Futuristic 40k -- "Progress, as Tau Shall"

[Beckoncall]

This is a preliminary interest check -- The game isn't going on any time soon, but I want to gather names for interested parties (especially new faces to my RPs) so that when the concept is launched people who state their interest will be contacted first. I'll also field questions about the game here as well, if any.


(40k) Prosper, as Tau Shall:

Intro: (Tau Lore in 60 seconds)


Knowledge of 40k or the Tau is not really required for this RP, but people who like 40k and especially the Tau might find this concept more attractive. The objective of the game is for players to command representatives of the Tau Empire along chaotic and unknown frontiers of space, seek out new cultures and worlds -- and through diplomacy or strength of arms bring them into the Empire and get them to embrace the Tau's philosophy of "The Greater Good." The game is one part Space Exploration, one part co-operation vs. competition, and one part Model UN --

The Tau explore World after world on a starmap, Each place in various states of crisis, Bedlam or stagnation and must discover the problems that make the various planets troubled and somehow establish peace and a new order so that they can be absorbed into the Tau empire. Tyrrany, Disease, Alien Races and Cultures, and all manner of Crises run rampant everywhere -- but beyond that, the potential for new expansion, assets and resources for the Empire and the Greater Good -- if you are brave, clever, and cunning enough to make peace out of the great disorder among the stars.

Different Tau Castes and Auxillary races are all different tools for solving a variety of problems. Can you choose and use these tools properly to "Progress, as Tau Shall?"
The Ethereal Leaders, Septs and Castes, and the races that follow them are waiting for your Command!


Each Player will start with ONE Tau Caste Task-force and THREE teams of Non-Tau Auxillaries -- Kroot, Vespid, Humans (Gue'Vesa) , or perhaps other races, each with their own ways of solving problems.
The Tau Taskforces also approach problems according to their own specializations:
Fire Caste being the best warriors,
Water Caste being best diplomats,
Air Caste being the best with Tech,
Earth Caste being the best with construction.
Limited Involvement of the Ethereal Caste may also be a feature, who have the assets of all castes and are the best peacemakers.
The players themselves will make OCs that will be their Task force leaders, with the rank of Shas'el. (Commanders)


Each World will have it's own challenges to face from convincing the populace to join the greater good to neutralizing threats, disasters, calamity and war and otherwise bringing peace to the stars -- by diplomacy, clever solutions, or force.

Players will compete as well as cooperate to accomplish goals, the most impressive/successful will gain influence and attention of the Ethereal Caste.


So... anybody interested in this concept? Stake your claim now, and we can discuss the game or just poll interest now!

 

[Chordling]

I wouldn’t be a good fit for this RP as a player but I just wanted to voice my support for Beck as a GM. He’s phenomenal!

 

[Elucid]

Interested!

 

[RikuXIII]

I'd be interested in playing a Fire Caste Scout/Spotter.

 

[Beckoncall]

I'd be interested in playing a Fire Caste Scout/Spotter.

It'd be on a larger scale than that. You have one Tau Task force (which could be a bunch of fire warriors) and Three teams of auxillary races, along with your Commander.

 

[RikuXIII]

It'd be on a larger scale than that. You have one Tau Task force (which could be a bunch of fire warriors) and Three teams of auxillary races, along with your Commander.

Ah, gotcha gotcha. Thinking too small scale. I think I can work with this.

 

[RikuXIII]

Yeah, totally did not internalize what I read. Sorry about that.

 

[Kloudy]

I am very interested! Tau are my favourite but I don't know too much about their lore yet, so this is a good opportunity to research it.

I'd probably go with the Air Caste taskforce and run with suits and drones. Hopefully I can use on-site research camps to unify the places I come across.

 

[RikuXIII]

Beckoncall For the Auxiliaries, would it be possible for me to have a contingent of Squats that have joined the Greater Good? I'm on the idea of a recon/survey unit that evaluate and pacify an area for heavier units and other castes to move in. A Squad of Squats providing preliminary geological evaluations for Earth Caste as well as being a more direct fighting force for the Recon Task Force seems like fun.

 

[Cosmo]

This has been up since Thursday and NO ONE TOLD ME?!

You know I'm down. I've loved this idea since the first time I heard you talk about it on the forums all those months ago.

 

[Beckoncall]

Beckoncall For the Auxiliaries, would it be possible for me to have a contingent of Squats that have joined the Greater Good? I'm on the idea of a recon/survey unit that evaluate and pacify an area for heavier units and other castes to move in. A Squad of Squats providing preliminary geological evaluations for Earth Caste as well as being a more direct fighting force for the Recon Task Force seems like fun.

This is something possible. Not sure when I'll kick this off, but you'll certainly be invited to participate.

 

[Beckoncall]

This has been up since Thursday and NO ONE TOLD ME?!

You know I'm down. I've loved this idea since the first time I heard you talk about it on the forums all those months ago.

You WILL know when a more official interest check drops, this is just seeing how much enthusiasm or new faces might be interested. (It'll probably be folks we know mostly)

 

[Beckoncall]

I was thinking of play testing this concept 1x1 as well, let me know if anyone would be interested in trying this concept out with me in the meantime!

 

[Huntertabbysandshark3]

KROOT here to fight for tau

But yes the blue Berry space authoritarians appeal to my needs to opress people with propergansa

 

[Delightful Phantom]

"The patient hunter gets the prey."

I am very much interested. If you would
want a rusty roleplayer that is.

 

[Kent]

dropping a comment so I can keep this thread watched!

 

[Skyrte]

neat
I'm thinking of joining as a Fire Caste Shas'el leading an Armored Interdiction Cadre
Or an Air Caste Kor'el commanding a wing of Mantas, so I can taxi people around

 

[Beckoncall]

neat
I'm thinking of joining as a Fire Caste Shas'el leading an Armored Interdiction Cadre
Or an Air Caste Kor'el commanding a wing of Mantas, so I can taxi people around

We're working on smaller force scale (Single Mantas so far) but Squadrons of fighters and modest task forces are also a factor.

 

[Skyrte]

We're working on smaller force scale (Single Mantas so far) but Squadrons of fighters and modest task forces are also a factor.

Ah, okay, I was confused since Tau military organization already works in pretty small numbers
When I read that a Cadre is the equivalent of an IG Company, which in itself is a pretty close mirror of a real world military company, I just went ahead and started thinking on that scale

The Manta wing I had in mind would have been two groups, each with one Manta, with two squadrons (Four or five craft) of Barracudas or Razorsharks for escort
A smaller scale would be a single Manta, with one or two squadrons of escorts if going into a known combat zone? Depending on how heavy the fighting is
Or if another player wants to lead a fighter squadron, they could get paired up with my Manta, instead of me having all of that

Another thing that threw me for a loop is that an Armored Interdiction Cadre is 4 hovertanks, and that's considered a full cadre in the Tau army, when IRL that's just a platoon, and the numbers for an armored company is actually like 10-14
So it's good that we're clearing this up for me now

 

[Beckoncall]

Ah, okay, I was confused since Tau military organization already works in pretty small numbers
When I read that a Cadre is the equivalent of an IG Company, which in itself is a pretty close mirror of a real world military company, I just went ahead and started thinking on that scale

The Manta wing I had in mind would have been two groups, each with one Manta, with two squadrons (Four or five craft) of Barracudas or Razorsharks for escort
A smaller scale would be a single Manta, with one or two squadrons of escorts if going into a known combat zone? Depending on how heavy the fighting is
Or if another player wants to lead a fighter squadron, they could get paired up with my Manta, instead of me having all of that

Another thing that threw me for a loop is that an Armored Interdiction Cadre is 4 hovertanks, and that's considered a full cadre in the Tau army, when IRL that's just a platoon, and the numbers for an armored company is actually like 10-14
So it's good that we're clearing this up for me now

Yeah, I'm nervous about the abiguity of the word "Cadre" so when the game is fully cooked I might not use the term.
What we have now for a Typical Player to start with is:

Starting forces
Commander
2 Crisis Suits
3 Drones that double as planetary scanning probes
One Tau Taskforce : Approx 30-40 Tau of ONE particular Caste

Fire Caste -- Fighting
Air Caste -- can serve as Ground messengers or Pilots (4-5 barracuda air superiority fighters)
Water Caste -- Merchants/Diplomats
Earth Caste -- Techs/Constructors

One Manta : Crew stay on board the Manta and cannot be deployed (assumed Air Caste) with an ambiguous number of replacements for units to cover losses. The Manta moves the Forces around, and is capable of Space Combat, Orbital Bombardment, Atmospheric Fighting, And drop ship capabilities

Three Auxillary Task forces: Kroot, Vespid, Gue'Vasa, or other races -- These teams are a bit larger than a Tau Taskforce (approx. 50 units) but depending on race this may vary if there seems to be a big difference between races in efficacy.

__________________

Considering the game has planets of millions of inhabitants large scale war will likely not work unless it is cunningly executed to disrupt or stabilize a planet or overwhelming demonstration of force -- The Ethereals are expecting more clever and elegant solutions than direct engagement.
There are "Points of Interest" like orbtal or surface ruins, space stations, mines, etc... that have much smaller population that could likely be captured through strength of arms depending on the complexities. And there may be the potential for ship to ship combat.

In any case, if you're interested I'll keep you looped in!

 

[Skyrte]

One Manta : Crew stay on board the Manta and cannot be deployed (assumed Air Caste) with an ambiguous number of replacements for units to cover losses. The Manta moves the Forces around, and is capable of Space Combat, Orbital Bombardment, Atmospheric Fighting, And drop ship capabilities
__________________

In any case, if you're interested I'll keep you looped in!

Sure
I'll take up a Manta slot. I'm also thinking of some of additional crew members being Gue'vesa if that's okay? Not pilots or bridge crew, but as engineers, medics, damage control, and security for the interior of the ship
In my head, if the timing lines up, I'd be writing up the Manta and her crew as veterans of a Tyranid invasion
Where my Kor'el discovered that having a few additional members of crew in the ship would prove to be very useful, more hands to patch up holes, hands to carry pulse carbines if any bugs got in, engineers to field repair battlesuits and hovertanks mid transport, medics to help Fire Warrior Cadres patch themselves up after getting picked up, that sort of thing

Since the Manta has six crew, I'm thinking maybe more 4 or 5 Gue'vesa? Of course they wouldn't leave the ship to go galavanting in search of adventure and combat, they'd be pretty much confined to the ship just like the Air Caste crew.
Unless of course we crash and we all have to bail out, but surely that's not going to happen

I wanted to have another group of characters in the decks of the Manta because the Air Caste crew doesn't leave the cockpit very often, especially during flights, so they don't have a way to interact with the other players' groups, unless we all want to talk on radio, or if they enter the cockpit
So having a second group in the hold, I could interact with other players much more closely, as my Gue'vesa team would be running around the decks helping out, chatting, sleeping, cooking, etc all on the same deck with the other players

EDIT: I'm reading here that the Manta has a crew of 8, but I can only spot spaces for 6 Air Caste. Two pilots, and four other officers. Maybe communications, engineering, navigator (And commander?), and drone control? Since one of the cockpit pilots controls main guns, the two Heavy Railguns and six Ion Cannons. The 16x drone controlled burst cannons might need a controller to designate firing patterns and targets.
I have no idea where the other 2 would go, but if I add four Gue'vesa, the crew number would get bumped up to 10 total, which is just under a full strength Fire Warrior squad

 

[SpiralErrant]

This is giving me strong vibes from the Damocles story line from the perspective of a water caste's human bodyguard squad from this if it's still open XD