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Bundle: 559
Archive-Message-Number: 7031
Date: Mon, 21 Mar 94 17:53:03 CST
From: [-- REDACTED --] (David Johnson)
Subject: TNE Background 3

Gentlesophonts:

Well, the discussion seems to be getting just a little repetitive so let's
see if we can move on.  Let's start with Friday's contributions (sorry, I
missed the weekend).

Brent Woods [-- REDACTED --] writes:
  
>      I won't have Star Vikings, or RCES, or the Regency

Earlier, I had supposed that RCES and the Regency were the same.  Sounds
like that ain't the case.  Will someone please shed some light on this
for me?  Are the Star Vikings another group altogether?


Dane Johnson [-- REDACTED --] writes:

> 4)  Rules & Realism vs. 'True' Role Playing -- This topic is a real candidate
> for a flamewar, but I think that both sides are nearly equally important
> to a good RPG.

This is a good point.  I didn't mean to suggest that `backround' had some
greater value than `rules' - that just happens to be my own opinion.  :-)
I don't think this issue can be resolved - hence my attempt to keep the
discussion focused on `background' issues.

I agree with much of what Dane said about the TNE backgound.  He continues
to make the case that it offers little over a CT/MT setting that ventures
outside the core of the Old Imperium and yet takes a huge toll on the
exisiting campaign.

> The new people attracted to the game do not
> appreciate the past history of the Imperium and would not miss it if it
> were not there, while those of us who liked the Imperium feel it's loss
> keenly.

I'm in the second camp and feel the same way.  What about some of you new
people?  Does this make sense?

 
Tom O'Neill [-- REDACTED --] writes:

> [-- REDACTED --] (David Johnson) said:

> > It would seem though that sophonts might be
> > able to effectively compensate for a lack of automation - Herbert's *Dune*
> > universe comes to mind as a good example.  
 
> The *Dune* point is interesting - I would interpret Dune's technology as
> being based on psionics and genetic engineering. This is a real shift
> from the mainstream Imperium culture, and would involve an entirely
> different mindset. It is an interesting idea for a culture with psionics
> and psionic star travel that entirely abandoned computers (or perhaps it
> subsequently developed psionic star travel).

This idea is the most (so far, *only*) interesting possibility suggested
by TNE - and, to my knowledge, has yet to be developed at all in any of
the official material coming out of GDW.  Too bad we can't copywright an
idea.  :-)  Of course the sort of change that the Butlerian Jihad engendered
in the *Dune* universe couldn't happen in just 70 years.

Several folks have made the point that TNE would make more sense, for a
variety of reasons, if the `time warp' was something much greater than
70 years.  That's a good point but I'd simply ask these folks what you'd
really like to see happen if GDW were to have a `New Coke' revelation:
they say, "Oops!" and move TNE forward another couple of decades; or they
say, "Dallas!" and issue a CT/MT `Frontier Sourcebook'?  :-)

That's all for Friday's postings.

David Johnson
Houston, Texas, USA

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