Discuss The Polyphemus: Underground

[YawnBoy]

[FONT="Trebuchet MS"][SIZE="1"][COLOR="DarkSlateGray"]Here it is, the Underground for my first RP. In addition to serving for discussion for the RP, this will also serve as a Encyclopedia for the universe that this takes place in (I get way too into it when I'm making a world so there will be a plethora of backstory for a sci-fi universe that no one cares about).

This RP will center on the crew of the SCV [i]Polyphemus[/i], a revolutionary new starship recently construced by the Sol Commonwealth, as they flee the destruction of Kyoto III at the hands of the Wuvhan, fearsome aliens intent on their war with mankind, on an incomplete vessel with a hull full of refugees. It isn't in the inn yet, I know, but I'm posting this first because it is just more time-consuming and I want to get it out of the way. Another reason I'm posting this first is so that everyone who feels like it can chime in with feedback and such, so if there's something I've overlooked I can fix it.


[b]The SCV [i]Polyphemus[/i][/b]

The [i]Polyphemus[/i] is a ship of the Sol Commonwealth constructed to fight in the war with the Wuvhan (large, frigid, rat-like aliens) and the set for most of the action. Despite not being fully completed and not especially advanced in relative technical aspects, it is one of the first products of a new design philosophy among human-manufactured starships. Since it is only now that the SC is getting their first taste of an interstellar war most of the previous ships were designed based only on theoretical ideas of how space combat would play out (focus on armor and weapon capacity) but in practice it took only a small amount of damage to cripple a starship so the [i]Polyphemus[/i] and her sister ships the [I]Minotaur[/I] and the [I]Aurora[/I] are designed to be hard to find, harder to hit, and packing as much of a punch as ships their size (about one kilometer long) can squeeze onboard. It is equipped with a single, large plasma cannon (things like plasma torpedoes and laser weapons exist but are only used in space due to difficulty controlling their heat output) that is slow to fire but can cripple even a full-sized Wuvhan cruiser with a single shot; it also carries a number of missile pods (mostly for enemy fighters), laser weapons (for intercepting incoming missiles, think Halo 3), a pair of EMP bombs (though these are seldomly utilized), and a few squadrons of smaller ships (Mako fighters and Thresher bombers). Though the [i]Polyphemus[/i] is more suited for stealth than its sisters, it had yet to have its long range communications and navigation installed when it was forced to flee so it is in a very dangerous position especially since the Wuvhan seem to be much more focused on a single ship than they should. It is currently under the command of Commander William Aubrac, an inexperienced yet talented officer who was sleighted to the be ship's second-in-command and only be acting captain while it was being assembled, however circumstance has decreed otherwise.

[b]The Sol Commonwealth and the Wuvhan War[/b]

The Sol Commonwealth is an organization very similar to the USA in that it consists mainly of a single area (the US has the continental 48, the SC has our solar system) as well as a large number of colonies and military bases outside of their borders. Though because it is centered in our solar system it is mostly populated by humans, the SC is not limited to one race and there are many immigrants and colonists to our neck of the galaxy who consider themselves just as much a part of the SC as the average Earthling. The Wuvhan war started as a dispute over SC bases on the Wuvhan's homeworld (cultural problems and even global warming were drasticlly affecting their planet) but escalated when Sol Soldiers desecrated a temple and the Wuvhan staged a planet-wide revolt, taking over the SC's bases and ships. While they lack their own navy, they've gained a large number of ships through acts of piracy and are posing a huge guerilla threat to the SC, who has yet been able to succesfully invade their homeworld because of the freezing temperatures and harsh terrain. While they are inexperienced with the technology, the Wuvhan have continually proven themselves to be cunning tacticians and devoted warriors. While the SC's ability to fight on land has been crippled by two failed invasions of the Wuvhan's homeworld, the Wuvhan have slowly been gaining the edge in space battles. They've yet to mount an offensive against the Sol System, because the defenses are highly advanced and the Wuvhan would stand no chance in battle; however, they have been fiercely raiding against outer territories owned by the SC and their fleet has been impossible to eradicate due to the SC's difficulty in finding them. The war is currently at a stale-mate.


[b]The Aliens[/b]

While no other political entities are assisting the SC directly in war, our biggest allies are the [b]Presheii[/b] who assist us in every way other than direct military force (though, Persheii serving within the SC are a relatively common sight). They are a medium sized (averaging about 7ft tall and highly muscular) dolphin-like race, with waxy skin that ranges in color from shades of blue, black, gray, and white, eyes that are in shades of grey and long powerful fingers. They evolved much like Earth dolphins in that they hunted fish on a large scale but are believed to have invented democracy much earlier (in terms of evolution and cultural advancements) than humans. Their history is completely devoid of the presence of any sort of totalitarian government or any sort that wasn't either communist or democratic in nature, and their demeanor is simiilarly cooperative and non-competitive. They only have records of one religion existing throughout their entire history and it is a monotheistic religion based off their observation of the stars and moons (which are rarely seen from the surface due to their dense atmosphere) and they developed space flight shorty after humans. It was with the Presheii of Sirius B that humans made first contact with, and our cooperation with them has been an example of interstellar peace and friendship ever since. Their homeplanet (Presha) is almost completely covered in water and even their atmosphere is two thirds saturated hydrogen (humans can be drowned by the air if they breathe it for an extended period of time). The few areas of their world that aren't underwater are gargantuan coral reef outcroppings and rocky surfaces, which are largely used as embassies by the SC and other galactic entities.

Though they have never been as significant as the Presheii to humans, the [b]Kray[/b] have been a notable presence in the SC since our discovery of their homeworld about two hundred years ago. They are small (usually less than four feet, standing upright) reptilian creatures, who are extremely skinny and have hollow bones which makes them extremelly agile and even more fragile. It is presumed they evolved as such because their planet's lower levels (underneath the 200+ feet tall canopy) are frought with fierce predators that the Kray are no match against and they are exclusively tree dwellers. They have green skin, yellow to red eyes, and large beaks that are colored from yellow to black to white and their appearance is said to be very avian by humans. Their society consisted of small tree-borne tribes with totemic religions until they were discovered and approached by the humans and the Persheii. Though they still have not developed their own methods of space flight, many have become colonists through the SC and have proven themselves to be extremely capable mechanics. It is believed that because their kind never developed a system for currency that they have no instincts for greed and only burgeoning concepts of ownership but are very survival driven and can be remarkebly competitive. Also, the Kray are unable to vocalize the languages of humans like the other races can (English has become the universal language) so while they may learn it and understand it, they cannot speak English which can make communication difficult (though because of this, many engineers and pilots learn the Kray's language).

The [b]Hetsh[/b] are a large (nearl nine foot tall on average), black skinned, mammalian species that were most recently found by the civilized world. They have an elephant-like appearance (no trunks though) and are known to be a very brutal species. Their planet is extremely barren (mostly deserts, excluding jungles at the poles) and because of it they have evolved to be fierce competitors and are almost devoid of the ability to operate altruisticly to those who aren't part of their herd. The herd is the center of their social structure and they are still a nomadic race. They have only recently been discovered and as such have barely been taught of the outside world and trade with their planet is very sparse (partly due to their species still being uncivilized), but because of their ferocity and martial skill many have somehow found their way off their planet and work as bodyguards, soldiers for the SC's war against the Wuvhan, mercenaries, and, in worst case scenario, pirates.

The Sol Commonwealth is at war with the [b]Wuvhan[/b]. They are larger than humans, covered in white fur, blue eyes, and their oversized teeth and wiry frames have left many humans to compare them to rats. Their planet is drastically colder than any of the others discovered to hold intelligent life and their civilization had been at the epoch of their 'industrial' age when they were introduced to alien species. Their culture has a great amount of focus on honor (to the point where one would be considered a pariah for telling a lie) and their religion is based off of a long dead philosopher (and they've shown themselves to put more emphasis on religion than any other race). Initially, it seemed that both the SC and the Wuvhan were benefitting greatly through eachother and it was believed their friendship would one day rival the Presheii. The SC would bring in culture and technology in exchange for the raw materials of the Wuvhan's home planet. However, the SC's presence on the planet was mainly that of large companies who handled their enterprises and military installations to protect Sol's interests on the planet. The Wuvhan leadership began to appeal to the SC official government to stop the labor abuse and environmental damage that was being caused by the capitalists but the SC's laws forbid it from directly mandating the companies. Eventually, after a violent incident of misconduct on the part of SC Marines stationed planetside, the Wuvhan began a revolt and within weeks had killed the entire SC presence on their homeworld, commandeered many of their ships and began their war against the Sol Commonwealth.

Also, I'd be more than happy to include some player-created races, as long as I approve them first (I just want them to fit in with the style of the other races).

[b]The Technology[/b]

While technology is very advanced compared to modern days, it is still mostly derivative of our current technology. While plasma cannons and lasers are used in outer space, such weapons are completely unused planetside because of the difficulty in dispersing the heat. In terrestrial engagements, the technology is very similar to what we use now (firearms, explosives, and other such devices). Space flight is common, but still considered expensive for the average citizen.

Allright, that's it for now , but I might add more information later if I think its neccessary (but I think I might've gotten a bit carried away already). And if enough players choose to be marines or other types of soldiers I'll probably put a detailed equipment guide here too. Please, post any questions/feedback/suggestions/criticisms/etc.

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[Vicky]

[SIZE=1]I was just wondering what kind of positions were available on the ship? I know a few people choose already, but I was having a little trouble. Are there any second-in command or third-in command positions available or are they out of limits? Maybe a Science or Security position? Not sure what I'd have yet if I get in the RPG, I'm just weighing up what I could do with my character.

There's some pretty cool aliens on that list as well haha XD[/SIZE]

[Raiha]

[COLOR="DarkOrchid"][FONT="Times New Roman"]Theoretically, my character could be the mind of the ship, but that might be too much. Either way I'd like to explain her picture a little further.

Depending on what YawnBoy thinks, I personally like the idea of her suspended in liquid while she navigates. That and her personality among other things, is highly corruptible. If her commanding officer, or who she thought was her commanding officer, told her to massacre a village of babies, she would.

Poor soul.

That and is Lilt's picture really that kosher? Is naked allowed on OB picture wise? That and she sure doesn't look 14 to me.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[YawnBoy]

[FONT="Trebuchet MS"][SIZE="1"][COLOR="DarkSlateGray"][b]Vicky,[/b] the positions on the ship would be extremely varied, there would be command crew positions (think Star Trek, if you can tolerate it), as far as security there's an entire detachment of marines assigned to ships that large, while I don't think there would be a science officer aboard the ship for normal combat tours there would be medical officers and such (or possibly intel operatives on some sort of mission, it would also be extremely likely for their to be scientists among the refugees). There are second-in-command positions, but the current 'captain' of the ship was to be that so there wouldn't be a second official 'Number 1' on the ship (but if there was a high enough ranking navy officer who got mixed in with the evacuation, he could get recruited for such).

[b]Raiha,[/b] first off let me say I was pleasantly surprised by your character concept. I like the idea of a human modified to interface with a ship too advanced for a normal person to operate with any finesse, but as far as the suspended in liquid thing goes I think it would come down to between whether your character is the mind of the ship (makes me think of the dummy plugs from Evangelion) or just an advanced way to interface (sort of like Data from TNG? Not sure, though, I've only seen one and a half episodes). Which one is really up to you because I'm cool with both, but I think having your character in a liquid chamber would limit her ability to interact with the rest of the ship.[/size][/font][/color]

[Vicky]

[SIZE=1]I gots ya. Would a tactical/weapons officer be a good position? You know, Worf-ish position?

And I can more than tolerate Star Trek, I'm a big trekkie haha XD

I'll edit the post with my race description as well, I've made them a bit more alien like you said. Should have my character finished soon.

[B]EDIT: Sorry for the length guys =([/B]



[quote]The [B]Drandarj[/B], from the Alpheos System and Alpheos Prime, their home world. The Drandarj are generally a tall species, the smallest males being around 6 foot and the largest reaching heights of 8. They are slender, with darkly coloured skin, magnificent eye colours (such as gold, silver, red, orange and white) and thick black lines around their eyes, almost like make-up. The Drandarj have black hair, no matter where they are born, and slightly pointed teeth as well as a longer tongue. They also have thick, sharp black nails, which seem to be part of their skeleton and the ridges of their spine stick out on their back and up their neck, almost like their skeleton doesn't quite fit (this is the same case for their jawline under their ears and shoulder blades, though not to an extreme extent). Due to this and other medical mysteries (such as the nerve structure and muscle tissue), the Drandarj are incredibly hard to treat when injured as their structure is very alien, even to aliens.

In their own culture the Drandarj can be found decorated in gold and silver, even if they are poor. They are also rather strong and fast, though since they are not a military race they rarely make use of this. Their primary talent is their intelligence - the Drandarj culture seems very primitive and rooted in tradition, however the people as a whole have many technological advances they don't seem to need.

One of the most unique attributes of a Drandarj that make them stand out from the majority of aliens in their skeleton. Humans and most other species have a bone scuture under the skin and muscle, but the Drandarj are the opposite. If you cut their skin, they do not bleed and a black bone casing appears instead (except on the joints where it is under the muscle). This makes the Drandarj stronger, although if they have a broken bone it can be fatal and the aspects of this 'exoskeleton' makes medical treatment incredibly difficult.

As a culture, the Drandarj are rooted in tradition, history and fortune. There is no concept of money on their planet; the history of your family brings you wealth. Mostly, the Drandarj have hard to pronounce names and locations, resulting in code-names.

Alpheos would have been among the first to be discovered by the Sol Commonwealth and although the planet was already populated the Drandarj did not object to a human military base on their planet. On Alpheos their planet is ruled under a 'One System', a government with representatives from each area who takes in opinions from almost ever being on the planet (alien or no) before a decision is made. This makes politics on Alpheos very slow, so the Drandarj tend to avoid it. Their planet is very Earth-like in nature, although its atmosphere has less carbon and is thiner. The gravity is slightly higher and the planet is mostly desert and water, with very little terrain.

The Drandarj have many space vessels for exploration and are prided as being one of the earliest species in space (despite their culture on the planet being seen as slightly 'primitive'). The Drandarj go largely unnoticed in the galaxy, however, because they rarely travel into space. Since the Sol Commonwealth many Drandarj have left their planet, by their own ships or another planet's, to explore. The Drandarj are very, very protective of their culture and it is a law that no artifact may leave their planet, and vice versa, unless it is the property of the person's family and a decorative piece.

It has been known that the Drandarj make incredible military officers. One of the aspects of a Drandarj is their voice - it is deep and almost echoes when they speak, which can silence a room with little effort. Their intelligence and ability to get their commands across makes them keen high-rank officers, as well as their ability to use their attributes against an opponent in a battle of wits and intimidation.[/quote][/size]

[Raiha]

[COLOR="DarkOrchid"][FONT="Times New Roman"]Well as far as the suspension would go, if the ship is capable of intergalactic travel/interstellar etc, for long distances, she might want to go into suspended animation herself.

But then again, it could also just be used for concentrated sorts of things. I.E. her need to focus completely when the ship is under attack, but I'm not sure what those scenarios would be.

But anyway, I figure she'd have a very high ability to interface with the computer in a Star Trek sort of way but having a deep desire to never torture myself with Evangelion, I'm afraid I don't get the reference.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[YawnBoy]

[FONT="Trebuchet MS"][SIZE="1"][COLOR="DarkSlateGray"]If I remember what Worf does correctly, that'd be fine for your character (I'm not entirely sure what the job is, but it makes sense for there to be a security force separate from the marines as they'll often fight planetside or in boarding parties).

The ship is capable of intergalactic travel, but the SC has access to a sort of 'warp drive' so the time it takes wouldn't be an enormous factor. In addition to that, one of the most important plot devices *coughs* challenges in this RP is that the [i]Polyphemus[/i] did not have its warp drive (or whatever, that's one thing I never thought out well for this universe) installed when they fled from Kyoto III. But, as I said before, I like both ideas so it is up to you. And, I'm just now thinking of this but she should be within contact from the Commander, though I'd normally say vocal range for dramatic effect, in this anything goes really.

And, Evangelion, torture? Blasphemy![/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[P.J. McKrafty]

Would there be another position for a pilot or dose Neuvoxraiha's character basically cover that field all together?

[YawnBoy]

[FONT="Trebuchet MS"][SIZE="1"][COLOR="DarkSlateGray"]As far as the piloting position goes, I think there could be two positions if one was more of a long range navigator and the other handled the ships maneuvers (in battle, docking, and other things like that).

And a couple of minor problems with sign ups. [b]Lilt,[/b] you'll need to fix your character's age, because 14 is just too young to be an officer in the navy. [b]Inu,[/b] you'll have to change yours, because a robot doesn't really fit in with the universe.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[Raiha]

[COLOR="DarkOrchid"][FONT="Times New Roman"]Well as far as things go, I'm comfortable taking care of the long range navigation, since sleep is less important for Elans.

That and it'd be nice to be the ship's AI, or at least to take care of the major things, like ship announcements. I always wanted to say "All systems Green."[/FONT][/COLOR]

[P.J. McKrafty]

I'm fine with handling the ships maneuvers, in truth thats what I was expecting to be doing. I think It would be a lot more fun with that position.

So how much longer until we start this?

[YawnBoy]

[FONT="Trebuchet MS"][SIZE="1"][COLOR="DarkSlateGray"]I think I'm going to put the RP up on Friday, since that will give us more than enough time in case anything else needs worked out I'll probably post Aubrac's character sheet on Wednesday as well as a list of notable NPCs on the ship (mostly positions that I think are important that haven't been filled by players or just as an excuse for me to up the alien content).[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[Kitty]

[SIZE="1"]I've been wanting to sign up for this RP for a while, but haven't had the time, so I'm posting to let you know that I'll have a sign up by tonight sometime for you, YawnBoy. (:

One question, though. I'd like my character to be a medic/nurse/whatever, but I'm not sure how medical care works on the Polyphemus. So, if you could explain just a little, I'd be very grateful. ^__^ (or I can just wing it in my sign up, and have you advise me from there. xD)[/SIZE]