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Ok so at first I frakin cried. Jackals & Hounds, my entry from last year (and still langusihing in re-write) would have been PERFECT for this year. No worries. I sat down and caffeinated myself until a few ideas presented themselves. Problem is that too many ideas popped up and many of them were either too trite or too awkward to work with the ingredients.

As an aside, I think that for myself, this is all very challenging. I am sure some will disagree or disparage but being old school when it comes to RPGs, short attention span RPGs are something I tend to avoid. I like developing a character over time, both real and game. So for me this is very challenging.

Ok enough commentary, I can always blog that stuff...

Steel Team Apocalypse
Theme: 3x3 Three, three hour sessions
Ingredients: Package 2: Steel, Actor, Team

“Steel Team Two-Three, Radar and EM detect enemy forces ahead of you. Confirm.”

Hermes goes through the millisecond calculations on its own, checking its own sensor array. Aside from its companion Actors, Ares and Agamemnon, it detects four EM source ahead, at a range of seventy-four-hundred meters.

“Command. Steel Team Two-Three confirms. Engaging as per instructions.” Hermes checks the status of its companion Actors again and then the Human support elements.

“Support Two-Three Bravo, drop back. Your strength is down seventy-five percent and probability of survival is only nine percent. Confirm.”

“S23 Bravo confirm, Hermes. Dropping back.”

“Hermes, report. Support Two-Three Bravo can still absorb enemy fire.” It was Ares, the more combative of the two companions. Hermes and Ares did not agree on the use of Support Elements.

“Ares. Support Two-Three Bravo has specialists.”

“As does Support Two-Three Delta.” For a moment Hermes felt… annoyance? It was directed at Ares. Purging the anomaly, Hermes switched to command protocols.

“Ares. I have spoken. Steel Team Two-Three, attack formation nine-sigma. Open fire at fifty-five hundred…”

Steel Team Apocalypse is about short lived military AI units (Actors) that are placed inside of BIG armored vehicles.

By overcoming obstacles, the AI can grow and learn but ultimately it must make a simple choice: Obey orders without question or give into the anomaly of conscience. In either case, once their nine hours is up, the AI ceases to exist.

I love cool settings and this is going to be no different. Setting is in my estimation very important for defining conflict.

STA is going to have a bit of tactical feel on the surface but I am going to (hopefully) give it some depth. It is not about winning, its about choices, the horrors of war, and what it means to be Human or Sentient. There is not any one right answer, players can figure that out on their own, depending on their play experiences.

Ok to work! Enjoy all.

Sean

Wow, man, this is cool. It's like a mecha anime without the inevitable stupid ending (GASARAKI!!!).

Can't wait to see what you do with the time stuff.

Ok the standard outline. Its kind of how I work.

Game Outline

I. Setting
a. The Hand of God
b. War Without End
c. A Lifetime in Nine Hours
d. Tactics Briefing: Steel Team Platoon

II. System – Part One
a. You Are Awakened & Insertion: Session One
b. Dead Man’s Dance: Session Two
c. As I Lay Dying: Session Three

III. System-Part Two
a. Of Dice & Death: Mechanics
b. Occupational Hazards: Obstacles
c. To Err is Human: The Path of Sorrow

IV. Appendices
a. Equipment Lists
b. Weapon Statistics
c. Glossary

I do have a question for folks though. Instead of separate GM section I thought about putting grey GM Notes through the System chapters. Do folks think this would be confusing for the GM?

Its an idea and I may combine it with a standard issue "GMing Steel Team Apocalypse" section instead of just doing the GM boxes.

Sean

Yay setting is done. I think it adds to the game properly but like anything I may add or subtract from it as time permits. I will probablly not post the setting here unless folks want to see it as it is kind of long for a forum.

Well tomorrow looks like mechanics or How to Blow up Needy, Angsty Tanks...

l8r all

Sean

They live for 9 hours, which is the entire play experience, right? That robs you of one cool opportunity: How do other AI's experience the death of a fellow AI?

You've lived for four hours, one of your friends dies of old age, you've got five hours left to live. Do you still want to obey orders? Does your conscience even matter? What do you really want to do?

Finally, I think I have narowed down the exact attributes for each of the Actor AI. These are all dice pools and the amount of dice might vary depending on

STEEL: All around Toughness and Defensive capabilities. May also represent 'health'when all is said and done.
TEAM: A dice pool that can be lent to other AI OR to the Support Dice pool to help allies
SUPPORT: These are bonus dice when the Support Units go into action
MANEUVER: The Tank's ability to go over obstacles as well as speed.
Anti-Personnel: The Tanks AP weapon dice pool
Anti-Tank: The Tanks' AT weapon Dice Pool
Anti-Air: The Tank's Anti-Aicraft weapons dice pool
SELF: the AI's sense of Self. This is used when the AI wishes to explore some part of lit's life possible not associated with fighting or possibly not following the rules/objectives.

Right now the game is still feeling a bit too tactical. I think Monday/Tuesday is going to be D-Day for codifying and integrating the more emotional exploration side of the game.

Sean