[Warlock]

Ok, I'm working on designing a D20 Modern campaign based off a Mecha article in Polyhedron, but I'm having hellish writer's block lately and could use some good idea hooks. Since I know we've got of Anime lovers here, I thought it a good idea to start a thread to get some ideas rolling.

So far we've got the basics :

Main Players will have Mecha in the style of Gundam Wing : Endless Waltz (Concidering having the standard military mecha to be like the old school battle tech mechs, no hand manipulators and such,...basically just advanced walking tanks)

Main theme is Colonies (Mars) vs Earth

Timeline Roughly 2500 AD

Roughly 20 years prior to game start an ancient structure was found on Mars under one of the Polar caps during Ice mining , although much of the technology found hasn't been completely understood it did lead to advancements that have made the Players Mecha possible, which the Colonies think will give them a chance over the much more powerful Earth. One ofthe major technological advancements is an organic like technology that gives the mecha a muscle-like internal structure allowing more human like movements.
     Sideeffects: Known, the Mecha's neural interface is highly receptive and rejects most pilots. Unknown, the organic technology has deeply inlaid what is basically a 'personality' into each mech. This part will come out during the course of the game,...but think Evangelion (only without the "Inbedded Soul" bit)


Timeline I'm working on so far:

• 2085 - NASA Begins preperations for a manned mission to Mars
• 2093 - Mars Mission launched
• 2100 - Mars Mission Lands arrives in Mars Orbit, communications confirm loss of one crew member in statis pod.
• 2101 - Mars Mission begins return trip
• 2102 - NASA begins design of Faster than Light Engine
• 2103 - Contact with Mars Mission crew lost. Hubble Scope can not locate miion craft.
• 2104 - First tests begin on FTL Engine, first model is lost in massive explosion in orbit. Second model exits Earth Orbit, but contact is lost after 15 seconds, assumed structural failure.
• 2115 - First Un-Manned FTL Craft is sent to the outer planets.

So if anyone has any ideas or thoughts, please post them

[Shrike]

Other than 'tanks are better than mechs'?  

Need to see more about your timeline first.

[Warlock]

Yea I'm working on that a bit too,... just having one of those "must write down ide...........what was I gonna do ? " things going on

Hence my frustration and coming here to get a few ideas

[Turnsky]

hey, have tanks and 'mechs ah la Battletech or heavy gear

[Gortef]

this is quite far fetched

The second FTL model that got away (and assumed structural failure) could land on a Moon (the dark side of the moon so that it's easy to explain why it got there unnoticed). Then you could add a big colony into the Moon (heck if there is going to be one in Mars then why no in Moon too).

Now, in every colony there will also be some "troublemakers" and this time the "troublemaker"s in Moon will find the lost FTL (in quite good condition) and this group will use their own skill's (and perhaps kidnap some assistance) to make their own Armored force (a bit crappy but fast for example... for guerilla tactics). And when the game starts you will have one group of people more (NPC's for example) who could bring more tension to the story.

*whew*

[Warlock]

Originally posted by Gortef
this is quite far fetched

The second FTL model that got away (and assumed structural failure) could land on a Moon (the dark side of the moon so that it's easy to explain why it got there unnoticed). Then you could add a big colony into the Moon (heck if there is going to be one in Mars then why no in Moon too).

Now, in every colony there will also be some "troublemakers" and this time the "troublemaker"s in Moon will find the lost FTL (in quite good condition) and this group will use their own skill's (and perhaps kidnap some assistance) to make their own Armored force (a bit crappy but fast for example... for guerilla tactics). And when the game starts you will have one group of people more (NPC's for example) who could bring more tension to the story.

*whew*

Hmmm not a bad idea at all Could make for a great adventure hook

[Warlock]

Originally posted by Turnsky
hey, have tanks and 'mechs ah la Battletech or heavy gear

Yea that's something I had in mind for the normal Earth and Mars military. actually found a few of my old Battle tech books today

Player mecha will be as in the following examples I pulled off a few sites



Alternate styled Wing Zero

[Nico]

to be honest I don't like the gundams at all. I like the series', but the gundams themwselves, they're so cheesy
give me a labor or an armored shrike!

[Warlock]

Originally posted by venom2506
to be honest I don't like the gundams at all. I like the series', but the gundams themwselves, they're so cheesy
give me a labor or an armored shrike!

*Throws Plate mail on Shrike and hands him over to Venom*

OK here ya go

BTW Most of the reasoning for the Gundam style,. aside from most of the group likes them,...is the anime them. Mecha like the Madcat, Warhammer and such from Battletech just never jumped out at me as Anime styled

[Nico]

Originally posted by Warlock


*Throws Plate mail on Shrike and hands him over to Venom*

OK here ya go

BTW Most of the reasoning for the Gundam style,. aside from most of the group likes them,...is the anime them. Mecha like the Madcat, Warhammer and such from Battletech just never jumped out at me as Anime styled

mmh.
labor: from the anime series patlabor. labors are robots, patlabor stands for patrol labor ( police labors ). probably my favourite mecha design ever. the ingram is a reference when it comes to japanese mecha design, as much as a gundam or an eva.
in the series you have all kinds of labors ranging from those used to build buildings, to military labors.

armored shrike: from the anime series blue gender. it's the same kind as above, but they have guns and stuff.
imagine starship troopers with anime-like mechas, you'll get an idea of the series.

both series are absoltly brilliant by the way

[Warlock]

I'll look them up then

[Nico]

PATLABOR:

the AV-98 INGRAM

models are cool





the Griffon ( a prototype built by a company, it keeps teasing the police, it's used in secret operations and is a demonstrator: clients watch the scene from the distance. it kicks ass ):



yeah, it has wings in this version ( but it flies VERY bad, it seems, if you see the OAV you'll understand )

It's easy to find stuff about Patlabor, it's very popular.

BLUE GENDER:

a nice painting with two different armored shrikes ( the orange one is a two seated one ) and a blue:


lots of blue gender pics ( I love that anime ). WARNING: it contains some nudity ( surprisingly, tho, no gore - blue gender is VERY gore ).
http://xrayanime.com/images.html

a very nice blue gneder site for some infos:
http://www.bluegender.com/profiles.htm

armored shrike pics aren't easy to find

[Warlock]

Thanks I was having a bit of trouble locating pics I could actually see clearly

That GriffonLabor looks pretty sweet

[Nico]

yeah, that's my favourite labor, but I prefer when it has the swimming back thinguy rather than those wings.

for the armored shrikes, check the second ink, pics are small but list all of them.
I could make screencaps too, but only if somone wants me to.

[Warlock]

Aside from mecha,... anyone have any ideas for timeline events ? Trying to 'roughly' cover until 2500, and I'm kind of stuck for ideas at the moment.

[RangerKarl]

Where's the Macross, baby?  And your storyline sounds suspiciously like Zone of the Enders to me...

[Turnsky]

Does the macross actually count as a mech? i always thought of it as the "big arse transforming ship" the valks and the like though are mechs

[RangerKarl]

Well, I meant Macross in general, but I suppose a mech is a mech, no?

[Turnsky]

ahhh, now is see, i thought you meant the macross (sdf-1 to some of us) not all the mechs seen throughout the entire series *wishes he had a cyclone*

[RangerKarl]

Bah, gimme a VF-22s anytime
(note: Cyclone armor is in Robotech, not the original Macross series)
(Another note: the VF-22 is what some would call a 3rd gen. Variable Fighter. Look it up)