Oh no, MoP is drunkposting! This idea has honestly been eating away at me and it's made writing for the other two difficult. I mostly just want to get this idea out of my skull so I can finally rest in peace. The idea started with me working on ideas for the future of the Harrenverse and how to test some of the mechanics there, or refine ideas other people have used. Who knows how much I'll put towards this game once I sober up, but I can wholly guarantee this will in no way take time and effort from MWAR and Warbiz when it comes to getting updated. I mean, it already has technically taken time away since this last week every time I try to update MWAR I start thinking about this, and I stopped Warbiz a few times because these ideas were taking me over, so, uh, yeah. As proof that MWAR and Warbiz won't get OD'd, I won't even make a discord! Not unless this actually becomes popular and necessitates it for more rapid communications between nerds, anyways.
tl;dr extracting a brainworm for my mental health, not promising any long term dedication to this unless it absolutely and completely winds up overshadowing the other two games among the population that is playing my current garbage. You fools.
Either way, the other two games will not be getting dropped. In fact, I'm halfway through MWAR's update now, but I just couldn't not think about this anymore. - This is now a lie, I went back to finish the MWAR update.
Also note: this is a test for ideas, some things are probably going to end up imbalanced. I'll make tweaks to things as we go.
represents the pinnacle of current human progression. Malach Point is an orbital Superstation, a massive structure built in zero-g that is capable of housing and sustaining a population of a few million people very comfortably, with all the amenities of life planetside minus the ability to get a breath of air outside. While people can maintain their personal beliefs aboard the station, the massive population is largely focused on the singular goal of pushing humanity's reach past it's own system and to distant stars.
THE DEREGULATED ZONE is what people now call Earth. Repeated natural and man-made disasters over the course of centuries set the planet on a course of irreversible uninhabitability. As the best and brightest cut away from their terrestrial homes, taking the attention and funding of the powers-that-be with them, those left on Earth were forced to deal with increasingly rough circumstances largely on their own. The Deregulated Zone is made up of endlessly shifting states, alliances, militias, cybergangs, and anything else you could use to refer to a group of people. The planet itself is largely hot and dry, with the most comfortable areas around the poles. There are plenty of major population centers built up across the globe, but they're often choked with smog and just as uncomfortable as the rest of the planet - though at least one could find a VR Den to jack into for a little escape.
Malach Point was built as a joint effort by the
Outer System Extraplanetary Alliance, the
Martian Research Initiative, and the
Solar Trade Union. It was originally meant to observe and study The Deregulated Zone over the course of decades while providing the Earthbound with better opportunities off-planet (so long as you won the lottery). Things went well for a couple generations, and while O.S.E.A. and The Initiative disagreed on how things on the station were run, the Solar Trade Union was an effective mediator - likely a result of having all the money in the relationship.
This changed with the dissolution of the Solar Trade Union, who were not only in charge of bankrolling operations in Malach Point, but overseeing and regulating the transport of goods and people to and from the station as well. Scandals paired with just generally bad business decisions led to an unrecoverable loss of profits and eventual bankruptcy. Without a middleman to cool off the ambitions of OSEA and MRI they began to work to undermine one another. As one was largely responsible for the resources the station required, and the other required to maintain and improve Malach Point, conflict between these two, even if it wasn't violent, left the people of Malach Point to endure the worst of their disagreements. Things managed to stabilize for the average Malachian, but unrest had begun to foment.
The conflict between OSEA and MRI saw the sabotage of OSEA operations Earthside (as the resources were going toward Malach Point, they oversaw the resource extraction down there too). Industrial operations ground to a halt on a global level as there was not enough funding to rebuild a large portion of OSEA's operations. This ripple effect not only crippled industry, but the economy of the Deregulated Zone, if it could be called that, imploded as the fragile system now saw a large percentage of people unable to work and produce goods.
In response, OSEA set up a blockade around Deimos, the Martian moon MRI was centered around. The tension rose until someone opened fire. Some said it was an MRI defensive platform orbiting the moon, while others claim an OSEAN combat freighter was the guilty party. Regardless, OSEA's more experienced spacefarers and wildly numerous vessels clashed with the technological marvels of the MRI. It was a brief but brutal confrontation that saw both sides crippled. OSEA's fleet was sent limping back home with a small fraction of what they'd come with, and Deimos was bearing the brunt of orbital bombardment from wreckage and stray munitions. Both sides decided to call a ceasefire and finally come to negotiations on how to proceed.
Unfortunately, negotiations seemed to drag on and on, leaving the fates of Malach Point and The Deregulated Zone in limbo. This brings us to the penultimate chapter of our story.
The Syndicate is an extensive criminal network based in DRZ-Cascadia (NW United States) but with influence across the globe. With the vacuum left at the top of the ladder by the biggest players in the system, The Syndicate saw an opportunity to move in on operations in Malach Point and ultimately take over control of who gets to leave the planet first. It had become easy for The Syndicate to gain recruits in the aftermath of the disasters in the DRZ as well as Deimos. People were unhappy, and The Syndicate was offering them the opportunity to take control of their own fates.
Malachian Security Forces are largely responsible for what semblance of stability remains in Malach Point and, on some level, the security of planetside locations vital to Malach Point operations. The MSF might not necessarily enjoy waiting on the project's old benefactors to come to some sort of decision that'd affect the lives of millions on the station and billions planetside, and they were doing their best to ensure both citizens of Malach Point and the Earthbound didn't give in to baser desires and further worsen and complicate the situation.
The Syndicate and MSF were aware of one another, and knew they stood on opposite ends of the field. With people in the station and on the planet growing disillusioned, both sides knew they had to take the opportunity to ensure their will was followed through before the other ruined everything.
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So a brief summary before the rules: While it isn't
entirely clear, the setting is heavily influenced by sources such as Blade Runner, The Expanse, The Fifth Element, Shadowrun, Judge Dredd, and a small sprinkle of Spacestation 13. This is, as stated in the title, another arms-race-ish game where two sides (The Syndicate and Malachian Security Forces) will get increasingly frustrated as they fail to win as quickly as they'd like to. If you are unfamiliar with Arms Races, I'd suggest taking a peek at any number of previous ARs on the forum, particularly
Intercontinental Arms Race,
Iron Behemoths, and the still-active
Chiaroscuro Arms Race, all of which had some sort of influence on this game.
Now to the chonky bits!
The world of Orbital Disobedience is split into two regions, Malach Point and The Deregulated Zone, both of which also have a number of sectors for your side to try to control. Both areas not only have wildly different geographies, but will outright require entirely different approaches - those being Overt and Covert.
For the purposes of this game, The Deregulated Zone consists of 8 important sectors, each of which allow access to resources and Earthbound personnel, as well as the center of Syndicate operations in DRZ-Cascadia. Each DRZ, labeled DRZ 1-8, start the game independent of the two primary parties, but are occupied by lesser groups that will need to be forcibly ousted. Projection of power is the only law maintained across the DRZ, so conflicts to take over areas from the gangs and groups that occupy them will require military-style gear and tactics both. While taking territory from largely unorganized forces will be swift, fighting your more organized opponent can better defend themselves. A zone seeing open combat between The Syndicate and MSF will be labeled "Contested" and provide no resources. Once Contested, the Attackers will be locked into attempting to secure that zone until they take it, are ordered to pull back, or are repelled by the defenders. Each sector of the DRZ will have it's own unique hurdles to cross, but those specific hurdles will be revealed to the new owner once they pry it from the local's hands.
Controlling any DRZ sector grants the ability to recruit Earthbound, one of the two races in the game. Details on their specifics will be covered in the section titled "Races". Contested areas will still allow access to Earthbound for the Controller.
As for DRZ-Cascadia, it's such a densely populated, vicious, unforgiving den of brutality that the MSF will need the support of everyone they can get on the station in order to ensure an assault on the criminal capital region isn't a waste of time, effort, resources, and lives.
Malachi Point, as it is a space station, requires a lot more finesse when performing operations aboard it. There are nine distinct districts on the station: Research and Development, Engineering/Maintenance, Medical, Cargo, Manufacturing, Residential, Recreation, Security, and Command. The Malachian Security Forces, while their name implies working in security, are actually an agency working directly with and at the behest of Command, with heavily reduced restrictions on what is considered acceptable action (enhanced interrogation, for example, would be frowned upon if the MSF worked for Security). Each district can be swayed to fall under the influence of one of the primary players, with both groups capable of gaining influence at the same time. Only one team will be able to cap out a district at 5/5 influence though, and once they do the district falls completely under their sway, locking the other faction out of any further progress with them. This issue can be bypassed as outlined in the section "Overt Station Actions". As influence is gained, persistent benefits for the team are gained, though what exactly those are will remain hidden (but you can imagine the kind of help you'd get based on the district).
Command will always be 5/5 in favor of the MSF, and it is The Syndicate's primary goal to change that. Unfortunately, without the support of the majority of the station, The Syndicate can't even try to think about how they'd accomplish such a task.
Any level of influence in any district of the station grants access to recruitment of Malachians, one of the two races in the game. Details on their specifics will be covered in the section titled "Races".
Each turn consists of a Design, Revision, Strategy, and Conflict Phase. Designs are generally new items, tactics, or squads, while Revisions are modifications to previous Designs. Both of these phases will have two actions apiece: Overt and Covert. Overt designs and revisions will be equipment exclusively used during Overt action in the DRZ or on Malach Point, while Covert designs and revisions will only see use on Malach Point. You will be able to revise an Overt design to have a Covert variant, and vice versa. Details on how Designs and Revisions will work will be outlined in the section labeled "Designs and Revisions".
During these phases you will place a TOTAL OF TWO VOTES, one for an Overt proposal and another for a Covert proposal.
During the Strategy Phase you will be responsible for assigning squads to tasks, as well as equipping them properly, or as properly as you can, for the job.
The Conflict Phase consists solely of me breaking down what happens and writing it up in a nifty report for you to read!
As I like my games fairly freeform, feel free to ask me if you're not sure whether something is possible within the realm of the game and I'll let you know! It's much easier that way than trying to set absolute limits right off the bat. Remember the influences I mentioned above though! Chances are if something was possible in one of those, you might be able to do something similar here (don't try to make the protomolecule though).
It should come as no surprise to those who play my games which system I'm about to wholly copy and paste (my own).
Results of a design or revision are based off of 2d6, with rolls of 6, 7, and 8 being equivalent. Design results are also modified by difficulty. Generally the results of a Normal Design scale as below:
Utter Failure (2): Nothing is gained but the knowledge of how not to do it next time.
Buggy Mess (3): The design functions, just not too well at all. At least some experience is gained.
Poor (4): The design can be used without being a threat to anyone handling it. Still, it is far from reliable.
Below Average (5): It works, but there is clear room for improvement.
Average (6,7,8): The design generally functions as intended.
Above Average (9): The design works, and something about it works out better than expected.
Superior (10): It works much better than intended, and a lot is learned in related fields of research.
Masterwork (11): This is the perfect design.
Unexpected Boon (12): Development of this design goes so well that some sort of extra benefit is provided to the side building it.
The difficulty of the design modifies the roll for +4 (Simple), +3 (Trivial), +2 (Very Easy), +1 (Easy), 0 (Normal), -1 (Hard), -2 (Very Hard), -3 (Theoretical), -4 (Ludicrous), or -x (Impossible). Difficulty is based off of the ambition of the design as well as how experienced you are with similar concepts. Impossible designs will always fail, but they may still result in some sort of progress on a higher roll.
Each team starts with two of each of the three resources in the game: Solid, Liquid, and Gas. Solid covers things like metal, wood, bones, cloth, and whatever else is useful in a solid state. Liquids cover water, oil, alcohol, and other liquid matter. Gas will be representative of gases and very fine vapors such as hydrogen and helium. For example, a balloon would cost Solid and Gas resources, whereas a water balloon would cost Solid and Liquid. Something silly, like a device that melted ice into water and turned it into steam for some unknown and unforseeable reason would see the cost reflected in whichever state the primary use for the material would be collected as (ex. Liquid for the water of a steam turbine).
As for the Expense System for equipment, each squad will only be capable of being assigned equipment that costs up to or as much as the total amount of any resource. For example, a team with 6 Solid will be able to equip each squad with equipment that costs up to a total of 6 Solid. Equipment will also be deployed intelligently - assigning a rocket launcher, shotgun, sniper rifle, and sunglasses to a squad will probably not equip everyone with one of each (though everyone will probably get the shades).
Squads are how you get things done. When you create squads, you will be required to state whether their specialty lies in Overt or Covert action, determined by their Racial makeup (outlined below, with the Races covered more specifically in the section titled "Races"). This does not preclude them from acting elsewhere, but instead highlights which one their training focused on. More importantly though, you will be responsible for designing the commander, which will affect the specific tactics used by any squad. When creating a Squad Commander, you should note any training, specialties, and preferred tactics, actions, and/or rules of engagement they have - anything that you think would affect them in a way that would also affect the whay they and their squad would perform. While Squad Commanders will be rolled for like every other proposal, their extreme results will be less, well, extreme, in order to help prevent low rolls from neutering a team before they can play.
You will be able to create as many squads as you want, fine-tuning them however you see fit, but you are limited to deploying FOUR squads per turn.
Finally, it is very important to state whether the unit is made up of Earthbound, Malachians, or Integrated. An Earthbound or Malachian squad will have a more focused effort on their objectives utilizing their strengths (again, to be outlined in "Races")
There are two races in the game: Earthbound and Malachian.
Earthbound are your typical average human, but with a little extra savagery from living amid a global apocalypse. They are generally tougher and more intimidating than Malachians, and being acclimated to the DRZ's natural gravity and atmosphere is a significant boon when working in those environments.
Malachians are taller and slimmer than their terrestrial kin after generations and generations of slow evolution and adjustment to the rigors of an environment that is entirely artificial. Malachians also tend to be more intellectual than their counterparts. While they're better suited for life on Malach Station, they suffer from the stresses the DRZ places on them, which reduces how effectively they can act moreso than station life affects the Earthbound.
This is largely where the asymmetrical nature of this game is focused.
An Overt Action on Malach Point will result in a violent assault on the designated district. If successful, it will erase any Influence the other side had gained. An unsuccessful Overt Action will see the defenders fending off a violent attack and net them a point of influence.
There are special rules regarding Overt Station Actions for each team! This is important!
The Syndicate can only launch Overt Station Actions against a district if one of their controlled DRZs are fully taken by the MSF. Success or failure will see The Syndicate lose half their own influence in the district either way (rounded up).
Malachian Security Forces may only launch Overt Station Actions after The Syndicate attains 5/5 Influence in more than one district, and only against a single district at a time. MSF Overt Station Actions can also only target districts fully supporting The Syndicate. Success will see MSF retain their level of influence, but failure will result in a complete loss of influence in the district.
Attaining victory is simple! As The Syndicate you need to take out Malach Point's Command district, while the Malachian Security Forces will need to take over DRZ-Cascadia. Unfortunately, the sides will need to attain 5/5 influence in at least half of the Districts of Malach Point before launching an assault on the center of enemy operations.
There will be four Preliminary Turns where you set up your initial operations. These will be different than your standard turns, so make sure you pay attention!
Prelim Turn 1 will consist of designing and revising two squads.
Prelim Turn 2 will consist of designing and revising Overt Equipment.
Prelim Turn 3 will consist of designing and revising Covert Equipment.
Prelim Turn 4 will consist of the teams filling in whatever gaps they might want to patch before game start. The designs and revisions will not be restricted to one Overt and one Covert action until the first proper turn.
Each turn will also consist of a single attack on an uncontrolled DRZ territory in order to attain resources before the proper start of the game. As it is possible to go for the same territory on the same turn, the loser of the contest for control will gain an extra attack the next prelim turn in order to prevent being left behind from the very start. If, however, there is a clash on the final preliminary turn, it will not be forcibly resolved immediately, and it will enter the game proper as an uncontrolled Contested territory.
Springer's MoP's Final Thoughts: Since I've been working on this on and off for a few days between a bunch of other stuff, it is possible that I missed vital information somewhere. While I don't expect it to be the case, consider this an "Early Access" release of Orbital Disobedience, just in case. I'll be awake eventually to fix whatever may need it and respond to nerd inquiries, but I'm fucking glad to finally just have the idea out of my brain. I feel myself physically relaxing. Maybe sleep will actually be sleep for the first time in two weeks!
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Topic: Orbital Disobedience: A MoP Arms Race-y Game (Read 1894 times)