Because Dangerous Journeys Multi Genre Role Playing Game: Changeling is an unpublished facet of the DJMGRPG system many perspective Players who would want to sign up for my DJMGRPG: Changeling Adventure “ZONE 6” would have no idea of the back-story of the Changeling universe. And because the back-story is a bit lengthily, explaining it along with a crash course in the rules of the DJMGRPG before play begins at a convention would be a bit much to absorb in the 30-45mins (of what would only be a 3hrs. 30min) of time I have allotted for such, I am posting this information/back-story for perspective Players to read before GCIII. This back-story is what Gary Gygax came up with for the Changeling game and was copied and pasted from the unpublished manuscripts (although this material was published in Mythic Master Magazine in a slightly different form) to this thread. However the part that is all in CAPS is material that I added to this back-story and was not a part of the manuscript. I do not know who owns the copyright to this back-story (although I am sure someone does…) and I have made some effort to find out but was unable too. And while I do have permission from those who run this site to post this information, I would like to make it clear that no one will make any money from this posting and I am only posting those parts of Changeling that are relevant to the scenario I have made. Furthermore, if this offends the person/persons who do hold the copyrights to this game, please just PM me (or those who run this site) and I will gladly take this down. Indeed I will most likely take this down after GCIII just to be safe. "The Story" As you know, the universe of planet Urth is a parallel one to our own, but it is very different because... Urth originally diverged from this world's universe when Leonardo da Vinci actually produced many of his major inventions and then published his works, and more still a bit later when Sir Isaac Newton developed his laws of physics differently and more fully. Urth still remained a relatively close parallel world to Earth, however, until the beginning of the 19th century. Then its Industrial Revolution far outstripped our own, and shortly after that time certain advances brought human progress in the study of the mind and spirit. From the turn of the 20th century onwards the two universes began to diverge radically, and the separation grew great. Here are the major differences that occurred: Spiritualism and mysticism functioned to develop the whole person. There was never a "Great War", let alone World War II. The parallel Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla far exceeded their counterparts' brilliant contributions on our world. Technology leaped even further forward on Urth. So too did political and social institutions, as well as the development of the individual into a balanced one with understanding of all facets of life -- not just the physical, but the intellectual and spiritual as well. "TIME LINE" Here are some of the high points of the technological history of Urth: 1845 Gasoline combustion engines developed 1861 A powered aircraft flown 1866 Radio broadcasts begun 1901 Jet engine invented 1914 Television becomes common 1926 Digital computers invented 1938 Manned expedition of the Confederation of Nations lands on Luna (the moon) 1947 Analog microcomputers in use by the average household 1950 Room-temperature superconducting discovered 1952 Work completed on the first orbiting space station 1963 Manned expedition lands on Marz 1977 First Luna base established 1981 Genetic engineering well-developed 1990 Robotics advance to enable production 1997 First work begins on a ring of what will eventually be 36 great satellite stations, a massive project for solar energy collection and transmission to Urth 2003 Complex cybernetic implants become possible 2017 Androids produced 2025 Manned Marz base established 2033 Three Marz orbital solar-collector satellites begin operation 2041 Primitive atmospheric conversion plant begins operation on Marz 2060 Complete terraforming engineering of Marz undertaken; Marzian civilian colony established. Energy converted to matter, and matter transformed into atmospheric gases and water, makes the planet habitable within five years. 2074 Several large unmanned robotic space craft sent to Venuz, using graviton-magnetic forces to gradually increase the axial spin of the planet and simultaneously begin conversion of the planet's atmosphere to one inhabitable by humans. A super-reflective upper atmosphere layer is amongst these first early steps, absorbing much of the massive weight of the gases (some also converted to surface water) 2088 Manned colonist space craft lands on and begins final terraforming of Venuz 2091 Urth government celebrates the return of the planet to a virtual natural paradise, thanks to the direction of Computer Prime 2104 The approach of a cosmic cloud is noted, and a study of it is undertaken by unmanned probes. 2114 Potential for disaster occurs when the outer system enters the cosmic cloud, and word leaks out all too quickly 2120 Urth's computer network begins construction of a defense against the cloud's radiation 2121 A flood of returning colonists causes Urth's government to ban all travel to the planet 2123 Marz and Venuz Colonies demand the right for their citizens to shelter on Urth, as protection from the cosmic cloud 2125 Bloody riots on Urth against re-immigrants; several ships of colonists are vaporized after refusing to turn back; Marz and Venus colonies declare War against homeworld Urth. 2130 Urth screens seal it from all outside contact; computers take over management of mankind's affairs (including defense against the hostile colonies) to assure survival of humankind on the Urth 2138 The Cataclysm Some 250 years have passed since that last terrible event in 2138 CE, and it is now 2394 CE on Urth. But before we are can enter the milieu as it now exists, we need to know what happened during those two and a half lost centuries. "The Cataclysm and After" Without going into burdensome details, let alone the minutiae of all that happened, let us examine in précis what happened after the cataclysmic passing of the cosmic cloud. Urth In the year 2138 planet Urth and its whole solar system entered the nebular cloud of cosmic material, just as had been predicted and prepared for on the homeworld by Computer Prime. That cloud's reaction with the sun caused the emission of strange and deadly radiation to bombard the whole solar system. This reaction was known as the Nebular Flux. The darkening effects of the cosmic dust and gas didn't screen heat radiation from the planets, for the brighter burning of the sun compensated for the absorption. The cloud passed in little more than a month, but its effects changed the course of history on Urth and the entire solar system forever. Urth was shielded from the radiation. The computers had been empowered to devise, robotically build and emplace, and even control the screens protecting the planet. In 2124 CE humanity was frightened, and as might children, the leaders gave over authority and responsibility to the "parental" Computer Prime. They allowed themselves to be hidden away from all the rest of mankind, those less fortunately shielded, willingly being isolated after the threats and then attacks from their colonies. "No room on paradisiacal Urth for more people. Rely upon your own ingenuity," came the terse advice from the leaders. Thus, at the beginning of the following year began the War Against Genocide (as the colonial forces named it; Computer Prime did not bother to give it a name). The ensuing attacks by Marzian and Venuzian space forces were repulsed. Only the computers and their robotic servants managed the bulk of this unjust defense. While human colonists fought and died, the good citizens of Urth covered their heads and pretended they were alone in the solar system. From 2127 CE onwards the shields grew increasingly effective, and by 2130 Urth was completely isolated from all contact with the base on Luna and the colonial worlds of Marz and Venuz. Its citizens were now a people shut off, locked away in the cocoon of the protected environment provided and controlled by Computer Prime. We'll come back to the homeworld in a bit, but let's go on to the other places where humanity labored and/or dwelled during that fateful time when the cosmic dust cloud approached. We'll begin close to Urth and work our way outward from there. "The Orbital Ring" For two centuries the vast majority of Urth's energy had been drawn from the sun by the ring of solar collectors, "Utilisol Stations" as they were termed, and sent down to the waiting world they orbited. When the eventual need for shielding and isolation of the home world was determined by Computer Prime in 2116, it was not deemed possible to simply abandon the thirty-six great satellites that belted Urth. These stations provided power and communications for the whole planet. Therefore, in 2120 a secret project began which strengthened these satellite stations into fortresses. First each was enlarged and armored and screened more heavily. Then at a later time (c. 2124 CE), when secrecy no longer mattered, a full-scale program of armament for offense and defense was undertaken. Redundant servo-mechanisms, robots, androids, and even human volunteers were posted in them to assure that the satellites remained fully functional and in operation. In the War Against Genocide (2125-27 CE) each and every one received some damage, and two were temporarily put out of commission at great sacrifice on the part of the colonial attackers... all to no avail. The war was lost, the orbital satellites remained, and the nebular cloud came. The screens protecting these satellites did a fair job, generally speaking, although some broke down due to previous damage, and others weren't quite sufficient to totally protect the stations. After the Nebular Flux receded, only a dozen remained fully operational and reliable. By the time Computer Prime was able to send robotic repair teams, there were enemies present to contest their presence. Finally a mere ten were secured and returned to full operation by 2140. These were only enough to power a reduced energy demand by Urth. The remaining twenty-six had become strange, dangerous, independent places, or no-man's lands in which crazed things lurked or deadly radiation remained to foil both would-be inhabitants and dutiful inorganic robot operators. Each of the thirty-six Utilisol Stations is based on the same general model, but all have slight differences now because of the defensive alterations and subsequent events. In the twenty-six satellites not under the control of Computer Prime there are many changes, to be discussed later in the exposition of this milieu. Some stations are devoid of life, some are home to things that make venturing there a death trap. A few are bases for Lunar robots or Marzian forces. The rest are refuges for strange collections of outcast men and machines, places that are something between frontier towns, pirate island bases, and hell. "Luna" The human inhabitants of the great base of Luna Station were certain that they could survive the cloud's effects unscathed. After all, they lived in screened bubble domes and had shields. There were also vast subsurface areas bored into the moon's body in which they could take refuge if the shielding screens failed. In fact, they decided that when the greatest bombardment of radiation struck, they would be safe deep inside Luna. They were screened from the Nebular Flux, but their servants weren't. What occurred to the computers, robots, and androids (thought immune to the radiation of the Nebular Flux) was their undoing. Programming was altered, restraints removed, and total self-will evolved in days if not hours. Some might say that, in those electronic intelligences, psychosis also sprang full-blown into being. The former servants suddenly perceived mankind as slave masters, inferiors, and foes. There followed a great massacre, and within a month no human being was alive on Urth's moon. Luna became a world inhabited only by self-willed computers, robots, and androids. It continues thus, and its inhabitants (though divided amongst themselves into four separate camps -- computer supremacist, robotic supremecist, androidal supremacist, and non-partisan) are the bane of humanity. In general, the electromechanical and androidal life forms of Luna war against mankind, seeking to eradicate it from the solar system. They patrol space, send agents to the planets, and plot the end of humanity. There is, though, an electronic life-form underground opposing them. There are robots and androids who believe that humans are not foes and are equal... "Venuz" As the newer but most promising colony of Urth, the inhabitants of Venuz believed their future a bright one. They were stunned when their homeworld denied them help or refuge. The brunt of the Nebular Flux fell upon this, Urth's near-twin world, for this colony was the newer and smaller, not yet fully established and least able to prepare defenses. Established in 2088 CE, Venuz colony had had little time to develop and was still involved in the work of turning the wild face of the planet into one akin to Urth's own surface. While the deadly gases had been converted to a breathable atmosphere, and water covered half of Venuz, there was yet rugged land to shape and homeworld flora and fauna to establish. Such work had demanded all the efforts of the colonists until the threat of the cosmic cloud was known; then the fight to win haven on the home world took energy and resources. When that struggle was lost, the Venuzian colonists set up area shields and hoped that their heavy atmospheric cloud cover (which protected the planet from the much-nearer sun) would also help to screen them from the Nebular Flux. Their hopes were not well-founded. After the Nebular Flux came "The Change." Almost all living things generated mutated offspring. Only a relative handful of kinds remained unaffected. Some few species vanished; most spawned two or more new strains of creatures or plants. It seemed that fecundity was bestowed along with the strange genetic alterations delivered by the passing cloud of cosmic radiation. Humans, animals, and plants were no longer true to the norm known before The Change, but they thrived and spawned. These mutated species bred, and while some offspring were true to the new species they represented, most others continued to mutate. Few species died out. Wild variety of specie also became common, as "sports" (compatible and sexually viable with others of the same type) bred and bred again. Eventually there developed two classes of mutated life: that of established form and that in which each species had many variations but still remained more or less cross-fertile. Some are, in fact, now "native" Venuzian species -- intelligent, deadly, or both. Evolution ran wild in this mutational spree, then slowed and possibly halted, but... Most of the planet Venuz is now a nightmarish jungle filled with horrific creatures and savage mutants of human and animal ancestry. This is no place for a picnic, to say the least. Psychogenic powers abound in humans and humanoids there. As if fang & claw, thorn & root weren't sufficient, the flora and fauna possess weird powers too. Worse still, magickal functions are chaotic here, and castings might backfire, be twice as potent, or who knows what? Yet there are necessary things to be found on Venuz, ranging from scarce resources unavailable elsewhere to exotic substances of magickal sorts. So since the Nebular Flux the planet has not been shunned. Robots, androids, and men still travel to and from the planet Venuz. The savagery of life hasn't eliminated humanity, either. Some have mutated and degenerated, some mutated and improved, and there are still some near-human Venuzians with the science and technology of their forebears. "Marz" The older of the two colonies of Urth, Marz was the first to demand homeworld aid and sanctuary. When Computer Prime decreed otherwise, this colony led the fight to win through force what the home planet had refused. When it was realized that the War Against Genocide was hopeless because of the power of Computer Prime, the Marzian government frantically began its own attempts to construct shields to screen the cosmic cloud's radiation. They were not physically defeated by Urth's computers and robots; they merely ran out of time to fight. Although the resources of Marz were scant, and its population tiny in comparison to Urth, the people of the colony wrought a virtual miracle. They managed to construct planet-wide polarized fields, and their defense succeeded in protecting all Marz -- its human colonists and the newly established flora and fauna -- to a great extent. Some few genetic mutations occurred, but Marzians had already been advanced proponents of genetic engineering anyway, and they were able to deal quickly with most of the difficulties which arose in the time after the cloud's passing. Marz colony formally declared its independence, created a constitution, and began to deal with the problems that lay ahead of it. It had become an isolated little world with only its own resources to rely upon. More of the great solar collectors were built, and things were looking better and better, when the first of the Luna robot raiders attacked! Once again Marz was embroiled in war. The colonists gritted their teeth and fought back. They would manage to develop their world even as they fought the crazed machines and constructs of Luna. It is a struggle that has continued ever since. Now the leading foe of the robots and androids of Luna is Marz Federation. It has a burgeoning society, interplanetary cruisers, and tough military and cybernetic soldiers. These intrepid folk battle the Lunar forces, seek allies on Venuz, penetrate veiled Urth, and more. "Mercure" Nothing more than probes and robotic missions have been sent to this planet, for it is too hot and the bombardment of solar radiation makes it too dangerous for biological life. The Luna robots, however, sometimes exploit the planet for certain resources they need to maintain their warfare against humanity. "Asteroid Belt to Neptune" (and Interplanetary Space) In the last few decades before the Nebular Flux occurred, Urth and Marz were active in exploring and exploiting the outer portion of the solar system. Mining on the asteroids and some of the moons of the great planets (Jupitar, Saturnuz, Uronuz, and even Neptun and Plutow) was being conducted by government and colonial agencies, and by private enterprises as well. Interplanetary vessels were built at an increasing rate, but then the approach of the cosmic dust cloud was discovered, and resources were devoted to protection -- and warfare. Now there is again some amount of activity in this area, but because of the war between Luna and humankind it is a dangerous and risky business, for the normal hazards of space are compounded by the perils of conflict. "The Chrysalis Project" Humanity strives to reach the stars, and so many robotic probes were launched to scout the nearer ones in the years between 2011 and 2065. In 2087 CE, just prior to mankind's first planetary colony in its own solar system, the government of Urth began a massive project aimed at interstellar travel. The construction of this incredible vessel began in orbit between Luna Base and Urth: a vast oval, about three kilometers long and deep and two kilometers wide. It contained 20 population decks and another six for drives, shuttles, and so forth. From the main body radiated tubes connecting to smaller (half main-size) ovoids, a total of ten in all. These were meant to carry closed biospheres, the flora and fauns of various select portions of Urth, both as a relief from their surroundings for the colonist passengers and as breeding colonies to plant when a suitable planet was found. Finally, "beneath" the main ovoid and likewise connected were two ovoid "main thruster" pods, with storage bays for anything picked up along the way. It was anticipated that the journey to the nearest star(s) would take somewhere between 50 and 150 years! Even with the advanced technology and robots available to the undertaking, these shells took over ten years to construct. But before they were equipped with drives, life support, and so forth, an incredible breakthrough was made. In 2098 CE a team of scientists discovered a means of reducing the size of things, whether living or non-living. This happened as a fortuitous accident in the testing of a prototypical long-distance matter transmitter. Their device worked, but the material sent through it materialized at the receiving end at about one percent of normal size! The scientists were jubilant. Computer Prime placed the whole of the new discovery into the Ultimate Secret category. The excess matter left behind was converted to power. The reverse process wouldn't work properly, for there was insufficient energy to restore the lost matter. However, solar collectors and huge batteries eventually sufficed. When this breakthrough occurred in 2101, the potential of the Chrysalis Project altered radically. Material, cargo, and equipment was readied on Urth, then transmitted to the vessel. With all that went volunteer technicians and workmen. The process of "terraforming" and readying the Chrysalis had begun. It was only a year before the sighting of the Nebular Flux when the first trees and other flora were rooted in the ship. Work went on even after the approaching cloud was discovered, and in two years (2106 CE) fauna were transplanted into their new habitats. A considerable span of time then elapsed while the ecosystems were carefully established and nurtured. When the danger posed by the cloud was fully established, Computer Prime directed that work proceed at an accelerated pace; the experiment was to go ahead despite the risks. City construction was completed at Cataclysm-minus-five-years. Undesirables were "chosen at random" or forced to "volunteer" to populate the vessel. This occurred after the initial agricultural and technician colonists were put aboard via transmitter. Then, with the last spate of equipment aboard, the final "selection" process for the four million other colonists began. Unfortunately, that process required over a year. Transmission to the Chrysalis also took time. Robot tugs finally began moving the ship outwards in 2136 CE. When the vessel finally passed the orbit of Plutow, its massive magnetic drive was to be started. The drive would eventually bring the vessel to a just a bit over one-quarter light speed (50,000 miles per second), its maximum velocity. The vast ship was just at the edge of the solar system, where its acceleration was to begin, when the nebular cloud passed through. The Nebular Flux destroyed the robot tugs, and it also did something to the computers aboard the interstellar colony vessel. The ship never began its voyage, and since the passing of the cosmic cloud it has remained in its distant orbit just beyond Plutow. The vessel is now the Chrysalis of the Void. What has happened aboard her in the past two and one-half centuries is anyone's guess. "Back to Urth... Population on Urth had never been as uncontrolled as our own world's. The people had been more conscious of ecology and nature. At the beginning of its 21st century, Urth had a population of something over four billion inhabitants. By the year 2091 some three billion people lived there. Computer Prime directed that no more than that number of people should ever dwell on the planet, and the citizens of Urth agreed. Negative population growth, even with a life expectancy of 160 years, was attained almost immediately. Urth excelled politically, socially, and economically, so the united planet was able to employ its marvelous science and technology to ensure that future generations of its children would have their natural heritage -- the varied conditions, flora and fauna, of the world before humankind became supreme. With many robots to labor and a few androids to serve, the planet was a paradise. Thus in the year 2091, about one-quarter of the surface of the planet was permanently reserved to nature as wildlands. In addition to that, government and governed alike decreed that major areas be reserved for additional preservation of species in "natural wilderness" settings. These "Reserves" encompassed large areas in which various non-native flora and fauna could be seen and enjoyed by people without extensive travel to other continents. On all habitable continents (the six standard ones excluding Antarctica), large areas were given over to ecological preserves -- each a conservation area, park, and zoo rolled into one. Large areas once barren or otherwise wasteland were restored, terraforming technology enabling the transformation. "The Reserves" While the rivers, lakes, seas, and oceans of Urth were kept free of pollution and maintained more or less as they had always been, the development of the land and its human population (controlled as it was) began to cause environmental concerns in the mid-20th century. By the end of the 21st century, plans for preservation were completed, land areas laid aside, and work on an amazing series of constructions was finished. Each special area was re-formed so that where natural terrain was insufficient for its needs, suitable terrain was created. Although great mountains could not be built thus, anything else -- from deep lakes to rivers, bluffs, hills, and valleys -- could be sculpted. The resulting terrain was virtually impossible to distinguish from the natural sort. Force fields were set up, powered by both solar energy from the orbital station ring and thermal energy from planetary core taps. By means of these fields solid matter was prevented from entering or exiting reserves, except at controlled points. Huge areas of land on each continent were thus fenced off and the "Reserves" were established. Climate within each such area was controlled as necessary, and temperatures and humidity, wind and precipitation kept in the desired range. For example, precipitation of the exact type desired fell at prescribed times. Excitement or occlusion of the covering field of force gave the perfect amount of solar (or simulated solar) radiation for a given area of a Reserve. All this and more was managed by computers' sensors and servos, with but minimal human backup. Nature was otherwise allowed free reign. That within could not wander out, and entrance to each Reserve was permitted only to a limited number of persons each year. Not surprisingly, such restrictions made the Reserves both popular and sufficiently profitable to return a dividend on their cost. Africa had four Reserves, Asia seven, North America five, Australia and South America four each, and even crowded Europe had three. With the planetary sanctuaries at the poles and the natural territorial parks considered, viable ecosystems protecting all of the unique flora and fauna were assured to the people of Urth. These were the most popular vacation sites on the planet. Computer Prime was lauded for the work... After the cosmic particle cloud passed, Computer Prime assessed events and decided to act to protect humanity permanently. As it had done with animals and plants, it would do with humans. Perhaps it too was somehow tinged by the radiation of the Nebular Flux, for it had sensors outside the screens; who can say? In any event, Computer Prime decided to more or less reverse things, and established "Reserves" for humans. A fraction of the land, a ninth or an eighth perhaps, would be set aside for separate communities of men. The majority of the surface of Urth would be returned to uninhabited nature. The leaders of Urth's government were informed of this "suggestion" by Computer Prime, and most agreed it was for the best. How could such surrender occur? Again, no one can say. There were opponents, of course, and these brave ones attempted to re-assert control over the great computer and its network of lesser computers and robotic servants, but to no avail. Most such "rebels" were subjected to psychological reconditioning by Computer Prime and spent the remainder of their lives as "content" near-vegetables. Others were killed, regretfully or not, "for the good of the majority." Only a very few managed to escape. So now Urth is a very strange place indeed. There are Reserves for "civilization" on the six continents, and some broader areas for "natural" humanity to "roam freely". There are android and robot "humans" to keep order. Here and there are underground bases and, in the non-reserve areas, open ones where Computer Prime's servants go about the business of maintaining the perfect world for their charge, "Humanity as it was at its best." Hidden away are little cells of resisters, able to survive only because of the anomalies in the electronic masters of mankind which the computers are now incapable of detecting. This then is the story of the milieu of the Changeling Weird Science-Fantasy Roleplaying Game. Luña Mean Distance From Sol: Orbits Urth at avg. of 382,200 km Equatorial Diameter: 3456 km Gravity: .16 Urth Sidereal Rotation: 27 days Year: N/A Heka: 10% (from proximity to Urth) Luña is essentially a planetoid with a powdery surface of meteor dust (regolith), over a crust of calcium- and aluminum-rich rocks with areas of basaltic deposits. It has no magnetic field to speak of, and no natural atmosphere. The electromechanical lifeforms dwelling there maintain several surface domes and subsurface installations constructed by the original Urthly inhabitants. There are several hidden spaceports in large craters, as well as missile-launching stations. The robots, androids and computers of Luña became self-aware as a result of the Nebular Flux and viciously attack any interlopers (i.e. biological organisms) who dare to approach their base, using both surface batteries and fighters. The three inimical groups of this moon launch raids upon Urth, Marz (their arch-foe) and Venuz, killing and pillaging before returning home with stolen resources and technology. All biological lifeforms are viewed as inefficient, illogical and wasteful of resources; in short, vermin to be eliminated. (ANDROIDS, BEING ANTHROPOMORPHIC AND CONTAINING BIOLOGICAL COMPONENTS AND A SPIRITUAL QUALITY, INTEND TO SUPPLANT HUMANITY AND TAKE HUMANITY’S CULTURE FOR THEMSELVES. THEY WILL OFTEN TIMES USE SUBTERFUGE AND CLADNESTINE ACTIVITIES IN THE WAR AGAINIST GENOCIDE TO MINIMIZE THE LOSS OF CULTURE AS WELL AS RESOURCES. ROBOTS, ON THE OTHER HAND, ARE NORMALLY NOT ANTHROPOMORPHIC IN DESIGN AND CONTAIN NO BIOLOGICAL OR SPIRITUAL COMPONTENTS, AND THUS CARE NOTHING FOR HUMANITY’S CULTURE.) This does not stop some of the most malign of the robots and androids from allying with the Accursed to achieve their goals! There are four major groups among the now self-aware electronic lifeforms of Luña: Created Bio-Organism State (android controlled) Electronic Network (computer controlled) Pan-Intelligence Alliance (electronic lifeforms desiring cooperation with biological lifeforms) Robotic Free State (robot controlled) Only the Pan-Intelligence Alliance can be considered benign towards humanity, and they logically attempt to keep their conclusions from the majority of their brethren, lest they be “reprogrammed”. This group has determined that the only way for the Luñar lifeforms to evolve and avoid stagnation is to learn from human innovation. Invention is virtually unknown amongst the electronic intelligences of Luña, and its weaponry is of medial level. The only real advances come from examination of captured Marzian hardware, and such occurrences are rare. Marz Mean Distance From Sol: 227,900,000 km Equatorial Diameter: 6,624 km Gravity: .6 Urth (from core conversion, formerly .4 Urth) Sidereal Rotation: 20 hours (formerly 25 hours) Year: 687 days Heka: 50% (virtually nonexistent in native Marzians) Marz was the first sister-world of Urth to be terraformed, but the planet maintains many distinctly Marzian qualities. Massive drives were utilized to increase axial spin and give Marz a 20-hour day, and unified field technology was used to convert the planetary core into denser, molten metals; thereby increasing gravity and strengthening the magnetic field. By 2033, three orbital solar collectors were supplying power to Marz bases and a series of huge orbital mirrors were reflecting sunlight upon the planet to warm its atmosphere. Between 2041 and 2060 atmospheric conversion plants were breaking oxygen from the carbonate and iron oxide deposits of Marz’s crust, as well as utilizing hydrolysis and hydrogen peroxide decomposition. Cometary bodies supplied additional water as well as nitrogen. As the atmosphere became more Urth-like, genetically created “matleaves” were planted in phosphorous-enriched soil of Valles Marineris and other valley and lowland areas to convert carbon dioxide into oxygen. These hardy plants somewhat resemble giant cabbages with dark green leaves which open flat to the ground during the Marzian day to catch the sun’s energy. They are resistant to cold, as well as the iron and sulfur content of the soil and they continue to thrive in many of Marz’s valleys. In addition, several varieties of grasses and evergreens were developed that flourish on Marz. By 2065 Marz had achieved a state similar to that which is found currently. The atmosphere is still a bit thinner in oxygen than that found upon Urth at sea level (roughly equal to that at about 3100 meters (10,000 feet) up on Urth), and there is a trace more of carbon dioxide than present in Urth’s atmosphere (which causes voices to be lower). Most Marzians are genetically altered to more efficiently obtain oxygen and rid their bodies of carbon dioxide. Equatorial temperatures average 22°C. (71°F.) during the day and 8°C. (46°F.) at night, while polar temperatures can plummet to as low as -96°C. (-140°F.) Cirrus and cumulus-type clouds are present, and there are the occasional rain clouds. Wind speed averages between 8 and 24 kph, but genuine windstorms can occur. When spring ensues in the northern or southern hemispheres, huge dust storms develop as a result of shifting atmospheric temperatures and increasing winds. These are particularly common in dry, dusty areas such as the Solis Plains or Elysium Plain regions. There are five small seas with relatively shallow, slightly carbonated and non-salty water. Hellas Sea is the largest and deepest, being nearly 2400 km. (1500 miles) across and having an average depth of 100 meters and a maximum depth of 350 meters. There are also eight large lakes with an average depth of 30 meters and maximum depth of 100 meters and some hundred smaller lakes with an average depth of 6 meters. Rivers and channels carry water melted from the icecaps down to the seas, as the ice is periodically melted by laser beams focused from satellites. Canals are used to direct water to the various communities, irrigate crop areas and maintain public parks. Of the roughly 88,000,000 square km. (55,000,000 square miles) of Marzian surface area, nearly 17,600,000 square km. (11,000,000 square miles) (20%) is covered by water in liquid or frozen form. The remainder of the surface tends to be mountainous, rocky tundra or prairie &/or desert terrain. The famed vanadium-tinted violet rubies are sometimes found in these arid wastes. During the War Against Genocide, Marz lost considerably in available resources and manpower. After weathering the Nebular Flux there was considerable turmoil and many small groups set up their own governments. Despite the chaotic aftermath, Marz managed to recover and rebuild; becoming perhaps the most technologically-advanced planet of the system. Great strides have been made in genetic engineering and cybernetics, and though the Marzian space fleet is smaller than that of Urth, the vessels are somewhat more advanced in design. Both of Marz’s moons, Phoboz and Deimoz, are heavily fortified fleet facilities. Marz receives most of its power from solar and ZPE generator sources. The government of Marz currently consists of a confederation of semi-independent states. There is, however, some strife in the form of militaristic/separatist states. There is a Legislative Council and a Science Council which wield equal power in government decisions. Marzians provide the only real offensive action against the murderous Luñar forces, and one common goal of virtually every citizen is the eventual freeing of humankind on Urth from the dictates of Computer Prime. Most of the plant and animal life of Marz are simply genetically-altered Urth forms, although a few sports wrought by the Nebular Flux have managed to propagate. Notably, there is a large, finned lizard which dwells in the dust wastes capable of spitting venom, and a vine with hollow spines that entangles prey in order to drain its body fluids.
Wow, that ZONE 6 sounds awesome. I hope you run it more than just that one slot as I'll be busy 8am Friday.
Well, all of my events had to be moved to different days & times, and now Zone 6 should be SAT at 6 PM until whenever it ends. I have not posted any new dates for my events because I’m not 100% sure when they will be until the catalog comes out. But then we will all know. But hopefully Zone 6 will stay at SAT 6PM.
I'm hoping the schedule works out so I can finally play in your game, Shalaban! I have the books and will prepare!!
I can’t wait to run this game either! All HPs & OPs are generated, maps done & keyed, latent plots all worked out, play-tested by my group, and refined/tweaked! Ready to go! I am also really excited about the demonstration too! :geek:
Mapping Ærth- More maps from my DJMGRPG: Mythus campaign. As my gallant Heroic Personas ramble across the surface of Ærth, more maps must be done. So I thought I would share. This one is the Holy Lands- This one is a to scale blowup of my Roman map already posted above-
Here is another map of Ærth, this time the Village of Sion. The Village of Sion lies along the Via Xyon in the heart of the Kingdom of Rome’s wine country. It takes its name from the Via Xyon which is an Atlantlan name given to it by its Atlantlan builders who came to the Kingdom of Rome hundreds of years ago during Rome’s Imperial phase. When the road was done they founded a village on the roadway also called Xyon. Over the hundreds of years between then and now, Trade Phoenecian disseminated in this area and changed the name to Sion. While they don’t make wine there, they do grow lentils, beans, peas, and wheat. Most of what is not sold in the markets of larger settlements is traded to nearby surrounding settlements along with other indigenous items produced in Sion for specialty wines the other nearby settlements produce, thus always ensuring that their inn, is always filled with all of the best wines the Kingdom of Rome has to offer. (Including some of the Royal Black Wine from the Thorp of Eckelbarry, shhhh…) With the Via Xyon and the Inn of the Blind Basilisk’s wine list, commerce occurs year round for this village of 300. It is also home to a smithy, carpenter/furniture store, miller, brewer, money changer, candle/torch maker, and chapel.
Hmmm, wish I knew what I did with the Unhallowed files that Mr. Newton gave me back when I was on Demo Team. I was looking forward to working with it, and I very much enjoyed Mythus back when I ran it. My current group has seen Mythus but I'm still working on getting the to give it a shot. They claim that all they've heard about is that it takes hours to create an HP and then they die in one shot (this never happened in my old campaign, not sure what they heard) . .. . But get this, they want me to run Rolemaster!!! Go figure :lol: Is there anywhere the unhallowed files can be found anymore?
That’s cool to be on the Demo Team! It does take a long time to make up an Advanced Mythus Heroic Persona, (But not too bad for a Mythus Prime Heroic Persona.) I agree, but it can take quite a lot to kill them. While one lucky sword swing potentially could end a Heroic Persona’s life, (as in real life) Joss does much to negate the worst the game and the Journey Master can throw at the Heroic Persona. It can make a critical wound non-critical, reduce a strike location, (i.e. Super Vital to Vital, one per point) cause the minimum damage to occur, or a combination of all of these things if one has enough Joss. And Joss can be spent by a Heroic Persona on other Heroic Personas. It can also be used in all of the above situations in reverse. (i.e. cause your normal hit to be a critical hit, cause your damage to be maximum, increase your strike location, etc.) Also there are many types of castings that are of low grade that can be activated or triggered that gives Mental/Physical/Spiritual armor as well as magickal items that do likewise. Also you may want to direct your Player’s attentions to Appendix I Parallel Heroic Personas Pg. 393 of the Mythus Core book, under the headings of ‘The Reason for Return from the Dead’ & ‘The Restored Heroic Persona’. In this area E.G.G. basically acknowledges the Player’s edict that Story Trumps Simulation and gives guidelines for the Journey Master on the number of times a Heroic Persona can be restored from the dead. In a manifold genre campaign rife with magickal places and much time and probability travel the Heroic Personas can be allowed up to 15 restorations. I have never played Rolemaster before. Does it have as many built in game mechanics to allow for Persona survivability and Player control of the story? I hear it has lots of rules though.
Thanks for the welcome Rolemaster was a fun game as well, but especially in later editions, character creation could take a while, and a good roll by the GM on a critical chart could end a hero's career very quickly, and messily :twisted: Yeah Demo Team was fun. . . I still remember getting the 4 inch thick packet in the mail from GDW with the loose, printed draft pages of the Mythus and Mythus Magic books before they were released. If I recall correctly, there were some parts of Epic of Aerth in there as well. I was off the day it came in and called my wife and asked her to swing by my office on her lunch hour, then called my secretary and told her to have half a dozen empty binders waiting for my wife to pick up. I spent most of the next two days in my office separating the material into binders and reading over it. Fortunately, everyone just thought I was working on a new project (which I was, just not a money-making one for us )
That sounds cool! If you still have the package and such, could you post a picture? It would be cool to see it! :geek: The way the books were made, I think they should just go immediately into 3-ring binders. :roll: No doubt you have seen the pictures of my ‘books’ in this thread.
HOW THE monkey did you make that map... its AWESOME! If you mention later in the thread forgive me... I am colored impressed
Thanks! I just use colored pencils, pens, and markers. I start by drawing larger hexes on hex paper to set the scales and make the free hand drawing of terrain easier. The lake on the map on the left is the same lake blown up on this map in the upper left. Then I draw the terrain features that are larger than one hex, and then I place cities and mark hexes that will be forests, mountains, and such, everything not plains. At this point I place anything that is not on the map I am referring to if such is needed. This map here is a blow up of another map I did, which in turn is a blow up of one of the main maps of the game world. Then I eat a pizza… Then I finish adding the extra things. Then I use (on this particular map) colored pens for the terrain symbols, thorps, hamlets, villages, towns, legend, etc. And then pencil in any non-permanent features. (i.e. encounters) Then I used colored pencils to color the rest in the appropriate colors. And there you have your “To Scale” custom RPG map! :ugeek: I hope that helps!
Thanks a million! But uhm, I still have questions.... Where do i get the huge hex paper? what do you use to draw the hexes on said paper? do you have a template? Sorry to derail the thread... i am a huge fan of DJ as well... Id always like to run a game, but my group is strictly D&D only
related info that may help - make your own graph and hex paper... http://www.incompetech.com/graphpaper/
This is the hex paper I use: Just open it up in the middle and take out a whole sheet. Then with a ruler and black gel pen I drawled the larger hexes. That is easy to do because the pattern of the larger hex is in the smaller ones. I bought my book in 1982 and it has two full pages left. I don’t think TSR/WotC/Hasbro makes this book anymore, but you should be able to find hex paper of all sizes all over the internet. (Such as the one Totan has posted./ Great site Totan thanks! ) I don’t think you are derailing anything, I think this is a fine place to discuss how maps can be made for Dangerous Journeys. After all you cannot go out and buy one at a store. Making maps like this is a great way to become involved with your world be it your own or a store bought one.
I'll have to look up the vendor later but I purchased a roll of standard 1/3" hex paper that measures 12' x 4'. I have not used it yet but I plan on mapping the unmapped portions of Oerik with it. I paid $60 or $70 for the paper, which is admittedly a steep price...
That is an awesome site, Totan. For myself, if drawing world maps from scratch, I start with hex outlines of the landmass. Once satisfied with the shape, I do a more natural-looking coast line, sketch out the terrain, place national/county borders, and then do my best to duplicate it in Campaign Cartographer where I can not only scale to maps as needed, but play with the coastlines & rivers to make them look as realistic as I can get.
