From:	Ereskanti <Ereskanti@***.COM>
Subject:	FASA's On/Off Course?
Date:	Tue, 5 May 1998 01:20:04 EDT

I am asking the question of exactly what the subject says. Is FASA drifting
on/off course in it's storyline. I am not implementing a Spoiler Warning of
any kind, so just in case anyone may think this is a "sensitive topic", you
have been warned. NO BOOK is sacred in this post.

In your own opinions of course :)

My Opinion?

I think they are hitting a snag that I've suddenly started putting together.
I have noticed some things, between the more recent "editor guided novels" and
the sourcebooks that are either recently released or out now.

Lofwyr mentions being in control of the IE's in Technobabel.

There are possibilities that at least some of the IE's may be getting "removed
the game activities".

The Horrors are gone (good/bad/indifferent) thanks to a Dragon's Sacrifice.

Magic is being "reversed" in some aspects, better defined maybe, yes, that
much I give and accept. But the development of Magic within the game
mechanics of SR as a whole are taking a definite new tangent.

If I didn't know any better, I would say that certain people now in command of
this "RPG Ship" are definitely changing the course of it. I know two, no make
it three, people who have had conversations in attempts/negotiations to get
material published/accepted to FASA that have given me a similar story. They
were met with the response of "you have no idea what direction SR is going, go
away". At least in one of those individual's cases, the conversation was more
"graphically descriptive".

What is -SR- then?

I guess that is what I am wondering. And I mean to have a description go
beyond the concept of "it's a role playing game". I mean flat out, what is
it? What is it going to be? What do -WE- the consumer/players of it want it
to become overall? Are we going to have a vaguely magical cyberpunk game?
Are we going to have a well defined game with an obvious course of direction
to take? Are we going to have a list of ideas so vast open to us, that there
will literally too many things to do?

We (being several members of this list) have mentioned that FASA listens to us
at times, more so than many other RPG publishers do. Now I guess I want to
find out what FASA has apparently decided to put forth for our general
perusal.

I know that people like Steve Kenson and Jon Szeto are occasional members and
participants. I know that Steve has given a bunch of information for our
general perusal and feedback. But I also know that the feedback didn't at
least to the List indicate that much, if any, of it would be taken to heart.

No, I don't know anything as being "Written In Stone" or "Unchanging".
I
guess my concerns also lie in the area of "usable interest" or "desiring to
play it".

Ideas, Guesses, Flames, Retorts, Commentary, Peanuts, Popcorn???

-K