Quote from: Pierce InveraritySo I've suddenly acquired a fetish for Golden Age space opera, which shall be narrowly defined as 1940s and 1950s stuff published in and around Astounding magazine--van Vogt, Asimov, Bester, Piper, Heinlein to a lesser degree.

I am a little surprised that EE Doc Smith's Lensmen series isn't on the top of your list for Golden Age Space Opera.   It is, from what I understand, the original Space Opera and possibly the greatest.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lensman

I highly recommend it if you haven't read it already (four or more times).

In fact, I bought First Lensman two days ago! It's great--but it's pulp. There's a difference here too, though again, it's not easy to pinpoint. The operative tone in Golden Age SF is not tough guy two-fistedness.

Quote from: Pierce InverarityI guess Star Frontiers would be another RPG to check out, but I could never get over the fact that the alien on the rulebook cover looks live Steven Tyler.

I don't have the link, but you can download Star Frontiers for free from some website out there. Its free due to a licensing loophole granted by WotC IIRC.

Quote from: pspahnAll I know about the Space Opera RPG is that a few years ago, the creator actually sued another company for using the words Space Opera in the title of their game, and that company changed their title to avoid the legal hassles.  In fact, that's about all I need to know.

I wonder if you're misremembering the fact that Bizar hasn't allowed the game to be bought back by the original creators at a reasonable price. Googling Bizar space opera will turn up some background; the best is at

http://www.sden.org/jdr/spaceopera/GB/interviews/ed.htm

which actually has some perspective by Ed Simbalist on the history of the system and the reasons for its failings.

Quote from: Pierce InverarityIn fact, I bought First Lensman two days ago! It's great--but it's pulp. There's a difference here too, though again, it's not easy to pinpoint. The operative tone in Golden Age SF is not tough guy two-fistedness.

What EE Doc Smith does is propose the Super-Scientist-Warrior as Lensmen... more or less.  This character type actually comes through even more clearly in his Skylark series, but no matter... it's roughly the same.  There's a lot of pulpy stuff in Lensmen, and dig that chauvinism, wow, but it actually fits into Smith's view of the universe in terms of his science - in particular the psychodynamics of the Lens and how it functions.  But as you go through the series you'll find a steady development of the science aspects of the universe he is presenting... and by the end if you don't just sit in your seat drooling with "OMG" then... well...  Anyway, I'd drop First Lensmen and get Triplanetary and read that first if you haven't.   Go through the series in order.   You won't be disappointed.


Mark

Quote from: Elliot WilenI wonder if you're misremembering the fact that Bizar hasn't allowed the game to be bought back by the original creators at a reasonable price. Googling Bizar space opera will turn up some background; the best is at

http://www.sden.org/jdr/spaceopera/GB/interviews/ed.htm

which actually has some perspective by Ed Simbalist on the history of the system and the reasons for its failings.

No, that particular asshattery on Bizar's part is something different.  I'm talking about his actually taking legal action against another company over the use of the words Space Opera in the title of their RPG.  

Pete

I liked Space Opera. It just had  more 'Zing!" than Traveller

I played in a Space Opera online game once.

I wanted to play a dashing star pilot.

After chargen, I had a low level civil service bureaucrat, I calculated that after several years (real time) of play if I spent my income on training I might get to be a pilot.  In the meantime, my character worked in a job which in all seriousness was less interesting than my real life one.

The GM was good, he loved the game, but the system was shockingly bad.  Bizarrely complex, really hard to follow and I somehow ended up only able to play a junior civil servant.

On another note, Pelorus, I have a thread on rpg.net about credo/testament I'd appreciate your thoughts on.  Dr Rotwang, do you have a copy of the Traveller Book now out of interest?

Quote from: BalbinusDr Rotwang, do you have a copy of the Traveller Book now out of interest?

Uh, not a hardcopy, no.  There's a .pdf of it on the CT CD-ROM, which I do have.  But I have The Traveller Adventure!  That's a swanktastic tome I must say.

I liked Space Opera, too. Kind of in the minority, I suppose.
I mean--it was no Metascape, but still . . .

Quote from: BalbinusThe GM was good, he loved the game, but the system was shockingly bad.  Bizarrely complex, really hard to follow and I somehow ended up only able to play a junior civil servant.

Doesn't sound like the Space Opera I remember, there the classes were pure adventure all the way. What you experienced would be like going to a 1st edition AD&D game and rolling up a court scribe or something...

Space opera is pretty underserved in rpg circles.

Light Speed is certainly pretty good eighties space opera.

FGU's Space Opera is more of a Star Wars thing.

I guess the real question is whether you want the pulp look and feel or just rocket ships that fly like biplanes.

Space Master Privateers is really a pretty space opera setting given its reactionless drives and zero point energy and teleporters.

The XXVc (Buck Rogers) game from TSR is really transhumanist realism bu that's a side point.  The second Buck Rogers game is supposedly pretty good and very pulpy.

Quote from: David JohansenFGU's Space Opera is more of a Star Wars thing.

That's closest to what I want--a 1950s Star Wars that isn't Star Wars. So, none of the "Luke I'm your father" or force/religion stuff. Pulp look and feel, yes, but jaws slightly less square than in Lensmen. And aliens should be more than bugs, so not Starship Troopers.

So dashing lightly armoured heroes, telepaths, bug aliens and all that?

Spacemaster Privateers might be right up your alley, and it's simpler than Space Opera by several physics classes.  I know a guy who used to have Ed Simbalist for his highschool science teacher.  He got to playtest C&S and Space Opera first hand.

Anyhow, Star Cluster and Light Speed both are right up your alley as well.

Quote from: Dr Rotwang!Uh, not a hardcopy, no.  There's a .pdf of it on the CT CD-ROM, which I do have.  But I have The Traveller Adventure!  That's a swanktastic tome I must say.

If you would like to purchase one without breaking your bank, I have one in very good condition for sale. Contact me via PM if interested.