Gauging Interest Level

[Augur]

Preface: There's a collaborative project underway on www.otherworlds.explorersunlimited.com creating a fully fleshed-out Pocket Dimension (S.D.C.) with new races, ships, conflicts, etc. We're nearly done and are test-playing it even now. Kind of a Fireflyish setting in some respects.

Who would be interested in seeing new dimensions detailed in an issue of the Rifter?

[taalismn]

The more the merrier...

[Braden Campbell]

;;; Kind of a Fireflyish setting in some respects.

This sentence worries me a bit in its potential for derivitivness.

[DhAkael]

;;; Kind of a Fireflyish setting in some respects.

This sentence worries me a bit in its potential for derivitivness.

-ahem-
EVERYTHING is derivitive...
Everything... including Rifts. I could quote chapter and verse points of congruence with at least 10 different franchises...but I won't.
Because I'm not petty that way.

[Braden Campbell]

True... but there's a big difference between "this is World War one but on an interplanetary scale," and "this is Star Wars with different names for the characters".

As to the original post: sure, send it in and best of luck.

[Carl Gleba]

Dimension Books rock! Go for it.

As for Fire Fly, I kind of pictured that as a mix of S.D.C. and M.D.C. Mainly the big ships were M.D.C. and everything else was S.D.C., but that's just my perception. I have the whole series on DVD and wathced it earlier this year. Good series.

Carl

[shiiv-a]

would love to comment, but sadly my comments never get read or they get taken as they're typed and not in the 'bigger view' context they usually are typed in.

thus to be literal in my words.

imitation is the highest form of flattery

that being said, think on it. AD'n'D started because of Tunnels and Trolls .. and the other various smaller lost to us game systems that TSR swallowed and nixed further copies of. they are no longer on the 'original' set .. they've progressed to a 3.5 that so many people swear up and down is the best thing since ... sliced bread.

i wouldn't know. i stopped playing back in the early 80's. back when Unearthed Arcana and Oriental Adventures came out. nothing against the system it has evolved to, but i wont run in it again. i tried a couple of times and gave up.

now its on to someone thinking 'oh that movie is cool .. how would they .. ?' and low and behold, they 'imitate' a movie with ships and other things. god forbid that someone shouts 'NIX .. that be too close to *insert other source* and as a result is NIXED before it comes to full life and creation.

a little harsh? .. yeah
a little truthful? .. yeah
taking the 'new guy by the neck and threatening him with various this and that? .. probably.

i don't have anything personal against the actual writers for Palladium Books. far from it. i understand the constraints they have to follow and such, but to jump on a soap box and read the riot act or cite points about stuff that isn't in text form .. YET .. or posted on the forums is a ... little beneath the free lancers.

gives us little guys, that give you stuff to sink your teeth into and ideas on how to flesh out stuff [it IS a two way street btw] a small break. I've already learned to NOT post anything on the boards myself. it seems that some of the free lancers have gotten points of view that squash and never allow other people to have an opinion.

i'm sorry. but if it has reached to the point of 'i can have ANY point of view, as long as it is the same as a writers' .. count me out. the books are FOR A GUIDE ONLY .. NOT written in stone and to be hailed and given total obedience to follow. i have a book someplace, put out BY Palladium Books, that actually STATES 'To be used as a guide only' inside the cover.

so until ALL the books and Rifters from now until who knows when state 'TO BE SWALLOWED WITH 2 ASPIRIN AND TAKEN FOR ABSOLUTE TRUTH AND NEVER ARGUED' .. i will assume that the book information is and can be used with artistic license. and use the books and information as was once said 'as a guide only'.

Sorry to the freelancers that have large boots and hats, but, i wont hide my words behind piles of fluff to save the bruises. i got one thing to say.

'don't preach to someone's ideas, when their ideas are what FEED your talents and wages' or those little wells of ideas will also dry up like mine have. my posts of things have been deleted or are lost and not coming back anymore. i was ridiculed and had the 'idea' trashed by a current freelancer.

so again .. sorry if you all got tarred and feathered by that one.

to the ones that have the ideas, go for it, but just be careful where you post the ideas. it was suggested to me once to write for a d20 game style. i may still do that. why? while it maybe a 'lesser' game format .. it is apparently gaining more ground and open to more options and crossovers.

apologies for any that feel insulted or anything else by my words.

[Aramanthus]

It's a great setting I just spent an half and hour wandering around in it. My only two critcisms are about the art used in a couple of cases. Some of the Hashan ships were taken from the Battletech Jumpship book. And some of the other ships are straight out of Star Wars. Please becareful about about sending other companies material.


Hi Shiiv-a! Long time since you've been around! I know I missed you!

[Augur]

True... but there's a big difference between "this is World War one but on an interplanetary scale," and "this is Star Wars with different names for the characters".

Understandable persepective and comment. You don't really know me so you have no idea if I'm some 17 yr. kid with zero knowledge of I.P. law or a 34 year old published poet-cum-lifelong gamer. Thankfully, I'm the latter.

"Fireflyish" was the most analogous reference I could come up with to reflect the contrast in tech levels prevalent in the setting. It's not that great of a descriptor as in Firefly there are no alien races, magic or psionics. The Nadira Pocket Dimension is populated by an assortment of very human-like races each with its own unique culture, language and level of tchnological advancement among other factors. Ergo, the Firefly comparison was perhaps misleading in nature, Nadira is FAR more diverse.

LET'S NOT JUMP ON BRADEN OR THE FREELANCE WRITERS. He was simply providing feedback on the information provided.

It's a great setting I just spent an half and hour wandering around in it. My only two critcisms are about the art used in a couple of cases. Some of the Hashan ships were taken from the Battletech Jumpship book. And some of the other ships are straight out of Star Wars. Please becareful about about sending other companies material.

To be sure! The art shown (with one exception) is purely LIFTED.--I'd have to be an IDIOT to submit anything that wasn't 100% original. I just popped those images in there to provide SOMETHING for the play-testers to see for the time being.
On a high note, we have a fairly talented artist and RP'er dedicated to doing pretty much everything art-wise for the Nadira setting.

I suggest you publish it in PDF or HTML form first, on your own websites, then send it into Palladium.

Yes, it was my assessment that play-testing this collaborative effort would be necessary to help flesh things out and find the imbalancing features as well as flaws in the game and setting. The process has already resulted in the paring-down of the diversity to a certain extent.

As to the various comments on "fleets" and the like, the Nadira Pocket Dimension is a very limited one in it's scope. It's a single solar system populated by only a few space-faring cultures, none of which have anything like a "Prime Directive," so while there is some level of "traffic" in space only one race (the Hashians) has anything nearing a fleet. More often than not, space is a cold, quiet and dangerous environment most frequented by the desperate, the criminal, the powerful corporate interests, and the governmental bodies who can afford and have developed space-faring capabilities.

[Braden Campbell]

Thanks for taking my comment in the spirit in which it was intended. Best of luck with the submisison.

[Aramanthus]

Your material looks pretty awesome! Thank you for the clarification! Good luck getting it printed.