Good Alien/Bad Alien

[tjoneslo]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Vargas:
{B}
2)GT's aliens have left me cold (please let's not discuss the Tezcat ot Valkyrie) but then again so do the Hlanssi, Hhkar and a few other "classics" as well.
[/B]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

You and several others have posted about how the GT and CT aliens are bad, as in imagined or written poorly.

I love to see some examples of what you think are good aliens. Ones imagined or written well. If T20 isn't going to repeat the mistakes of the past good examples will help.

 

[Vargas]

Excellent question! However, some of the Traveller aliens I like would probably bother others because of their 'rubber-suited-ness'; such as the Virushi and Newts. (I tend to view them fondly with my nostolgia filter turned up). Having said that. . .

Examples of good aliens for me include the Droyne, Vargr, Hivers and K'Kree. (The Aslan just miss out because they're just too much like samurai Kzinti to me). The Jgdl-jgg (sp?) are also interesting. Would I want to play one, probably not. Neither would I want to play a K'Kree but I like the way they were done. From literature, Niven's Puppeteers and Niven/Pournelle's Moties are really cool to.

What makes them interesting? Sorry, it's like the man said, I know it when I see it. I could throw out words like plausible or detailed but those words are subject to much interpretation. What I don't like are pat retreads from SF (GT's Saurians look like lizards) or races which just DON'T fit in (Valkyrie)

I know this is jumbled; do you have any further questions to help refine the issue?

 

[kafka47]

I am not entirely convinced that the Valkyrie do not belong in IMTU. I sometimes have been known to mix a little Lovecraft into my Traveller campaign. In which I speculate a secret Imperial Agency under the name of Drei Grün is still actively seeking out the Mythos. The Valkyrie merely are the physical manifestation of what lies in the shadows and spaces in between Time/Space.

Other GURPS aliens, I would willing trash, I realize that some have been annonated by canon but...still. I would rather have alien worlds more lavishly detailed than aliens. I have high hopes for this T20.

 

[Vargas]

Anything you want belongs in your TU, I just don't want to see a lot of serious weight given to the Valkyrie. (I once knew a player who had been in a game where a wormhole linked the SM and Solomain Rim so that his groupd could take advantage of all of the CT source material).

 

[aramis]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by kafka47:
I am not entirely convinced that the Valkyrie do not belong in IMTU. I sometimes have been known to mix a little Lovecraft into my Traveller campaign. In which I speculate a secret Imperial Agency under the name of Drei Grün is still actively seeking out the Mythos. The Valkyrie merely are the physical manifestation of what lies in the shadows and spaces in between Time/Space.

Other GURPS aliens, I would willing trash, I realize that some have been annonated by canon but...still. I would rather have alien worlds more lavishly detailed than aliens. I have high hopes for this T20.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

But do they belong in the Marches?


A good alien race, to me, s one that meets the following criteria:
1) an alien mindset is put forth, enforced as need be with rules mechanics.
2) it must logically fit into the setting as presented.
3) is should be relatively ballanced against other races (Not of need as PC's). For Example, K'Kree are excellent, IMO. But as PC's in a mixed game? Never. I've run one short game with a K'Kree Party... it was fun but tiring.
4) A schtick or quick hook is a good think, so long as there is enough support material to allow said schtick to be a central focus rather than monolithic single-archetype (CT Hivers or K'Kree vs TNE Ithklur)
5) Physically believeable in the context of the setting's physics.
6) Enough cultural material to allow realistic interactions between members of said race in a roleplaying context.

#6 is the big sticking point for me in most games. Certain races defined as "Loners by nature" just make no sense as intelligent technologicals. Likewise, a race of slavering psychopaths need some form of interaction with each other that isn't kill on sight, or they won't reproduce; guidelines for this are needed. Far too many races are presented in far too many games solely in how they interact with humans.

Pure schtick races also don't do me any fun. Kender, bad. Gully dwarves, not so bad. CT Hiver, Good. TNE hiver so so. TNE Ithklur, very bad (especially the San*clas stuff!). TNE H&I pissed me off at release, even more when I purchased it, and still annoys me to this day for it being so very UN-traveller in its treatment of both races.

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-aramis
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