Terranova RPG: [OOC] Character ideas and questions

There are going to be two main theatres of play. There will be those staying in the colony itself and those in the exploration party charting the planet. Those who stay within the colony will be free to start scenes and move about as they wish and it will be a much more free form game. Those in the exploration party will have their scenes actively GMed and more danger and discovery than politics or intrigue.

For those in the colony, you're welcome to play any type of character the setting allows, but you will get the most out of the game if you're playing someone of some note (a baron, a member of one of the councils, a business owner).

Governmental positions open for players:
Baron of Lombardo (this is a separate position from that of the Governor)
Baron of Amaterasu
Baron of Svartálfheimr
Chair of Commerce
Chair of Defense
Chair of Agriculture
Chair of Labor
Chair of Health
Chair of Housing
Chair of Transportation
Chair of Energy
Chair of Education
Chair of Land Management
As well as numerous positions on any of the councils. Most play will center around the baronies of Lombardo and Dauphiné.

For those in the exploration party, physical and sensory augments would probably be better choices over the mental ones but you're welcome to choose whatever augment you think best fits your character.

The party will need scientists of many different types, as well as those with some combat training. A Mech position for technical assistance is also available for the exploration party.

Post any questions or ideas you have about characters and the game here!

Okay, I've received and approved two sheets so far from What Exit? and Panther Squad.

There's plenty of space still open. None of the official positions in the OP have been claimed yet!

Okay, I've received and approved two sheets so far from What Exit? and Panther Squad.

There's plenty of space still open. None of the official positions in the OP have been claimed yet!

I've got a couple of questions. Maybe this is answered on the wiki, but I haven't made my way through it yet. Do the Mechs have as long of a lifespan as the regular humans, or do they have a built in expiration date like Replicants? What are they like? Is this "Spock as a slaveboy" logical, or robotic and completely devoid of humanity, or what?

Since it looks like this isn't being run like a tabletop game, would it be possible for people to play multiple characters?

Since sex has nothing to do with reproduction, is this a very...liberal society when it comes to relationships?

What sorts of things get a person denied a license to reproduce? What's the ideal parenting partnership? Do they only give the licenses to couples? What about triads or widows(er)s?

Is adoption completely and utterly dead?

Pets. Have they been genetically engineered? How?

Are there any cultural or political tensions characters should be aware of?

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Originally posted by Nrblex

I've got a couple of questions. Maybe this is answered on the wiki, but I haven't made my way through it yet. Do the Mechs have as long of a lifespan as the regular humans, or do they have a built in expiration date like Replicants? What are they like? Is this "Spock as a slaveboy" logical, or robotic and completely devoid of humanity, or what?

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Spock as a slaveboy is probably the perfect description. :D They're logical and don't really see the point of emotions, but they have them. They're just repressed. An empath or the right circumstances can bring those emotions to the surface. They'll often be rendered unconscious by their implants if suffering a strong emotional reaction, but some have been able to overcome this. Lacking any experience at moderating emotion, once it breaks through they can be somewhat unpredictable.

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Since it looks like this isn't being run like a tabletop game, would it be possible for people to play multiple characters?

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It would, though I'd prefer it if the multiple characters were arranged in such a way that they won't be interacting a lot. I want people playing with each other, not themselves. (Er. You know what I mean.)

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Since sex has nothing to do with reproduction, is this a very...liberal society when it comes to relationships?

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Somewhat. Since sex carries no risk of pregnancy or disease, there are many people who are more casual about it than now. However, there are still conservative elements in society and religious people who have other reasons for abstaining. Additionally, marriage is generally seen as a very big commitment and is rarely entered or exited casually.

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What sorts of things get a person denied a license to reproduce? What's the ideal parenting partnership? Do they only give the licenses to couples? What about triads or widows(er)s?

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A criminal background, the wrong political beliefs, the Chair of Population Management dislikes your hair...almost anything. People on the colony have an easier time than those back on Earth because they were handpicked and more bodies are desperately needed. If a colonist has a clean record and agrees to any genetic engineering the Council of Population Management demands, they'll probably be given the license. Nontraditional family units are acceptable, at least on the colony. It would vary back on Earth.

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Is adoption completely and utterly dead?

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No, there are still occasionally parents who die or have their children taken away. Neo-Luddites practice it heavily, since they rarely get to reproduce.

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Pets. Have they been genetically engineered? How?

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They have, mostly to improve intelligence, health and longevity. There is a large demand for "heritage pets", though, which are animals that are historical breeds that haven't been genetically engineered at all. All pets must be purchased through Dauphine.

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Are there any cultural or political tensions characters should be aware of?

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There are the Neo-Luddites mentioned above. They don't agree with genetic engineering and are typically marginalized and denied their reproductive rights. There's also a growing movement to "liberate" Mechs and give them full human status.

Just as a heads up to folks: It's a really good idea to post your character concept here. You don't have to share your whole history, but because everyone has been stuck on a ship together for the past thirty years it's highly likely that they will have connections between them.

It's a good way to start building on IC history and growing plot ideas.

The pet/companion idea intrigues me. Is this a place for Horses as exploration transport or strictly grav sled/Sci-fi type vehicles?
Would there be advanced helper monkeys? Hyper smart Border Collies? Talking very smart Ravens? Cooperative Cats with maybe Psi? Could you give more details?

As to a second character, I would like the first to be the primary, but perhaps I could develop the hand picked successor to the Defense Chair I mentioned as a second character to interact with the players in the councils. (Or of course an assistant to the chair.)

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Terranova Character: Darius Delphino of Lombardo. (age 60)

Physical Augments: Speed and more specifically Dexterity.

Description: A large man with broad shoulder, he stand 6’3” and has a large drooping mustache and reddish brown hair. He is well tanned and a little on the weatherworn side. His voice is deep and would be good as an announcer. He is fairly reserved.

Background: A purposely studied and practice Jack of all Trades with specialties in shooting, zoology and electronics. He is an avid hunter and great marksman. His 5 years as chair of Defense were a chore and he did not enjoy it. So he stepped down to return to the field. He feels he put in place an excellent team though for the Dept. of Defense and is please with their performance so far.

He finds exploration and field work suits him best. He is now on the older side at age 60, but in nearly top shape. He is still working the last of the rust of from his time on the council. In school he studied zoology and botany but prefers working with animals. He is a fair field vet and field medic for that matter. The electronic he picked up in tinkering. He has taken classes over the years in a variety of subject including history, pottery, carpentry, blacksmithing, music, dance, biology, genetics and oddly economics.

Addendum: The heavy interest in Zoology would include animal husbandry. He’ll maintain a horse & dog breeding program and be proud of his stable and riding skills. Additionally he has a close friend that works with telepathic cats and has one himself.

He takes his top dogs into the field for practice and help. They are of Border collie stock and very smart and well trained for dogs and of course nearly tireless. One genetic enhancement is a bit of a life sense in the empathy discipline to help know when others are about and if hostile. His top dogs are Angus, Tavish, Gordon, Aileen, Bonnie & Heather

The horses are bred to be hardy and strong and of course fairly fast. Think Clydesdale but as fast as quarter horses though they would never win a short race against a thoroughbred, any distance over 10 miles they would be all but unbeatable by horses of the past. His best exploration pair are two mares. Glory and Hestia.

The cat, Sylvia, is not usually in the field with him as thus far he has not found a cat that enjoys riding in saddle bag or on a shoulder for 20-40 miles a day. When the cat is with him it tends to ride on his broad shoulders.

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Originally posted by What Exit?

The pet/companion idea intrigues me. Is this a place for Horses as exploration transport or strictly grav sled/Sci-fi type vehicles?
Would there be advanced helper monkeys? Hyper smart Border Collies? Talking very smart Ravens? Cooperative Cats with maybe Psi? Could you give more details?

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Because so much of the technology will have to be cannibalized once they land just to get the colony functional (I'm using some fuzzy science here, but I want it as limited and "realistic" as possible, meaning they're going to have to work hard to get this colony going) most transportation at first is going to be on foot. Those who are smart should go buy a horse as soon as they can afford it. An animal husbandry license and a mare would be a brilliant move. ;)

The enhanced animals are quite a bit more intelligent than they were originally and in some cases, much like the Mechs, have replaced human workforces. They aren't to human intelligence though and no one has been able to make the breakthrough to get true language out of them, though they are easier to communicate with than the heritage animals.

Some companion animals like dogs and cats have been augmented so that they have either telepathic or empathic abilities. Because of the differences in neurology, the communication isn't precise. It's along the lines of taking an animal's normal intuition and concern towards its owner and doubling that.

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As to a second character, I would like the first to be the primary, but perhaps I could develop the hand picked successor to the Defense Chair I mentioned as a second character to interact with the players in the councils. (Or of course an assistant to the chair.)

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That would be great!

Hmm, I may have to make my farmer. He'd probably be really good for an exploratory team since his augmentation makes him handy for survival situations.


Anyway, here's my first
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Character Name: Maria Consuela Adora Paocarro (54)
Physical Augmentation: Hormone levels were adjusted to provide for extra-feminine features -- soft skin, thick/glossy hair and eyelashes, supple body. Experiences regular ovulation and a significantly diminished sexual appetite.

History Brief: Born into a family of social climbers, Maria immediately had two claims to fame: she was a second child of a relatively un-moneyed family, and she was the subject of a certain type of rarer and controversial augmentation. Most people got surgeries or expensive treatments for their appearance, secrets that women of leisure spoke about in private. Maria, however, achieved her looks effortless without biological hair grafts or day-spas. When she gained weight (and frequent cravings made her constantly yo-yo), it settled in all the correct places.

In a family of musicians, but without any significant talent, she was educated in 'natural' dances very popular at the time for being one recreational activity that was more difficult for an augmented person to exceed someone natural borne. Certain ballroom and ethnic dances eventually overshadowed her ballet and contemporary training before she was a teenager. She hit puberty very early and almost altogether skipped adolescent development. Pushed by her social-climbing parents, she learned the value of making contacts instead of friends.

Because of her rather exotic and impractical training, it doesn't take much of a stretch of imagination to conclude that she got her entrance to the ship as much due to who she knew as what she knew. Furthering her education in Cultural History, she served on any number of 'useless' department of culture boards on her ship. Of her contemporaries Maria did the least education and direct one-on-one work with anyone else on the ship. She often served as a host or presenter for light-news or ship announcements. If anything she was a relic of the kind of wealthy society many people on the ship were leaving behind. In a new world where practicality is valued over beauty, steel rods grafted to the bones in her little toe keep her clipping on tall heels through the streets.

Currently she runs a dance studio in central Lombardo, usually catering to bureaucrats and paper pushers. She still gets invited to events and it has been made no secret that a marriage proposal may be in her future in another 10 years as the powers that be settle in. In their new government status is still decided as much by who you know as much as the credits you may have. With her talents and clean background she would have very little in the way to prevent her from being a full-time campaigner for her partner's social position. Still, Maria has very strong emotions and has had, over the years, many intense, mostly platonic emotional relationships. Including a year with a female mech, who was deeply distressed by the strength of her emotions and her mostly entire lack of sexual intimacy.

As it stands Maria is at a crossroads. Words from radical propaganda provoking new thoughts in her mind as she slips into the latest fashion for a Council Chair's banquet. A working woman of little note, but with a name people recognize. All promise and little current gain.

I would really like to play but I haven't had a chance to read things carefully. What is my time limit on character creation?

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Originally posted by Orual

I would really like to play but I haven't had a chance to read things carefully. What is my time limit on character creation?

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I'm giving everyone until the 22nd. I know a couple of people who want to play are a bit slow putting their sheets together. :)

Here's my sparse outline. I'll fill in her background more as time goes on.

Name: Dr. Leila Parker

Age/Description: 37 Brown hair and eyes, 5'4", 130 lbs.

Augment: Enhanced Senses (eyesight)

History: Of mixed Anglo-Arabic heritage, the daughter of a mechanical engineer and a literature professor. Grew up with the desire for adventure that comes from being read too many exciting stories.

PhD in Geology, with additional studies in ecology and cartography.

Her main goal in life at the moment is to See New Things.

I am so bad about doing things on time. BUT. Working on my three today.

Also, those who have Cs who want to own/breed animals should PM me, because the Baron of Dauphine is in charge of such things and he is kind of a tightwad about them.

Zuul let me know if my second character is OK, I'll repost it here.

For review: Terranova Character #2: Henry Stonebender Chair of Defense
Terranova Character: Henry Stonebender Chair of Defense (age 36)

Description: He his dark skinned and has the dark kinky hair associated with African’s on Old Earth. He looks fit and stands 6’2”. He is outgoing and friendly. He can be brusque at times but in social occasions has garnered a rep as a good listener.

Mental Augment: Telepathy

Background: Young for his position but from a prominent family and has a sharp mind. Most importantly he won the respect and confidence of the prior Chair of Defense, Darius Delphino. He is well trained in small arms, tactics and survival but not exceptionally so. His real genius is in organization, leadership and psychology. He has a Doctorate in Psychology and his militia style training. He is not a fan of field work and gravitated to the administrative end of Defense almost immediately.

His family is well connected, his uncle is the Baron of Amaterasu and his mother is one of Terranova’s first industrialists. She happily uses her connections to grow her business. His father Jason, is an engineer and happily works in an Ivory Tower Position in his Wife’s corporation. He is truly excellent but has no brain for business. He is a renown cook. He says, “Cooking is just another form of precision engineering. I like the challenge of the varying materials.”

Henry’s one major hobby is breeding cats for improved mental enhancement. He claims his newest kitten is learning to communicate mentally in word forms but no one believes this yet. He is unmarried and has several dozen cats. The Senior Tom runs a tight house and lords over his pride. A helper monkey keeps the house clean. The cats largely groom each other.

Ahem. I'm waiting to hear back from darling people whom I love and who said they were sending me sheets.

Name: Maria Francesca Lombardo
Player: Marsilia
Age: 34
Augment: Telepathy
Background: Adam Lombardo never married; when he was younger he had been infatuated with a woman named Andromeda Papadakis, but never managed to make much of it due to his distraction with his work. They came close to having a relationship time and again, but he kept putting it off until he had the time. A concert pianist who traveled around the world, Andromeda just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when the bombs started falling. Adam had run out of time.

Some men would mourn the loss and take it as a lesson to seize the day, but not Adam. He did something a little...different. Whether the genetic material used to create his children was from Andromeda or a doner who just happened to look like her is unknown, as he kept the records sealed. What is known is that he had a son and a daughter--Makarios and Maria.

Maria was his favorite growing up, in large part because she was so similar to Andromeda. The little girl's musical talents were well known on the ship and between her gifts and her connections it surprised no one when she became the Chair of Culture. However, much like her father, she seems to have made no time for serious relationships.

Maria's education is both in musical theory and history, though she has a fairly decent background in other aspects of art history as well. For practical skills on the planet's surface she received training in weapons and self-defense, in case of hostile native lifeforms.

Name: Maria Francesca Lombardo
Player: Marsilia
Age: 34
Augment: Telepathy
Background: Adam Lombardo never married; when he was younger he had been infatuated with a woman named Andromeda Papadakis, but never managed to make much of it due to his distraction with his work. They came close to having a relationship time and again, but he kept putting it off until he had the time. A concert pianist who traveled around the world, Andromeda just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when the bombs started falling. Adam had run out of time.

Some men would mourn the loss and take it as a lesson to seize the day, but not Adam. He did something a little...different. Whether the genetic material used to create his children was from Andromeda or a doner who just happened to look like her is unknown, as he kept the records sealed. What is known is that he had a son and a daughter--Makarios and Maria.

Maria was his favorite growing up, in large part because she was so similar to Andromeda. The little girl's musical talents were well known on the ship and between her gifts and her connections it surprised no one when she became the Chair of Culture. However, much like her father, she seems to have made no time for serious relationships.

Maria's education is both in musical theory and history, though she has a fairly decent background in other aspects of art history as well. For practical skills on the planet's surface she received training in weapons and self-defense, in case of hostile native lifeforms.

My Maria is working for your Maria!

It must be a department of Culture thing. But at least one of them can defend herself, unless an exotic fan dance works as well on Terranova as it does on Futurama.

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Originally posted by Panther Squad

My Maria is working for your Maria!

It must be a department of Culture thing.

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In deference to your Maria being apped first, I'm willing to let mine be Frankie, so we can cut down on confusion! :LOL:

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Originally posted by Panther Squad

But at least one of them can defend herself, unless an exotic fan dance works as well on Terranova as it does on Futurama.

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You say "fan dance," I say "elaborate knife attack."

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Originally posted by Marsilia

In deference to your Maria being apped first, I'm willing to let mine be Frankie, so we can cut down on confusion! :LOL:

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nooo! They could be "The Marias". Besides, my Maria has plenty of other names she can go by. I think we'll let characters who know both marias to come up with their own ideas. My Maria also grew up in a family of musicians, although she herself is not one (although I'm sure she knows how to pluck a few notes here and there). We should probably discuss since your Maria F has probably known my Maria C for her entire life. They probably worked together before she became chair.

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You say "fan dance," I say "elaborate knife attack."

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As the world should be!

One of the charming people you'll meet:

Name: Giovanni diMatteo
Age: 58
Augment: Pattern recognition
Background: Gio was born just around the time that people were figuring out it was a bad idea to tamper with cognitive processes. The difficulties with Mechs (and their subsequently dehumanized treatment) were just coming to light. His parents had wanted a genius, though, and believed that starting from their own intellectually gifted genetic stock would be enough to balance any difficulties with mental enhancements. But, as they were soon to find out, there were reasons that madness and genius are so often associated with one another.

Gio was augmented to have an enhanced ability to recognize, apply and create patterns. This led itself toward mathematical gifts which he applied to a doctorate in theoretical physics, as well as some unique musical talents. In his mid-twenties he was accomplished enough in academics to be offered a place on the colony.

Had Lombardo asked Professor diMatteo's coworkers about him rather than simply issuing the invitation based off of his accomplishments, that offer might have never been given. Recognizing patterns in music and theory is one thing, but that isn't the only place he sees them. Anywhere there is a pattern--even entirely unintentional ones--he latches onto them. That's fine when all he's seeing is a monkey face hidden in wallpaper, but it's not so fine when he's seeing conspiracies and betrayal in every misspoken word.

At first brush, he seems to be a charming and handsome man. Find the right trigger, though, and a paranoid obsessive bordering on schizophrenic is revealed. If he could somehow block out all of bizarre connections he sees between things he might be a perfectly pleasant person, but unfortunately this isn't a matter of brain chemistry. It's rather literally how his brain is wired, leaving him an often angry, frustrated man.

(More to come later.)

character's name - Alexander Halcon

age 42

augment - none

character's history - Adam Lombardo, the current Colony Governor didn’t realise that when you owe someone a favor long ago that one day they would “collect” upon it.

Alexander Halcon started military life at a young age due to his father being with the service. He didn’t see his father growing up alot until was almost 18. His grandparents with his mother did most of the raising. Alexander spent alot of time near the sprawls as his grandfather worked on the monorail systems of the city. He was told that the goods of the city was like the life blood of the city. His father on the other hand was a specialised grunt that would get deployed most of his life.

So at the age of 17 with help of his grandfather he was able to enlist into the service.

Alexander transferred to the army for 15 years and learned different MOS (Military occupational Skills) but 12 of those he spent in the SOC community. His first three three were bouncing from reserve unit to reserve unit as he went to college.

Becoming a Warrant Officer was on of the best moves that he made

Educational background. -
BA - Military Science with a minor in history,
Masters in Logistics / Transportation (specializing in Supply chain Mgnt )
Phd - Robotics (specialisation in ROVs Remote Operational Vehicles)

Baron of Amaterasu (Manufacturing) Sector

more to follow in private email