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[forsaken1111]

CSS Roanoke

Round 1

Hello, I have decided to try my hand at running a forum game which I have been kicking around in my head for a while. I will start round 1 with 6 people, as this is a test run only and I may alter things as we go along to streamline play or simplify/clarify rules. Please read the rules carefully prior to signing up, and I really need 6 people who will be at least semi-regularly active (Minimum 1 post per day) for the first run to keep it moving along.
 
The game will be based on the Wushu roleplaying system, and the Roanoke RPG. It will take place on the starship CSS Roanoke, a privately owned deep space colony ship which was built for the purpose of transporting 5000 colonists and several thousands of tons of equipment to a habitable world far out on the galactic rim, near unexplored space. Unfortunately the Roanoke never arrived at its destination, nor was any sign of it ever found by the Search and Rescue team dispatched along its projected course. Space is big, and it's easy to get lost out there. It has been missing for two years, and you're going to board it.

You five will play a crew which has come into possession of information regarding the location of the CSS Roanoke. What your team's goal is will be up to you. You could be salvagers, hoping to pull some expensive parts off the ship and make a quick buck. You could be pirates hoping to loot family treasures left from those aboard. You could be an Imperial investigatory team charged with determining the cause of the ship's disappearance and ascertaining possible illegal activity. It's up to you, and you will vote on this and discuss it once all 6 of you have signed up and have begun making your characters.

Character creation will begin once the group has agreed on a team concept, so that all players may create a character which is appropriate for the team. If you all decide to be imperial investigators you would not have a nefarious pirate on the team, for example, without a damn good reason. Teammates have the right to veto a character concept. If someone calls for a veto, he or she must state his reasoning and then the team must vote. Majority vote wins, for or against, and if the character is veto'd then that player will have to decide on a new concept.
 
That said, setting settled, I will now explain the rules. If you are familiar with the Wushu system you will know most of this. If you are familiar with the Roanoke RPG you will know most of this. I still ask you to read through it and ensure that you understand what you are doing.



Current Players:

Spoiler: Yarnspinner (click to show/hide)

Name: Jedidiah Jones
Career: Space Cowboy
Traits: 5- Gunfighter
          4- Tinkerer
          3- Talking (southern accent/acting)

Fear: Deep bodies of water. He fell in a lake of near freezing water at the age of ten.  Being submerged.. and not being able to see/grab anything reminds him of the limbo-like effect of near drowning/death.

Background: Jedidiah 'JJ' James was born on the planet Thica 4-b.  The planet was once used as a luxury resort, it's never-ending fields of Golden Laki grass the main draw.  The rich and famous came from far and wide.  As with any thriving tourist location, a service industry was needed for their entertainment, feeding and general pampering.  JJ was born into such a 'lower rung' family.

   His earliest memories was that of his father, Jed James.  Dad was a stuntman by trade, often coming home with bruises and broken bones.  His performances, done live, in front of the tourists, shocked, awed and brought home the bacon. Many of his exploits seen in popular vidz beamed to multiple systems.  More than a few evenings were spent hangin' out with pops, being told stories about how things were done in the 'olden days'... when there was no CGI.  Jedidiah is a fan of old spaghetti westerns as a result.  The good guy wears the white hat, the bad the black.  Too bad JJ's motivation is much more gray.

    JJ is the definition of a high tech redneck.  Simple speech, simple clothing and the most complex firearms.  No matter how much junk food he stuffs his face with, his metabolism is faster.. the result: A hyperactive, wired and rail thin cowboy who wears a black suede vest and bolo tie on top of various, mostly crude, t-shirts..  Jedidiah can often be heard humming Dixie when nervous.  He loves the open dryness of space.. the great expanses of nothingness his 'range'.

Trappings: >XB-49 Mk.3b Space modulator (deluxe model) in a cheetah leather quick-draw holster ((uses the tech of those wrist-watches, I don't remember the name.. that recharge through the motion of the wearer.. only, in this case, to recharge the weapon.   )).
> Electro-spec - stun net launcher. (3 reloads)
> Holographic Disguise Kit (goes with his acting/talking)
> Voice activated 'kiddie floaties' ((i know the idea of making them voice activated defeats the purpose.. that's the point.  ))
> Zip-ties, Blindfolds, Gags, ziplock bags (big ones)
> Holodisk Player with "How to fix a spacehip" volumes 1-487b and "This security door and you." a how to guide on doing bad things in bad situations

Wounds: 0

Spoiler: 100killer9 (click to show/hide)

Name: Joshua Millers, Novice Amnesiac Bounty Hunter
5 — Energy sword swinging
4 — Empathy
3 — Medic

Fear: Hallucionation/illusion
When Joshua was enslaved, the society he was brought to used him in mind experiments. This meant that he was loaded with hallucinogenics and always got bad trips. He fears any kind of drug now, and will break down into near insanity at the very implication he was starting to hallucinate.

Trappings:
1 first aid kit
1 Energy katana: This is a handle, easily concealable. The switch on it releases a plasma blade that weighs nearly nothing. It can cut through nearly anything and is really fast.
1 light EVA combat suit
1 hyperspace storage container: It's a 4D item that can hold items bigger than it is in the third dimension, being bigger in 4D.
1 hyperspace waterskin: holds a gallon of water in a flask sized container.

Background:
He was a very energetic 10 year old. He was a prodigy with medicine and treating wounds. This is all Joshua can remember but his own name. He  was taken by slavers at 10 years old, and brought to a far away planet in which the local population wanted information on the human mind. They conducted experiments against Joshua's will, weakening his mind and emotions. He forgot almost everything about himself. He was freed when bounty hunters killed the leader of the illegal labs where this was taking place. He escaped as a stowaway on the bounty hunter's ship. He then met Kyle Cooper.
Kyle Cooper claimed to be a childhood friend of Joshua's. They had met in 2nd grade, but Joshua dissapeared in the 5th. Joshua had been missing for 11 years, but Kyle claimed to recognize Joshua by his good-natured smile. Joshua explained his amnesia, and this seemed to deflate Kyle. Joshua asked to become a bounty hunter, helping fight slavers and earn a living. Kyle brought him to the academy, where he became proficent with blades.
Joshua is good-natured, and would only act if he felt himself or an innocent to be in danger.
[/quote]

Spoiler: silhouette (click to show/hide)

name: Jack higan
gender:Male
height: 5,8
weight:
Age:32
Discripton:
He has blue eyes that regulary remind people who look into them of the ocean, but people only rarely see them properly now days as he almost always wears his goggles.
His nose type is a cross between a roman and a "normal" one, it fits his face.
He has a few wrinkles soley on his forehead, almost giving him a permanent loo kof disastifaction/anger.
He is slim/average size.
He is bald by choice and only sports a pointy goatee, which is a brown that is almost orange.
Likes to take a swig of red wine now and then to calm himself.

Traits:
5 mechanics/engineering: Making/repairing things.
4 combat: Plasma weaponry (especially pistols...)
3 Social Skill: SCIENCE!

Fears: Those dolls which have more dolls inside them which have more dolls inside them which have more dolls inside them... And pretty much anything that is like that...

Trappings:
x7 Personal rations, unknown origin, taste like cheese, all one needs for a full day of water and food, come in comical triangle shapes...
x1 High tech goggles that look like they are REALLY low tech (Think 180O's sorta...) are able to zoom in to 20x max, see in infa-red, and see electricity signles (ive forgotten the proper name...)
2x Plasma pistols that fire at a rate of 2 shots a second.
6x Rechargable Plasma cells, 60 shots per cell.
1x Plasma cell recharger, converts plasma used for almost any purpose into useable ammo.
6x Packs of toothpicks (dont ask...)
2x pair of black globes
1x brown coat with gold trim, woven with spider steel
1x brown coat with silver trim, soven with spider steel.
2x pair of black leather shoes with thick soles.
1x pair of black spider steel pants.
3x bottles of red wine
1x Omni-wrench.
12x Piles of scrap metal.

Ship:
It can fit two people with normal comfort, and three the maximum if squished together, dont expect much luxuries as this is a fighter ship with only bare minimum life support.

1x main lock on plasma cannon
2x plasma machine guns.
1x automated repair droid.

Ship uploaded Background still pending...

Spoiler: Acanthus117 (click to show/hide)

Marcus Smith, Mercenary and CQC expert
Age: 28
Sex: Male
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Grey
Height: 220 lbs.
Weight: 5’7”
Description:
He‘s of average height. He has a strong jawline, a smallish nose and almost dead-looking grey eyes. He is slightly bulky with muscle, and has an Imperial Armed Forces bar code at the back of his neck, used to identify soldiers with scanners. He wears his hair short, and usually has a cigarette in his mouth, even if he’s in combat.
Traits:
5 Combat Skill: Marksmanship with gunpowder weapons
4 Profession Skill: CQC training and tactics
3 Social Skill: swapping war stories with fellow Imperial Armed Forces members
Fear: extreme heights
Equipment:
x1 Standard issue M7 CQC-pattern Body Armor (torso, upper arms, groin protected) in a dark grey color scheme. 
x1 EVA suit
x5 KVII-type rations; all needs for one person (water and food) for one day. comes in the form of small grey cubes. tasteless and gives one constipation.
x1 Kriegler M4A3 Adaptive Combat Weapons System, chambered in the ubiquitous 6.5mm round. Is the fallback weapon for most armed forces, and is popular amongst rebels and criminals for its quality, ease of manufacturing and its high power for a gunpowder weapon.
x1 Kriegler M4219 .45 Semiautomatic Pistol is a common civilian model of pistol, using the .45 PDW round.
x10 M4A3 magazines (40 rounds each)
x5 M4219 magazines (15 rounds each)
x1 Combat Knife
x3 Packs of Cigarettes, 20 in each one
x1 Zippo Lighter
Background:
Marcus was born on the industrial factory world of Tarterus. Marcus grew up during the 7th Tarterussian Civil War, and had half of his family killed. He grew up to join with the Imperial Armed Forces, where he fought for several years in the Tarerussian Defense Force, specializing in close quarters combat. After the war, he left the TDC and became a mercenary. His partner is his close friend Miria Woode, an expert pilot and pistolier who provides him with transportation and air support. She keeps him in check and watches his back. The two of them loathe to be separated, since they work quite well together and have developed a close bond. they are relatively successful at their jobs, but a galaxy-wide depession has driven them to near bankruptcy. Should I give any descriptions for Miria?

Ship:

Crew= 1 pilot
Passengers= up to five
Armament= x4 Pulse Cannons, x30 60mm VEHEAP (vacuum enabled high explosive armor piercing) missiles, x2 90mm autocannons

Spoiler: Dyjeccu (click to show/hide)

Joe Li-Smith, Mercenary Hacker

5 Hacking security systems
4 Parkour/evasion
3 Improvised weapons

Fear: Space Zombies/Reavers(Firefly)
Attacked his sister's transport while a child. Joseph joined the Imperial military in hopes to revenge; while the Navy did exterminate some, he was at the ship's core and not involved.
Time passed- memories grow cold. Joseph still works in space but avoids Reavers like everyone else. Should he have an opportunity to strike at the while protected, i.e. viewing them via far off remote camera, he would gladly detonate bombs or open airlocks without much conflict and delay. In person, or even scratching at his locked door- full Fear.

Trappings
PDA- Has handy utilities, interfaces with computer systems
Powered multitool- Used to assemble/disassemble stuff
Crowbar- "
Emergency EVA suit- Lightweight, allows short periods in space without difficulty. Air and heat last a limited time.
Stun pistol- Can knock out humans at a distance
Spare power cells (3)

Background
In the Navy Joseph found a natural aptitude for the workings of mechanical and electronic systems: Repair, and more recently, exploitation. A large portion of his life has been in space: enough to not limit his thinking to two dimensions or the restrictions of gravity. This, combined with regular athletics training, Joseph has become quite agile.

Now- bounties and mercenary work is satisfying to do, but he is in it for the money. While work has been regular, Joseph has yet to find a team reliable enough to stick with for more than a few jobs. He rarely speaks of his personal life.

WIP

Spoiler: Himmelhand (click to show/hide)

Jackson Cartwright, Veteran Bounty Hunter

5-Shotgun Usage
4-Utility Tool Mastery
3-Unusually Specific Quotes

Fear: Exposure to open vacuum
During his early days as a bounty hunter, he was on a mission with a crew to board an enemy transport.  The transport responded to the men in the hold by spacing the cargo bay.  Only his proximity to an emergency air system prevented his gruesome death alongside his comrades.

Trappings:
Light EVA combat suit: Light armor protects against stray grazing shots, but doesn't add much else to prevent restriction of movement.
Praxton Arms Model 4040 Boarding Gun: Combat shotgun with underslung 40mm launcher for grenades and other projectiles.
Bag of utility grenades: stun gas, EMP, C4, you name it, he probably has it. (Too OP? I was thinking it would be like a utility belt, but cooler)
Military Grade Command Headset: Capable of far greater encryption, range, and reliability than your average communication device.
Boarding Hatchet: Combination hatchet/hammer/crowbar comes in handy when up close and personal.

Background:
Jackson Cartwright has certainly had his fair share of action.  He was born during the early days of the colony of Cornucopia.  Initial planetary surveys suggested an almost perfectly habitable world.  The colony grew rapidly, thanks to the natural bounty an Earth-like planet could provide.  However, the colony soon began to outgrow its limit.  The soil on Cornucopia was not as fertile as originally believed, and the population boom led to large-scale food shortages.

Eventually, these problems came to a boiling point.  Food riots became organized revolts, and the colony went through about 8 months of outright civil war before Imperial forces pacified the planet.  During this time, Jackson was still a boy.  He grew up having to steal food just to survive.  Once order was restored, Imperial presence helped alleviate the food shortages, but it was never fully sufficient.  Jackson continued the life of a thief until he was caught by the police.  He readily admitted his guilt--he knew the people he stole from needed the food as much as he did.

From the time of his release, he stayed on the right side of the law.  However, he wasn't comfortable with a normal sedentary life.  He put his skills to good use, joining a mercenary band at the age of 22.  He learned much with that first crew.  He stayed on for 8 years, eventually becoming a trusted senior member of the team.  However, one mission went south, and most of the team was killed when a target depressurized his ship while the group was trying to capture it.  It was at this time that Jackson developed a deep-seated fear of exposure to open space.

Since his previous crew had been decimated, Jackson has drifted between other bands, always trying to find one he fit in with.

[forsaken1111]

First, it is important to understand what this game is about and what the tone will be. For that I will include the section on tone from the Roanoke RPG. Please keep this in mind when posting. I do not want this to be crazy-silly time or 'lul i got a lzor pistol pewpew'. Serious roleplay, get in your character's head. This game is rules light and RP heavy, please take it at least a bit seriously when composing your posts. Most of this applies, though this game will be sci-fi themed.

Spoiler: Tone (click to show/hide)

Subtle Horror
Thousands of zombies and flame-spewing demons are cool, but they don’t do anything to help create a mood of horror. In this game, the supernatural should have a subtle feel. A slight shift in the wind when a shaman’s spell is intoned, a veil of fog that obscures the appearance of a horrific beast, twigs snapping in the woods, all of these things contribute to the atmosphere of the game by letting your imagination do the work. There is no need to go into gratuitous detail when a horror is described. It’s better to be intentionally vague.

Over-The-Top Action
When it comes to action scenes, feel free to go crazy with special effects, high-flying leaps, and explosive plumes of musket smoke. Wushu really lends itself to this kind of action.

Wicked Style
This isn’t a history textbook. Your colonists should feel more exaggerated and stylish than their real-world counterparts. Historical settings can feel sort of limiting if you try to emulate actual events too closely. Don’t let your game be this way. Go watch Brotherhood of the Wolf or Sleepy Hollow to get yourself in the mood for high-styled visuals with a strong historical texture.

Sinister Conspiracies
The Roanoke Colony is brimming with dark conspiracies. Betrayals and double-crosses are par for the course. Your characters should never be sure who they can trust. This element of subtle paranoia can really help to improve the unsettling atmosphere of the game.

Civilization vs. Wilderness
In this setting, civilization is a metaphor for structure and discipline, while the wilderness is a metaphor for unbridled passion and chaos. When the characters are within the walls of the colony, their interactions should be more formal and guarded. In the wilderness, the characters should feel free to unleash their passions without regard for the consequences.

[forsaken1111]

Now, on to the rules!

The first thing you should know is that for round 1, I will be rolling all dice. Not because I don't trust you, but because it's the simplest solution and I want round 1 to be simple and snag-free. We can modify the game as we go to streamline it or make it more fun.

Spoiler: Character Creation. (click to show/hide)

In this game you will make a team of five characters who will embark on a journey to the ship together. Character creation will commence after the group has decided on what sort of team you will be playing.

Step One - Concept:

When creating a character you start with a concept, which will define your roleplaying and actions in the beginning; though you are free to drift away from that concept as the game progresses and events unfold which would alter your character's outlook. This concept could be many things, from alcoholic ship captain to reclusive space engineer to tabloid reporter.

Step Two - Traits:

Traits define your character in game terms. They rate your character's capabilities in order of importance. You begin play with three traits: one rated 5, one 4, and one 3. You may choose anything as a trait, but it's usually a good idea to have a combat trait, a social trait, and a profession trait. For example, the aforementioned reclusive engineer might have "Russian Engineering (Just kick it till it works)" at rating 5 as a profession trait, "Talking Tech" at rating 4 as a social trait, and "Swinging wildly with a wrench" at rating 3 as a combat trait. Names and descriptions are up to you, so long as the trait's use is clear. No you can't have "Awesome at Everything" at rank 5 "Awesome at most things" at rank 4 and "Really good at a few things" at rank 3.

Step Three - Fear:

Every character has a fear. This is something that absolutely terrifies your character to the point that it nearly cripples his ability to act. When your character encounters his or her fear in a situation, he must us a trait rating of 1 for the duration of the scene regardless of his actual skill in that trait. Fears should be fairly specific, but not so narrow that they will never come up. Some examples include Fear of the Dark, Wild Beasts, Savages, Firearms, Betrayal, or Isolation. Creation and description of your fear is up to you.

Step Four - Trappings:

Your character starts the game with any equipment that befits his or her concept and traits. Starting equipment has absolutely no mechanical effect on game statistics. (Though I reserve the right to add in equipment which does) Equipment is none-the-less important in adding flavor to your narrations, and you will see why further down. Does your character fight with elaborate energy swords? Dual phase pistols? What does he or she wear? Does he keep his equipment and clothing clean or are they worn and ragged? This does a lot to define your character and his narration.

Step Five - Final Details:

Finish up by naming your character and fleshing out his or her motivations and backgrounds. Put the whole thing in a single forum post and post it here for your GM (me) and your team to inspect.

Be warned, this section is pretty dense.

Spoiler: Rules (click to show/hide)

Traits: I had you choose traits before, now you will find out what those numbers mean. A trait is ranked from 1-5, no trait can be above 5 or below 1. Why? Because your traits influence the target number you need on a six-sided die roll to succeed at a task. When you roll a die to perform an action with a trait, you compare the number rolled to the trait rating. Any dice which roll above your trait rating are failures, any which are below or equal to your trait rating are successes. If your character needs to roll for something that doesn't fall under one of his or her traits, he is assumed to have a rating of 2 for the roll.

The Principle of Narrative Truth: In this game, any narration by the GM or the players happens exactly as described. The dice either determine who gets narration rights or how far the narration advances the scene. If anyone at the table feels that a player's narration contradicts the desired tone and style of the game, he or she can call for a veto. GM narration is also subject to veto, with good reason.

Veto: When a veto is called, play stops immediately. To call a veto you must begin your post with VETO and then clearly explain what narration you are calling a Veto for and your reasoning. The thread will then be locked (as soon as I see it, depending on my schedule) and all players will send me their vote on the veto in PM's. The private vote is to avoid any persecution or grudges based on votes. When I receive all votes, I will unlock the thread and play will resume. If the players vote for veto, I will ask the player who posted the veto'd narrative to strike it. If the players voted against veto, play continues and the narrative stands. Any narrative may only be called to veto once unless there are extenuating circumstances.

Conflict Resolution: A conflict is any situation in which an action is being resisted by another party. There are two types of conflict: Quick Conflicts and Spotlight Conflicts.

Quick Conflicts: When a conflict should be resolved quickly with a minimum of fuss and detail, it can be resolved as a quick conflict. When this happens, the player involved rolls a single die. If the result is equal to or less than his or her relevant trait, the character wins the conflict and the player narrates the outcome. If the result is higher than the character's trait, the character loses the conflict and the GM narrates the outcome. If multiple players are involved in a quick conflict, each player rolls and the character with the lowest successful roll gets to narrate the outcome. If all characters fail the roll, the player who rolled the lowest wins the conflict. If there is a tie, you re-roll.

Spotlight Conflicts: Interesting or important conflicts will be resolved as a Spotlight Conflict. I will call for a spotlight conflict at appropriate moments. When involved in a spotlight conflict, you describe your character's actions. Each detail you narrate adds one die to your pool. Your dice pool will have a maximum number of dice determined by the dramatic importance of the scene and conflict. An isolated incident may have a maximum dice pool of 4, while a dramatic or important incident may have a dice pool of 6 or more. A detail can be lines of dialogue, slow-motion stunts, environmental observations, or anything else that adds atmosphere to your description. Details don't even necessarily have to involve your character, so long as they are relevant to the conflict. The only restriction is that you cannot narrate any detail which would end the conflict before your roll.

Involved players will take turns describing their characters' actions. If you wish, you may add details in or change your actions to react to your fellow teammates' own actions. Once everyone is satisfied with their descriptions, I roll the dice for each player and the rolls are resolved as described above. Each die that is equal to or lower than the relevant trait is a success. The player with the most successes gets to narrate the outcome of the conflict. In the event of a tie between two or more players, the team decides which player will narrate the outcome.

Combat: Combat conflicts have a few extra rules to consider. Combat involving players is almost always a spotlight conflict. Describe your character's actions as normal but before you roll your dice you must split your pool into attack and defense dice. Attack dice inflict damage on the other party, defense dice protect your character from damage. Damage does not have to reflect physical harm, but can represent any kind of setback. Once everyone has chosen their attack/defense distribution, I roll the dice.

Each successful attack die inflicts a point of damage, and each successful defense die blocks a point of damage. Each time your character takes a point of damage that isn't blocked, he takes a wound. Player characters can sustain three wounds and still function. If your character takes a fourth wound, you get to narrate his Coup de Grace. (See Below)

Combat against Minions: Minions is a catch-all term for any weaker enemy whom you must face. Minions usually come in groups and have a threat rating which I assign, and this Threat Rating acts as their 'hitpoints'. They can sustain damage equal to their threat rating before being destroyed. Minions do not count details or roll dice but instead always deal 1 point of damage per round to anyone fighting them. This means you need at least one successful defense die per combat round to avoid being harmed by a minion group. Minions may take other actions, interfere with team activities, steal supplies, or generally make a nuisance of themselves as I see fit.

Combat against Villains: Combat against a villain is always a spotlight conflict. Villains are more powerful opponents that pose a real threat to the players. Villains have traits and roll dice just like the players, except that all of their actions are narrated by the GM. Villains generally can sustain between 3 and 9 damage before succumbing to a Coup de Grace. If more than one player gangs up on a villain, the participating players must divide their descriptions so that they roll a combined maximum of six dice. Villains always roll up to 6 dice. After a combat roll is made, the villain may split up his attack successes among his opponents as he sees fit.

Remember, this is a spotlight conflict so the players are free to narrate whatever they want as long as it doesn't end the conflict (You cannot narrate your character simply decapitating the villain). The privilege of narrating the end of the conflict comes to whoever scores a Coup de Grace. (See Below)

Coup de Grace: When your character does more damage to an opponent than he can sustain a Coup de Grace is called. At this point, the victim's plot-immunity is revoked and you may narrate the victory in whatever manner you see fit. Similarly, if your character receives more wounds than he or she can sustain (usually 3) then the GM gets to narrate your Coup de Grace. A player's Coup de Grace ends his life, and he may no longer narrate in the current game aside from one final death narrative if he or she chooses to do so.

Doom: Though you do not know it, the CSS Roanoke is a special place. Fate watches the Roanoke, and responds kindly to those who call upon Her. After any roll, if a player is not satisfied with the result of a die roll, he may choose to invoke Fate. When Fate is invoked, the character is automatically granted the highest possible level of success for the roll in question, as if he had rolled all 1's. Each time a player invokes Fate in this manner, the ship gains one point of Doom. The DM can also invoke Fate when rolling for NPC's. Each time the GM invokes Fate on an NPC's behalf, the colony's Doom score is reduced by one. Why does this matter? See the Epilogue.

[forsaken1111]

What happens when we win?

Spoiler: Epilogue (click to show/hide)

When the game ends (win conditions set by me before each round, hidden from players but discoverable ingame through roleplay and cleverness) the players and GM work together to determine the fate of the CSS Roanoke and the 5-man team who boarded her. The premise of the epilogue is dictated by the ship's final Doom score as follows:

Doom score equal to or less than Zero = Heroic Escape
Doom score equal to or less than the number of players = Tragic Escape
Doom score greater than the number of players = Heroic Death
Doom score greater than twice the number of players = Terrible Death

Heroic Escape
A heroic escape means the team manages to complete their goal aboard the ship and escape to live their lives afterwards. Players may narrate the details of the escape and aftermath.

Tragic Escape
A tragic escape means that the team escaped the doomed ship, but not without consequences. One character is forced to sacrifice himself to allow the others to escape. If no one volunteers for the sacrifice, everyone must roll for the opoprtunity. The GM narrates the fate of the sacrificed character, and the other players narrate the details of the escape and aftermath.

Heroic Death
A heroic death means that the team goes down in a blaze of glory. The GM sets up a final conflict and each player narrates his character's death in the most heroic manner possible.

Terrible Death
A terrible death means that the team meets the darkest of fates. The GM narrates each character's death in the most terrible way possible.

And last but not least...

Spoiler: Incentives (click to show/hide)

I will give incentives on subsequent rounds of play for accomplishments during the previous rounds. I have a few in mind, but the ones which I will institute for round 1 are:

Heroic Escape epilogue = -2 starting Doom counter next round.
Any characters escape = -1 starting Doom counter next round.
complete your team's major goal = -1 starting Doom counter next round.

Any character who survives and escapes during round 1 will be granted the opportunity to play again in round 2. If you play a character in a subsequent round, he may choose from the following: 1 new trait at level 3, or increase existing trait by 1. Note that no trait can be above a 5.

Some gameplay examples...

Spoiler: Examples (click to show/hide)

I'm including some examples of my own and some from the original Roanoke RPG.

Quick Conflict Resolution: An Imperial Scout on the battlefield wants to determine the location of a hostile group of rebel soldiers. He rolls a single die against his Veteran Scout (4) trait and gets a three. Success! The scout's player narrates his use of high-tech scanning equipment and satellite imagery to reveal the rebel soldiers' location.

Spotlight Conflict: The Imperial Scout is attempting to sneak up on a hostile rebel camp that he recently discovered by tailing the rebel soldiers. The spotlight conflict starts and the scout's player narrates his character's actions: "I climb into a nearby tree (1 dice) and observe the rebels for a few minutes (2 dice) then drop down on one of the sentries (3 dice) and break his neck. (4 dice)"

Now it's the GM's turn to narrate the activities of the NPCs: "Another rebel sentry happens to wander near the scene of your ambush (1 dice) he thinks he hears something (2 dice), but shrugs it off as his imagination. (3 dice)"

Since both sides are satisfied with their narrations, it's time to roll the dice. The scout's player rolls four dice against his Ninja-like Stealth (3) trait and rolls a 2, two 4', and a 1. That is two successes. Since the NPC's are minions, the GM rolls his three dice against the default minion trait rating of two. He rolls a 3, a 2, and a 6. One success.

Joe wins the conflict and gets to narrate his successful infiltration of the rebel camp.

[Yarnspinner]

Alright.. I am game.. I have a broken leg, and can't do anything but sit on my ass with a laptop.

  -IN-

[forsaken1111]

Alright.. I am game.. I have a broken leg, and can't do anything but sit on my ass with a laptop.

  -IN-

Excellent! I was afraid it was a bit too involved for a forum game. Sorry about your leg, what happened?

[Yarnspinner]

Alright.. I am game.. I have a broken leg, and can't do anything but sit on my ass with a laptop.

  -IN-

Excellent! I was afraid it was a bit too involved for a forum game. Sorry about your leg, what happened?

Drunk driver t-boned me..  spiral fracture.

[forsaken1111]

Ouch, hope they got the guy.

[100killer9]

In.

[silhouette]

In says i.

[forsaken1111]

Added you both. Signups going faster than I though.

[Acanthus117]

I want in! Mmm... Sci-Fi....

A question! are gunpowder weapons considered obsolete in this world? I would like to use one...

[Dyjeccu]

Sounds like my thing, forsaken1111-- I'm game. I am new to Wushu system.

Team concept- I suggest Imperial investigation, with a twist. Their mission is not only to determine the cause of the CSS Roanoke's loss, but also recover her if possible (And surviving colonists). A small supply of repair material and spares are brought in the event they encounter damage- which should be enough to get her moving again with some work.

Consider the following Team composition ideas-- Imperial officer, engineers and scientists (Power, environmental, medical, structure, propulsion, etc), pilot, security.

[Acanthus117]

If so, I wanna be a merc dude who's in it for WEABOO FIGHTAN MAGIC money and the thrill of combat.

[Yarnspinner]

  Yeah, it is hard to come up with concepts without tech level information.. 

 Are we supposed to come up with possible group ideas?  if so.. here is a idea.  Kinda inspired by an old ass movie The Ice Pirates 1984 

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

 But..  how about this for a group idea..  The PC group are interstellar slavers.. drinkin' smokin' cussin' heartless.  They want to capture as many possible sentient beings as their cargo holds can handle..  We would force our captives to wear explosive neck devices, to insure their submission.  Once they have been transported back to our ship, we drug/hibernate/carbonize them.  We would then sell our victims to evil slave buying guys.