Isekai Done - Check that from my bucket List.

 Closing this Chapter of my life - Tried to make a Short Audio Book. It took about 700php to play with Eleven Labs to convert my Short story. Something I could produce in my free time without much thought - just to prove I can generate the words, know how to structure, and get into detailed visualization.  I used the 22 USD plan (it was on sale for 11usd) - this Tutorial was how to use Projects Mode  - I walked in it may cost an additional 11 USD to learn to use this. 

What I would write about if I had the time and bandwidth would be a 1860 Philippine Altered History - an epic of a vengeful Aristocrat began conquering towns - and creating his own Petty Empire - only to fail - but his war in 1860 altered the martial traditions of the country and the power dynamics of the Towns with Manila. Guerrilla warfare doctrine was developed - and the wealth he accumulated before the fall of his petty empire created a military-industrial base that  made it that Spain and America didn't fight untrained peasants against their veterans and Artillery in 1890s but guerrilla fighters who had 30 years of traditions and identity. 

Hacienderos did not lead the revolution but Warlords - a less western Philippines that has more in common with Malaysia and Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand - despite being mostly christian.  America would have still won, as they needed the Sugar and the Spanish plantations to boost their economy - but not in a position of overwhelming power. 

A novel of 19C warfare with the Philippines lost in time. Admittedly a power fantasy - If the Philippines got "Isekaied" to Redo the past and not get fucking screwed all the time.

Of course given all my Gaming and Writing aspirations - my gamer mind is best employed in hopefully making my country easier to live in - making Open source businesses work in the Philippines and displacing MS and Google options for software. Accepting I will not have the time or the opportunity to make a name in TRPGs. 

One of the things I would want to do is Convert Noli Me Tangere or "The social Cancer" something easier to listen to and then use Elven labs to convert it into an Audio Book. 

Distraction: reviewing De Agricultura for a Kids Fantasy TRPG

 I maintain a copy of De Agricultura for sharing. I've updated it and used Askyourpdf to help me review it since I've forgotten everything I learned about it. The only thing I remember is that it's better than Harn Manor, and it probably was the basis of Harn Manor and proof that Taylorism existed much earlier, that Medes and City-states of Mesopotamia in 3000 BCE had already developed these metrics much earlier. 

The starting place for the TRPG is a manor in a frontier territory. Very typical fantasy but with some twists - as a kids TRPG, there are some PG elements like an order of secular social workers that administer these lands - professional bureaucrats who typically offer their competence in return for honoring their social work. Their social work is primarily charity and helping people get back on their feet. Imagine Mohists, Franciscans,  and Buddhists (as a Philosophy and secular - allowing people to have relations and national loyalties). The people who adhere to the Philosophy and identify with it call themselves Anastasian - the order is called Phoenix Dawn (I know its a common order name). Luminaries are the administrators and they maintain many Estates for various Nobles - even competing or nobles. They tend to stay out of politics - unlike the church which requires faith and blind obedience. So the order tries not to be political, and is imperfect (corruption and manipulation exists, as well as abuse of power). Of course - any charitable organization will have their True Believers and their internal Inquisitors (called Auditors). 

As a kid-friendly TRPG - I was reading old TRPG adventures, and it all began with the Murder-Hobo activity - reviewing the old adventures - I realized, wait a minute - there is historical text in what the training for soldiering and operations. Guard Duty, Hunting and Retrieval Tasks, and Exploration and Survival Tasks (traveling to A to B with a map and directions) are already very challenging tasks that don't involve murder-and-looting, and its going to be educational if kids learn some basics knowledge. 

One fo the things I want a TRPG for kids to do is to see the world more as an Adventure. Traveling, Trying new things, and learning they can work with the uncertainty of an RNG of life would be ideal if they play a TRPG. Like any TRPGer dad this is my Nth Attempt to get my kids to play TRPGs. 

So I'm avoiding the huge difference in Social Status for Starting characters - as well as the complexities of such dynamics. all the starting characters are Wards of the order, or one of the many migrating families that have moved to the Manor to help transform the fields, and a bit of background fluff - like those who identify as Anastasians have a duty to expand frontiers - giving to their eldest children enough resources to cultivate a new land - which the order will double and provide servants. Of course its imperfect - some people chose to leave being Anastasians in order to keep their kids from leaving . 

The players will definitely start in a very idealized and exceptional place - and then discover the other Lands and other conditions. making the players acclimate in one area and then learning to acclimate in other areas. As a frontier town, they will be introduced in other cultures and areas. This is one of many side distracting projects - because i was short of money to afford getting my kids the Pathfinder 2e remastered begginer box because of the many expenses that came up: they broke their ipad for school, a friends medical emergency, and my many projects. So reflexively I DIYed it - and anyway I will make the book launch as part of my Mneme Variant Combat rules book - because it will use a majority of the rules of that book to simplify combat and stream line it.  

So there will be just Stat Allocation, a 10, 9, 8, 7, 6 and 5 stat will be assigned. I will simplify the background as they are all wards of the order. Then as for career, they start with the 0 level skills of the career. This is their first term - they basically mustered out already at 16-ish. In the manor there are Mentors who determine the 6 skills at 0 level. Their first Adventure is travel through the Fort into their neighbor's territory, doing a trade escort mission. I wonder what the kids will think of the "Labor Tax" they have to work on projects around the manor for 40 days a year? (this is a very important topic in Philippine history and that of many of the colonized people around the world). 

Blood Magic - and Modern Medicine

 Blood Magic is the ability to reshape chemical signals and control micro organisms. Blood magic gave the ability to taste, smell, and feel things in the biochemistry of another person and within one’s own body. 

Blood magic in the setting is supposed to be equal to that of our modern medicine, except that the tools are hacked aka “shaped” into your body. The reason why it takes a lot of embryos to produce one elf or a blood mage capable human was creating the “Labratory Controls” in them. 

The assumption is that: What if we had, placed within us, a biological lab that allowed us to control micro organisms and produce compounds and enzymes and protiens that will signal and manipulate other organisms. This magic was not “telekentic” where it moved items using the mind - it depended on Chemical and Biological signals - thus using bodily fluids. 

Bodily fluids is key for the use of this magic, and that each human had a LAB inside them to produce this chemical triggers is a key limitation of the setting. You can say that the “summoning Magic” is the true magic - unless the “Summoned Memories” is actually from a database of sort. then everything is actually Scifi. 

Magic as Science, specically magic abilities as something programmed into a Transhuman - human descendant is an old theme I wrote about before. First I though of quantum effects that would make it possible to allow for Telekinetic control, but that magic became difficult because it required energy that we could not metabolize. 

Blood magic where the premise is that mages were labs, and they could influence others through their magic would be better. With adequate preparation, someone can use Blood Magic to make someone stronger, faster, or even smarter - it just took time and shaping. And of course what happens when you force change in the body would be cancer. 

In a scifi setting, humans with built in biological labs would be very adaptable even if technology would collapse. As long as some survived to adapt, they would be able to apply the necessary changes needed to modify the entire species in that predicament.  

Biological computers designed to rebuild themselves - as their schematics are saved in genetic code is much easier than the Sophon in the Netflix Adaptation of the 3 body problem (photon sized supercomputer and AI ). propelling seeds near the speed of light and surviving the deceleration is not as complex. Creating terraforming biological infrastructure with such would be far simpler, and then linking all these worlds with Quantum Entanglement - would be order of magnitudes easier. Heck transfering memories and consciousness so far away would be easier- and rencoding them and then making the consciousness transfer seemless would be an easier near FTL way to teleport. 

 

3 Body Problem Reflection and my own Writings

My problems with 3BP. I really like the series - of course, I understand the need to make events that will trigger the plot to move forward. I think its a great story and recommend people to it, of course like my wife, its not for everyone. 

 
Unfocused Alien Contact Signals: We questioned the plausibility of contacting aliens with unfocused signals, noting that signals degrade over distance, similar to light from distant stars. The challenges in communicating with distant spacecraft like Voyager illustrate the difficulties of maintaining signal integrity over vast distances.

Stability of Trinary Star Systems: We discussed the depiction of a closely packed trinary star system in the "Three-Body Problem" and its potential for chaotic gravitational interactions. In reality, stable multi-star systems like Alpha Centauri are far apart, reducing the likelihood of the stars colliding or disrupting each other’s orbits. if they are that close together it will create Accretion Disks as well as either throwing away another star or Stellar collisions in the time scale of billions of years. 

Resource Abundance in Star Systems: We explored the idea that advanced civilizations wouldn’t need to invade other star systems for resources, as a single star system, like our Solar System, contains ample materials for supporting trillions of lives across space habitats and infrastructures. Check out Mneme World Generator and how we explored how much resources are in the world and the odds of having enough stellar mass. 

Complexity of the Sophon Concept: We critiqued the complexity of the Sophon, an AI the size of a proton used to hinder Earth's scientific progress, as overly intricate. Given the Trisolarans' advanced technology, simpler and more direct methods of achieving their goals seem more plausible. 

Assumption of Perfect Coordination in Extraterrestrial Civilizations: We touched on the "Dark Forest" scenario's assumption of homogeneous, perfectly coordinated alien civilizations. We noted the need for acknowledging heterogeneity within civilizations, suggesting that internal divisions and slower, varied responses to discovering life might be more realistic than immediate destructive actions.

I don't need aliens wanting to kill me and humanity to give me existential dread - just the existential dread of Elite wanting to Exploit, Economies, Mobs, Markets and Industries acting like Fickle Gods. and the frustration of people giving up, and enabling these horrors. Of course the part that has me engaging is the people who choose to do what they can, to reduce the over all suffering while discovering the errors or ignorance of their ways.  

Writing my own Scifi - as well as helping Students create their Start ups, and using my position for Win Win strategies to disrupt the degenerate Philippine Tech industry is a particular kind of writing. Particularly that of a project manager, teacher, and problem solver.  I would probably more successful in my problem solving and teaching than to make anyone interested in the framework I teach and use - so that technology is applied in a way to eliminate problems for society as a whole - and the memetics that frame the sociopathic thinking that hinders innovation. 

Using ChatGPT to help me iterate my drafts faster

 How did Chat GPT4 pass all those exams?  So linked is a copy of the discussion I had with ChatGPT and what was shocking was the mistakes - it got a simple 3.16^7 wrong. it was spewing out the wrong values. 

So as you can see I'm using ChatGPT and GPT4 to help me write the new books. Particularly asking it to experiment with rewriting the formula in words (like using bullets in a different structure or parenthesis), as well as checking if it understood my formula. 

The thing is, I don't have anyone to read my writings to tell me if they understood it (other than Nicco and he's working on improving our Art throughput as we integrate Procreate in our workflow) - if my math formula is wrong. I used to have mentors for that, but they were kicked out of the company for being argumentative (lolz). I am an IT project manager relying on soft EQ skills to sense motive and align goals - that's a good chunk of my work - doing mathematical Analysis is unfortunately not part of my work and when it does become part of it - No one can correct me because no one has a clue. Its frustrating when your love for science makes you the WEIRDO in the large social circle at work - and its in your hobby and friends, you can find other weirdos who can correct you (and tell you stuff you don't know).  

So when ChatGPT came along and GPT4, despite being NERFED by MS to make their BING search engine more powerful (By having access to the web, unlike GPT4 that can only answer what information you put in it) it reduced my Excuses and by mental BLOCKs. my mental blocks being - I don't have the mental bandwidth to CHALLENGE my own math and go through where I can get it wrong. 

We had the 9 coins puzzle in Pathfinder beginner box set, and with a generous clue from the GM we were able to solve it, but I love being able to solve this puzzle. Typically I have 4 other friends who can check my math, and I expect it only in games - otherwise i expect to pay for that service (typically our Indian supplier is really good helping us with these kinds of logic puzzles in implementation).  

So I'm writing Hard Scifi Stuff and I'm a WIS spec'ed gamer focused on diplomacy and sense motive because people make up an organization and convincing and demonstrating benefits from a particular course of action. I dream about having a good INT and compensating using note and documentation, and recordings of myself relearning everything over and over again. 

So you can imagine my frustration when MS nerfed the 20usd/mo GPT4 (allowing only 25 responses every 3 hours) and killed the open AI nature of it (a preview if they ever got their hands on Free Software Foundation IP, which allows the IP owner to revert the IP to closed source). Its weaker than the BING GPT4 and I'm powerless to complain about it. (Standfords Llama and Alpaca are my hope now; as if Migrating to nextcloud was already a pain). 

It doesn't inspire confidence that MS lobotomized GPT4 so I'm not working with the AI that should be able to test if my explanation is correct. I'm not working with an AI that can pass all those College level tests. I have Grammarly correcting my grammar, and GPT4 was supposed to help me if someone CAN follow my logic and tell me if its wrong. With IT and high uncertainty jobs everything is A theory that needs to be tested and we always have to push the envelope - make this run cheaper, cut costs here and there, etc... and there are the tons of complacent giant corporations that hope you don't figure out the hungrier scrappier competitor is giving better value - as your clients keep expecting more for less.  

So the use of GPT4 is limited to the 2000-word copy-paste cap, and anything else it Hallucinates. So it is mostly helping with Problem Statements, at work Writing procedures, and converting minutes to Actionable Statements. For Writing - testing the problem statement and giving me Leads, and opportunities to check regarding my understanding.  I make it rewrite stuff, well this version of GPT4, is probably different, It used to be able to do Nuance but not anymore. so the technical mechanics of writing can be tested with Chatgpt - spitting out what it thinks is a more coherent explanation of my thoughts. When I write I have missing punctuation, articles, and words I thought I wrote but didn't (as I imagine my mental FPS is winding down as aging is telling my body to lower my metabolism and lower the process cycles my thoughts operate in).  A dumber ChatGPT means I have to compensate - some ideas I cannot rely on it. (If I'm going to correct the AI I'm going to correct an AI that will be open source) 

Growing up my problem with math was I took a lot of patience from my teachers as they explained the logic of the math problem. Now with GPT4 being in khan academy and in chatgpt I can ask it to make more examples and different demonstrations of some key concepts... IF I can trust it.  

Get into Cepheus Engine and get published.

Louis Rossman talks about Trying and wearing our failures like a badge of honor. I would give some advice and help (consulting and problem solving) getting people to make something out of Cepheus Engine and get Published. I've also gotten rejected a lot (it was hard getting published in GURPS and it was so hard to teach people gurps). Get into Cepheus Engine and get published - an open-sourced system like CE is a great platform to put your own spin to RPGs. 

Notable Failures 

•  Sins of the Crusade Play List 11th Century Roman Constantinople Campaign - before I discovered Christian Cameron (recommending the Tom Swan) and Bernard Cornwell (Saxon Series). 
• War Beneath Heaven I wanted to RUN Africa setting so I had to make a Fictional one that was hodge-podge as I learn more about African History. It was a Modern Fantasy - which my current favorite is Seth Skorkowsky's Valducan Series and Ashes of Onyx. I want to run modern Fantasy kitchen sinks but push the limits - seeing a robust magic and supernatural element that can work with real world constraints.  
• Warring States Inspired by Qin The Warring States and of course my Chinese studies. 

If I had money to pay for a GM service I would have gotten to play a Modern Indian, Vietnamese, Thai, Nigerian, Kenyan,  etc... where the GM gives us a lot of sessions to learn more about the setting - the way I can give this kind of In-depth Philippine set games. 

You will notice I will try to get CE to have a lot of Blender, Programming and in the future GODOT tools to make the GMs job easier and easier. 

if you followed the videos you will notice a pattern where I would learn a ton of stuff and completely forget them like Vancian magery. Imagine a life of forgetting subjects of mastery as soon as the need passes. 

Nicco Improving the Blender proceedural World Generator

Prototype. This can be converted into a 2D Map for your Traveller Game

TARGET Goal

CURRENT OUTPUT

1. Hi everyone, Here are the Links 

2. Planet-Map-Template.pptx  https://tinyurl.com/bddr55s2 

3. Mneme World Generator  https://tinyurl.com/mtecbrwj 

4. Blender Proceedural World Generator https://tinyurl.com/2a9h4zfa 

If you like our work, consider supporting us and also get Mneme Variant Combat Rules https://tinyurl.com/3v3kcr76 

update : day job emergency over, starting up again.

Nicco has finished his day job duties and proceeding to update the Mneme world generator with the changes we implemented upon discovering some problems with the system (with spreadsheets we can test the system faster and make finer adjustments)

I on the other hand I'm juggling the structured cabling a home. While I'm done with my dept reports for my day job, I'm now coordinating the repairs of our Condominum unit - structured cabling to the auxiliary room.

So mentally I'm not all there 😅. 

I'm aware I have a strong urge to lose myself writing, designing and planning. 

I'm considering training a third member of our team so that we can delegate some day job duties to them. Training a new person is not as tedious as people Think, for me it's a review of what I know and what I forgot to do.

Of course that means I have to budget their cost in Google workspace (50usd per year) and of course look for a non existent budget for them.

I've advanced all the payments since the family biz was late to pay nicco (so he's getting paid by the family biz for his day job work) - so I've already paid for all the improvements for Mneme world generator to electrum milestone.

I don't know if people will like it. Well Iike it and I'll be offering to run it - cepheus delux + Mneme combat. The ships will be temoriarily Orbital 2100 (since nicco and i will make more detailed cepheus engine TL 6 to 9 ships which is Mneme TL 6 to 16 - inspired by children of a dead earth, nebulous fleet command, Delta-v, Andy Weir books, and the expanse). 

Anyway I'll be reverting the prices to their full price (10usd) and then create the discounts based on the monthly or quarterly promotions of Drivethru rpg (who give free marketing for those who align their discounts with their events).

Mneme will specialized in cepheus engine TL 6 to 9 and a future speculated by the demographics of HANS rossling's gap minder ( the open database of demographic data). so africa and south Asia will be the largest economies very far from America, China, Asia Pacific economies, South America and EU. 

Adventures set in 2100 to 2500 common era. Where around 2300 early extra sol adventures begin with risky and unreliable drives like amerigo and Magellan type risks. You can still have 200 years of extra sol adventures even if you have age of sail risks. 

Around 2500 you have drives comparable to the reliability of flights and shipping of the 21st century. Most traveller is in the end of the second millenium. 

Of course making the contents of the Near Sol procedural means we can make a spreadsheet that can create a detailed system on a click. 

If we get enough sales nicco and I can explore making a Godot or javascript app to procedurally generate all this. Ships and system to be heavily visualized so that the GM can easily set the mood and theme. 

From Detective Story to Combat Meat Grinder - Mutant Chronicles - SPOILERS

 https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/126929/Mutant-Chronicles-3rd-Edition-FREE-Quickstart 

The GM had to fudge the rules to prevent a TPK. I reviewed my notes and remember each of the scenes and the combat session was designed to force us to kill the Big Bad guy and Jumping out of the Building. 

OK. Umm... 

• Once you get to the 4th floor its a Locked Area and you have to fight the Big Bad guy to escape. 
• The NPCs had 1 combat monster, all the characters were STATed to be good technically and as detectives. We could all detect any clue, the problem is that None-of the clues CHANGED the lethality of the 4th floor encounter. 
• None of the clues were foreshadowing that it was a Brawling monster and that we would have to lose lights.
• The monster reduced our "sanity" or mental reserves so that we needed D2 to succeed and we were NON-Combat characters. Basically, it was a foregone TPK, the GM decided to make a Difficulty 1 scenario and had to fudge the stats.  Its not fun with 5 PCs rolling to hit a monster that had so much armor and we were NON-COMBAT characters. 
• Where is the MOTIVE? sorry its just that I would have developed one if I prepared written adventure. 
• There are no "DEFENSE" rolls like Conan. so you just took damage till your dead. Not many options to do. 

How I would have Changed It. 

1. If we want to be a Call of Cthulhu and combat was LETHAL then allow to ESCAPE. that's pretty much it. I was tempted to not go to the 4th floor and just already with the clues say "We saw nothing". But it would have wasted the GM's time and effort. 
1. I used the broken furniture to Create an Escape route - but the adventure called to remove it. Aw cmon that's TERRIBLE planning. Even I would plan escape routes (its a requirement for BUILDINGS in construction and of any OSHA-trained practitioner).
2. If you had Foreshadowing I feel dumb for missing it. But if there is NO FORESHADOWING or clue I get angry as it would be BAD WRITING. 
3. I expected the BIG BAD to be mind control - as that was the foreshadowing and clues. PCs rolling against mental reserve. 
4. MISSED opportunity to EXPLAIN how the abilities that gave CLUE finding (Vents and Vance) and the fighting were supposed to be used. 
2. IF you wanted a FIGHT, then 1st Follow GUMSHOE rules and just hand the clues - no more rolls. make the PCs more equipped to fight and with armor. AND FUCKING FORESHADOW being attacked by a clawed monster. This would be tedious to prepare and reconfigure the Pregens. 
   
   

Hopefully Seth will make a better job of this. 

Reflections - What makes it easier for me to run games?

I'm a fan of Seth Skorkowsky, and really like being prepared while being very much open to what the PCs have in store.

What I would like to happen when I run a game is the following.  

1. I'd download the adventure and go through the Outline and Preparation. The Prep is in a Bullet form, like a Recipe. It has all the basic ingredients there available so I can start making preparations. 
2. It comes with Images - Ideally the Vistas the PCs will visit. It will save me the 0.5 to 2-3 mins of researching and downloading or god-forbid making them. While my players dont mind really ugly drawings in Roll20 I want something to put them in the mood. 
1. Thats why Nicco and I are studying Procedural Cities and Worlds with Geometery Nodes. (Eventually procedural Ships that follow the ship building rules we set out)
2. I want it that I have a bunch of Images, I upload it to Roll20 and done. I can have a scene a picture. 
   
3. It comes with Handouts. Players can read it. What happens is Mike or one of the players read the hand out to the rest of us. The GM catches a break and everyone starts getting info from the Hand outs. 
1. The GM notes talks about what is hidden or obfuscated in the clues of the handouts. Like if the gov't of the world is not what it appears to be, instead of One faction being in power its actually a puppet. 
2. There are Handouts and Information DESIGNED so that the GM can have it open per scene.
4. I will read the outline - I get the bullet points in case I missed anything. Details are in bullets - explanations are in Pros. I will not embed information Items that cannot be summarized as bullets (this is from my work in Quality management Systems - make it super EASY because GMs and Players are Juggling Work and Responsibilities to play - they PAY you to save them time and  make it easy). 
5.  Character Portraits are ready - I still do People sketches (Ipad 9 and apple-pen 1 procreate, Nicco hopefully the XPpen 16 15") and I still love doing character sketches. Of course given its hard scifi I want some fairly detailed Vacc Suits (which Nicco and I made). A combination of "Thispersondoesntexist" + Themes + random character traits + Tracing over our 3D models to make the Vacc Suits and Tech clear and distinict. (I want a level of detail that a fellow geek will debunk and will say - It should have this and that so that we make a BETTER suit - like how Andy Weir wrote the martian).
6. Warm ups - the problem with Hard Scifi - given how niche it is - we need warm ups. Stuff that is Familiar but we can control 1 or 2 elements that is different. We dont want to overwhelm. The adventure is written with WARM UPS - side quests to demonstrate how the setting is different. 
1. Mneme World Generator - means Travelling around the solar system. Finding an Asteroid or Planetoid or Minor World. 
2. Mneme Variant Combat Rules - a sample combat - which is shocking in how different the process flow is (Referee/GM doesnt roll).
7. Open Ended Hooks - Who done its and Mystery games where anyone can have different key challenges can be embedded in the adventure. Its like when Seth starts talking about how differently the adventure can be run - All these possibilities can be noted - and written with some key priorities or risks - things the GM has to keep in mind when making modifications. 
1. This allows Players never to be able to fully anticipate the adventure EVEN if they read the material. Options that make someone who read this book Trapped by making Optimal decisions that create further complications. 
2. This MEANS other GMS can watch the video or play through and never be spoiled. This means understanding the STRUCTURE of how the challenges play out, things escalate, and players find catharsis. 
8. Project Based Adventure Hooks. I doesnt have to involve killing and unethical activity, but its just HARD MODE when the players apply conflict management, EQ, problem solving and their technical abilities when it applies to Anti-Patterns. 
    

Its hard to Write a project management type adventure - and not do it or be involved with it everyday.  

I like doing this (Writing about Project management type adventures), but I also like teaching OJTs from many different schools and all the many courses to test how adaptable I can be (and fall on my face). I like doing my job - despite the ambiguous complex social conflicts and the incredibly scarce resources - I think I cannot write without these really hard problems plaguing me.


What! I want to push this kind of adventure AND make it hardish scifi. Crazy right? Why cant the adventure be "Set up a Mining Facility in the Brown dwarf found between the gulf of space between Sol and this system." - Freaking RPGs made many assumptions on how Fleets, Armys and KINGDOMS are run - what is the Operations of a Mining Facility in a Point in time that can change and may have different SOPs from different Corporations? 

I guess you have to be so practiced in Writing Problem Statements and Summarizing Challenges and the Chief resource Constraints (Theory of Constraints) its not a terrible chore - but like a normal bodily function.

I want that someone reads another persons' problem statement or report and sees it as an adventure and can imagine the feelings people were going through (How to write non-Fiction from the great courses). They see - they feel the problem, the stakes, and the weight - and know the risks and odds. They know the scarcity of attention and resources - and how much its rolling the dice - but you cant see the dice results.

Uploaded the Zip file for all the Map SVG and Adobe Premier files

We'll try to include all the tools and raw files. Things that will allow the buyer to reuse and recycle the material to customize for their game. So we added the Map Files. 

 

Update: Preview is now Working - Milestones

UPDATES

1.  So Thanks to Kari Jo Freudigmann of one bookshelf emailed back and helped with the problem. I overlooked the manage preview of my titles entry. You can now preview ALL 47 Pages to make sure you know what you're getting with the product.
2. Nicco and I have started on the 50 copy milestone goal as we are now at 42. As discussed we will make some material - Sample Procedurally Generated Solar Systems using Mneme World Generator - using Stars featured in Near Space by Stellagama Games for this we will feature 3 star systems (M class stars). There will be some minor world building as it assumes the TL is about Cepheus Engine TL 9-10 at the very least. 
1. There will be ICONS and a recommended new table for quickly scanning Systems visually. (we will give all the materials so that everyone who buys the product can produce similar documents for their games). 
2. We hope to have it ready by end of August or Start of Sept. We will add it to the Downloads of Additional material will be found in the Mneme World Generator Drivethru RPG Link https://tinyurl.com/2a9h4zfa 
3. We have additional Material Every Milestone. There will be 7 Additional systems in Silver (100 copies), 5 additional in Electrium (250 copies), and 4 for Gold (500 copies). 
4. We will not provide a stellar map - you can just use Near Space by Stellagama Games  as well as use the other material in the product. 
5. What is Included in the Additional Material 
1. Procedurally Generated Cultures and Inhabitants. 
2. 3d Renders of Planets and splash screens for introducing the worlds. 
3. 2D maps of the Worlds
4. You will have locations and distances of the zones and areas. 
5. We wont make 2D Solar System Maps yet - havented talked to anyone who needed it. Although i personally use both - depending what the players have an easier time grasping. 

 

We hope to offer 2D maps maybe in Gold. And maybe create Delta-V maps as well. 

Lessons Learned: 2 man operation

Discussing with Nicco about our milestones. Particularly making a Complimentary product to Near Space by Stellagama Publishing. Which are Detailed Solar Systems (ideally everything within 3 hexes from Sol). 

One of the reasons I feel inspired by Hard Scifi is Andy Weir's Books. The Martian read by Wil Wheaton got me laughing so hard. Project Hail Mary also got me laughing and chuckling. Delta-V and my own experience at Work, and Gaming with friends in our own Projects as an Airsoft Team and now a MWO Team - showed the difference between cooperation in a work environment and a group of friends. So when we played Traveller, having a lot of fun, I wondered why not just play a bit harder scifi?

The way someone who has a loved book or material, converted to another medium: movie or show, and there were Layers or Details edited out - or a Professional seeing something important in their profession discarding in the fiction. The Opposite is that - a Book, Show, Movie or TRPG - Portrays an important detail in our profession, culture, and perspective and WE FEEL SO validated, seen, understood, and connected - the Idea that someone understands us and we understand them - this is the reason niches in TRPGs will exist and develop - as we all get to understand more about each other and the universe and we discover people understanding things the same way as us.   

So I planned to make some material to add at Mneme World Generator, basically, Nicco and I will give a detailed example of creating the detailed solar system for Near Space. This means I'll be using the other features in Drivethrurpg ( Send Complimentary Copies and Send Email to Customers under Promotions; warning - we are figuring this out and will probably make mistakes). 

Buyers of our existing Products (2 products only) will get the following - 

• Some basic World building - Setting in Cepheus Engine TL 8.5 or Mneme TL11 at 2200 (2101 to 2200 common era, when Jump is still risky and unstable. The way Carracks of Columbus, and Magelan). Just enough so the GM can just send Materials to the Players if they want to Shop and immerse OR just some pregens for the players who just want to just jump into the setting. 
• Optional political baggage - Timeline of Political Factions in a spreadsheet and tables (birth, death, rebirth, consolidation and fragmentation). 
• Player Primer: Scifi Assumptions and Novel Inspirations - 1 page outline, with 3-4 page explanation (appendix of definitions with hyperlinks).
• The biggest problem would probably the Economic Adjustment when 1 credit - 1000usd 2020 - that people think in a life that allows them to be in their 40s and 50s for decades - and that material quantities scale has changed. When a poor farmer thought about when he will go hungry today or tomorrow, we think of career, growth, and opportunity in our era of 2020s - the scale of material resources a person in 2200 onward will seem too much by our standards until we realize there is an entire economy where people are continuously getting materially better at such a rate when technology allows them to live for decades better - almost immortal pursuing dreams we couldn't in our era. When the entire economic activity of One year on earth is just a month in cis lunar space, or a day when factoring the entire solar system or an hour when factoring a Multi-Star Economy. That such economies are the type to shape worlds and stars. 
• TL and equipment are available. 
• Cepheus Engine Ship modifications (Reaction Drives and their fuel as well as Ion Drives). 
• Assumptions and Rules for TL
• Nicco and I created some Kit Bashing of various ships - basically, economically design diffuse structure ships. Complete with radiators, a lot of fuel, and specialty vessels (shuttles, orbiters, workshops, repair/maintenance pods and drones, etc).  Create an Asset library so people can create scenes. 

• 2Km asteroid to scale how much material we are dealing with. 
• Delta-V Budget Calculator (spreadsheet) for Ships and for Distances. 
• 2 hexes from sol have 3 systems
• 3 hexes from sol has 7 systems. 
• 4 hexes adds another 15 systems (for 25 in all)
• 5 hexes adds 7 systems (for 32 in all). 
• Nicco and I making a small production with reference images and 3d Models and a Power point presentation run and recorded in Youtube in case the GM wants someone to explain the premises with images and in video. Probably a video with a 2 minute elevator pitch, and 4-6 min chunks of explaining the appendix and giving example images. (If you follow the blog, back in 2010 I broke down the entire Ultra Tech - what would be the dominant practice and how the practice would change based on emerging technology - how as a new technology becomes more effective and reliable strategies and doctrine changed)

Orbiters and Reusable Boosters technology that will be 200+ years old and normalized. Competing with space elevator prices, sky hooks, and other orbital infrastructure. 

TIL that I should be using a source link to track where people buy. it seems that DrivethruRPG is >50% of my sales and I have to create source links for social media, youtube, and various other sources. 

Giving MORE free stuff to people who already bought our stuff. So nicco and I just make stuff, tools we use and hopefully its made in a way others will like it too. I follow Seth Skarkowsky and really like how he likes the DETAILS organized and the Time and Motion or How the Game will be run - mentally rehearsed and dry-run. Hopefully our Open nature - people being able to see our notes or access us and discuss how we do things and correct us or we show how we work with our constraints for a better product will be the added value of our group. People buy our stuff because we have a quality management system aka we grow. 

Tech levels are modified in Mneme because its GROWING and learning. CE when written worked with a number of assumptions - particularly JUMP as a level of TL. TL in MNEME is how DIFFERENT the world is for a GM to explain. What it means when its an Era of Planetary Colonization vs Cis Lunar Development. Imagine colonies on mars, venus, jupiter system, saturn system, etc... what does it mean - what are the main economic drivers? the use of hundreds Kiloton gas-world mining ships as they evolve to million ton stations and space elevators. VS an era where there are massive Jump Fleets moving material to create Jump fueling stations in red dwarfs or rogue worlds. 

imagine a person who has the resources to be equal their 30, 40s, 50s or 60s physically or mentally for decades. With that much Capabilities where would they better be placed: Where there is a LOT of growth (frontiers ) or with slow growth (developed areas)? How boring things are for someone who has 50-80 years of experience in their physical or mental 30s, 40s, 50s? 

I'm caught between writing Fiction and world-building and creating Tools. I don't know what I'm doing., and I only go by the dreams and hopes, and which low hanging fruit (something that can be produced in 2-4 weeks) and submitted to people and if this will help them run games? 

I think the problem is - Making games Easier to run as everyone - gamers young and old have less and less time. The more details and immersion I can make more accessible means more people Playing in the future. Learning from Seth Skorkowsky and other gamers who make tools accessible is where I will work on.  Every attempt is a Roll of the dice. 

Milestones - Grateful for Any patronage

 Milestones. 

Currently 23 people bought it (as of August 4). Ive some milestones. 

1.  I had planned on 20 I will start on the second part of Blender file usage, Exporting to a 2D map on youtube. As well as asking if people want us to show how to detail the 2D map. 2 weeks from now, target August 20. 
2. On 50, Youtube Video of using Mneme World Generator along. side https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/192332/Near-Space so that I can detailing the worlds Watch me prepare the Solar System Details for running a game in Nearspace. I will share the System Stats and the Planet
   
   
   
3. On 100, Video of Detailing the Planets using the tools for a Near-Space adventure. I will use Orbital 2100 and Mneme Variant Combat Rules. Edit: plus modeling the ships and scenes. 
4. 
   
   
5. On 200, Delta V Map Creation? A simple spreadsheet to create Delta-V calculations given the distances. (Break Even for me). 
6. On 500, poll for those who are interested - what kind of Hard Scifi Tools do you need next?
   
   Do you want Nicco and I to make Hard Scifi Ships and Orbiters (orbiters is the term for the ships that escapes orbit or lands like  the SpaceX starship, Lockheed X33 etc... ? We plan to release all the models and ships for kitbashing along with a spreadsheet to quickly generate ships in a few minutes and youtube tutorials of just making ships and Scifi Scenes. (this would pay for Nicco to have an upgrade from is I5-2018 laptop to a Desktop Replacement PC OR a Drawing Pad. ) 

What we want out of our "Publishing" is the following:
1) GMs and Artists and Players can get the material to Detail their World - with stats and 3d Models or Art. 

2) They have access to Hard Scifi material they can BUILD on, or take what they enjoy or like for their own games. 
3) That there will be a Lot of ART. GMs and Players can easily create scenes for their games. So much art that it gets easier to explain the science.


Nicco and I are currently Training OJTs Blender and FreeCAD and hopefully hire them if they like modeling (OJTs are currently Civil, Electrical, EC, M Engineers for their 240-500 hour internship https://youtu.be/eL463MIijN4). We hope that as we get better in training and sharing our Blender capabilities that there are more options to get for people to make more elaborate projects. 

I don't know what people want. I'm guess with our product and hoping its what I think it is. I'm using my pain points as a GM with very little time but who loves hard scifi is my guide.  

Quick Preview Enabled, don't know how to set up full preview.

 We want people to really see everything before they buy. Self-interest wise its just easier to manage expectations when the buyer can fully inspect the product before any commitment. Anyone who can't afford it or would abuse it, is someone we cannot stop anyway and wont be happy paying for our wares. 

I use the same psychology when I buy Cepheus Engine products - Buy and even Pay for the "pay what you want" ones. Of course its more difficult to manage expectations if I cannot inspect the product. 

As for the FUll Preview I don't know why it reports an error

You get to see everything, No surprises. We want to make sure you know what you're getting into and if you like how we do business and make our products. 

A different type of TRPG products. Including Software Tools. Thanks for your Support!

Now that I learned enough Javascript to make a Spreadsheet calculator for Character creation (instead of randomizing the stats, it will randomize the Order of the stats and allocation of the skills). After reading the TRPG material, the GM has to also prepare it. 

This is where I want to apply the IT, Design, and Project Management Skills. Make stuff that reduces the time for preparing for the game. I want a user experience where someone gets to view the entire book before they buy it, like in Book stores. When they buy it, the next 15-30 minutes of reading the parts they are particularly interested in - they can implement it in a few minutes. 

For the the Mneme World Generation and the products related to it, the NICHE is making harder scifi more accessible. Whats funny or a contradiction about this is UPDATING the science - its not NOT a lot of calculations. Its updating the rules of thumb - thinking in MASS, in delta-V, multiplying the idea of a ship to x3-x5 because of Fuel. Updating that like Gas Stations and Stops in a long drive we have Inertia Tethers (Buying and Selliing Inertia) and slinging and receiving packages (40ft container sized packages of many tons). Realizing we can live in 0G but with certain modifications. 

"I want a harder scifi, but I want to be comfortable with the amount of Technical Complexity that it may entail." This is a VERY Tiny niche of players and GMS who - I like science and technology, but I don't want to be overwhelmed. That there is no stigma for picking and choosing what I take to my setting. 

Particulary keeping a few key handwave - like Jump or FTL or None (% of light speed).  Gravity manipulation seems to be the most damaging handwave IMO. A particularly conservative Scifi where tens of tons of material are needed per individual for support, and these individuals are key in moving and creating hundreds of tons of material in an economy. 

1,000Cr = 1M 2020 USD. it can let you live a long time in a TL7 World with Gravity BUT it will barely pay for a Ship's upkeep. That people WANT to live in Space even if it costs Millions of 2020 USD more because you are part of an Economy more than a thousand times larger: This is what people in the Developing world do when they go to the Developed world. 

In the developing world our Cost of living is 1/10-1/20 of the Developed world but our Quality of life is much worse and ACCESS to technology and CHANGE and ADAPTATION. 

Spacers are Materially and Technologically "RICHER" than surface dwellers because they are part of an Economy that pays them 1000x more. 

 This ECONOMIC implications is mind breaking, Honestly I've not fully grasped it - with cousins living in the USA (my entire mothers side migrated to the US and my siblings) and working on BPO Adjacent Businesses - I'm am constantly reminded of Comparative Advantage.  But then again the Belters, the Poorest of the Spacers - may be poorer in health than Earthers - can be compared to the poor or economic underclass (EU, USA and Japan comes to mind) of developed nations.  

Imagining 0G graphite steel, space elevators, sky hooks, etc..  

 Imagining that the Elite population of Space would eventually be the economic Elite whose wealth and power would make our current elite trivial. with Microgravity/0G materials, the scale of materials being moved, etc.. imagining 2300 (like in the expanse) just the Jupiter region the economic Wealth and Technology as multiples of the Billions of Tons of material are moved daily (unlike yearly for earth). Of course the MANPOWER demand and of course the corruption. 

I'd love to populate that setting - with the GMs with ships that can be taken from Atomic Rockets. 

Thank You everyone! Nicco and I are definitely grateful for your support and will check our email and the page everyday for any support needed. 

MNEME world Generator (Cepheus Engine Compatible) is now Available.

Mneme World Generator is now available for download. 

1. access to a spreadsheet to let you generate a solar system with a single click.
2. 3D modeling files to allow the creation of planets and 2D maps.
3. an expanded tech-level system for harder sci-fi settings that don’t deal with gravity manipulation or faster than light travel.
4. A Basic Artificial Habitat system and expanded Environmental systems.
5. A Solar System Delta-V map
6. Recalibration of the Credit system for more realistic scaling of the value of ships, equipment, and developed and advanced societies.
7. a D66 x d6 Cultures table
8. & Instructions for making, and a sample of 2D star system Hex map
9. How to use the planet generator blender files https://youtu.be/W1r1NN38TCw  
10. How to use the World Generator Spreadsheet https://youtu.be/tzPrW8AYmj8

Goals and Objectives. 

1. I guess I need feedback, particularly the NICHE of players who want to make their scifi a bit harder little by little and in a simplified manner. Those players who want the product to help them build details in a couple of clicks - they are free to use or not use (because they were not so invested having to create those details).  
2. Let me and Nicco make a better product over time, support us so we can continue to make Open Source Tools. Cepheus Engine has done a lot to make it easy for other people get into making their Own TRPG with a set of rules that is open source. 

Next Project Musings

 What would people buy? or What would make running games easier? 

I don't know. 

We made MNEME world generator because we believed that FIRST you need enough details in a solar system first before you can have hard scifi ships. Even if you can make delta-V budget ships in Gurps Spaceships, Spaceships Design Guide, Orbital 2100, and in Mongoose Traveller High Guard. 

lets say your using Index Card RPG's adventure write up method for a space encounter - and you need distances or planets or celestial systems - you'd probably need our book for those details. 

We can pursue this and maybe focus on more quickly generated details for Space Encounters. 

But then one of the pain points I have is space combat like Children of the Dead Earth and Nebulous Fleet Command - I want that kind of combat but scaled down easy that I would sit only 20-30 minutes playing with it to get a hang of it. I want the tactics and limitations to be similar of these more realistic games. 

One of the strengths of Nicco and I are that we ar 3d Modelers in background.

We're hard scifi and historical fiction people who like using economic data and trying to use it. 

I have OJTs who want to pursue GODOT and I can use some of their Internship Hours to R&D more about GODOT as a Gaming Tool. My idea is the GM can just use a GODOT space (Share window in Gmeet/Discord etc...) and move pieces. I teach them how to Study and learn to operate a New Software or learn to Code quickly - by teaching them how to be more organized and structured in learning functions and designing workflow. 

I understand that there are many Levels of Complexity: players who want as abstract as ICRPG or DungeonWorld for their combat in hard scifi space. Something people can figure out and learn in 20 mins and enjoy learning.

Then there is people who want a GURPS level of details playing with people with a ICRPG/DW level of complexity - the way you get them to enjoy the same thing is that - Blind men and the Elephant - sufficient detail for each Observer (if the GM can afford to diversify their ability to engage the players). 

This means on an Abstract Level detailing it, then checking if all the details still scales or works properly with the abstract level. That feedback process. 

Like Mount and Blade, Nebulous Fleet Command, Children of a Dead earth, Crusader Kings, and various other Games that go into a style of play that basically asks "but the real thing is Like this - why cant we make the game more like this?" and then people realize "OH - I like that! That makes so much sense. Thats better and has more verisimilitude! I can really immerse with this." 

There will be people like me who looks at Kerbal Space, Universe Sandbox and Simple Rockets  and say "I would want to go to there" but cannot invest 40-100 hours to learn each game. I can invest about 20-60 minutes learning these games.

I think after 2 books I should focus in getting more customer feedback. I manage Quality Management systems (Integrated management systems, along with other managers) in our Construction and Manufacturing company. The FEEDBACK look is important.   If there is no feedback then there is no information by which to tailor or better serve the Players and Referees/GMs. 

Anyway Nicco and I making videos about the Mneme Combat system and the World Generator would keep us busy anyway. We will keep an LOG of issues and changes for analysis and publish it. 

I hope that little by little we can make tools that quickly produce the details the GM needs for games. Populations, Demographics, Organizations, NPCs, Ships, traffic, Conflicts, Challenges etc... the Players decide what Stakes they will invest in and the Referee can work with what the players choose to do. 

Update: Uploaded and Waiting for approval. Estimated Wed or Friday.

Waiting for it to be reviewed before it becomes published. 
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/403824/MNEME-World-Generator 

1. no Watermarks. 
2. There is a PDF outline  
   
   
   
3. There are Internal Hyperlinks, and Hyperlinks to Wikipedia and other source materials. 
4. Youtube videos of me "attempting" to explain how it works. 
5. You can Preview the Entire thing. 
6. You can contact me for corrections and updates. I'll keep a log of errors. 

World Generator Update: First Milestone Star and Companion Stars and Transpose.

This is how the World Generator looked based on "Learn Google Spreadsheets" Tutorials by John Karol. John had other matters to attend to so I enlisted the IT Ojts as a recommendation by the ReactJS developer.   This was around April ( a month or so earlier). 

We tried first to simply have a Function then Index Match the Results. Feeling our way around. 

Then I realized to Color CODE what is a ROLL and what is a REFERENCE (index match). 

The OJTS made it much nicer. 

A lot of Corners were cut because we were all learning Javascript and was supplemented by my knowledge of Google Sheets. Last time the OJTs had Javascript use was 1st year college, 3+ years ago. 

• The End Users Can DUPLICATE the sheet to save the information because the JAVASCRIPT/APPSCRIPT only targets a particular sheet. so once they roll an entire system they can duplicate the sheet and possibly export it. 
• We have a Transpose command which will happen AFTER I use an elaborate Joint Text function in Google sheet. There will be an IF function to say if the LINE will be exported to the RIght most area, the system generates a lot of extra Worlds and because its easier to cut and paste lines of code then to create a VARIABLE row. We can always GROUP the rows to make it more human readable. 
• Jupiter has about a hundred moons, the system doesn't generate that many - after a certain size it leaves it to the GM's Fiat. It would make the document TOO unmanageable with too many variables if it generates the thousands of Minor Planets in OUR solar system. 
• Once this is DONE, which means I can generate sample solar systems - Nicco can wrap it up and I can relax. I'm already around the 800usd mark of this project and I doubt there will be  160 people who will find this that interesting Based on what is already Free Hard Scifi stuff in Drivethru RPG. 

I just want this out there to hopefully fuel the inspiration that - Hey our solar system is Freaking Awesome and Adventure worthy and even the many smaller K-M class Stars nearby and Brown dwarfs are probably as well. By the Time we can travel in Light years of our star the level of Technology and Materiality will bend our concepts of economics. 

In Hindsight - I can do Project Management for Book + Software and Games, after work. Its just that the INCH pace of it leaves me looking for another source of Wins and Validation. I was able to get published last year, and hopefully this year with a more complex product. 

My skill set in organization and problem solving - as a Project Manager - is pretty much realized as now I have software project on top of projects like Migration, Construction, and Implementation.  

As I learn more about the new wave of RPGs, I realize the niche of simulation/case study may get smaller or bigger. Both want Simpler RPGs, less crunchy are somethings all want. 

As for RPGs that try to structure Hard Scifi in an OPEN manner that can be easily updated so that we GAMIFY many new Science Concepts for accessibility like DeltaV budget, Orbital Mechanics, Economic and Demographic Data etc... that is going to be definitely be RARE, but as Games become more accessible - as the PIE gets bigger the tiny slice is going to be a bit bigger. 

if 0.0001% of gamers are hankering for a way to SLOWLY ease themselves to harder and harder scifi as they realize "Wouldnt it be cool if I understood how this work?" "Wouldnt it be Cool? That the scifi caught up to what we NOW KNOW"

you can measure them by the people who bought the similar DriveThru RPG books and those who admit that "I'm not really smart but I want to learn." I'm not the smartest of my class or the nerdiest but I like it and I don't know where I'm allowed to be regular intelligence and understand this. 

The days where my friends could read 600+ words per minute and I had a dismal 100 words per minute. That they finished novels every week and I struggled for 1 month with one novel. I liked it - but I had a hard time reading. That people would be in forums lording their understanding over others and turning off (tens of ) THOUSANDS if not more people to Scifi and Historical games. One of these thousands of people don't mind the trolling or too naive to notice got to learn and like the harder scifi. 

its the super clueless and naive people who like it despite the people who ruin it for all 😅. 

While misinformation and degeneration is so powerful that it can subvert nations and democracy - it is interesting when people can still science this shit out and come to conclusions despite dis-mis-information. 

Definitely like Micro-plastics, radiation, viruses - misinformation and the crippling of science education will rewrite our entire idea of the future  - that it will be filled with the forces we underestimated that scar the civilization - creating so many wounds that will take forever to heal and limit its progress. Even with crash courses lowering the barrier for education and so many other Social Progress efforts and remarkable movements come in to play - us being human - being fragile and easily misinformed - primed and manipulated by powerful well funded forces - will create a future where gaming with this will be a die roll where critical failure exists. that in the spectrum of possibility the hobby can be untenable - despite the WIN-WIN of the hobby.