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Messages - Gorkamorka

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17
RPGs / Re: Eclipse Phase
« on: January 06, 2017, 05:39:14 AM »
One for the Erasure Squad



Source: http://papaninja.deviantart.com/

18
General Chaos / Re: What are you reading?
« on: December 05, 2016, 04:03:38 AM »
I'm reading The Hanging Tree.  The 6th book in the Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch.

It's Harry Dresden (Dresden files) if it was a British police procedural.  These are fucking fantastic.  Full of British humor, magic, crime and good old blowing stuff up.  Can't recommend them enough.

19
First off, it's canonical that Pokemon, or at least some Pokemon, are aliens from space.  Some are genetic/computer experiments, and there are definitely some early transhumanist themes in some of the games, but I don't think there's compelling evidence that anything is particularly post-apocalyptic

Second, there are farms, and food and drink are sold in restaurants.  They aren't post-scarcity, but it is certainly true that we never see anyone really going hungry or wanting.

This is because the civilization in the Pokemon setting is a meritocracy where the primary governments are city-states ruled by the strongest Trainers, because, without Trainers, society would die.

Most, though admittedly not all, cities in Pokemon have a gym, which is where the strongest trainers live.  They are the most important people in their towns at most times, and if a government official would be involved in solving a problem that occurs in the town, it is typically the Gym Leader who handles this.  This is because the Gyms aren't just there to train new trainers; they're also there to serve as the town's governmental body and their first defense.

There are some well-maintained roads in the Pokemon universe, but you're right in that they're rare.  This isn't because of an apocalypse.  Rather, it's fundamentally impossible to maintain a road unless you can keep it protected from the regularly rampaging giant monsters in the area either through heavy application of Repels or constant defense.  As such, travel between towns is rare for anyone other than Trainers, because they're the only ones who can actually survive the trip in most places.

This is also why 10 year olds go off on these journeys.  People becoming Trainers is vital to the functioning of society.  Without them, any town would be overrun or crushed the first time an Onix gets mad and rampages through.  Trade between towns can't happen without someone to defend the transports from, say, a giant dragon attacking because you happened to go near it.  Outside of that, Pokemon are regularly used in public works; they build and repair buildings, provide power, and even provide entertainment.  Being a Trainer is insanely valuable, and in such a society, you're either valuable, or you're likely left for dead. It makes sense that families, especially those living in small villages, like the starting areas in the games usually are, would send off their children to become Trainers early.  The child needs to prove their worth, and becoming a Trainer would mean a huge change in social position for everyone in the family.  Most families probably consider it worth the risk.

So it's so different from our world that I can't tell if it's post apocalyptic or if I'm in culture shock.  Nice to have my theory confirmed by an outside source :-)

20
here's an interesting thought why not both. a genetic engineering company creates a line of bio organic beings designed to make life perfect. this goes so well that it creates a post scarcity economy. however like any technology in narratives it got taken to far, and when man created "pokemon" with the powers of mythological gods these naicient gods rebelled against us titans and almost destroyed us all until we at the last moment entrapped them. but, not before we were thrown back into a new dark age. when we came out of this dark age the age of "pokemon" has begun

as far as i recall this would best explain why in every game you have one or another "mythological" pokemon to discove, defeat, or catch.

Would also explain why there are no animals in Pokeworld.  The Pokemons out compete them and they all went extinct.

21
Is the world of Pokémon post apocaliptical of Post Scarcity ?

Apocalypse: There seem to be no roads or public transport. In fact there is almost no infrastructure. Further more gangs of teens are roaming the wilderness without any supervision and find almost no one except each other.  When they do encounter each other the make their slaves battle each other to establish social dominance.

On the other hand there seems to be no need for money, no one goes hungry or needy.  And violent encounters are solved any permanent damage to anyone by making invulnerable slaves battle for you. 

So I can't tell if it's post apocalyptic or post scarcity. my currently theory is: Society being post scarcity has changed it so much that I'm getting culture shock from viewing it.

22
General Chaos / Re: Kickstarter: Cool Stuff
« on: October 03, 2016, 03:03:22 PM »
My favourite sci-fi webcomic (Crimson Dark) is back up after a long hiatus and now has a patreon account.

https://www.patreon.com/crimsondark/posts

23
RPGs / Re: Red Markets Online Gaming Group
« on: September 23, 2016, 06:11:21 AM »
Here is my two cents worth on finding groups to play with. 

"Everyone wants to play but no one want to run the game.  Game Masters always find players"

So if you really want to start a group, offer to run the game.  At least to run the first game.  It's far more likely to work.

Also.  Timezones.  Tell people when you want to play and in what time zone that is in.  So that people know if they can play with you.

24
RPGs / Re: Game Fodder / Story Fodder
« on: September 14, 2016, 12:29:32 PM »
Classic Lovecraft would be black cultist in the swamp.  Not racist at all...

Having said that.  You could do it as whities  fighting the evil black cultist.  You just have to humanise the black slaves / cultists.

Part of the horror is that the escape slaves were desperate enough to call anyone for assistance.  And eventually someone really bad answered. Now the ex slaves are stuck in their swamp doing horrible things in the name of their saviour.  They can't not do what the saviour says because he makes them able to live in the swamp (Protection from hunger, disease. insects?).  Can't leave the swamp because then they get captured again. 

The players are the whites sent into the swamp to stop the actions of the escape slave, then find out why they are doing what they are doing and have to deal with the mythos problem at the core of the swamp.    If they just shoot the ex-slaves then the Mythos problem will just keep going and get worse.  If they manage to get information from the ex-slaves then there is a glimmer of hope of stopping said bad thing in the swamp.

Doable?

25
RPGs / Re: Game Fodder / Story Fodder
« on: September 14, 2016, 04:57:08 AM »
So in Virginia's Great Dismal Swamp, there were apparently secret villages of free black people, mostly escaped slaves, living in almost total isolation from the outside world. For like 150 years.

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/deep-swamps-archaeologists-fugitive-slaves-kept-freedom-180960122/?no-ist

SECRET VILLAGES OF FUGITIVE SLAVES DEEP WITHIN THE SWAMP. Do I have my next Civil War Cthulhu scenario? Yes, yes I do.

Classic Lovecraft would be black cultist in the swamp.  Not racist at all...  I wonder how we could run this from the other side. 

Make the black runaway slaves the players.  Make the problem be in the swamp and the ex-slave village can't go anywhere for help, because "ex-slave".  Really turns the desperation and isolation up to 11.   Add some slave hunters as road-blocks/trouble to keep the real problem from being solved and you have a scenario.

26
RPGs / Re: Game Fodder / Story Fodder
« on: September 12, 2016, 08:15:13 PM »
Some inspirational sci-fi art.  Hypothetical giant spiders that evolved after animals from Earth were transplanted to a planet with much lower gravity:





Need a Banana for scale.  ;)

27
General Chaos / Re: Introduction
« on: September 12, 2016, 05:02:49 AM »
Hello, my name is Steven, I am from the Greater Toronto Area. I have been listening to RPPR for years but have only ever lurked on the forums until now. I signed up in part because I badly want to put together a group to play Red Markets and figured I might find some folk here.  :D

Hi Steve.  Good luck with the groupfinding.

28
General Chaos / Re: Kickstarter: Cool Stuff
« on: September 03, 2016, 07:59:35 AM »
Steve Jackson Games are doing a kickstarter for Dungeon Fantasy Roleplaying Game (GURPS engine).  Looks like they are seeing if they can drum up support for a print run, rather then sell PDFs.  The books do look pretty.

29
General Chaos / Re: Best Internet Vidyas
« on: August 31, 2016, 05:10:33 AM »
Hawks can be real dicks

<a href="" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win"></a>

30
RPGs / Re: Game Fodder / Story Fodder
« on: August 29, 2016, 09:19:20 AM »
A PC party either tried to summon Thor or there had a ythian lighting gun shoot-out. 

Since this is Norway I'm going with summoning Thor.  Either way it's Delta Green material.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/08/29/freak-lighting-bolts-kill-300-reindeer-in-norway/

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