Crisis on Mars could be fun, I'd prob play if you had an opening, would be better with an irc though
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IRC causes herpes. It is known.
But I suppose I should have one.
Mars in Revolution seems to have a slight edge, as does the postwar setting. Personally I consider the Steampunk and Imperialism themes complimentary, though with the progress made in uncovering martian secrets of difference engines and steam mecha, this setting will be somewhat more steampunky.
A general outline of how I see things circa 1895:
*The great war ended in a negotiated peace brokered by the Germans and Austrians. The British side came out ahead, but not overwhelmingly. They won at sea and on the Suez Canal front, went back and forth with France on Mars and suffered some defeats from the Turks there. On Mars the borders in the region wound up being essentially what they were pre-war.
*The Ottoman Empire collapsed on Earth, but a successor state rules in Yeni Babylon, either under a member of the Sultan's family or the local governor proclaimed Sultan. This Empire got recognition at the peace conference in exchange for dropping claims on Earth and returning some conquered land to the Brits. Yeni Babylon has blossomed into a thriving showcase city and capitol of a growing power.
*The Portugese invented mobile warfare thanks to the steammechs they uncovered in Terra Arabia. They had some successes in small theatres on Earth, but lacked the industrial know-how to mass produce them, so they were forced to share the tech with their British allies. They used them to great effect in an invasion of Calais, but were undone by logisitical problems as the mechanized infantry outpaced their support. The invasion ultimately failed, sparking the peace negotiations. France reverse engineered the mechs, and the tech spread to the point that both civilian and military designs are being produced by most industrial powers.
*Shin Kyoto wrested control of the coastlines from the Ukrainian horde. The Ukrainians lost the loyalty of some of the nomadic Casteless in the plains, but remain a major land power. A revolution in their homeland rages, fueled in part by the proceeds of the colony.
*The Greek decision to sell Neo-Thessalonica to Austria proved wise, as they were able to focus on Earth, seizing territory from the imploding Ottomans. They were foiled in their effort to take Istanbul by the new, nationalist Turkish Free State. Between them, the Austrians and Germans dominate the Hellas basin.
*Nymeria has mushroomed into an industrial powerhouse, especially in steel, heavy machinery and Aetherships. The Company now wields enormous influence back home in Italy, although corporate dominance of every aspect of life is starting to lead to discontent among its workforce.
*The Republic of Mars has seen its population explode with war refugees and fortune seekers. A hands-off, pro-business government has encouraged the growth of powerful, influential moguls who compete for market share and support in the Republic congress, while a freewheeling frontier boomtown lifestyle rules in the streets. Thanks to its fortunate discovery of the Great Library and the Clockyard, the RoM is the undisputed hub of scholars and adventurers exploring Mars' past.
* The land of Red Snow remains aloof, guarding its mysteries closely. As one might expect, industrialization has largely passed them by, but they have a surprisingly large and loyal population of Tibetans and Martians.
For the Crisis on Mars, I'm thinking the Republic of Mars is the logical setting, as it would allow for characters from the widest range of backgrounds (not being affiliated with any particular state, and having a fairly inclusive official stance toward native martians). Players could be any number of variety of prominent figures with different agendas, who have to compete and work together to advance their agendas.
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Well, i really like the original game, but a continuation sounds like even greater fun, especially looking at that scenario 
The great space turk will rise again! (i'm in, no matter what)
The great space turk will rise again! (i'm in, no matter what)
I'm more than willing to play Hapsburg Mars again :3 Not Crisis on Mars though; I never really liked the RoM.
Well, i really like the original game, but a continuation sounds like even greater fun, especially looking at that scenario
The great space turk will rise again! (i'm in, no matter what)
The Space Turks never fell, only the Earth Turks.
Noted, although if you're co-GMing we'll have to arrange things so as to avoid the appearance of impropriety.
It seems that the idea of a World in Revolution style game has the most support.
Indeed; if either of us take nations it may be advisable for the other to do the rolls/writing for their counterpart.
Odds are I won't play a country, with the possible exception of if Yakman doesn't choose to resume ownership of the Land of Red Snow, as I've written them a special place in the backstory.
Going on the assumption of the 1895 setting, who would be interested in playing? Preference will be given to returning players resuming their colonies, but they are free to switch or change them.
I'm also going to add a couple of playable Martian powers. The logic is that prolonged contact with Terrans, and their increasing power on Mars has inspired some ambitious Martians to begin "Terranizing" their ways of doing things and some city states to start banding together to face the new threat to the ages old status quo. A few of these have won recognition on Earth, typically due to political expediency. I'm thinking a few princely states in the crowded area where the Space Turks, Portugese, British and French colonies all meet. A couple of would-be martian Khans might be emerging in some of the territory held by the Ukraine at the last game's end as well.
Ukraine must be liberated. I'll come back as my old Ukrainian Colony to liberate Ukraine and restore Order to the Ukrainian territories and gain vengeance against the Japanese.
I'll take one of the new independent Martian nations, don't feel like bringing back the Japanese.
Hmm, I suppose I could join a reboot of this setting.
My preference would be continuing the present story in some way rather than a prequel.
My preference would be continuing the present story in some way rather than a prequel.
As for independant martians, I have three potential ideas, might use all of them
1. A power in Amazonia (the sliver of land between the Tharsis ice cap and the ocean). Obviously requires a female leader.
Her back story is that she murdered and backstabbed her way to the top of the heap in one of the city-states, but then broke with tradition by consolidating her rivals power into her own hands rather than handing their offices to clients in the Aristocratic caste. She's running things herself, dealing directly with the clerical caste and introducing what traditional martians dread the most, innovations. She secured the submission of three rival city states by proposing to have her forces fight them all at once, with her sending only concubines who had never killed before, promising her own suicide if she failed. Her concubines showed up armed with new handcrafted rifles and terran-style tactics and slaughtered their opponants. I see her as a sort of Oda Nobunaga figure, changing the rules by which native martians wage war and politics2. A pretty straightforward "khan of khans" type in the region between where the Ukrainians and Germans had their borders, untiing bands of casteless nomads using weapons and experience learned under the Ukrainians
3. A traditionalist martian statelet on that island that kept repulsing portugese attacks last game, ruled by a backstabbing oligarchy of nobles playing their own internal power games while trying to balance the interests of their terran colonist neighbors. If we wanted to do a native-martian based "Crisis" game that would be the setting I would choose.
I'm going to try and brainstorm rules for native powers, how they might Terranize and so forth. I might also move the Sapce Lamas of the Land of Red Snow into the native category, for reasons that you don't need to know just yet.
Well if you are going to restart this I won't mind resuming playing with my old colony
Thought I'd update people regarding my plans for this. There are a few things I want to do before reviving:
1: better map. I've been studying mapmaking software, and I think I can apply my skills to this project. This will mean more logical canal routes and province boundaries, and hopefully better presentation over all.
2: Spreadsheets. While a pain to set up, having an excel spreadsheet or even an access database could be a huge help in calculating turns, therefore decreasing the chance of this failing due to my getting burned out. If I'm feeling ambitious, I can tie this into 1 and track, for example, how much population or industry is in any given province.
However before I can tackle either of those, I have some RL issues. First, I have some incomplete work for that mapping class I need to do to get certified. Then I need to find an internship opportunity, and/or some kind of crappy temp job to tide me over till a future one opens up. Also I have this little gold ring I need to return to Mordor. After all that is settled, I should be ready to tackle Mars.
1: better map. I've been studying mapmaking software, and I think I can apply my skills to this project. This will mean more logical canal routes and province boundaries, and hopefully better presentation over all.
2: Spreadsheets. While a pain to set up, having an excel spreadsheet or even an access database could be a huge help in calculating turns, therefore decreasing the chance of this failing due to my getting burned out. If I'm feeling ambitious, I can tie this into 1 and track, for example, how much population or industry is in any given province.
However before I can tackle either of those, I have some RL issues. First, I have some incomplete work for that mapping class I need to do to get certified. Then I need to find an internship opportunity, and/or some kind of crappy temp job to tide me over till a future one opens up. Also I have this little gold ring I need to return to Mordor. After all that is settled, I should be ready to tackle Mars.
oh neat..i wasnt in the previous game but i would love to join if there any spot open in the new iteration.
Sorry about abandoning the game, I was having a huge amount of fun with it, but real life kinda took over for a bit. If it re-emerges in any form, I would be more than happy to participate.