GURPS Prime Directive Inquiry

boneguard · Post by **boneguard** » Wed Apr 12, 2017 3:42 pm

Good Day,

I understand it might not be high on the priority list and there,s always a matter of ressources allocation, but are there any plans for new PD material using the GURPS system?

I own the whole serie so far and really enjoy it, and there are so many other faction to cover that I would love to see (especaily an Omega sector supplement).

Regards,

Post by **Steve Cole** » Wed Apr 12, 2017 5:17 pm

Current plans are to FIRST fix the main book, which is very flawed.

Then do a new empire, perhaps Gorns or Felines or Orions. Or Tholians.

boneguard · Post by **boneguard** » Wed Apr 12, 2017 11:31 pm

Steve Cole wrote:Current plans are to FIRST fix the main book, which is very flawed.

Thnak you for the quick reply.

I got to admit of all the possible answer, that one is completely unexpected, but one I can get 100% behind (even if I need ot buy a new core book afterward).

Steve Cole wrote:Then do a new empire, perhaps Gorns or Felines or Orions. Or Tholians.

All 4 would be excellent choices for the next book. A Felines (I'm guessing Kzinti and Lyran) would complete the Left side (as the Hydran and Klingon are already done) allowing then to focus on the Gorn, Orions, Tholian Empires and the ISC to the right.

Post by **Steve Cole** » Thu Apr 13, 2017 5:44 pm

That decision is months away and will depend (as always) on a combination of which one needs the least work (all of them have some parts done) and which one is likely to sell the best.

boneguard · Post by **boneguard** » Fri Apr 14, 2017 12:23 am

Of course, that makes perfect business sense.

As I love GURPS Prime Directive a lot, anything that will be printed for it will be bought to supplement my own games. But I am but one man alas.

Maximara · Post by **Maximara** » Sat Jun 01, 2019 2:59 pm

Steve Cole wrote:Current plans are to FIRST fix the main book, which is very flawed.

Then do a new empire, perhaps Gorns or Felines or Orions. Or Tholians.

I know that is an old thread but it is the most relevant one to the point I want to raise.

As a die hard Star Trek fan I have to agree the main book is very flawed especially if one takes TOS as total canon. The tech level in the book is, per the 1979 canon, set way too high. It should be TL(6+3)^ with perhaps some TL(7+3)^ thrown in.

The insanely long reason (at GURPS Prime Directive on the GURPS wiki) boils down to how GURPS tech mechanics work. For the episodes "City on the Edge of Forever" and "Piece of the Action" to work as presented the Tech Level cannot be above 9 based on the way the penalties between Tech Levels work in GURPS (Unless you give out wildcard skills like Tribbles)

Post by **Steve Cole** » Sat Jun 01, 2019 5:11 pm

Please remember that I have been too sick to work much for two years and only got back to full time a month ago. Don't expect two years of products we didn't do to get done in two months. Sadly, and I apologize for it, but my bad health and eating decisions cost all of us two years we have no way to get back.

Maximara · Post by **Maximara** » Sat Jun 01, 2019 6:13 pm

Steve Cole wrote:Please remember that I have been too sick to work much for two years and only got back to full time a month ago. Don't expect two years of products we didn't do to get done in two months. Sadly, and I apologize for it, but my bad health and eating decisions cost all of us two years we have no way to get back.

Your health comes first. At least you didn't wind up on death's door with a 5% chance of living because you didn't pay attention to the signs your body was giving you like I did.

Besides I rather see one taking the time to get it right rather then rushing and totally messing up ala Game of Thrones.

I just thought that you would like the insight of someone who is very familiar with Star Trek (TOS/TAS especially) and GURPS 4th edition.

Post by **Steve Cole** » Sun Jun 02, 2019 8:45 pm

Do not get me started on how short-changed Game of Thrones was. There should have been 100 episodes, not 73.

Bolo_MK_XL · Post by **Bolo_MK_XL** » Mon Jun 03, 2019 12:21 am

A 3 part Mini-Series would probably have gotten the whole story in.
Leaving out the extreneous parts.....

Maximara · Post by **Maximara** » Wed Jun 05, 2019 12:42 pm

Steve Cole wrote:Do not get me started on how short-changed Game of Thrones was. There should have been 100 episodes, not 73.

Sounds a lot with my view on Enterprize.

There is no way to fit that mess into Star Trek, without invoking that three season Temporal Cold War going on, if you used TOS-TAS as the base line.

Ships are too fast (per The Cage), visual communication exists when it shouldn't (per Balance of Terror) , races the Federation shouldn't know about at that time popping up like mushrooms (Borg, Organians, Ferengi, etc), and there are times you wonder how Archer and his crew get up in the morning and not FUBAR that up.

Post by **Steve Cole** » Thu Jun 06, 2019 5:24 pm

I have said it before, and I'll say it again.

Paramount should have put ADB in charge of Star Trek.

Then it would have continuity and it would make sense.

Maximara · Post by **Maximara** » Thu Jun 06, 2019 11:05 pm

Steve Cole wrote:I have said it before, and I'll say it again.

Paramount should have put ADB in charge of Star Trek.

Then it would have continuity and it would make sense.

IMHO anything that included TOS as total canon without several caveats to address continuity problems was doomed from the start.

For example, Space Seed puts Star Trek in 2196-2206 (1996+about 200) while Squire of Gothos put it around the 2780s (The planet is 900 light years form Earth with Trelane well aware of Alexander Hamilton's 1804 duel and forces Uhura to play a piece a Richard Strauss composition from 1880)

You had to tweek something to have things fit and it didn't help that Paramount got a bee in its bonnet about Star Trek being a possible future of our Earth even if it made no blasted sense.

In fact, it can easily be shown that TOS Star Trek existed in an alternate reality that diverged as late as 274 CE (if you ignore the Romans adopting Helios and renaming him Sol ie Sun) with a major divergence during WWII. For anyone interested the timeline hiccups are at the GURPS wiki page on Prime Directive.

Grimmshade · Post by **Grimmshade** » Wed Jun 12, 2019 6:00 pm

Steve Cole wrote:I have said it before, and I'll say it again.

Paramount should have put ADB in charge of Star Trek.

Then it would have continuity and it would make sense.

OMG that would have been amazing! I would have more than just ToS to enjoy if that had been the case.

domingojs23 · Post by **domingojs23** » Mon Sep 02, 2019 9:35 pm

Dear Steve, Jean and the ADB Team,

Congratulations on getting GURPS PD - Revised Edition out ! I see the pdf is available on Drive Thru RPG. Questions - (1) will there be a printed book version ? (2) and if so, if we buy the pdf now, will we get a discount on the printed version ? Many thanks !

Gary