Wrapping it up

My Firefly TC has been in the works for years. Sometimes I make a lot of progress; sometimes I go for months without touching it. It's been long enough and I want to finish things off.

There's quite a lot done, but some polishing is needed before I can officially release it. A few more landing pictures, a few more landing and bar descriptions. A bit more polishing in terms of weapons permit outfits and whatnot. Maybe one or two more mission descs to wrap up loose ends.

While I've had various people helping over the years, some contributing quite a bit, most of them are scarce these days. So this is a rallying cry for those previously involved and those interested----lend me your skills. We don't have a lot to do, and it can get done really quick if we spread the load around.

If you can write a planet description, let me know. If you have a neat idea for a bar, let me know. Hiring descriptions. Outfit descriptions. If you think you can do a bit of 3D modeling for landing pictures (most of the current ones are Terragen, what we need for the rest will have to be a bit more than that---cityscapes etc), let me know.

If I can get a good-sized group of volunteers, I can get this thing out the door in a month or two. It's that close.

I can lend a hand in bar and spöb descriptions, just give me a good idea of what you want.

Still here, probably won't have time to write, but I can still do translations!

Here's a few samples of planet descs I did years ago. (Not for publication, they're part of a moribund plug of mine.) Think I might contribute your your plug?

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dësc 132, "Jerkwater"
Jerkwater is a pleasant enough planet if you stay near the north pole; other areas are too hot for humans. The planet has remained neutral through the civil wars, mostly because there is little here worth fighting over. Jerkwater's only real claim to fame is as the site of the Merchants' Guild Academy.

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dësc 142, "Durnik"
A spectacularly violent volcanic world, Durnik remains uninhabited except for a three-week period every four years when millions of athletes and spectators arrive for the Galactic Lava-Surfing Championships.

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dësc 144, "Anakin"
In the early days of the Dissolution, two factions fought for control of Anakin using robot weapons - automated killing machines. They exterminated each other, but the battlemechs remain, patrolling their assigned areas and attacking anything that moves. A few human scavengers live here, salvaging parts from wrecked machines. Many people would pay handsomely for intact mechs, but no one who has gone looking for 'live' machines has returned, though there are rumors of a Chin Tong posse making a successful foray into the killing zone.

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dësc 214, "Dreux"
The native sentient species of Dreux is a form of algae that thrives on the surface of the numerous small bodies of fresh water which dot the planet's surface. All communication with the natives is conducted by e-mail solicitors, the only form of life low enough on the evolutionary scale to establish a rapport with what is, after all, pond scum.

Sorry, I've had these Blender files sitting around for ages that I need to finish up. I'll try to make some time to finish up the trading post, salvage ship, and outfit pics. My bad.

I'm willing to help on writing. Sbobs, bars, outfits, etc etc. I've started working with StarSword on his UGF. Some of the things I wrote were included in a recent status update he made: http://www.ambrosias...dpost&p=2085620 The second set of three in the (rather long) post.

Since I haven't been following the development of this TC, is this a Joss Whedon's Firefly TC, or is that a coincidence of naming? (Pleasebethefirstonepleasebethefirstonepleasebethefirstone)

@waladil, on 23 July 2011 - 09:49 PM, said in Firefly TC:

Since I haven't been following the development of this TC, is this a Joss Whedon's Firefly TC, or is that a coincidence of naming? (Pleasebethefirstonepleasebethefirstonepleasebethefirstone)

Yes, it is Joss Whedon's Firefly. I'm excited, too.

I'm busy with EVN:UGF (as waladil mentioned, I'm working on SPOBs), so I can't help directly, but I wish you luck. Can't wait to see the finished product. Dad got us the DVD set of Firefly a while back, and I submit that it was the most prematurely cancelled TV show in history. Network execs screwed Whedon over from day one.

I've even got the "Browncoat" t-shirt from ThinkGeek.com. On the back it quotes one of Mal's lines in the movie Serenity : "I aim to misbehave."

@darthkev, on 23 July 2011 - 10:20 PM, said in Firefly TC:

Yes, it is Joss Whedon's Firefly. I'm excited, too.

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE<deep breath>EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE<pass out><thud>

The original concept was to do the TC in three parts. Part 1 would take Mal (the player) from Serenity Valley through the purchase of Serenity ; part 2 would begin introducing the familiar characters; and part 3 would take place after the series (and movie).

However, as is typical with TCs, this seems to be overly ambitious and I'm still working on Part 1, although there are some bits of part 2 planning completed.

What this means is that the TC as made so far has only a few of the familiar characters, but it's certainly set in the familiar universe.

As a consequence of being in-progress for so long, the system layout doesn't really match any of the layouts specified on the web. It uses the multiple-star system model popularized by one of the images from Serenity though.

One of the challenges of doing a Firefly TC is that weapons are hard to come by. This means that while there are a few space battles, they're mostly "for atmosphere"----the player isn't really expected to fight. I'm trying to figure out if there's anything I can do about this to make it more interesting. Mostly the battles are geared towards running away. There is provision for the player to be authorized to purchase "deterrent" rated weapons, but those are of course light.

What I'll do later today is lay out the remaining planets that need descriptions, along with some basic information. As you write descriptions, just post them here or on the TC website:
http://s4.invisionfree.com/GunRunner

I'm sure people have pointed you at it before, but have you looked at the sourcebook for the Serenity RPG? They report that starship-grade weapons are available (in fact, they walk you through the process of installing them on a Firefly during gameplay), though they're hard to find, and I infer the Alliance probably bans them given they are reported to have banned laser pistols in the show (Ref: "House of Gold").

I wouldn't be surprised if you can find decent weapons in the seedier areas of the Border Planets, or on the Rim, in other words.

If I recall right, I think that's how we have it set up.

Spoiler

The problem is money, really. The player likely isn't going to have enough to purchase even low-yield weapons for quite a while.

Is the cost of fuel hard-coded into the engine? If so, you might have to adjust mission rewards and outfit costs accordingly, because it's definitely Firefly canon that just plain flying from point A to point B is an onerous financial burden.

@lizard, on 24 July 2011 - 07:20 PM, said in Firefly TC:

Is the cost of fuel hard-coded into the engine? If so, you might have to adjust mission rewards and outfit costs accordingly, because it's definitely Firefly canon that just plain flying from point A to point B is an onerous financial burden.

Yes, it's hardcoded: one unit of fuel costs one credit.

It came up in Starfleet Adventures' development, too.

It's been taken into account.

Mission rewards and commodity deltas are much smaller than in stock EVN, precisely because of the fuel situation. It actually can get dicey at times.

Here's a few of the planets that need descriptions:
Nova Canada needs a bar description (Core)
Muir needs a landing description (moon of Dyton Colony, Rim)
Kerry needs a landing description (Rim, near Reaver territory)
Three Hills needs a landing description (outside the Core)
Angel needs a landing description and bar description (Rim, described in mission as "middle of nowhere" and apparently without good medical supply)
Liann Juin needs a landing description (one of the slightly better-to-do outer regions)
Whittier needs a landing description (Rim)

A suggested Nova Canada bar description

"The most notable aspect of the Caribou Tavern is not the moose heads, bear skins, snowshoes and other far-north paraphernalia lining the walls. Years ago some vacuum-brain thought it would be a good idea to replicate Arctic conditions INSIDE the tavern, so the ambient temperature simulates the "Great White North" by being near zero C. Later owners have continued the tradition in spite of pleas and more than a few overt threats from patrons. The serving staff all wear fur coats, not to contribute to the ambience but out of self-preservation. Often unwary customers have to be treated for hypothermia, and in a few extreme cases, frostbite. Tables and stools near the simulated wood-burning heaters are much sought after and often the source of arguments and even fights. Needless to say, hot drinks are heavily favored here, with the bar's signature "Blazing Walrus" taking pride of place because of its caloric content."

Feel free to adapt, modify — or reject if it doesn't fit.

Sure, that'll do. I'm not sure it's short enough but that can be adapted.

EDIT: The version I put in,

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The most notable aspect of the Caribou Tavern is not the moose heads, bear skins, snowshoes and other cultural paraphernalia lining the walls. Years ago, some vacuum-brain thought it would be a grand idea to replicate Old Canada's winter climate inside the tavern, so the ambient temperature is kept below freezing and the walls are white with frost. The staff all wear fur coats, both for ambience and self-presevation. Unwary customers have occasionally needed hypothermia treatment. Tables and stools near the simulated wood-burning heaters are prized to the point of argument, and even the occasional brawl. Needless to say, hot drinks are the house specialty, with the bar's signature "Blazing Walrus" taking pride of place.

When writing descriptions, feel free to drop in hints about mysterious goings-on that might make for good story hooks at some future point.

As for your earlier descriptions, I'll see what can be adapted from there.

This post has been edited by Lindley : 26 July 2011 - 07:30 PM

You know, anyone planning to perpetuate the commonplace of ‘Canada is cold’ might want to pay a visit to Toronto last Thursday.

@lindley, on 26 July 2011 - 07:15 PM, said in Firefly TC:

Sure, that'll do. I'm not sure it's short enough but that can be adapted.

EDIT: The version I put in,

When writing descriptions, feel free to drop in hints about mysterious goings-on that might make for good story hooks at some future point.

As for your earlier descriptions, I'll see what can be adapted from there.

Ah, a good editor makes all the difference. Glad you could work with what I gave you. To be honest, I don't remember the size of the bar desc window in Nova so just went with what I felt was needed.

Going back to the examples I posted, I think the "Anakin" desc about the rogue war machines might be a useful element to possibly work with later on. (It's something of an homage to Keith Laumer's "Bolo" stories.)