PDA

View Full Version : Have you ever played or run a really good science fiction pregen/adventure/module?



EccentricOwl
2013-05-27, 03:17 AM
I'm running the excellent and award-winning "Ashen Stars" investigative RPG by Pelgrane Press. http://www.pelgranepress.com/?p=2330

It, of course, comes with its own setting. In this case, it's designed as a gritty reboot of an old, campy show (like the Battlestar Galactica remake or the new Trek movies) and while it has new elements, it (somewhat intentionally!) stays true to a few tropes.

I admit quite liberally that I am addicted to running published adventures; especially when it comes to my favorite style of module, the investigative adventure.

Therefore, I am looking for adventures - ideally with some sort of investigative bent but I'm not too picky about it.

In short, do you have any favorite science fiction adventure modules you liked running or playing in?


On a vaguely related question, are there ANY real or good adventures for Star Trek itself? A lot of my friends all got inspired by watching some old TNG and the new Trek flick.

LibraryOgre
2013-05-27, 08:25 AM
Star Wars d6's 2e R&E edition had a nice starter adventure in it, where the players have to make a secret landing on a jungle planet, infiltrate a pirate base somehow, and steal back supplies... then be chased by the pirate corvette they stole it from.

I've found it works great as an introduction to the system.

I have never, however, played an explicitly Star Trek themed game. My friends who prefer science fiction tend more towards the modern, sub-FTL sci-fis.

Need_A_Life
2013-05-28, 09:31 AM
Curse of the Yellow Sign, Act 3 - Archimedes 7

It's CoC/diceless, the conclusion of a series of 3 stand-alone CoC modules that requires no knowledge of the previous two. There's even a soundtrack provided to run on as the session goes on (and it gets under you skin; it's creepy as... something I won't say in polite company).

EccentricOwl
2013-05-28, 09:47 AM
Sounds good! I've actually played through Act 1 in the past and read through the adventure. I wasn't a huge fan of the writer, but I liked what it brought to the table. I didn't know there were sequels.

Need_A_Life
2013-05-28, 02:10 PM
I think Act 3 is probably the best of them.

The first in the series would be a great LARP, but I can't figure out how to handle the pacing at the table, so I don't want to subject players to the scenario until I figure out how to properly pace it.

Number 2 doesn't really appeal to me. Some cool gimmicks, but the execution falls a bit flat in my opinion.

Now, number 3... SPOILERS AHEAD
Awoken by the AI using emergency procedures. Crap. The crew are dead. In various ways. Few of them pretty. Want to not die? Well, the AI says that you need to reconnect it to certain parts of the system that its been cut off from. Occasionally, there's these flashes; memories you never had, that you couldn't have had of death, pain and violence.
Of course, you did lose your family to the fire 14 days before you set out, so the doctors recommend that you take your pills, if you suffer hallucinations; trauma and hibernation makes a poor combo, it seems.

Wait, did that guy also lose his family before take-off? To a fire, 14 days before you all took off. That can't be right. And there's one crewmember whose corpse you haven't stumbled upon yet.

The AI doesn't have any answers. Just asks to be reconnected to the remainder of the system. Well, apart from the escape pod - yeah, right! - the only way you'll get anywhere is by getting navigation back under AI control; manual controls were never installed.
Probably to avoid people suing the company for damages, if some moron tried taking away control from the AI.

Oh, right, the AI. Better reconnect it. Okay, manually rebooting the relevant systems. 10 minutes to reboot. Great. What's that scratching sound? Eh, not like there's anyone but you people here anyway. Wait, is that crying?
Well, a bit more of a story log than a module description, but since the scenarios are more about mood than plot (because, frankly, the plots aren't particularly good or deep), that's not entirely a bad thing.

Once I've moved to my new place, I am going to see if I can't run it all-out; lighting tricks, hidden speakers activated by a remote and various other cheap tricks to scare the crap out of people.

TL;DR: The plots of the series are weak. Really weak. Arc 3, though? Hard to beat it for a "Lovecraftian despair" mood.

EccentricOwl
2013-05-31, 11:10 PM
That's a shame. For me, plot is half the fun! An atmosphe-only game is really only good for a kick once in a while, you know what I mean?

Think of video games like "Dead Space," for example - atmospheric as hell, and after the fourth hour or so the scares start to wear thin.

Therefore, I'm a bit disappointed when an adventure advertises to be 'just mood' and 'just atmosphere.' Still, I won't say that isn't a good idea - especially as a nice change of pace. I will see if I can find a copy on DTRPG or whatever.

Any other adventures? Does Call of Cthulhu have any sort of sci-fi setting? I hear Cthulhutech is kinda a sci fi Cthulhu thing, and I love that sort of investigation.