Humanus Imperium (Tentative Title)
A game idea by Matthew Hollingsworth
Table of contents
Introduction and Overview
Background Story
Character Creation and Customization
Controls, Combat, and Combat related skills
On Screen Interface
Crafting, Repairing, and Upgrading
Stealth and Sneaking
Parties
Character Interaction
Game Progression and Quests
Final Comments and Details
Introduction and Overview:
This is my submission for the Developer for a Day 3 contest run by Adam Buchen of Gamespot. I’d like to express my thanks to Adam and all those who are helping with the judging for giving me this opportunity.
I call my game Humanus Imperium, which from a little bit of checking, I believe to be Latin for human empire, or human rule or authority. I’m pretty sure I got the grammar wrong, and it probably should really be Homo Imperium, but I like the sound of its current name better than that.
To describe my game in its most basic terms, one could say that it is a third-person single player sci-fi RPG set in a future universe where mankind is the dominate species in the galaxy: a superpower feared by all. Aside from its unique setting, Humanus Imperium has several other features that set it apart from most RPG’s, most notably it’s unique handling of game and time progression, and it’s interesting way of handling leveling up and the rewards that come with it.
My game is primarily envisioned for the PC platform, though it could be brought to consoles as well with only some minor control issues.
Background Story
Hindsight
Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. - Genesis 11:5b
If one were to look back throughout history, examining the time periods shortly before any of the major events of this galaxy and its planets, he would see that such events rarely occurred without warning. World and galactic wars, the rise and fall of empires, rebellions and political upheavals: such events do not simply occur without some signs of them beforehand, even if only a few are able to recognize them. On this search through history, one would often find that a few souls, ignored by most during their time, spoke with unnerving accuracy about future events.
Such was the case with the rise of humanity and the Humanus Imperium. The galactic community had been observing humans for some time, as they were one of the few sentient races in the galaxy that had yet to develop any method of interstellar travel. Most of those who had studied humans found them to be worthy of disdain, for they were a violent race, at times petty and foolish to the extreme. Prone to arrogance and pride, humans had even come close to destroying their own planet on more than one occasion.
But a few looked at them differently. They looked deeper, and noticed many things. Such as that for quite some time, humans had been advancing in technology faster than other races did at their level, especially in weapons. That humans were in many ways stronger and smarter than other races, able to adapt quickly to different situations. That despite suffering far more wars and bloodshed than any other known race, humans continued to advance, continued to thrive.
They realized that if humans ever managed to unite together, their potential would be impossible to guess or imagine. These wise souls looked upon humanity not with disdain… but with fear.
First Contact
We cannot stand by and let an entire species suffer and die! We cannot stand by and try to absolve ourselves of responsibility by uttering some nonsense about the natural coarse of events! We are part of nature, and obligated to help our fellows, regardless of what level of advancement they are at. – Durlein High Minister Marsein, in a speech before the United Races Main Assembly.
At the time of mankind’s first contact with the Durleins, the galaxy had been in a relatively peaceful state for some time. The United Races, a galactic body consisting of most of the various governments of the galaxy, had done a respectable job of maintaining peace and preventing minor conflicts from escalating. Though these smaller conflicts and disputes were common, there had been no major war for over 300 cycles (A Galactic Standard Cycle is almost exactly two Earth years).
Though there were no official galaxy-wide rules prohibiting interaction with races that had not developed interstellar travel, it was generally accepted that no race would reveal itself to a non-ISL capable race. The precedent was that once a race developed ISL engines, representatives from the UR would approach them and offer them membership in the body.
The Durleins would break this precedent, however, when they revealed themselves to humanity. The Durleins did this over the strong objections of the UR, which believed that it was too soon in mankind’s technological and cultural development. The reason for the Durleins’ behavior was this: humanity had been suffering from a variety of new and deadly diseases for over 50 cycles, and recently, the number and virulence of these diseases had been increasing at an alarming rate. In particular, a family of viruses known as the seigns threatened to devastate the Earth. Humanity was in a crisis. If nothing was done to help them, the Durleins predicted that humans could become nearly or completely extinct in as few as 100 cycles.
The Durleins argued that it was wrong to simply stand by and let an entire race of people suffer and possibly perish, and that any chaos and damage caused by revealing themselves to the humans “too early” would be nowhere near as devastating as what would happen if they did nothing. Also, the Durleins were concerned by the surge of so many highly infectious and deadly diseases on Earth, and wanted a chance to study and determine the conditions responsible for it.
And so, in 3791 GT (2104 AD), the Durleins orbited Earth with an unstealthed ship and contacted the governments of the world, offering their help.
Rise of Human Technology
I thought I must have made a mistake, that my understanding of the science must be wrong, for after studying the ISL drives long enough, it seemed quite clear to me that the same effect could be gotten by a simpler and more efficient design. – Dr. George Cann, inventor of the Enhanced ISL Drive.
While the arrival of Durleins and the revelations they brought initially resulted in quite a bit of chaos and confusion among the people of Earth, humanity adjusted to the situation rather quickly. Indeed, they adjusted far quicker than most had expected. While initially distrustful of the Durleins, humans soon began to work with them and learn from them at a rapid rate. Durlein assistance resulted in many medical advances, and with their help, humanity was able to halt the growth and spread of the seign viruses that had threatened to destroy them.
In addition to medical advances, other new technologies brought by the Durleins helped revolutionize many industries, and created several entirely new industries as well. This resulted in a surge in the number of jobs and a complete revolution of the global economy. The overall quality of life improved greatly as a result of these new advances.
Human society and government also improved, as the knowledge of the existence of alien races and the sudden thrust of humanity onto the galactic stage helped unite mankind. Conflicts and disputes among humanity were greatly reduced as a result. And while the UR’s initial indifference to the humans’ plight helped foster an “us against them” mentality among mankind that was not particularly good for galactic relations, it also provided further incentive for humanity to unite together. More and more people on Earth soon began to feel loyalty and affection not just for their nation and heritage, but also for their planet and race as a whole.
Even with this newfound unity, the speed at which mankind assimilated Durlein technology was quicker than most expected, and soon humans were designing and producing their own versions of most of the Durleins’ technology without assistance. Humans colonized other planets in their solar system, and in 3816 GT, they established their first colony outside their solar system. In 3820 GT humans were accepted by the UR as a full member of the body, and received a spot on the minor council. (Though some among mankind, still angry at the UR’s objections to the Durleins’ assistance of humanity, believed that they should not join the UR).
In 3822 GT, a human scientific team led by Dr. George Cann made some alterations to the standard design of the ISL drive that resulted in a simpler and more efficient model. This was the first of several cases where humans did not just learn to use Durlein technology; they actually made improvements to it. Most of galaxy’s races were initially surprised that mankind was already coming up with new advances by itself. It was the general consensus among most of them that these advances were the result of mankind’s fresh view of advanced science, which was unprejudiced by any long history of doing things in a particular way.
By 3829 GT, a scarce 76 Earth years since the Durleins’ arrival, humanity was almost unrecognizable when compared to what it was before. The seign viruses, as well as many other diseases, had been eliminated completely. The elimination of so many sicknesses and the horde of other medical advances had raised the expected average human lifespan to 150 cycles. Mankind’s technology and understanding of science was beyond what any could have expected so soon, and in many ways was on a par, or in a few rare cases even beyond, that of other races.
In addition, humanity’s penchant for bloodshed, seemingly unquenchable in the past, had been curbed. While mankind remained a race of great diversity and many cultures, the constant fighting and conflict among itself had largely ceased. Mankind was in an era of peace and prosperity unlike any in memory.
Infection
Do you realize what that would mean? Billions died from those diseases. The full loss and suffering they caused will never be known. And you are here saying that they were all genetically engineered? That we were infected by some alien power, as part of God only knows what cursed experiment?! – United Earth Council Chairman Jonathan Strein
In 3826 GT, a group of the brightest human and Durlein medical researchers and scientists led Dr. Richard Polm began a comprehensive study of the many diseases that had plagued mankind in previous years. In particular, the researchers wanted to study some strange connections that had recently been discovered between the seign viruses and the original aids virus. This study was completed in 3830 GT, and it’s finding would have greater repercussions than any could have imagined.
Dr. Polm and his team had discovered evidence that the seign viruses, as well as the aids virus and many of the other diseases that had plagued mankind, were all the result of advanced genetic engineering. It was no accident that mankind had suffered such a large increase in the number of deadly diseases in the past 100 cycles. Given that the technology used to create the diseases was far beyond anything mankind had at the time, the obvious answer was that some alien power had experimented on humanity.
These engineered diseases had cost billions of lives and untold suffering and anguish. The people of Earth were outraged, and needed someone to direct their anger upon. Originally, some suspicion fell on the Durleins, mankind’s apparently benevolent helpers, but most of mankind did not believe the Durleins were responsible. Instead, they focused their wrath and suspicion on the other races of the galaxy. Upon the races that had done nothing when they heard of the seigns and the threat they posed to mankind. Upon the races that would have stood by and let mankind perish.
At this point in time, humanity did not have a strong central government. The many nations of Earth and its colonies were united under a body called the United Earth Council, which represented mankind as a race and provided for a central military authority in case of an emergency. After the revelation that mankind had been deliberately infected by some alien power or powers unknown was made public, a push began among the people of Earth to unite more fully. Many now believed that only a stronger and more organized central government could protect mankind and deal with the many issues humanity would face in the future.
The revelation about the seigns and the other engineered diseases proved to be quite a shock to the rest of galaxy as well. That someone had conducted experiments on humanity over such a long period without being discovered by mankind was one thing, but that they had also avoided being discovered by the UR was another. At first, the UR even doubted the validity of the findings, but after experts from many different races studied them, the UR was forced to conclude that they were indeed valid. The UR then began an official investigation into the matter, hoping to discover who was responsible.
But finding out who actually was responsible seemed like an impossible task. Nevertheless, mankind’s best researchers and scientists dedicated themselves to their own study of the matter. They refused any help from the UR, accepting only some minor assistance from the Durleins, the only race much of mankind trusted. They studied the diseases closely, searching for anything that could help identify the creators of them. They also studied records of many of the supposed alien encounters of the past, searching for anything they could confirm as real, anything that could show who had infected mankind. Shockingly, after only a quarter of a cycle, while the UR study was still barely beginning, mankind succeeded in doing what most thought impossible.
To read Part 2, click here.
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