Re: Re: Bio-Forces

On Thu, 6 Nov 1997, Rick Rutherford wrote:

> On Wed, 5 Nov 1997, Brian Burger wrote:
> > ...being a hard-science SF buff I'd like to see "real"
> > bug-aliens. Rhino/elephant sized (and therefor scaled) bugs do seem
> > possible, and interesting...
> 
> Since both DSII and SGII are games which require counters on the
table,
> why not set up a command & control system for bugs based on
pheromones?
> 
> Given a typical SGII bug squad (9 drones & 1 leader, with weapons),
> the leader "gives orders" to his squad by putting a pheromone scent
> on the ground around him which lasts for a few (1d4+2?) turns before
> fading away. The orders should be simple and vague (like "Attack!" or
> "Flee!" or "Advance") to allow the player some degree of control when
> the squad is activated.
> 
> The pheromone scent would be represented by an upside-down counter on
> the tabletop, and any bug squad within 12" MUST obey the order unless
> given a different one by a "superior officer" (with a
stronger/different 
> scent.) The drones obey the last order given until their leader or a
> superior officer gives a different one.
> 
> --
> Rick Rutherford ----- rickr@digex.net ----- The above opinions are
mine.
> "I've seen collisions on fire off the side of the ethernet LAN. 
> I've seen the lights on the CSU/DSU glitter in the dark near the
router. 
> All these things will be lost in time, like dropped packets. Time to
die."
> 
> 
THIS I LIKE!!! It would give a completely different feel to 'bug'
forces,
making them far more unique than just 'humans in bug suits'. Write these
up in more detail and post them, will you? I want to playtest them for
both ds2 and sg2...house rules until Jon publishes BDS, which can't fail
to include this idea or some variant of it...

This system would easily accomadate communication, and make squad and
higher officers utterly vital - on the death of an officer, the squad
would blindly (or nearly blindly) follow the last order the officer had
laid down, until a superior officer got within range to countermand the
order...

Or perhaps officer-caste bugs release a berserk-attack pheremone as they
die? (Kind of like our wasps are supposed to release an attractant when
they die, making killing wasps at the picnic table a bad idea?) This
idea
has real possibilities...

Later,

Brian (burger00@camosun.bc.ca)