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[Chiefwaffles]

Well the problem with that as I see it is that how do I create the actual stats and how do players design the part? What more is there to say than "I want an Ion Engine part designed", and how do I take whatever the players suggest and actually come up with the concrete stats for it?
I would love to do something freeform where players just give suggestions for how to create components ("Create a laser using a small beam emitter then have the beam split into two and rotated to create an effective mining laser"), but I feel like that would distract too much from the actual game, be more effort for me, and wouldn't mix in well with the fairly mechanics-based gameplay.

But the ship design method seems fine - the hull can be designed to have slots for different types of parts ("this hull has 2 hardpoints and 500t of internal space, 2 reactor slots, 3 thruster slots, ...). The components can then just be slotted on.

[monk12]

I think the way to go about it is to not have players creating whole new ship blueprints from whole cloth, but rather iterating a single design each turn/phase/whatever.

I'm assuming the players are all in the same space agency? Have a fairly detailed "base" ship which every player starts with; I'd personally have each major system have a few related stats. For example, a thruster might have stats for speed, fuel consumption, and combat agility, the hull might have stats for total internal space , hp, and what sorts of slots it has available, life support might have ratings for oxygen, artificial gravity, and heat/radiation shielding, so on and so forth.

When the time comes for a player to iterate their branch of the ship design, they can describe what effect they want to achieve, whether that affects the stats of the component such as designing a thruster that uses less fuel, or perhaps adds a special property to the component such as converting a shield system to repel water for use in operations on aquatic worlds. Using dice or your discretion, you then determine how much of their effect is accomplished by the research team, and whether there are any negative side effects (whether that's a penalty to other stats of the system or a random system on the rest of the ship; maybe the more efficient thruster design interferes with shipboard sensors when they're in use.)

How many stats and how many potential drawbacks you wind up with depends on how complex you want the system to be, and what the other actions available to the player are; a really loose system could just use short descriptors of what each component is good/bad at and use them as a way to describe successes and failures, while a more mechanics intensive system could use all sorts of different stats (both directly from the components and derived from combinations of components) in the same way a tabletop RPG like Dungeons and Dragons would use a character's skills. It depends where you want the game to be on the spectrum from collaborative fiction to GURPS: Kerbal Space Program

[Draignean]

So, I have this program for generating random things. It works essentially like a left recursive descent parser, and it's reasonable sophisticated an easily extensible, but I don't really have a good use for it at the moment.

It can do some really cool stuff, so I'd like to give it a purpose. For instance, instead of just filling in a bunch of blanks, it can create outputs of variable length, outputs with optional components, outputs with randomly added components, and, importantly, its recursive as fuck.

Example code that generates a person. Problematically, it's all compressed to one line, but it is semi-colon delimited.

[people] ` [unit] [person] [male] ` [humanoid] ` [C] ` [setvar heshe he] [setvar hisher his] [setvar himher him] [buildvar fname malefname] [buildvar lname surname] [buildvar race race] [loadvar fname] [loadvar lname] is a male [loadvar race]. His skin is [build skincolor], his [build hair], and his eyes [build eyes]. He looks [build agedescriptor] [optional 25] [split 50] but is truly [build agedescriptor] [else] but is quite [build extremeagedescriptor] at heart [join][end]. [optional 50] For a [loadvar race] he's quite [build unitdescriptor].[end] [build distinguishingFeature]. [has crest][optional 50] The crest of the [loadvar lname] family is a [build crest] [optional 50] [split 50], but he [build symbolshame][else], and he [build symbolpride][join][end].[end][end] [pb][nl] [loadvar fname] has an inborn affinity for [build affinity][optional 50][split 75] and [build affinity][else], [build affinity], and [build affinity][join][end]. In the past [split 33] [build darkpast] [else] [split 50] [build lightpast] [else] [build mundanepast][join][join]. Now [split 33] [build darkpresent] [else] [split 50] [build lightpresent] [else] [build mundanepresent][join][join]. [optional 75] [build destiny] [end] [pb][nl] At heart [loadvar fname] is a [build personalitytrait] man. [optional 50] Most of those who meet him consider him [build personalitytrait] and [build personalitytrait].[end] [Optional 50] He has a habit of [build habit] when he's [build emotion][end] [optional 50] [build personalityquirk][end];

Huh. This might take some time to explain. I colored things to make it look like less of a mess. The reason it looks like a pile of vomit is that the syntax grew steadily more expressive the longer I worked on it. When the first ones were written, there was nothing more than optionals, and certainly no nested control statements. Their addition makes this run a whole lot more like you're actually writing code, and thus makes this A LOT easier to interpret using multi-line formats instead of the single line version it was originally designed to parse.

So, starting from the top, the sequence of [SOMETHING] before the first hanja is the library that this item is associated with. The sequence of [SOMETHING] between the first and second hanjas indicates the item's identities which determine by what names it can be called, between the second and third hanjas are tags which influence the probability generating an object with matching tags, between the third and fourth hanjas is the item's rarity which influences its base probability of being picked. Now, everything after that...

Grey text is read directly. Whatever is in grey WILL be printed to the screen.

Cyan text denotes set and load commands. SetVar commands associate a variable name to a given, non-random string. BuildVar commands associate a variable name to a variable as determined by the build command, but DOES NOT PRINT IT IMMEDIATELY. All variables are available at lower levels of recursion than they were initially defined, so by defining heshe (a variable that contains either a he or a she pronoun) one can maintain things like gender consistency and plurality easily through all sub-items.

Green text is the meat and potatoes. The Build command searches all the loaded libraries for all items fitting the given identity. From the list, it performs a random selection based on known tags and predefines rarities. Once it selects an item, it reads that item through, filling in all of that item's build commands, and when that item reaches EOF it prints the result of its grey text into the space. Loadvar is similar, except that instead of building an item from the respective libraries, it merely inserts the predefined string.

Blue text is associated with the [OPTIONAL x][End] control structure, which basically says that anything between the [OPTIONAL] and its associated [END] has an x percent chance of being written.

Red text is associated with the [Split x] [Else] [Join] control structure, which basically says there is an x chance for the data between the [split] and [else] to be parsed, and, if it isn't, the text between the [else] and [end] will be parsed. It's basically an if-else structure. Yes, that does mean it basically does everything optional does, but its a bit more cumbersome to write and I wrote it later.

Orange text is associated with the [has identity][End] command, which evaluates text iff there is at least one item in the loaded libraries that matches the provided identities. Really quite useful.

Pink text contains formatting codes, [pb] is page break, [nl] is new line.


Sooo... overlong description aside. Anyone have ideas for a game that can/should use this?

[AoshimaMichio]

Any game could make use of this, in various ways, but it may be little too complex to set up for non-programmer types.

By the way, why you use [split][join] instead of [if][endif]? I can see [split x] working in specific cases, but you really should merge [optional] and [split] for extended flexibility.

Edit: And maybe post an example result of that script?

[Draignean]

Any game could make use of this, in various ways, but it may be little too complex to set up for non-programmer types.

By the way, why you use [split][join] instead of [if][endif]? I can see [split x] working in specific cases, but you really should merge [optional] and [split] for extended flexibility.

Edit: And maybe post an example result of that script?

If/End If implies (to me) that there is a boolean condition that I can specify, and that's a bit more intense to set up. Split, from a pure syntax->semantics perspective, reminds me that this isn't a condition, just a percentile chance that I take one of two branches. I considered [branch] but that brings back nightmares.

I really dislike the lack of orthogonality between [split] and [optional] but I'll probably leave [optional] in as a legacy command.

Examples:

Bryson Southers is a male human. His skin is olive, his silver dyed hair falls down to the middle of his back, and his eyes are hazel. He looks older than rocks. A single elegant glyph has been paint above his brow.

Bryson has an inborn affinity for the divine, healing, and stone. In the past Bryson was a fisher on the coast. Many wondrous and strange sights he has seen, but he never chased those phantoms, preferring instead the solid wood of his own boat to their illusory promises. Now Bryson leads his fellows, claiming sovereignty by right of strength and conviction.

At heart Bryson is a generous man. Bryson has never voluntarily trimmed his hair.

Everett Grizzle is a male half-orc. His skin is ebony, his hair shifts colors with his mood, and his eyes are milky and seemingly blind. He looks youthful. Several of his teeth have been replaced with pointed metal fangs. The crest of the Grizzle family is a an image of triangles in purple and blue, made from godsteel. He has spilled blood in its name, and would proudly do so again.

Everett has an inborn affinity for weapons. In the past Everett fought as a campaigner in the long wars. The blood he has spilled marks him still, but it doesn't define he is. Now Everett lives the life he has always lived. Destiny for Everett is split, and split again from there. The possibilities are myriad, and whether this means that he is inconsequential, or that he is one of the rare few with the complete freedom to choose their own fate, is yet to be seen.

At heart Everett is a tight-fisted man. Everett has sworn his soul to more gods than actually exist.

Rudolph Sieradzki is a male halfling. His skin is covered in fine scales, his golden brown hair has dozens of small charms braided through it, and his eyes glow with a powerful inner light. He looks older. Several of his teeth have been replaced with precious metals. The crest of the Sieradzki family is an image of a slit in violet and cyan, made from granite.

Rudolph has an inborn affinity for horses and earth. In the past Rudolph had a life, now all he has are twisted, broken memories. There is nothing left of the past to explain why the scent of meat makes his mouth tastes like it has been filled with ash, nothing but holes and dark voids that he isn't even sure he wants to explore. Now Rudolph, for better or worse, is very nearly retired from his old life. Perhaps it's time to find a new ambition, or perhaps it's time for him to simply take a break and enjoy what he has left.

At heart Rudolph is a wise man. He has a habit of blinking repeatedly when he's serious.

[Failbird105]

I've seen numerous "play as various characters and save one or more fictional worlds" games, you've got two I can think of off the top of my head in Forum games and Roleplaying, potentially more of them in RTD(I'd need to check) and even some that I've seen on other sites as well. Something I have never seen however, and would be very interested in playing, is the reverse of that. You make a sheet for a character, pre existing or OC, and you have to fight AGAINST the heroes to help DESTROY the world you've been assigned to.

[IronyOwl]

If you mean for generating people specifically, not a ton comes to mind. If you mean the underlying structure, that's a monster of the week generator if I've ever seen one.

[Draignean]

Well, the thing is that it can generate pretty much anything that you want- a city, a weapon, a compass, a ship, a space station, it just relies on having the correct libraries loaded.

Of course, you can have some interesting crossovers if you load different genres at the same time. Cyberpunk MLP. It's a possibility that I'm not sure I want to entertain.

[Draignean]

So, I was kicking around an idea with partner earlier, and we were both geeking out over it being a really cool setting for a story.

The premise is that you had some moderately advanced species who was well aware that their galaxy was about to be collided with by another galaxy. It's one of those disasters with an enormity of scale that simply fucks everything with no escape. So, being industrious creatures, our civilization noped their way out of the galaxy using some form of Stellar Engine- that is, they left, and they took their solar system with them.

The setting we were kicking around was, what would space look like if you just LEFT the galaxy on your own private cruise sun? What would you think when the brightest thing in the night sky was the wreckage of your exploding galaxy in the rear-view. Would you try and put your civilization to sleep in order to conserve limited resources until you A. reached the next galaxy over (A feat taking approximately 400 million years) or until the galaxy you just left cooled down enough that it's not going to be spitting out hyper-velocity black holes without a little warning first.

Basically, it's a a colony ship story, except that colony ship is the solar system.

[Tack]

Thinking of starting up another Zombie game.
Game revolves around exploring the city and doing various tasks in order to dissuade a carpet-bombing.
It's a pretty tried and true system by now with four "classes":

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Hero: Strong and solitary. Higher stats and better skills than everyone else, but is a single person so cannot divide their time very effectively.
The most vanilla playthrough. No big choices, just survival.
Complement: Infected
Detriment: Military

Survivor: Strength in numbers. Rather than skilling and starting up normally, more survivors are introduced to the "pack" and are all handled as a group. Effective at a lot of things, but don't end up becoming the combat monsters that the other classes are capable of, and a few bad decisions can end with them being winnowed away quite quickly.
Playstyle revolves around balancing practicality and popularity as the group grows.
Complement: Military
Detriment: Infected

Military: Adequate stats, Excellent equipment. Handles much like Heroes, but attract a lot more heat. Can operate solo and take missions from HQ for an easy but morally ambiguous ride through the game, or drop the uniform and attempt to conscript a militia.
Playstyle revolves around more difficult choices, more difficult enemies, and bigger, louder weapons.
Complement: Survivors
Detriment: Heroes

Infected: Wretched people who've successfully shaken off the virus, but found themselves starved, weakened and changed in more sinister ways. Attracts no attention from zombies, but has the lowest starting stats in the game. Levelling up can lead down two different branches- shaking off the disease and gaining huge stat improvements, or taking mutations and heading towards big-friendly-boss-zombie.
Playstyle revolves around either commanding low-level infected, or playing the long game and attempting to shake the disease completely.
Complement: Heroes
Detriment: Survivors

Players are encouraged to either act toward or against eachother's interests depending on the situation- A hero could find ingratiate themselves into a group of survivors, but have issues if a Soldier turns up and brings up the doomsday prepper's lack of "legitimate" authority.

The biggest issue is that I still haven't really found a system for it yet.
I have perks galore, but have no idea what kind of dice I should be rolling, which has proved to be the killing stroke of the last few runs.

Thoughts? Interest?

[Tyrant Leviathan]

Hi guys. My first rpg thinking of doing here is this.

Planet Sunshine:  Unlike most RPGs. Your not a hero out to save the kingdom or world. Your not a nation in war. No. This is about manga.

Here, your a simple manga artist out to make a buck publishing your stories at a studio called Planet Sunshine. Which is shounen jump in this said world.

How is it rped: You play as the manga artist in say to day life. The stories they make are the unreal action stuff. And lastly we play the peanut gallery of fans and net trolls who comment on our work.


There is no real win all situation. But awards granted by votes and I roll dice to mix stuff up.

That's it. The other I am planning on is war game. To start things up.


Thoughts?

[IronyOwl]

Hi guys. My first rpg thinking of doing here is this.

Planet Sunshine:  Unlike most RPGs. Your not a hero out to save the kingdom or world. Your not a nation in war. No. This is about manga.

Here, your a simple manga artist out to make a buck publishing your stories at a studio called Planet Sunshine. Which is shounen jump in this said world.

How is it rped: You play as the manga artist in say to day life. The stories they make are the unreal action stuff. And lastly we play the peanut gallery of fans and net trolls who comment on our work.


There is no real win all situation. But awards granted by votes and I roll dice to mix stuff up.

That's it. The other I am planning on is war game. To start things up.


Thoughts?

So how's it actually played, and for what purpose? From what you've described here, it feels a little highbrow artsy and not quite so play-oriented.

[Tyrant Leviathan]

Well you post your character stats. Projects and pay check. And the role play action is in their daily lives and their work. The work is serious rp action stuff.


The peanut gallery part is being fans online commenting on  said work. And random die adds chaos to artist life. Which in turn affects their work.

No worries just first suggestion. Had a thread of other ideas. Next one is Onslaught. Only help I need there is a map. But rules and tech tree is there.

[fourtytwo]

I didn't saw this thread when I post my civilization forum game so ..um ya. Just wanted the throw that out there. Might want to check it out.

I also have another idea that isn't even half complete. It's basically a game where no matter how hard you try, you can never win. Whoever can go on the longest without losing "wins" Designed to be very face paced. Idea is still another WIP.

[Tyrant Leviathan]

Onslaught: THe only think I need help with is a world map. Other than that worked out.

Plot: Either Allies vs Axis (Just different world and setting.)

Or a three way dance of death. (One side is invading another to make them pay for oppressing their people, said rich imperials trying to beat them down, and third party is trying to stay alive as other two invade them for not helping.)

As for set up? Game points. Each game point leads to a development. Some can only be gotten at nation creation stage.

Unit strength: The more stuff in tech tree related to unit and use to it makes said units that much stronger/different.


Resources; In Logistics have resource points and such. It all is needed to decide how much force you can build up and send out.

We rp a turn for a whole month, get points at end, spend on development phase for next month. It goes on until there is a single winning side. You will be rping as everyone of said country. From foot soldier to government officials.

Tech tree branches: Last night I tried uploading it all together, but exceeded posting cap. So will talk about segments, and maybe do them piece by piece.

Somethings are "free" at the start. Thinking of which set up points wise. Only one super unit allowed. That's for certain but thinking 20 to maybe 60 points to spend out. Depending on kind of game we want in action. As the most points you get are 4.

And each government has strengths and flaws.

Technology: Your high tech toys here.

Tactics: How smart you people are at actual fighting.

Logistics: Your nations resource life blood in keeping war machine alive.

Society; How your people run their lives and helps in deciding what it is their fighting for.


Super powers: Yes, as it's a fictional world aside super tech. Natural born super powers exist. This is, to capitalize on it.

Magic: Or you can flip technology the bird and just go all in in magic. Instead of planes, have dragons. Instead of bullets, spells. And instead of gas motors, have magic energy spirits and stuff.


All depends on your tastes.


My other games are more vanilla. By theme.

Magic based adventures.

Sci Fi based.

Faction game: Sci fi violence/ gang deal.


I can do listings and write ups of the others if Onslaught is not appealing. But if it is, will psot up the tech tree branches.

As for other games? It depends.

Magic has like four games.

Sci fi has like five.

All depends on flavor. Will be posting the rest on a more convenient time. Holidays and all.