Ok, the sky is alive with all kinds of weird stuff.

What is game play like, what do players do, what do characters do? I like to break games into phases (whether or not the game will ultimately focus on all of the stages). So we have:

  1. Pre-contact. A few brave researchers are uncovering evidence that the universe is a very different place than establishment science claims. They are ridiculed, ignored, perhaps persecuted. Maybe this could be a chance for players to throw out some weird theories, some/many or which will be right, as a way of establishing what is out there?
  2. Contact. This could be public (a saturnian dreadnaught crashes onto earth, dragging a reasonably sized glop of the gelatinous sky with it like a jelly knife.) Or private, an alien abduction or visit or some scientists making it into space).
  3. The solar system. Exposure to alien cultures and trade and space wars/
  4. And beyond… through a stellar pore to what lies outside

Each of these four phases can be approached from a human perspective or an alien perspective. Characters can be human, alien, or both.

I can think of a few ways/structures to link together or alternate these eight possible vantage points/ phases.

  • Humans 1-4 then aliens 4-1
  • Aliens 1, humans 1, aliens 2, humans 2 etc.
  • Players choose
  • Just humans 1-4
  • Just aliens ?
  • Humans 1,2 then random with cards drawn to determine which phase/ vantage point

Whichever of these might work to allow different kinds of chars to interact and players to discover and/or create a weird solar system, a second choice is whether the game has a thematic focus. For example- is the point of the game:

  • how characters change when confronted with the truth
  • can chars save the earth, thwart the forces of evil
  • uncovering secrets
  • Or should I avoid a focus, allow different themes to emerge?