Anyone interested in a political RPG?

[Techno-Druid]

I made a post a while back after talking to @Connal about this about a year ago, but we've been interested in possibly hosting an online game of the tabletop RPG called Eclipse Phase, a sci fi dystopian RPG based around various transhumanist concepts and borrowing from a lot of sci fi literature like Altered Carbon and David Brin's Uplift Series.

One thing that we brushed under the rug was the heavy political aspect of the RPG. The setting, dealing with humans separating into various political and ideological factions in space, could potentially be interesting as most of the political factions barring maybe the non-human ones are pretty relatable to the political views and philosophies of various posters on here.

So would anyone be interested in playing in an extremely political (as in exploring different political views, ideally very politically diverse players) RPG? If not, do you think you can relate to any of these faction ideas based on your own RL political/social views?

Factions/Movement List

The faction that probably interests me the most would be the Mercurials, which are basically a faction comprised of various non-human elements in the Eclipse Phase universe such as uplifted animals, artificial general intelligence and posthumans.

First, a note about terminology. Some people use the term mercurial generically to mean any individual who is part of the non-human segment of transhumanity. This was in fact the first usage of the term. Since the Fall, however, mercurial has been adopted as a name for those uplifts (and also AGIs) who do not seek to conform to transhuman culture, mindsets, and standards.
Mercurial philosophy is defined by hostility toward the human in transhuman. It’s not that mercurials hate humans (well, not most, anyway) so much as they resent human cultural imperialism. Instead, mercurials celebrate the uniqueness of uplifts and AGIs, oppose assimilation, and encourage the creation of non-human lifestyles, culture, and cognitive outlooks. They seek uplift and AGI liberation, not just equal rights.
It is a mistake to equate mercurial ideas with separatism or anti-human outlooks, though there are small numbers of supporters of both. Most mercurials are not opposed to being allied with transhumanity, they just want uplifts and AGIs to have control over their own future and to have the space to develop without human interference or cooptation.

Other socio-political movements within the game include Bioconservatives, a group which opposes the heavy technological modification of humans, the dissolution of biological sex and uplifting/AI, Barsoomians which are more of less proponents or Martian nationalism and Ultimates which are basically a faction of transhumanists that believe in social darwinism...

@PrimaryColor @Skroe @Endus @Prabog @Mormolyce

[Seven of Nine]

Isn't that what mmo champion already is ?

[Aggrophobic]

That... could actually be intresting.

[andrewjoy]

That sounds interesting! You should check out revelation space , plenty of human factions/politics and transhuman stuff in that, well until that nasty melding plague business.

[Skroe]

Actually funny enough, I've never played any table top RPG in my life.

[Techno-Druid]

The concept sounds interesting. Sadly there's only one company able to create RPG worlds that are actually interesting to play in and explore, CDPR. I'm personally not interested in card games or ancient engines that run bad and look like 15 years ago. And nobody has the funds to meticulously craft a modern game with nice mechanics, decent engine and good GFX.

This is more about a tabletop RPG.

[Dsonsion]

I don't know why, but I have a really hard time getting into the tabletop RPGs. I tried it all and it just seemed so silly: some goofy deluded and out of shape guys living a tale so ridiculous that it could never happen even under the rules established by the universe. I'm pretty sure I just was with the wrong people, but it felt terrible, and the fact that the acting was atrocious didn't help at all.

[Techno-Druid]

Actually funny enough, I've never played any table top RPG in my life.

Never too late for you to learn.

- - - Updated - - -

I think some posters on this forum would love how the RP approaches gender

To many transhumans, gender has become an outdated social construct with no basis in biology. After all, it’s hard to give credence to gender roles when an ego can easily modify their sex, switch skins, or experience the lives of others via XP. Though most transhumans still adhere to the gender associated with their original biological sex, many others switch gender identities as soon as they reach adulthood or avidly pursue repeated transgender switching. Still others examine and adopt untraditional sex-gender identities such as neuter (believing a lack of sex allows greater focus in their pursuits) or dual gender (the best of both worlds). In bioconservative habitats and cultures, however, traditional gender roles persevere.

Sexuality has also expanded into new frontiers and taboos. With basic biomods providing contraception and protections from STDs, casual sex is the norm. Many people pursue careers as well-paid companions and escorts. In fact, sexual experimentation is standard thanks to several new technologies. Virtual reality allows sexual encounters without physically touching a partner, not to mention bringing all manner of fantasies to life. For those that prefer the touch of real skin, AI-driven pleasure pods can fulfill any and all needs and are a legal form of prostitution in many habitats. Sex-switching also lends itself to new experiences, whether via bio-mods or a new sleeve. Even AGIs, having been socialized as humans, exhibit sexuality and desire.

[Endus]

It's interesting, but I'm not gonna have time; my tabletop quota's already being met through a D&D campaign I started running this fall, my first time making a real effort to DM (though the group's been playing for a couple years now).

My one point is that the game setting could be digging deeper than it seems to be. The Mercurials in particular, while claiming to be culturally transhuman, are still defining themselves in opposition to human culture. They're space hippies, not beings surpassing their creators, which is where I'd lean if I were writing it. Think Dr. Manhattan from Watchmen; just losing touch with the strictures that humanity fundamentally demands, whether accidentally or deliberately.

[Deleted]

Same as Skroe, I never played any tabletop RPG, a fact that I lament. Sadly, Croatia is rather poor when it comes to fantasy or science fiction scene.

[Techno-Druid]

Same as Skroe, I never played any tabletop RPG, a fact that I lament. Sadly, Croatia is rather poor when it comes to fantasy or science fiction scene.

Most of the resources for Eclipse Phase can actually be found online. I actually found the first edition and another guide focusing heavily on uplifts as a PDF and there's even a character creator online:

https://epcc.cd-net.net/Creator/version4/index.php

[Dellis0991]

I never played a tabletop RPG but this looks fun.

[Mormolyce]

Is this interesting? Yes.

Do I have time? No. :P

Unfortunately I'm in the same boat.

Sounds like a fun idea for a game though.

[Techno-Druid]

It's interesting, but I'm not gonna have time; my tabletop quota's already being met through a D&D campaign I started running this fall, my first time making a real effort to DM (though the group's been playing for a couple years now).

My one point is that the game setting could be digging deeper than it seems to be. The Mercurials in particular, while claiming to be culturally transhuman, are still defining themselves in opposition to human culture. They're space hippies, not beings surpassing their creators, which is where I'd lean if I were writing it. Think Dr. Manhattan from Watchmen; just losing touch with the strictures that humanity fundamentally demands, whether accidentally or deliberately.

I sort of pegged the Mercurials more as Black Panther Party-esque radicals, but there's definitely a lot of ways to interpret it, possibly ranging from pacifists to terrorists.

[Forgettable]

So logistically, I'm guessing this would look something like:

- Everyone on Discord for voicechat
- Using Roll20 for a live interface that can be shared with everyone
- Play once every 2 weeks, Wednesday evening, 8pm - Midnight EST (6pm - 10pm MST, 5pm - 9pm PST)
- Between 3 - 5 players, plus 1 DM

Does anyone want to DM? Also anyone who's wanting to play, how do these details sound?

[Sunseeker]

I can't even my friends to play a more established politics-and-intrigue D&D game. And it's using the Drow! They'd even get to be evil! Sexy and evil! And kill shit! And fuck shit! All while being sexy and evil and political.

Really not sure why they're not interested.

[Techno-Druid]

So logistically, I'm guessing this would look something like:

- Everyone on Discord for voicechat
- Using Roll20 for a live interface that can be shared with everyone
- Play once every 2 weeks, Wednesday evening, 8pm - Midnight EST (6pm - 10pm MST, 5pm - 9pm PST)
- Between 3 - 5 players, plus 1 DM

Sounds about right. Not sure who we could get to DM though, I'm not really that experienced and I'm already eyeing a character concept, but I'm sure we could theoretically find someone.

[Celista]

Actually funny enough, I've never played any table top RPG in my life.

Me either. My friends who play DnD claim I'm the bigger nerd for playing WoW.

[Deleted]

I can't even my friends to play a more established politics-and-intrigue D&D game.

Getting my friends and family to play any kind of group board games lately has been difficult. No one wants to pay attention to learning something new. Over 10 years we've played maybe 5 games of Carcassonne.

[Techno-Druid]

Here's a few PDF sources if anyone's interested in checking this out independently for character or campaign ideas:

Game Rules

Morph Recognition Guide

Sunward: The Inner System