Quote from: Shipyard Locked;861550I second the Cherryh recommendation. The Chanur saga left an impression on me when it comes to doing aliens "alien" enough to be interesting yet not so bizarre as to be off-putting.

im with you there

and is this idea reminding any one else of urusei yatsura ?

Quote from: kosmos1214;861705im with you there

and is this idea reminding any one else of urusei yatsura ?

Not to me. Urusei Yatsura's aliens were remarkably human--usually exaggerated human traits, but were imminently understandable. I know a lot of aliens are exaggerated human traits/cultures. But there is a difference between exaggerated and understandable and exaggerated and inexplicable. Yes, invading and basing your invasion on a game of tag sounds silly but is understandable. The invasion was still for profit and to take control of the earth.

As opposed to CJ Cherryh's methane breathers, who finally understood the concept of "trading" but not how it works. One of them darted into the oxygen breather's dock, dropped off what it was carrying and took a dock worker in trade. It made sense to the methane breather. Nobody on the oxygen breather side knows how or why the methane breathers consider something an even trade or when or why the methane breather's are going to trade. They just know it might happen.

I was doing the Dad thing pretty much all weekend.  Will read over your responses and comment sometime tomorrow.  Until then... thanks!

VS

I liked the bizarre quasi-humor of the fox-like aliens in The Stone City by George R.R. Martin.

Good stuff, everyone!  I appreciate the input.

I'm not sure if I should create a random table for stuff like that or assign a mannerism/custom to a specific alien race.  BTW, this is not meant to be serious sci-fi, but closer to some kind of 70's and 80's cheesy B-movie or TV show.

VS

If the following people want credit for giving me a jumping-off point, let me know whatever name or handle you want included in the "thanks" section of Alpha Blue... Bedrock Brendan, Nexus, Shipyard Locked, Opaopajr, and Necrozius.

Thanks!

VS

I had an alien race in a game once that had really well developed colour perception and their communication and culture was based around it. Colours had deep linguistic significance, so a particular shade of red could be a literal red rag to a bull with them because it be associated with an insult. The idea was that though normally very peace loving they kept on getting into violent conflicts with other races who couldn't see and understand how they related to colours and would greet them wearing that insulting shade of red...

Quote from: Hybridartifacts;862406I had an alien race in a game once that had really well developed colour perception and their communication and culture was based around it. Colours had deep linguistic significance, so a particular shade of red could be a literal red rag to a bull with them because it be associated with an insult. The idea was that though normally very peace loving they kept on getting into violent conflicts with other races who couldn't see and understand how they related to colours and would greet them wearing that insulting shade of red...

I like that.  Good suggestion.  Thanks!

VS

When I was playing Rifts, I played a weird four armed pterodactyl-like creature, and decided that its greeting involved raising all four arms and making a clawing motion at the air... which always sent humans running because it looked like my character was threatening to rip their faces off.  They just didn't understand that it is the polite way to say hello.

Quote from: Aracaris;862999When I was playing Rifts, I played a weird four armed pterodactyl-like creature, and decided that its greeting involved raising all four arms and making a clawing motion at the air... which always sent humans running because it looked like my character was threatening to rip their faces off.  They just didn't understand that it is the polite way to say hello.

this reminds me of how the menbarie war got started in Babylon 5

Quote from: kosmos1214;863060this reminds me of how the menbarie war got started in Babylon 5

Did you ever play Living Steel? It was a Phoenix Command variant. The alien race in it was like a soldier version of the Predator. (They'd shuck off armor or weapons for a fight, to make it more fun.) When they first encountered humans, humans fired a laser into the ground between them, to indicate the aliens should stop advancing.

The aliens took this as a polite invitation to battle and proceeded to open fire...

Quote from: Tod13;863164Did you ever play Living Steel? It was a Phoenix Command variant. The alien race in it was like a soldier version of the Predator. (They'd shuck off armor or weapons for a fight, to make it more fun.) When they first encountered humans, humans fired a laser into the ground between them, to indicate the aliens should stop advancing.

The aliens took this as a polite invitation to battle and proceeded to open fire...

nope never played it its on that list of games i want to give a try though