Closed The Visitors (a.k.a. Aliens among us) [Interest/Recruitment]

[OrganicIntelligence]

This is a recruiting thread of a group RP idea I had that I'm calling The Visitors.

The main influences for this game are Invader Zim, Steven Universe, Solar Opposites and Men in Black, or any other media involving aliens living amongst humans.

The Federation Galactica, the largest and most powerful political entity in the galaxy, is the collective endeavour of thousands of intelligent species working together for the goals of galactic peace, harmony and scientific advancement. To this end the Federation's Science Corps deploys scientific observation missions to inhabited worlds on its borders, where the crew utilise advanced technology to live among the local populaces and study them in secret.

Earth is the latest world to have a mission deployed to it. Landing their ship on an empty plot of land in a small city called Baystown on the north-westernmost continent in a place called California, a small crew of aliens will embark on a long-term surveillance and observation mission, taking on human disguises so that they can live in and among the native populace and study them without interfering in their natural development. Their ship is able to disguise itself as a medium sized townhouse in which several tenants can reasonably live, and the aliens will be able to disguise themselves either using natural abilities, holograms or medical technology. In order to geta closer look at the humans they will try to integrate themselves into human society in their human guises, such as getting jobs, taking up human hobbies and making friends with the locals. Some may even go against protocol and start up deeper relationships with the humans they meet.

Of course, the humans around them are not entirely clueless. The is the Fourth Eye Society, a collection of conspiracy theorists and believers in high strangeness that are tracking down any signs of alien activity in the city. There are also agents of the Bureau of Extraterrestrial Affairs, or BEA, running around trying to follow any leads of alien activity as well.

They may also be other aliens not associated with he survey team on Earth, exiles and criminals hiding out amongst a primitive society beneath anyone's notice.

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In terms of number of characters, I'd be looking for at least about 4-8 alien characters and a similar number of humans, and at least 4 or so actual players, however I take the view that the more the merrier. NSFW is very much allowed but should be hidden behind spoiler blocks, and also all characters should be in human form or at least humanoid when they decide to get busy. As I'm looking for a sizable party of players and characters I will create a OOC thread so that we can keep track of where each character is, what they're doing and what time it is as well as discussing which characters are currently interacting.

This meant to be largely a slice of life with the aliens getting to know Earth and humans that inhabit it, but there will also be room for some action and drama depending on what the PCs are interested in doing.

 

[OrganicIntelligence]

Characters I'm personally thinking of playing:

Commander Graz'zuu Thumma a.k.a Gary Smith
Species: Luscan
Role: Ship captain & mission commander
Age: 87 standard terran years
Character traits: Commanding / Disciplined / Gruff / Secretly soft-hearted / Intellectual / Creative
Hobbies: Meditating / Programming / Experimenting with technology / Making scale models
Sexuality: Pansexual (in human terms)

Graz'zuu, or Graz for short, is the serious-minded leader of the alien survey mission. In hie natural form he resembles a small squid-like creature with red skin and one large, green eye that breathes water. However he is able to move about on land thanks to his humanoid mobility suit, in which he sits in the belly and remote controls it with his mind (think Krang from TMNT). Before coming to earth he started off his career working for the Federation's scientific corps as an engineer before moving his way over to the command chain, however he was hoping to find himself in charge a more interesting mission than studying hairless apes on a backwater world. As such he is rather grouchy with his crew due to this resentment at his circumstances, but he does care for them really.

His mobility unit is able to disguise itself by donning an outer shell to make it look like a portly fifty-something man with glasses and a graying beard. As far as the human public is concerned, 'Gary Smith' is the landlord of the tenant house and works as a freelance computer specialist, something he excels at given how human computers are like children's toys to him. He generally does not like humans but is finding himself slowly warming up to Miss Bridget Green - although he cannot stand her cats.

Miss Bridget Green
Species: Human
Role: Fourth Eye Society member
Age: 49 earth years
Character traits: Inquisitive / Paranoid / Lovelorn / Lonely / Awkward / Shy
Hobbies: Skywatching / Cats / Singing / Cycling
Sexuality: Bisexual

A middle-aged woman living in the house next door to the alien base. Has a rather dishevelled, slightly crazy look with her graying hair always styled in an unruly mane. She is almost always wearing horn-rimmed glasses and a mismatching mix of strange clothes and make her standing out in any crowd. A dedicated member of the Fourth Eye Society, Bridget is deeply devoted to the hunt for evidence of the supernatural and alien life, and is forever taking photographs of whatever strange lights she sees in the sky in the hopes that they may be an actual UFO. She is almost completely oblivious to the fact that the house next door is full of actual aliens, although she can't help but give them a sideways glance when something strange happens.

Bridget earns money by working at an ice cream store, and lives with three cats. She has something of a soft spot for 'Gary' and often likes to ask him to look after the cats, much to his chagrin. However she's also not above trying to charm younger men and women, believing that she's still got it.

Ensign Veritta Syndon a.k.a Vicky Holmes
Species: Vespon
Role: Xenobiologist
Age: 26 standard terran years
Character traits: Curious / Friendly / Outgoing / Unsure of herself / Easily distracted
Hobbies: Gardening / Birdwatching / Learning about human pop culture / Trying out human foods
Sexuality: Bisexual

Ensign Veritta Syndon is a recent recruit to the Science Corps. A member of the telepathic Vespon species, she was born as part of a binary-bonded pair with her twin Keshin Syndon, with whom she shares an unbreakable mental link that allows them to send and receive thoughts at any time. She can also do so with other Vespons and members of other species as well as read their minds, but not as strongly as with her twin brother. Having possessed throughout her entire life a passion for biology and alien life - particularly plant life - she and her twin brother both signed up with the Science Corps with the intention of joining a survey missions.

In her natural Vespon form Veritta is a green-skinned humanoid with red mottling across her face and upper body, pointed ears and violet eyes and hair. Her skin is smoother and waxier than a humans, as Vespon biology is somewhat plant-like as their psychic powers are powered by photosynthesis.

In her holographic human guise, Veritta goes by the name Vicky Holmes. She looks like a white woman with green eyes and her hair dyed purple, and she has taken up a job as a waitress at a beach-side cafe from where she can observe and meet a wide variety of different humans. She also loves to observe earth's natural wildlife, and is frustrated at the way humans are threatening it.

Ensign Keshin Syndon a.k.a Kevin Holmes
Species: Vespon
Role: Pilot
Age: 26 standard terran years
Character traits: Suspicious / Protective / Blunt / Perfectionist / Sentimental
Hobbies: Cooking / Boxing / Keeping an eye on Veritta / Flying the team's shuttle.
Sexuality: Bisexual

Veritta's twin brother. In his natural form his skin is red with green mottling across his face and upper body, green eyes and black hair. In his human guise he looks like a young white man with close-cropped black hair and a muscular build.

Keshin primarily joined the Science Corps as an excuse to travel the galaxy and get to fly starships, as well as being able to keep an eye on his twin sister. He is much less trusting of aliens than her and can be overly protective of his twin, going so far as to pick fights with anyone - even if they're bigger than him - that he thinks might be threatening her. He has learned to channel his more violent tendencies into creative outlets like cooking, and has taken up a job in his human guise as a chef at the same cafe where his sister works (although he is having some difficulty lowering his standards to make human food). He has found one thing on Earth that he enjoys, and that's boxing at the Baytown gym. he finds being able to punch people in the face - and get cheered for it! - helps him relieve some pressure, and thinks it may be one of the few things that Earth can offer the galaxy at large.

 

[dispatch99]

This is a pretty cool concept - I might be interested! What's kind of the vibe you are expecting with this though? Tense thriller? Slice of life? Something else?

 

[OrganicIntelligence]

This is a pretty cool concept - I might be interested! What's kind of the vibe you are expecting with this though? Tense thriller? Slice of life? Something else?

Vibes-wise I was intending this to be very flexible so we could explore different genres depending on what the players wanted to do. So sometimes it might just be aliens getting to know their human neighbours, sometimes it's dealing with the wacky consequences of alien technology gone wrong, sometimes it might be dealing with a more serious threat like hostile humans or aliens.

 

[dispatch99]

Vibes-wise I was intending this to be very flexible so we could explore different genres depending on what the players wanted to do. So sometimes it might just be aliens getting to know their human neighbours, sometimes it's dealing with the wacky consequences of alien technology gone wrong, sometimes it might be dealing with a more serious threat like hostile humans or aliens.

Nice, that sounds cool! I have a few ideas for characters and alien species, I'll post them when I get a chance if you'd like

 

[dispatch99]

Spoiler: Kataleshi

Kataleshi are a warlike species of two-legged, four-armed humanoids with sharp canines, thick multi-colored skin, and between one and three keratin horns for the males and thick grooved plates for the females. The Kataleshi, as a result of their evolutionary heritage, are naturally prone to "Frenzy"—neuro-chemically induced states of violence, megalomania, rapacious greed, intense jealousy, and other powerful base evolutionary emotions. Although they were able to evolve intelligence, the constant state of tribal conflict caused by Frenzy once restricted the species to a constant state of industrial-era warfare on their home planet. A few hundred years ago, though, a Kataleshi scientist working on neurological weaponry discovered Constrainers, devices which could suppress Frenzy and allow for better emotional regulation and long-term thinking. Kataleshi societies that adopted Constrainers quickly conquered and assimilated those that did not, and a brief Kataleshi Golden Age erupted as their society made great strides in science and culture, taking to the stars.

This Golden Age, however, came to a screeching halt when the Kataleshi met the Federation Galactica. The Constrainers fixed their personal issues but they did not take out the expansionist, warlike, greedy nature from Kataleshi society. A brief but bloody war ensued where the Federation was able to defeat the Kataleshi thanks to their superior interstellar navy (although technically the war ended in a ceasefire). Now, in the tense post-conflict atmosphere, some Kataleshi are trying to learn from and integrate into Federation society.

What do you think?

 

[OrganicIntelligence]

Spoiler: Kataleshi

Kataleshi are a warlike species of two-legged, four-armed humanoids with sharp canines, thick multi-colored skin, and between one and three keratin horns for the males and thick grooved plates for the females. The Kataleshi, as a result of their evolutionary heritage, are naturally prone to "Frenzy"—neuro-chemically induced states of violence, megalomania, rapacious greed, intense jealousy, and other powerful base evolutionary emotions. Although they were able to evolve intelligence, the constant state of tribal conflict caused by Frenzy once restricted the species to a constant state of industrial-era warfare on their home planet. A few hundred years ago, though, a Kataleshi scientist working on neurological weaponry discovered Constrainers, devices which could suppress Frenzy and allow for better emotional regulation and long-term thinking. Kataleshi societies that adopted Constrainers quickly conquered and assimilated those that did not, and a brief Kataleshi Golden Age erupted as their society made great strides in science and culture, taking to the stars.

This Golden Age, however, came to a screeching halt when the Kataleshi met the Federation Galactica. The Constrainers fixed their personal issues but they did not take out the expansionist, warlike, greedy nature from Kataleshi society. A brief but bloody war ensued where the Federation was able to defeat the Kataleshi thanks to their superior interstellar navy (although technically the war ended in a ceasefire). Now, in the tense post-conflict atmosphere, some Kataleshi are trying to learn from and integrate into Federation society.

What do you think?

Sounds good,

How long ago would the conflict with the Kataleshi have been? If it was recent enough Graz might have served with the Luscan navy at the time. If you were playing a Kataleshi character, he might harbour some lingering suspicions towards them.

Also, would they now be full members of the Federation? The Federation is founded on idealism but I imagine they wouldn't send someone on a survey mission that they didn't trust.

If a Constainer broke, would that Kataleshi immediately start descending into Frenzy?

 

[dispatch99]

Sounds good,

How long ago would the conflict with the Kataleshi have been? If it was recent enough Graz might have served with the Luscan navy at the time. If you were playing a Kataleshi character, he might harbour some lingering suspicions towards them.

Also, would they now be full members of the Federation? The Federation is founded on idealism but I imagine they wouldn't send someone on a survey mission that they didn't trust.

If a Constainer broke, would that Kataleshi immediately start descending into Frenzy?

My idea was that it was fairly recent, about 5-15 years ago. The character in question would be a Kataleshi warrior-prince from the "peace" faction that wants closer relations with the Federation, and part of his mission is to (try to) show that Kataleshi can be fully integrated and trusted in Federation society. The prince himself has doubts, but he feels that his tribe's honor depends on his success, so he takes it seriously.

So the answer to the second question is "sort of" - officially all Kataleshi worlds are allies and equal members of the Federation as part of their peace agreement, but there is a lot of tension between the two still. The Kataleshi, especially some older and more militaristic factions with cultural memories from the dark times before the Golden Age, feel humiliated by their loss and want to avenge their honor. Meanwhile, after such a sudden and violent conflict that ended as abruptly as it began, many less-idealistic people in the Federation distrust the Kataleshi as at best unreliable and at worst a major threat to galactic peace in and of themselves.

And a disabled Constrainer does not necessarily mean Frenzy is imminent: there needs to be a trigger such as violence/pain, strong emotion or other feelings, certain types of food and drink and drugs, pheromones from other Kataleshi, among other things. Every Katalesh is a little bit different in what sets them off and how they react: some wouldn't go into Frenzy for weeks and only under great pressure, others would Frenzy right away at the drop of a hat. Basically, disabling a Constrainer during a fight or feast or an argument is always a bad idea, otherwise it's a crapshoot.

 

[dispatch99]

Forgot to mention this, but Frenzy can also be very useful: it increases muscular strength, speed, stamina, increases pain tolerance, improves injury recovery, and while it dulls the rational calculating and empathetic parts of the brain it increases the power of basic senses like hearing and sight. It also increases their body temperature to ~190° F / 87.8° C, which can also be useful in cold environments or against pathogens. The main physical downside, aside from what seems like temporary animal insanity, is that this all burns calories like a furnace, and the Frenzied Katalesh is going to want to take a long nap and a huge meal afterward.

This is why it's believed to have been an evolutionary advantage, and why it took a while for Constrainers to be adopted—it's sort of an animal "overdrive" switch.

 

[OrganicIntelligence]

I might consider changing the name of the RP per the thread title. Might widen the appeal.

I think it would also help provide some further context to the setting: the Federation has existed in some form for over a thousand years, having been founded in the aftermath of a major conflict between several emerging powers in the Scutum-Centaurus arm of the Milky Way. In the aftermath of this conflict the victorious coalition of worlds - which included the Vespon and the Luscans -founded a council of peace along with the demilitarised worlds that they had defeated, with the intention of rebuilding in the aftermath of the conflict and promoting cooperation between species.

Over time this council's influence grew, and along with it the worlds of the founding members prospered. The Luscan homeworld of Sephol became an ecumenopolis of watery cities, whilst the Vespon turned their world of Loea into a garden paradise with most of their population and industrial sectors moved to an orbital ring around their parent star. Over time more races joined this growing co-prosperity council, and it became clear it needed to become something more organised as it grew to encompass nearly a third of habitable worlds in the galaxy; thus, the Federation Galactica was born.

The Federation is governed by a Senate, which each member species having a number of senators proportional to their number of colonised worlds. Above the Senate sits the Tripartate Council, three councillors who act as the joint heads of state. Despite the seeming utopianism of the Federation it is widely known that the founding members weild outsized influence and soft power in the Federation government, and the Luscans and Vespon are also two of the military powerhouses of the Federation with more battleships between them than the rest of the Federation combined.

Still, as the arrangement has so far proven beneficial for all member worlds nobody has raised any objections to the power disparity too loudly.

The Science Corps' exploration fleet are the closest thing the Federation has to a centralised military force. Despite their non-military role the Corps' ships are highly advanced and equipped with state of the art defensive technologies just in case the locals turn out to be hostile. All Corps operatives are also issued Disrupter pistols and are taught how to use them - again, just in case.

The standard operating procedure of survey missions is to spend several years observing underdeveloped worlds covertly, building up the required data for the Federation to make an assessment for if the local intelligent species should be contacted and given an invitation to join - or if they should be quarantined for everyone's safety.