Topic: A Killbot of Mars [Eclipse Phase FATE, Non-Con: Exotic] (FULL)

[AndyZ]

Then the why and how aren't so much an issue with the Jovians as something else.  Gotcha.

I notice the sidebar on page 24 about slavery.  This seriously reminds me of indentured servitude, and is quite similar to something the Asari had in Mass Effect.  Krysta will actually be okay with this, since it's far more preferable than bankruptcy laws, debtor's prisons or anything else I've seen.

It does make me consider, though:

Hexed, wasn't that your character background?  How would you feel about the idea that instead of having served your time, Krysta has purchased you (on behalf of Firewall) and has you working at Mars under the understanding that you'll make better money and have better living conditions voluntarily sticking to contract, even though it probably can't be enforced outside of Extropia?  Most of which would just be a cover for Firewall making sure you're in the right place at the right time.

It was an idea for Forklift which may or may not interest you.  My feelings won't be hurt if you don't like it ^_^

[ThisOneGal]

I notice the sidebar on page 24 about slavery.  This seriously reminds me of indentured servitude, and is quite similar to something the Asari had in Mass Effect.  Krysta will actually be okay with this, since it's far more preferable than bankruptcy laws, debtor's prisons or anything else I've seen.

Indentured servitude is a lot worse in EP than ME.

Basically, if you can think of a way to screw an indent over, it's standard practice.

[AndyZ]

Ah.  Just as a way to discourage anyone from becoming indents, or as an inherent class structure?

[FarFetched]

By Phase Eclipse standards Jane's suit would be very old tech. After all it would probably be reliant upon motion sensors, verbal commands, and actual triggers instead of mesh/jack links. Especially since the Jovian style lady would probably be very displeased if it had an AI to help control/regulate the suit.

Eheh, yeah. Jovians are highly militant and are pretty up to date with tech; especially when it comes to military tech.

That doesn't actually fit with the setting. The Jovian Republic will go to great lengths to get you to Jupiter with your original body intact and functional. As far as their concerned, you're one of the few actual humans on Mars, and they want to make sure you're safe.

My basis for that was from this quote:

We Jovian medical professionals may pride ourselves in maintaining our populations’ health and well-being, but the praise the media heaps upon us grows continuously hollow. The fact that so many critical medical technologies must run the twin gauntlets of the Church and CBEAT to be considered safe for the population means that very little of the newer procedures, treatments, and drugs make it to the general populace. As a result, even those citizens willing to undertake longevity treatments can expect to live a life considerably shorter than the rest of the system—and one that is likely filled with no small amount of pain and suffering. The Senate can suppress all of the reports on the high rate of cancers among our population that it likes; people are still getting concerned. Living for ten or more years within a heavy radiation belt is bound to have negative effects on a large portion of the population and several of the nastier cancers are reaching epidemic levels. Unfortunately, the best techniques for treating these cancers remain on the banned list or are restricted to a handful of licensed practitioners because they involve invasive nanotechnology. While our wealthier citizens have the political clout and credit for a “vacation” to Titan or Extropia to fix their health, the rest of our population lies at risk. Caution may be patriotic, but when it actively hinders the health of a significant proportion of our population, I can only consider it criminal negligence.

[ThisOneGal]

Because slavery is good for business, and fuck 'em, I got mine.

Notably, the Extroptians are the only members of the Autonomist Alliance not opposed to the practice (in fact they support it).

[ThisOneGal]

My basis for that was from this quote:

But, as a flat with no biomods, you're not using any of the restricted tech. Any non-nano tech you'll find on Mars will be vastly inferior to the equivalent on Jupiter.

[Hexed]

Hexed, wasn't that your character background?  How would you feel about the idea that instead of having served your time, Krysta has purchased you (on behalf of Firewall) and has you working at Mars under the understanding that you'll make better money and have better living conditions voluntarily sticking to contract, even though it probably can't be enforced outside of Extropia?  Most of which would just be a cover for Firewall making sure you're in the right place at the right time.

It was an idea for Forklift which may or may not interest you.  My feelings won't be hurt if you don't like it ^_^

Yep! Forklift was an indenture that worked as a handyman/prostitute within a brothel. And that actually works fairly well as it lets me keep Forklift fairly naive about the world after the fall which wouldn't be quite so much if the contract had actually ended. And would give me more reason to drop the drone like I've been thinking of.



Hmmm... So much to read! I'm still working through gear in EP and there's so many ideas floating in my head. Interesting tidbit about the Jovian's mil-tech though. Makes it sound more and more like Jane will wind up with something akin to a hardsuit from Bubblegum Crisis.

[ThisOneGal]

Hmmm... So much to read! I'm still working through gear in EP and there's so many ideas floating in my head. Interesting tidbit about the Jovian's mil-tech though. Makes it sound more and more like Jane will wind up with something akin to a hardsuit from Bubblegum Crisis.

It should be noted that the Jovians will use 'forbidden' tech. The Firewall sourcebook goes into detail about what and when they'll use it.

And, given that hardsuits have to support a squishy human and synths don't, killbots will almost always beat power armor troops in effectiveness and cost effectiveness.

[AndyZ]

Because slavery is good for business, and fuck 'em, I got mine.

Notably, the Extroptians are the only members of the Autonomist Alliance not opposed to the practice (in fact they support it).

Very different slant from the sidebar's portrayal.  I'm glad I brought it up.

I think Krysta's perspective on it would fit ME much more than the average Extropian, so tentatively support as a necessary evil.  If it works in backstory, she might have had a few indents at some point thanks to saving people who couldn't otherwise repay her, and trying to find them tasks which aren't so bad that they'd require psychosurgery to forget.

How long would it take to ship a morph from Vat City to Mars, if Krysta has to buy another futa fury?

Yep! Forklift was an indenture that worked as a handyman/prostitute within a brothel. And that actually works fairly well as it lets me keep Forklift fairly naive about the world after the fall which wouldn't be quite so much if the contract had actually ended. And would give me more reason to drop the drone like I've been thinking of.

Awesome ^_^ I imagine Krysta's primary explanation will be that Forklift is too talented for her abilities to be wasted on prostituting and have her working at a place commensurate with her skills.

Whether Krysta would demand carnal duties from an indent depends totally on whether she got the feeling that Forklift would be interested to begin with.  (Krysta wouldn't force sex on someone who wasn't really interested, but if they seemed like they wanted a go to begin with...)

[ThisOneGal]

Very different slant from the sidebar's portrayal.  I'm glad I brought it up.

Keep in mind, that's basically the (unstated) attitude of the hypercorps. The Extropian position is more 'people can make their own dumb choices'.

How long would it take to ship a morph from Vat City to Mars, if Krysta has to buy another futa fury?

I don't recognize Vat City. Where is it?
Probably long enough to be interesting, but not long enough to be annoying. Given the relatively light/highly sexual nature of this game in comparison to the default setting, you'll spend most of your time in a morph of your (OOC) choice.

[AndyZ]

Vat City's on Extropia.  Given a better Civ Rep than her Credit rating, I would imagine that Krysta tends to get her next morph customized and prepped for when (not if) her current morph is destroyed.

As Drop might say: "That's the expression of someone who's died seven times in a row."

[Hexed]

+4 hardware & pilot
+3 programming & infosec

Yeah... Shame Forklift has NO social skills and managed to really piss of that stressed and  overworked Indenture Overlook or whatever they were called huh? 

Sex wise Forklift tends to identify as the body they are in and are usually very open to sex, she took quite well to the accidental addition of prostitution to her tasks. Just don't expect her to follow in Krysta's death seeking! Forklift is quite proud of the work put into and ongoing with her current morph!



Gonna drop Whisper the tanky drone for some other stuff, at least for now. Be kinda nice bit of fluff to have something for her to noticebly work on between missions/jobs/whatnot.

That said! How would something like shock gauntlets be rated? A stunt to turn fight damage into stun? Or just as a weapon listed under gear?

[Re Z L]

Anima would start out in the same boat regarding indentured servitude (read: slavery) to start out, too.  If anyone has suggestions about how she gets free I'm all ears.  I have some thoughts too but don't have the time to develop them right now.

[ThisOneGal]

Vat City's on Extropia.  Given a better Civ Rep than her Credit rating, I would imagine that Krysta tends to get her next morph customized and prepped for when (not if) her current morph is destroyed.

Eh, that's not super within the default setting, but I'm fine with it, given her background.

Travel time from Extropia is probably over a month, so you'll likely have one backup on Mars.

May need a stunt for that, but we can see how it plays out in the game.

[ThisOneGal]

Anima would start out in the same boat regarding indentured servitude (read: slavery) to start out, too.  If anyone has suggestions about how she gets free I'm all ears.  I have some thoughts too but don't have the time to develop them right now.

Eh, PCs should not start out as indents; it robs them of too much agency. You can be recently liberated (or belong to another PC, if you like), but being owned by NPCs restricts what you can do too much.

[Re Z L]

Eh, PCs should not start out as indents; it robs them of too much agency. You can be recently liberated (or belong to another PC, if you like), but being owned by NPCs restricts what you can do too much.

Oh, Anima will definitely be free, its just a question of working it out in the background story--that's what I meant.  If any other characters want to be involved then I'm happy to oblige.

[AndyZ]

+4 hardware & pilot
+3 programming & infosec

Yeah... Shame Forklift has NO social skills and managed to really piss of that stressed and  overworked Indenture Overlook or whatever they were called huh? 

Sex wise Forklift tends to identify as the body they are in and are usually very open to sex, she took quite well to the accidental addition of prostitution to her tasks. Just don't expect her to follow in Krysta's death seeking! Forklift is quite proud of the work put into and ongoing with her current morph!

Works for me ^_^ Krysta will probably "demand" services with enough of a wink and a smile that if Forklift honestly wasn't interested, Krysta wouldn't push.  The important things would be both getting in enough credit to make back the investment and having her there in the event that Firewall needs them.

As far as Ego vs Morph, Krysta is sexually attracted to the morph and not the ego, so zero issue there ^_^

I also notice that Forklift has no Credit, so anything she makes will just go to Krysta.

As far as the Phoenix, it's something Krysta personally sees as her path and certainly wouldn't ask anyone else to follow it.

Anima would start out in the same boat regarding indentured servitude (read: slavery) to start out, too.  If anyone has suggestions about how she gets free I'm all ears.  I have some thoughts too but don't have the time to develop them right now.

Krysta's not sexually attracted to octopi, and you've mentioned that she'll be free by this point, but if you like, a similar offer might have come about to set Anima up on Mars as a neurosurgeon.

Could this even be a running theme, where Krysta finds the people who have far too valuable of skills to waste on indentured servitude, purchases them and ensures that they don't run away or anything?  Since Krysta would kinda be her own bounty hunter if problems arose, and it's kinda helping make the System a better place with not having Indents treated as absolute crap.

Given the expense of Octomorphs, though, if that's in our backstory together, it would probably be a time before when your character had that morph.

Eh, that's not super within the default setting, but I'm fine with it, given her background.

Travel time from Extropia is probably over a month, so you'll likely have one backup on Mars.

May need a stunt for that, but we can see how it plays out in the game.

It probably won't even come up, but I can certainly see Krysta planning for it.

If you like the idea, maybe there's an offshoot on Mars where Krysta can order in if her morph does die.  Not sure how well that works in the setting, though.

I tend to pitch out lots of ideas and just see what fits.  It helps me learn.

[FarFetched]

But, as a flat with no biomods, you're not using any of the restricted tech. Any non-nano tech you'll find on Mars will be vastly inferior to the equivalent on Jupiter.

Hmmm. So it's kinda like a deadly cycle of "Yes, we have the mods to cure your cancer. Is this your fifth or sixth visit?" going on?
The way I read it, medical tech in general is severely limited on Jupiter, and the wealthy have to go outside the Jovian Republic to get themselves fixed up right.

As Drop might say: "That's the expression of someone who's died seven times in a row."

"Oi. Do you wanna have a bad time?"

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

I must admit, this tempts me until my tempt is sore. I'm an old fan of EP and the EP-verse. On the other hand, I've never, ever played Fate. How's the learning curve?

At a glance, I see (forgive the generalized labeling of roles) a soldier, a hacker/async (in a pod? Eek.), a pilot/tech, another hacker, a bodyguard, and a medico. Party looks a little light on the social side of things, unless I'm missing someone?

I'm guessing Fate makes some big changes, just looking at the characters so far...a big thing in EP is the tremendous amount of training/knowledge most characters have (roughly 1/3 of character generation must be spent on 'purely knowledge' skills). As someone pointed out on the old PH forums, the average Eclipse Phase character has the equivalent of three doctorates...And a fair bit of solid survival and shooty training due to "life in wartime." I don't see any such academic-knowledge emphasis in any of the Fate characters. I assume Fate doesn't have that sort of requirement?

*Idly tosses a few character concepts into the pot and starts stirring*

[FarFetched]

I don't know enough to weigh in on the other things, but our current GM used to be the "Socialite", so we could definitely use one!

[ThisOneGal]

Hmmm. So it's kinda like a deadly cycle of "Yes, we have the mods to cure your cancer. Is this your fifth or sixth visit?" going on?
The way I read it, medical tech in general is severely limited on Jupiter, and the wealthy have to go outside the Jovian Republic to get themselves fixed up right.

It's more they can cure the cancer, but living in Jupiter's orbit means being exposed to massive amounts of radiation all the time, so without biomods/nanotech you'll just keep getting it and getting it. And repeated invasive surgeries are not good for you.

Leaving the Republic allows you access to nanotech, which is strictly better than no-nanotech. On the other hand, the nanotech approach to medicine is equivalent to solving a Rubik's cube by pulling the stickers off and putting them back on.

I must admit, this tempts me until my tempt is sore. I'm an old fan of EP and the EP-verse. On the other hand, I've never, ever played Fate. How's the learning curve?

FATE is pretty simple once you get the hang of it. It's different from most RPGs though, so the swapover can be difficult. (In the Narrativist/Simulationist/Gamist paradigm it's allll the way over on Narrativist).

I'm guessing Fate makes some big changes, just looking at the characters so far...a big thing in EP is the tremendous amount of training/knowledge most characters have (roughly 1/3 of character generation must be spent on 'purely knowledge' skills). As someone pointed out on the old PH forums, the average Eclipse Phase character has the equivalent of three doctorates...And a fair bit of solid survival and shooty training due to "life in wartime." I don't see any such academic-knowledge emphasis in any of the Fate characters. I assume Fate doesn't have that sort of requirement?

EP FATE handle knowledge skills completely differently (it's more 'effect based' instead of 'source based'). See p.36 of the playtest rules.

They do need someone with the Xeno-Contact and X-Risk skills though, which cover a lot of what Knowledge skills did.

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

Working draft:

High Concept    Dashing XP-Dilettante Adventurer
Trouble      Spoiled Prima Donna

He's an XP-actor who normally plays a sort of roguish, James Bond type. As a result of the sort of action/adventure and grand conspiracy XP recordings he's famous for, he thinks he knows a bit more about practically everything than he actually does...But XP requires one to do their own stunts and "fake it until you make it" doesn't work terribly well with things like being a dab hand with a pistol, especially not in a world where an awful large percentage of the population has had to fight for their lives at least once in the disastrous wake of the TITANs awakening. Firewall laid hands on him when he made a few of the right choices during a recording session on an abandoned derelict habitat which turned out to have been abandoned for Very Good Reason. He's occasionally had to throw little fits ever since to get vacation-time out from under the recording eye when Firewall required his time. Worst of all, a great deal of what they want from him is boring. Press the flesh to make sure person X does Y. Get package A to location B without it being intercepted.

But every so often, he gets to be part of the full-on response to an X-threat, and is torn between the terrifying exhilaration of "Oh hey, this time it's real, there's no safety net and no second takes," and the irritation that he isn't in the spotlight, isn't running the show, and can't even admit to having done it later. He's managed the damnedest containment shtick once or twice by simply grabbing an unfortunately-timed witness, dragging them into a corner, and saying "We're recording, you dolt! Roll with it unless you want to be edited out of the final cut."

[ThisOneGal]

Hah, I like it. ^^

Let me know when you have a sheet I can link to.

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

Hah, I like it. ^^

Let me know when you have a sheet I can link to.

I'm just reading through a hot-off-the-presses pdf of Fate Core and trying to figure it out as I go, so excuse me if I'm asking for a bit of help here, but I have no idea if I'm doing this "right."  I assume the High Concept and Trouble worked? How about:

Competence   Stand Aside, I Always Do My Own Stunts
Detriment        If I Autograph Your Morph, Will You Go Away?

[ThisOneGal]

High Concept and Trouble look fine. The other two don't need to be anything in particular though; by default they're Loyalty (why you're involved with Firewall) and Other (anything).

As yours stand, "Stand Aside, I Always Do My Own Stunts" could be shortened to just "I Always Do My Own Stunts". But both of them overlap a lot with your High Concept and Trouble, which is not great.

Ideally, your aspects should all be related somehow to your High Concept (they flow to or from it), but not overlap with it.

Aspects should also be double-sided; they should work for and against you.

See this for advice on Aspects: http://www.rickneal.ca/?p=619

I'd suggest creating a Loyalty Aspect and then have your final Aspect be something that contrasts with your existing stuff.