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I'm working on a game that's heavily inspired by Arpeggio of Blue Steel, only in space, because everything's better in space. So, essentially, the setting involves humans expanding, colonizing, and doing well in their patch of the galaxy, when they're suddenly penned in by a fleet of "ghost" ships with advanced technology who blockade their worlds and hunt down most any major fleets of vessels, etc. Essentially, they try to deny all interstellar communication and commerce.
Turns out, this mysterious fleet is a fleet of AI-controlled craft, and they primarily win due to an overwhelming technology advantage; humans can tactically outwit them with ease. A recent change in the AI fleet is the generation of Mental Models, human-shaped bodies for their AIs, so they can better understand their enemy and grasp some of their tactical acumen. The PCs would be some of these AI ships who, possibly through bizarre handwaving, have achieved true free will and emotion, and are thus sort of caught in the middle between humanity and their former fleet, which sees them as an anomaly.
The problem is, I'm at a bit of a loss as to what sort of things to do for grand space adventure when the players each have (or more to the point, are) their own spaceship. I'm working on a system for actually putting the ships together and using them in a fairly tactical sort of combat, although it's going to be very cinematic and more like surface navy than actual true 3D space combat.
So, what sort of scenarios might be fun for space adventure, with a focus on ships and ship to ship combat more than doing things on the ground? I will note that the PCs' human bodies aren't confined to their ships, so they can go anywhere and do things like explore planets or wander around and interact with people, so things of that nature are also acceptable options.
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>>50152537
Infiltrating space academies as students.
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>>50152725
I'm honestly surprised I didn't think of that one.
It is worth noting that assuming the PCs are something of rogue fleet elements, they would be more likely to side with humanity than against it, simply because the most likely fate with their own fleet would be their cores are scanned and they're either rewritten to correct the problem (which is tantamount to death, which the PCs would probably very much not want) or their ships are retired wholesale, which is much more obvious death. ...Alternatively, no anomaly is actually detectable, despite anomalous actions, which could be an interesting way to set the protagonists of the story as enemies of humanity, free to look the other way or not.
Anyway, assuming the PCs are siding with mankind out of necessity, if not exactly by choice, there is obviously plenty of room for plots in which they aren't trusted by specific factions within the human governments, etc. Although there has been some rumbling to at least gloss over any initial meeting and convincing everyone that they are, in fact, legit and want to defect. Which is reasonable.
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>>50153202
>Didn't think of that one
And just how much of Arpeggio did you watch/read?
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>>50153261
Not enough, as of yet. Though I probably can't rip it off too verbatim, given one of my players is also actively watching the series. I am aware of the infiltration, hence why I should have thought of it. I'm also not allowing myself to just rip mission scenarios out of any Homeworld game, because I already joked about doing so to the group. ...And now I have the thought of doing something ultimately stupid like inverting the old "Bring Sajuuk to bear" joke by having the fleet's flagship request stuffed animals.
On a sidenote, I briefly considered Kan Colle for the way to flavor the game, but that's got so little to really go on, we'd either be inventing the explanations for everything, or it'd just be shenanigans around the naval base.
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Ignoring the anime trappings generic space list.
Investigate strange distress signal/anomalous reading/wormhole signal/
Derelict ship/Abandoned space station/Enemy mining operation found in space.
Third party found, have no plot reliance but the players can tear themselves apart trying to befriend them as enemy fleet arrives.
Event causes players to run out of supplies, enemy supply depot is nearby wat do.
Remember roleplaying games rarely have a coherent path from beginning to end just place some shit for players to do while you bullshit a way for things to connect up to some boss battle.
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>>50152537
Maybe you should be inspired by arpeggio instead of just copying it. Then you might make something good.
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>>50153407
Yeah, that's pretty much all I'm looking for. Shit to give them to do when between shit they've already done or gotten themselves into, because it's not like some stuff won't write itself from PC actions.
I'll probably have at least one thing involving a rumor or encounter with an actual ghost ship. Possibly also a horrible hyperspace accident leading to some sort of blatant mirror-universe plot. Some things just don't get old. Or maybe they do, but I just don't care.
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