Ruins & Radiation, back again!

Omote · Post by **Omote** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 1:56 am

It's been a long, long time since Serleran's (et al) game of Ruins & Radiation was discussed. I'm hoping Serleran will see this thread so he can give us a basic break down of what R&R is, what rules is/can be used, and the basic premise of the whole shibang.

There are a lot of new people on these forums since R&R was last delved into. Care to help us out Serleran?

Some old linkage:
http://www.freeyabb.com/phpbb/viewtopic ... llordgames

.......................................Omote

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Omote · Post by **Omote** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:00 am

serleran wrote:
Here's something I cobbled together, as a tentative (ie, working) introduction:

In the beginning, there were bangs. Fire followed. Life as the world knew it vanished in the few seconds it took to realize pure radiation burns. Few, who had foreseen the coming storm, took refuge in hidden bunkers deep in the earth they huddled and waited, surviving with inhuman tenacity. Of these, some turned to cannibalism, showcasing the epitome of human nature. Others eked by the same technology that sealed their fate, escaping to the stars, their new home; they discovered new dangers, but also new hope for other forms of intelligence waited. The rest, the ones who remained, were consumed by living heat, leaving the shells of civilization to stand; some ruins still mark their passage, a foreboding welcome to hell.

The unlucky saw the darkening, the twisted demise of the sun and perished in masses. The wrath of millennia had come. Earthquakes. Volcanoes. Hurricanes. Disaster after disaster slaughtered the brave Uplanders. Still, they struggled, each generation birthing new atrocities, the land savagely denying them peace. The effort to survive affected the Uplanders, each succeeding child deformed at birth; in time, these mistakes would become potent tools of survival, a symbol of strength.

It took years to settle, barrage after barrage revisiting. A white age descended. Snow and fog crept, blanketing the mutilated landscape. Plague oozed, buried to the flesh of the ground, scarring it further. Time continued to ache. The Uplanders sought shelter, and found it in a haunted labyrinth of the fallen past, but awoke terror in doing so, starting with a beep, and ending with a roar.

Steel moved on its own the return of the robots arrived. Hundreds of people scattered, cut down by red light and quick lead. The machines marched, sensing others of their kind, activating them, and continuing. It did not take long; soon, the halls of yesterday were greeted by a second exodus.

Still, underground, the Inworlders, those who had cored the earth and survived its devastation, thrived. They had machines, knowledge, and an aggression to match the fury of the world, ignoring the Outworld, at first, until supplies dwindled and inbreeding proved less than satisfactory. A strong leader arose, and the flock obeyed slavishly. The seals between Inworld and Outworld were broken, and a new nightmare started.

It began as a war. The Uplanders were outmatched, but had numbers, magnified by the addition of allies: animals and plants of all types came to their side, morphed into sentient form by decades of radiation exposure. They battled ferociously against the onslaught of the Inworlders, losing ground but winning through attrition.

Entire settlements were laid to ruin, rebuilt from the ashes of the ancients, scavenged for useful items. The Inworlders took everything they could find, capture, or control. When they met the Army of Metal, the tide turned, and the Uplanders struck from the rear. Many thousands perished.

The Army of Metal had been stopped, but at a great and terrible price. The two foes turned to each other, neither knowing what to do, both weakened to near annihilation. It was then peace finally rested.

Pacts and agreements were made. The Inworlders would use their knowledge to build anew, and the Uplanders would secure safety, their newfound allies having proved an effective, if small, force.

So it was for a hundred years.

Time started to heal its wounds, the scars receding. Additional settlements sprang up, inspired by the success of the first, but needed by population. The warmth of the glow abated in many places, and they were excavated. It seemed as if the troubles of before were over, forgotten.

In many ways they were, for none living knew or remembered. Slowly, inherent tendencies took over, and the Inlanders, now known as Ces, began to feel superior to their brethren who were all different (in truth, it was not superiority that drove them, but a vile hatred and jealousy), exiling them from their homes. The Uplanders, known collectively as the Altered, resisted at first but eventually gave way and left, taking refuge elsewhere (some retreated to the abandoned ruins of the Ancients, and others formed settlements of their own). Other mutants, once seen as a powerful military, were offered enslavement or death; they chose death and a new war started, ending decades later in stalemate.

It has been half a century since those times, and again, the past has been forgotten. Life is crawling again. How long it survives is in your hands

This is the age of Ruins and Radiation, a SIEGE Engine Science Fiction Roleplaying Game.

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> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
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Omote · Post by **Omote** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:02 am

Personally, based on the successful C&C game, couldn't Ruins & Radiation be a total clone of C&C, just retooled for sci-fi?

While not wholly original, it makes sense from a writing process and the fact we know that we have a system that works already.

........................................Omote

FPQ
_________________
> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society

serleran · Post by **serleran** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:24 am

Quote:
I'm hoping Serleran will see this thread so he can give us a basic break down of what R&R is, what rules is/can be used, and the basic premise of the whole shibang.

There are a lot of new people on these forums since R&R was last delved into care to help us out Serleran?

R&R is a game set in a post-apocalyptic world, where humans and mutants struggle to survive, against each other, the remnants of the world before, and the world that could be again. There are numerous hazards to contend with, from socio-political to military to the technological nightmares mankind left behind to the world itself and its mutant offspring; there is even the possibility of aliens and otherworldly concepts but I have not, for certain, settled on that.

Essentially, R&R uses the SIEGE Engine but will be classless. Survival will be difficult, and there will be plenty of advanced technology, ranging from chainsaws to hand-held subatomic particle accelerators.

Mutant characters will be possible, as will those who are not (and there will be a reason to play a non-mutant).

Because it will use the SIEGE Engine, it will also be possible to transplant characters from normal C&C, though, because of the classless nature, conversion rules will be provided (and they will work in reverse.)

I'll answer specific questions as they come.

Omote · Post by **Omote** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:34 am

Based on the tough nature of the setting, would a skills system need to be present to keep characters viable? Possibly the use of purchased skill packages?

Survival - Barren wasteland

Survival - Toxic lands

Recycle

Oxygen Generation

Mechanics

...etc?

Since the system is classless, how would characters be any different from one another?

Traits

Occupation packages

Abilities based on background/origin

...etc.

........................................Omote

FPQ
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> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society

serleran · Post by **serleran** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:41 am

Characters will be different by origin, absolutely, and by choice; some origins indicate a set of pre-determined abilities (one reason being a true human, called a Ces, is good) and others are "free option." There is a purchasable skill-like system which is what XP are used for, modified a la Castle Zagyg only amped up to reflect the nature of a sci-fi/PA setting. Mutations, obviously, will differentiate as well, and so will tech.

Omote · Post by **Omote** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:49 am

So you see R&R as a game of technology? In some PA settings, the technology is negligible, offering little overall means to the character. Does this mean R&R is a game grounded in advanced tech (ala chainsaws and particle beam accelerators)?

............................................Omote

FPQ
_________________
> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society

serleran · Post by **serleran** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:55 am

No, its a game grounded in survival and exploration with technology possible to find. Its generally unreliable, dangerous, and difficult to use. Some are more easily accessible (the world does have spots of relative civilized stability) but the majority is a backwards wasteland where reliance on the stuff will only get you dead.

Omote · Post by **Omote** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 1:44 pm

What is the plan on making this game different then other PA rpgs, like RIFTS, Gamma World, or even games like Fallout?

.......................................Omote

FPQ
_________________
> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society

serleran · Post by **serleran** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:19 pm

All PA games have similar themes, similar concepts in common. However, because of the nature of the SIEGE Engine, and the way characters are developed, R&R will be different than other games of a like nature due to the inherent flexibility of the character development process. It will include optional details for using variant "holocausts" and their after effects, so there doesn't need to be robots, doesn't need to be mutants, doesn't need to have aliens... the game will bend to suit the needs of the players. Essentially, several "scenarios" are given for "how it happened" with the introductory one written above being the "default" but by no means the only.

Rath · Post by **Rath** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:40 pm

R&R sounds really cool... is this something that will be available by the end of the year? What kind of format will it be available in (hardcover, download, etc...)

serleran · Post by **serleran** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 3:06 pm

I'll be 100% honest on this.

There is absolutely no way it will be available by the end of the year unless I quit my job; I have been redirected into other things, like Engineering Dungeons and M&T II which are more "lucrative." While my work on them has ended (at least for ED) they took quite a lot of any spare time I had. There is also no officialness to it (in that, the Trolls have not been asked to publish R&R) so there is no "format" since its not written yet. Most likely, it will be "self-published" if I can get the Trolls to OK the use of the SIEGE Engine (and, if they say no, R&R will be no more,) and will probably be a download because I can't do printing (I guess a PoD could, though.)

I'm not sure, as of yet, if it will be free or not... I'm leaning toward "not."

serleran · Post by **serleran** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 2:45 pm

I count 4 people interested. This is not inspiring.

R&R has now been moved to the "do it if I feel like it" pile.

angelius · Post by **angelius** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 10:20 pm

Hey sounds like Fallout to me, so I'm interested too!
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Omote · Post by **Omote** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 11:02 pm

Damn.
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> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society

magehammer · Post by **magehammer** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 11:13 pm

I think we all know I am interested.

But I caution you not to just count the people interested on these boards. There probably are more out there lurking (hint). Or not on the boards at all. There are numerous sites on the Internet aimed solely at the Post-Apoc set. Darwin's World continues to do well, but I have a suspicion that many people may be as disillusioned with 3.5 Modern that it runs under; case in point: A True20 conversion of DW is being sold. Just some food for thought.

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