Fading Suns Game Material: The Megasewers of Midian

Introduction: I have been, for a long time, a fan of the Fading Suns game setting. I ran a short campaign a few years ago, and generated some material for it. Recent posts on the Fading Suns Yahoo group reminded me of this material.

Sadly, the original source of this documentation no longer exists -- Holistic Design's Fading Suns web forum. While Holistic has faded away as a supporter for the game (I don't think the website has been updated in some time), Redbrick is continuing to support the game in their own way. 

So here I present some of the ideas I used in my campaign. Enjoy!

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During the 2nd Republic, mankind’s ability to innovate and invent was not matched by any time before or after. One of these results is the vast waste disposal system beneath the crust of the planet Midian. The original settlers, mindful of the environmental effects civilization had, took every practical measure they had to mitigate this impact. However, by the time of the 2nd Republic, the technology and finances finally existed that allowed them to create one of the most impressive feats in waste management anywhere in the Known Worlds. This involved a massive network of tunnels, sluiceways, canals, and other water management systems, that disposed of their waste directly into the hot magma beneath the planetary crust. Organized in nodes, the most important – and extensive – node is under the capital city of Saiwhun.

The network is simple in concept, though the execution is titanic in scale. Beneath each major city a network of underground canals empty into large, domed galleries that serve to hold the water for a time. This water then collects and concentrates wastes from the cities and industries above. An automated process then vents the water into massive, hundred meter wide disposal pits that are, in some cases, more than a kilometer deep. Further channels at its base redirect the water deep into the interior of the planet, and disposes of it into the planetary mantle. The results: any toxins, poisons, or rubbish are instantly incinerated (though some planetologists would call this the ultimate form of recycling) and the water is super-heated and percolates through the crust, removing any final poisons or toxins and locking them deep beneath the earth. Finally venting beneath lakes, oceans, and other areas, the water is again reintroduced into the bio-cycle.

Originally, this system was carefully monitored and maintained by a powerful computer network, but also could be controlled locally by a number of sub-stations located within the system. Maintenance was carried out by a vast army of automated, or remotely-operated, machines or supervised by a small but experienced team of human operators.

Since the Fall, the system has been neglected and fell into disrepair. No longer possessing the knowledge to maintain – let alone navigate – the vast tunnel network, the local governments and ultimately House Li Halan, have allowed their efforts to lapse. While the system is so well engineered it requires little actual intervention, after a thousand years of neglect, it has begun to malfunction in places. Pumps have failed, galleries have become super-concentrated with toxins and rubbish. And some of the local and subterranean life has begun to infiltrate the system and use it for their own purposes.

Additionally, the network has become the favored hideout of miscreants, fringers, down-and-outs, escaped serfs, and others on the periphery of civilization. Often tales are told of strange rituals that supposedly take place there, criminal underworld deals gone bad, and even tales of secret bases, complexes, temples, lairs, vaults, and storehouses from everything from demonic or alien infiltrations, to local crimelords’ stashes.

The network has shown its fair share of attention from more well-to-do seekers. Drawn by tales of secret technosophy or heresy, the Temple Avesti periodically sends its members through seeking forbidden tech or rites. Tales of alien or seditious presences has frequently drawn the attention of the local Imperial Eye commander, while noble curiosity or simply responsibility has prompted Duke Alexander Zhu Li Halan to send patrols to clear out criminal dens or dangerous creatures that make their homes here. Finally, the Engineer’s Guild has conducted periodic expeditions here, though what they are doing here, studying, or looking for they have never revealed.

While the population using this system is more often than not human or (rarely) alien in nature, a number of local (and not so local) fauna has made this are their home. Sightless, anemonie like Midian Cavern worms have become a frequent and taxing problem, snaring unsuspecting travelers or prey with their sucker-covered tentacles, only to shrug off any weapons fire from their armored, segmented bodies. Other, more mundane creatures also make their home here, including a number of different species of fish – some growing to considerable size and easily swallowing a human victim whole. More troubling is the infiltration of the network by neo-raptors. The result of a 2nd Republic Big Game Hunting theme park, these are genetically reconstituted Velociraptor  neo-dinosaurs that have survived the Fall and made Midian their personal hunting ground. Fulfilling a niche similar to the Terran wolf, for the most part they shy away from civilization, but any traveler in these depths should beware and never travel alone – or unarmed.

End of an Era: Retrospective

It has recently come to my attention that Wizards of the Coast (WotC)  will be ending its involvement with the Star Wars RPG, as well as the pre-painted miniatures line. While this is terrible news, I can't say I'm surprised or shocked about it. Long time readers may recall my review of the Star Wars Saga Edition (SWSE) way back in January 2009. At that time I had lamented about the fitful support Star Wars as an RPG property has gotten. While the SWSE I think is a solid ruleset, and deserves its own time in the sun, WotC's stewardship of the property has been inept, to say the least.

I bears to note that the SWSE is in fact the third edition of the game from WotC in 10 years: the first edition was released in 2000, with a revised edition coming out in 2002. Finally the Saga Edition came out in 2007. In between these editions, WotC released product in fits and starts, with a very long period between the Revised (D20) edition, and the Saga edition (around 3 years or so).

With the SWSE, WotC decided to take a different tack than the previous edition: releasing "era" books with all the information and resources a GM would need to run a game during that era. While I can definitely applaud WotC for this tack, it also has the unfortunate side-effect of leaving other eras undetailed (such as the immediate New Republic era, and the Yuushang-vong invasion). While there are still a few products to be released, and this may change, the simple fact of the matter is that the rules are "incomplete" without it. Still, there is enough there a GM can cobble together something, but I'm dissappointed we did not get a New Republic sourcebook, or a "Tales of the Jedi" era sourcebook.

I'll be sad to see the game go, and this also means that I no longer have any sort of involvement with WotC whatsoever. There are plenty of other good games out there, and I hope I'll be able to explore them. But it is strange that a company that I had so long supported -- felt enthusiastic about when WotC bought TSR -- no longer is a facet in my gaming life. All good things come to an end, and now I'm scrambling to complete my book collection.

Tyrrany of a Construct Pt. 7

According to this website, there has been a falling out with Raimi and the Spider Man 4 movie. Raimi couldn't deliver a movie up to his standards in time for Sony. So Sony's solution is to...reboot the franchise. This becomes problematic, because otherwise what is the point of a franchise?

A movie franchise serves many purposes for both concerned groups: the movie producers and the movie viewers. For the producers, the franchise concept allows them to continue to profit from the original idea or concept of the original movie. Essentially, the audience is "built in," and fans will be likely to continue to see the next film.

For the viewers the idea of a franchise allows for creating a "setting" that can become more immersive over time. It allows for examination in further detail either the core concept, or other secondary concepts. It also -- more importantly -- allows for character development.

The problem here -- like any Hollywood reboot (which is a shorthand for a "reimagining") is that [i]any[/i] character development from the previous is lost, wasted. The essential connection we might have (as a viewing audience) is broken. While there is some merit in "refreshing" a character, for a franchise like Spider Man, which has had only 3 movies over 8 years (averaging a movie every 2.67 years -- a reasonable interval) is that the characterizations are still "fresh" and the movies still relevant.

It's hard not to be cynical about this development. It has become apparent to me that I am not relevant as a movie goer because I am an adult. With this reboot Sony will return Parker back to his high school roots, which already feels less relevant to me. But no doubt will feel more relevant for the legions of teens that have come of age in the meantime. Also undoubtedly (or at least there is a fair certainty) this will include a new origin story -- something we have already seen. Unless Sony is clever and does a move [i]in medias res[/i] with the backstory being alluded to (so that it can for example be rationalized as taking place between the first movie and the second), I don't have high hopes for this.

By Blood Betrayed by Blaine Lee Pardoe and Mel Odom

I had this book in my collection for some time, but recently decided to pull it out for a read-through. It was from the initial Mechwarrior line, designed to allow someone with little knowledge of the universe a path into the novel line.

Pardoe has a few novels under his belt, but I wonder how much influence he really had in the writing of this book? There are a lot of inconsistencies in the prose, things that have been either long established, or is widely available in the literature. For example, the background has always been that autocannons were rapid fire weapons --  a sort of gigantic machine gun. Yet the book often mentions firing a single round from the weapon. Another inconsistency is the Union dropship featured in the book carrying a K-61 dropshuttle and fighters, impossible as they're not equipped to carry shuttles to begin with, and theoretically they would at least have to sacrifice a fighter bay to carry one. Also, it has been long established that there is no "artificial gravity" in the Battletech universe, and spacecraft must use either rotating sections or acceleration to generate gravity. A few times the prose talks about the "pseudo-gravity" generated via acceleration. In the real world (as well as how it is established in the BTU), unless the craft is maneuvering or there are windows, there is no other way to determine the source of gravity -- 1g is the same whether you're planet-bound or under acceleration. According to the background, Union dropships can easily sustain 1g accelerations for as long as the fuel holds out.

The plot of the book is entirely conventional. Out on the edges of civilized space (the Periphery), a company of Able's Aces, defending the Rim Collection from the pirate band Morrison's Extractors, is wiped out except for their CO. Harley Rassor's brother was killed in the action, and his father (apparently an ex-mechwarrior with his own Commando in the barn!) sends his son to join the Aces and find out what happens.

Of course he expects the company CO Livia Hawke, and spends his time hating her as a traitor, despite the evdence to the contrary (including a red herring added in that one of the communications techs has a cousin in the Extractors -- which Harley promptly ignores). Or course Hawke is no traitor, and it comes out in the end that it was the intel officer -- along with Harley's brother -- who were in collusion with the Extractors, and forcing a showdown with Harley and his brother.

Unfortunately, this book wasn't "great." Besides the inconsistencies, the plot is pretty predictable. And while the plotpoint of Harley's brother being the real traitor shouldn't have been a surprise, it was for me since the book was not very engaging. Pardoe has written other books -- better books -- and I cannot tell if the problem was because it was co-written with Odom.

It's always dissappointing when you read a book from your favorite genre and it turns out to be not-so-great. But that is also not surprising -- even the best writers will occasionally turn out turkeys.

The Lost Fleet: Dauntless by Jack Campbell

One of the things about military-SF is that sometimes the books are more concerned about the toys than trying to create a setting that undeniably feels military in nature. That's why it is so gratifying when my friend handed me Jack Campbell's book, and it turned out to have that "feel" in spades.

Campbell (a pseudonym for SF writer John G Hemry) creates a universe that is "light" on the toys (he gives very basic descriptions of the ship's weapon systems), but heavy on the military aspect, dialogue and especially on the SF of what ship-to-ship combat might look like in a Newtonian/Einsteinian universe.

The story is clever -- although not necessarily original -- in its exploration of themes. And there are a few. The main character, John Geary, is the survivor of a battle nearly a hundred years ago that launched the war between the human populated Syndicate and Alliance worlds. Recovered from his escape pod -- in which he had been in hibernation -- Geary is suddenly thrown into a setting that is both familiar and very alien to him. But, in true Arthurian form, the fleet that recovers him are going into (what they hope) is a decisive battle against the Syndics, only to face defeat and Geary assuming responsibility as the most senior captain (after the commanding admiral is gunned down in cold blood). Through Geary we learn the pressures of military command, and the need for military discipline, no matter how silly it might look to a civilian.

On the other hand, we are introduced to Co-President Rione, whose role is not only to act as a foil against Geary, but also to explore the disconnect between military and civilian spheres that often happens. This is particularly notable when Geary decides to fight a battle against an inferior Syndic force, highlighting the necessity of discipline, but also the divide between rational decisions as they are seen by the military and civilian apparatus.

Along the way we are treated to a lot of battle descriptions, and the uniqueness of fighting a battle based on Newtonian physics, touched on by Einsteinian relativity effects.

One of the really gratifying elements is, as I mentioned, the military "feel" of the setting. For people that might never have served in the military, this aspect might not be as apparent, but for those that have, I thought it was an excellent detail. Of course, this is no mistake, since Hemry is retired US Navy. But the way he crafts dialogue is the most convincing aspect; he crafts it in such a way that it is soldiers talking to soldiers, rather than what a civilian might think it would be. Although this is a small detail, for me it goes a long way in reinforcing the immersiveness of the setting.

Overall this was a very good book, and rather enjoyable. I'm very much looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

Star Trek: New Frontier by Peter David

This will be a brief one today.

I picked up Star Trek: New Frontier a little while ago, and read through it the last couple of nights. It's short -- very short! Coming in at only 168pgs for the main story (and a sample chapter at the back from Vulcan's Forge), it is as brief as can be.

Also, in a way, it encapsulates what I think was going wrong with Star Trek in the latter years.

The point of the story, however, is to setup characters for the launch of the "New Frontier" line, the concept of which holds a lot of promise for me. One of the biggest excuses for the reboot and reimagining (because that is what it really is) of Star Trek is that the canon became unwieldy and a hindrance to the franchise. I disagree with this assessment, mainly because there are two types of canon within a long-running franchise that sprawls across multiple series: global canon and local canon.

Global Canon is canon of the entire franchise. It encompasses the major dates, events, setting assumptions and the like any entry into the franchise should conform to. It is much less interested in what Commander Riker was doing on a specific date, or the career details of Dr McKoy. It is much more concerned with when warp drive was developed, or when the Earth-Romulan war occured, and so on.

Local canon, on the other hand, is canon as it pertains to the specific series. This sort of canon would be concerned with the personal details and chronology of the individual characters, and events within that particular series.

I think part of the problem with Trek, and the reason why it collapsed under its own weight (and thus creating the illusion that the setting needed to be wiped clean and "re-imagined" in order to go forward) was a problem of writing, and a lack of concern about the different types of canon.

This book suffers for some of the same reasons.

The story introduces us to M'k'n'zy of Calhoun, a rebel leader at a very young age, and his struggle to survive. It continues to introduce a handful of other characters, establishing their backgrounds, but really not doing anything with them. In that sense this feels like "episode 1" to a two parter. I think that was the intention of the writer and line developers, but in a book format I don't think it worked well. This book could have easily been 400pgs and have something actually happen in it.

As the book progresses we learn that M'k'n'zy has joined starfleet and was a protege of Jean-luc Picard's, linking it very closely to the Next Generation series. We discover that the main character now goes by Mackenzie Calhoun (wee!) who has been tapped to command a starship sent into the middle of a political crisis.

Despite the almost fanfic development of Mackenzie (this concept really needed some more editorial oversite, in my mind), the fact that the main driver of the story (at this point) is the collapse of yet another Star Empire, and a political mission (rather than "Boldly going where no man has gone before!" an element Star Trek lost over the years and the reboot showing absolutely no danger of recovering) falls into the old trope of the franchise's latter years. The book was published in 1997, two years after the launch of Star Trek: Voyager. At the time, this is what Star Trek had become, so perhaps we can forgive the idea of the book. But nonetheless, it doesn't inspire either.

I am nonetheless still interested in a series that has its own internal canon, but does not find it neccessary to completely reimagine the setting completely. On its own merits, David's book was fairly uninteresting, but then when considering it is (at best) and introduction to the series, I may go on to the next book to see how it develops.

Lord of Night by Simon Spurrier

Every once in a while you get just a bit of validation for plowing through the genre section at the local bookstore. While reading genre fiction to me is a lot like watching TV, every once in a while you find a diamond in the rough.

Simon Spurrier's book is that for me.

In the 40K universe, where everything is grim and dark, Zso Sahaal of the Night Lords Traitor Space Marine legion crashlands and has something very important and very dear stolen from him. And thus he goes on his quest to recover the object.

Equally, Mita Ashyn is a psyker in the employ of the ruthless Inquisition, there on the same planet to root out possible alien influences. Despite her competency, she is belittled for her skills by her inqusitor and marginalized by the group.

What follows is a story in which, by the end you won't be sure who the real bad guys are. And that's the best thing about it.

Along the way we learn revelations about the character and motives of the Night Haunter, Konrad Curze, why he selected Zso as his successor, and the fate of the Night Lords Legion in the 10,000 year interim between the assassination of the Night Haunter and the release of Zso from his imprisonment.

One brief comment about the story: I think there's a bit of an anti-religion philosophy in the background of the book. Mita for example, had dedicated her life to the Emperor, trusting in his love for her salvation, and thanking him for the psychic gifts she has. By the end of the book she rejects the Emperor and realizes her psychic powers were hers and hers alone all along. If this isn't a nice stab for humanism, I'm not sure what is...

Overall this ranks as one of the best 40K books I've read yet, and for anyone that is "40K curious" I strongly reccommend it.