"Nuclear Fusion is old-reliable tech. Except when it goes wrong. Then it is just a big hole in the seafloor." - Corin Hayes
Hey,
As those of your who follow me on twitter or Facebook might be aware, I've started creating an RPG setting based on the Corin Hayes books.
At present, I am basing it on the Cypher system by Monte Cook Games because I love the simplicity of the system one you start playing. Character creation, because it is so free, so open, can take a bit of time, but you really can create the character you really want to play. It also frees me up, as GM, to be creative and not worry so much about the minutiae of rules but focus upon making sure the players have a good time.
Now, you don't have to have read all the books to enjoy the setting (please read them all and leave a lovely review on Amazon and Goodreads), but it might flesh out the experience if you have a passing familiarity. To put it simply, Corin Hayes's world is the dark of the oceans in a future where the surface world is denied them. Struggling to survive, governments have collapsed, corporations are the true power, pirates sweep the ocean looking for riches, and submarines clash on the order of the CEOs.
For those with no knowledge of the books the setting documents provide a good insight. If you have read the books then the setting documents act as something similar to a series bible / encyclopedia / reference tool. I've started putting the documents onto this website - click Corin Hayes above - though it is a work in progress and I'll more as I go, eventually creating a downloadable pdf for others to use, if they want to.
Last night, at the mighty Playopolis (Rochester, Kent, UK) my gaming group met up for coffee, burgers, and to create their characters. There are a couple of 'backgrounds' to chose from; Navy, Technician, Underworld, Corporate Suit, from which players can choose and each links to one of the main "classes" in the cypher system. Here though, in this setting, they are mainly for background purposes, though each background does get an additional skill which they might find helpful in situations.
The simple brief they were given read thus:
You have come together to form a small company which focuses upon corporate espionage/counter-espionage and "problem solving".
Soon after, SAP Ltd (Synergistic Asset Procurement) was formed in the city of New Slough, deep in the ocean and their first contract was in hand. A Mechanical Tech, and a Computer genius, a Human Resources officer, an Investigator, a Infiltration specialist, and a Charmer, set off in a chartered submarine toward their contract and untold riches. Sadly, their submarine was attacked and they were left in a damaged vessel on the bottom of the ocean with the stench of smoke pervading the atmosphere. Will they survive? Yeah. Probably.
Maybe.
Keep an eye out here, or on twitter, facebook, and I'll let you all know what's happening!