my gameworld if they really want, but I know that I have what will make the game REALLY unique, because I designed the game world around some concepts that I''ve only alluded to so far. Besides, I''m an open source fan, and I think monetary compensation for my hobby and passion can come about in dfferent ways.

Finally, as for what kind of game it will be, it will essentially be a 3d strategy game using 3d models. Think Shogun meets Kohan and you get a rough idea. I want a turn based planning phase followed by real time action once the planning is done. I also want the game on a truly strategic scale. As a commander, I want you to have to think about Corps that act in different theatres of operation. I envision that platoons, or possibly companies will be the smallest level of organizational control. You won''t be fighting with them all at once of course though. Also, a LOT will depend on your AI commanders, which will require some very intensive AI programming. I''m currently torn between the freeform campaign style, and a linear campaign mode. I like the freedom of being able to fight the battles when and where you chose, but in the other hand, I also like the cinematic elements that a linear setup can provide. I''m currently leaning towards the cinematic linear apprach, but I might be swayed. AFterall, I do have a pretty in depth storyline already.

so without further ado....More History part trois
---------------------------------------------------------------

The Fracture pt2:
For several reasons, namely a growing a fear of of the Free Zones and other dangers real or imagined by the NEG Defence Force, they were given permission to again resurrect the Human Augmentation Project. This was hotly debated between the military Chiefs of Staff, the NEG Parliamentary Council, and the scientst heads themselves. While it was deemed a necessity during the War of Salvation, some members of the Council and some of the scientists were questioning the need to revive the project. While some scientists were very gungho about the project, they needed to know why and to what purpose. The Council members who were leery of the project were also concerned as to what use the ProGenEx (Project Genetic Experiment) technologies would be applied for. This was partially out of a genuine fear of this advanced humans, and partially out of moralistic concern of creating what was essentially slaves to serve their masters. Some of the council debated that they should openly admit the technology they were working on, while others wanted it kept secret.

In the end, the Chief''s of Staff provided the reasoning as to why they needed the technology revived. When the truth was revealed, it was determined that the risks of hving the soldiers outweighed the greater security threat that the Chief''s of Staff had discovered. According to the Military Intelligence Reports, the Free Zones technology had accelerated at such a rapid rate, partially due to some older government research facilities that they had refurbished and were now uncovering older files. While their Intelligence could not determine exactly how far along some of their technology had progressed, it was determined that the Free Zones, in particular the McAlpine Free Zone had already been involved in their own Human Engineering technologies, and supposedly had prototype FTL engines that were of a different nature than their own.

With this new found "threat", the NEG determined that they may have to fight fire with fire. However, several key diplomats within the Igaki and Byrd districts could not condone this course of action. They had already regretted it the first time around, and did not want any part of it the second time around. Again, they were defeated in both the District Commons and the Prefecture Commons. Realizing that they were consistently defeated in political games and realizing their voice was a small minority, they would not be able to check the more paranoid elements within the NEG council. They had begun to see the NEG council as a smothering parent, one that cares about its children so much, it doesn''t allow them a chance to fail and make mistakes on their own. By building a fortress around their children, although it protects them from anyone touching them, it also prevented them from touching anyone else.

But the power and philosophical destiny implanted in the NEG council was too strong. They knew that if they had decided to break away, they would be considered an enemy of the state, much as they virtually considered the Free Zones to be potential backstabbers. To the Igaki and a few members of the Byrd political parties, the creation of a slave class was just too appaling, no matter the justification. So they decided they would do what they could. They secretly allowed several of the scientists who were also opposed to the revival of the program, a chance to create Advanced Humans that were not bound to the government with their biological dependencies. Although it was only about 20% of the project, they felt a great ease on their conscience that they did not again create slaves to serve them as Masters.

The Discovery:
The UDF Intelligence Services kept a close eye on the Free Zones and also on several key extraterrestil colonies. The NEG between 2131 to 2150 drastically increased its military spending. The NEG would play this off as a guarantee of protection against the few terrorist groups that existed, and played off against the fears of the Free Zones once again reverting to its barbaric warlike mentality. But what they could not explain was a drastic increase in the Naval Forces, as the Free Zones had no known Naval Fleets, or at least none they had disclosed to the public. The truth was that they did indeed have a small Naval Fleet, but more perplexing was that their form of FTL travel was unlike their own. It was driving the Council mad, that they didn''t know. They couldn''t wage a war without some kind of pretext, and they had an extremely itchy trigger finger if the Free Zones made the slightest move that appeared hostile.

----------------------------------------------------------------

to be continued...don''t ya hate that?

I''ll really try to get this put up on a webpage that everyone can go to as soon as I can

The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing than we know about living. We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount." - General Omar Bradley

Tacit

122

February 11, 2002 09:54 AM

Yeah, a Web page would be great. Your material is really well done, Dauntless. Are you familiar with the Heavy Gear pen-and-paper RPG? It''s by Dream Pod Nine, and Activision''s Heavy Gear games are based on this license. The manuals for the PnP game go into a lot of detail to lay the geo-political background for the game world...your writing kind of reminded me of this.

_________________________The Idea Foundry

Dauntless

Author

314

February 11, 2002 02:58 PM

I''ve skimmed through the Heavy Gear stuff and have been influenced by it to a good degree. I much more admire their style of sci-fi warfare than Battletech which was another inspiration.

Indeed, instead of Heavy Gears, I envision ExoFrames which are very similar to Gears. The smallest are essentially like armored version of the transport walker from Aliens. It is slaved to human body movements, but has a sophisticated gyroscope to help the human balance the frame. The other ExoFrames are very similar to the Gears, in that the human pilot is located within the center body, however, I think trying to pilot it with a joystick and foot pedals is way to cumbersome, even with the help of specialized AI routines in the Gear''s little black box. Instead, I envision the pilost being enveloped in a sort of gel and connected to a life support syste, There are bio feedback prongs or jacks that the pilot interfaces with. The gel acts as a sensory deprivant, and it also negates any sort of impact concussion effects. The pilot wears special goggles that feed data much like a HUD, but through his own eyes. In many ways, he BECOMES the ExoFrame.

It turns out that this has had some psychological impacts on the pilots, as they often get either a superiority syndrome, or the opposite, they feel incredibly vulnerable when not piloting. The ExoFrames are quite sophisticated and rare, and are used mainly only in certain circumstances. The training required is as diffucult as it would be for a person today to be a fighter pilot. So the rarity of ExoFrames is due both to it''s innate complexity and the the training required.

As for the game background, if anything I borrowed more from Jovian Chronicles than Heavy Gear. Although I don''t have this game either, I liked how there were several different factions all establishing a pecking order. I always borrowed from Dune, as though I have not revealed it yet, the Human Augmentation Project have developed some pretty powerful beings...part Mentats, part Bene Gessirit, part Jedi. And although I haven''t revealed yet, just as in Dune, and to a degree Star Wars, there is a mystic/religious/spiritual overtone that guides the storyline. Most games think any religious ideas are taboo, but hopefully I''ve spun them in a direction that makes it hard to peg and is treated with respect.

I don''t claim to have anything original actually

But hopefully I''ve combined different elements together to create an absorbing world. When I finally get my webpage up, you''ll start to see the cultural and political shapes of the major and minor factions.

The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing than we know about living. We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount." - General Omar Bradley

Tacit

122

February 11, 2002 03:14 PM

There are few very truly original stories. If you can weave a new tapestry from tried and true themes, you will already be able to offer more than most game stories offer. I think your backstory sounds very promising...and the attention to detail is impressive.

_________________________The Idea Foundry

Dauntless

Author

314

February 27, 2002 03:30 PM

Okay, here''s the homepage I promised...it''s GREATLY a work in progress, and I just wanted to throw something up for right now.

There''s lots of broken links, but come back about everyday, and you''ll see more stuff.

http://home.sprintmail.com/~imamutt/index.html

The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing than we know about living. We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount." - General Omar Bradley

Grimjack

122

February 28, 2002 04:07 AM

Nice background story Dauntless! I am curious of how you plan to implement the story into the game or will it be "in the manual"? I''ve seen a lot of games with detailed background but somehow they never convey the story into the game properly.

::aggression is the result of fear::

::aggression is the result of fear::

Game Background for near future strategy game

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Game Background for near future strategy game

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