Ruins 2 Research, Exploration and Espionage

Overview

In Ruins of Alien Suns 2, there is a unified self-moderated resolution system for a number of systems, namely research, exploration and espionage. The reasons for this are twofold: as these systems in particular are some of the most-contentious and moderation-heavy in the game, creating a standardized system where players can do much of the upkeep will expand moderation capacity in other fields. Furthermore, these systems are designed to shift the burden of one of the largest bottlenecks on player progression, GM attention and moderation of X specific event, to systems where the milestones to accomplish a goal are more clearly signposted than "finish in X quarters" or "finish X years".

Progress Currencies and Trading

The Progress Currencies that define these three subsystems are fundamentally currencies. They can be exchanged for one another at a 1-2 ratio, purchased using escalating amounts of regular income or traded with/given to other players.

Due to the sensitive nature of these items, they cannot be transferred be transferred between players instantly but instead make use of couriers to deliver them and are subsequently subject to transit time. By default these couriers are international civilian freight from respectable companies. Players can instead choose to ship currencies via their own armed warships or via third parties of choice, though the results of what are up to their discretion. If the convoy/person/facility holding the currency is attacked by a superior force and loses the ensuing firefight, or manage to be raided before the engagement ends, it can be stolen or destroyed.

By default progress currencies are assumed to be located at the game object (unit, facility or random encounter, etc) that generated them. Spies discovering Intel become its custodians, Laboratories accumulate Breakthroughs, alien artifacts may promise valuable technological insights but they have to be brought home first. Logistics and travel time now affect all of these systems equally.

Progress Currency Options

• Buy 1 Currency of any type for XXX, increases linearly each time (so 2nd time is x2, 3rd time is x3, etc).
• Trade any 2 Currency for 1 of another type.
• Trade or offer any amount of Currency as tribute, not limits or escalating cost but the goods are subject to travel time.

Research

The cause of and solution to all of life's problems.

Humanity grasps at long-lost glories of the pre-Disconnect Golden Age, dabbles in alien technology and achieves greatness unmoored from horizons of their ancestors. Even now the pace of technological development is slowly accelerating as the states of the Verge come into their own and conflict over resources, territory and prestige drives the creation of deadlier and more effective weapons.

Research is the mechanic that permits the development of new military and civilian assets, and also the resolution of problems that cannot be strictly resolved with brute force, espionage or the like.

How Research Works

Unlike Ruins 1, Ruins 2 research frontloads expectations and possibilities for research in order to limit the unfortunate hyper-proliferation of seemingly 'necessary' techs while also saddling players with unwanted or actively harmful results. In this system, the player knows what is possible before they opt to invest resources into it. Players have their choice of pre-made or self-directed research options, which they may then expend the progress currency- Breakthroughs- on in order to complete said research.

Additionally, most of the 'boring', 'conventional' or 'practical' options are being pushed into a list of Curated Techs which will be updated yearly. These technologies can be researched immediately without delays, are simple and effective and represent the baseline for technological development in the game that will be followed by the setting at large, including most NPCs.

Research Summary

1 Declare a new research project chosen from Curated Techs from current or past years (instant), or attempt Experiments (2 quarters).

2a For Curated Techs, assign a lead Lab or Scientist and calculate necessary Breakthroughs based on Curated Tech listing and national modifiers (if any).

All expended Breakthroughs must be directed to the lead lab. These Breakthroughs are 'held' until the total number is achieved, and can be stolen, destroyed, etc.

2a.2 After accumulating all needed Breakthroughs, the research is instantly completed and the nation now has the ability to exercise their new capabilities.

For build time purposes and budgets, count from the month the research was completed, not the start of the year.

2a.3 All Breakthroughs assigned are expended, but the state generates one extra Breakthrough as a bonus, modified by the lead Lab or Scientist's specialties.

2b For Experiments, the player makes a request of the GM based on 3 parameters:

First, a general concept of what the desired technology is in abstract (e.g.: "I want an improved Starfighter that can go in atmosphere.")

Second, a classification of the technology's Applications and Field (e.g.: "An improved Starfighter would be a New Unit from the Aerospace Field.")

Third, technologies they already possess that may facilitate this research (e.g.: "I already have an Improved Engines technology for starships.")

In summary, a proposal for an Experimental tech should look like this: "I want an improved Starfighter that can go in atmosphere, which would be a New Unit from the Aerospace Field. I have Improved Engines from Cosmonautics research as the basis for this."

2b.2 Moderators will review Experimental tech proposals and give a Feasibility Check. This takes 2 Quarters from the time of request.

The qualities assessed for such a technology are 'game balance', 'suitability to the setting' and whether or not similar technologies are planned for the curated list in future years. Disruptive or out-of-theme technologies will generally be turned down, while future curated items will be assessed on a situational basis.

2b.3 If the technology is non-viable for the above reasons, the player is given a single Breakthrough for their trouble. If it is feasible, the moderator will produce a full listing of the technology-to-be with the number of Breakthroughs it'll cost to complete. As a general rule, Experimental techs take slightly more Breakthroughs to complete.

2b.4 Unlike the curated list, players can rush Experimental technologies, accepting severe flaws in exchange for a quicker time to completion. These are determined by the moderator based on player suggestions.

2b.5 As with research from the Curated List, accumulating the required Breakthroughs completes the research. Upon completion, players have their choice of taking a prototype unit (a fully-built example of the relevant technology) or 2 Breakthroughs. The greater rewards for Experiments are factored into their Breakthrough cost.

3 Once the research is completed, the player possesses the technology. Technologies can be shared between states and other entities but must also be physically ferried between locations.

Research Objectives

Game masters may also assign a Research Objective to the overall project. This will generally reduce the overall Breakthrough cost of the research by a fair amount (typically around 25%) once completed. This can be a relatively simple objective like "visit X ruins" or something as baroque as "have an aerospace duel near a gas giant", determined by GM and the desired power of the technology itself. Research Objectives have additional Facet requirements to accomplish them, typically the total of their Breakthrough cost in appropriate facets (Electronics, Engineering, Science, Medical).

Example Research Objectives:

• Test aerobraking maneuvers on starfighters.
• Deploy lasers while engaging in live fire exercises against a peer enemy.
• Visit the erratic, hidden moon known only as JOKER.

Players may request Research Objectives, but unlike the freely GM-assigned ones these also lock progress. In this case until the objective is met, the project cannot be finished.

Technology Trading and Reverse Engineering

Technology trading between states is non-instantaneous and only unlocks the initial step. The giving state must physically transport the data (or prototypes, skilled engineers, etc) of the shared technology to the receiving state's laboratory or scientist of choice. Once received, the receiving state has effectively skipped viability testing and may begin to develop the technology themselves by spending Breakthroughs.

Reverse Engineering of technology is functionally identical to Experimental research. A player must assign a science asset capable of performing research to the project and then test the viability of reverse engineering. Especially divergent tech-bases, such as those of alien races or players who have expended considerable resources developing in a unique direction may not be possible to understand without attempting to grasp first-principles research. In such cases, the player is provided a Breakthrough as normal for the trouble and informed of any prerequisites they may need. Successfully capturing and examining a working example of the technology is always a Breakthrough.

As a general rule, for a human techbase that is especially diverged from baseline (mostly non-Curated list techs), 1/3 of the prerequisites is sufficient e.g.: if a player is developing advanced all-purpose stealth fighters and has continuously improved/changed a single design over the course of 3 back-to-back research projects, an interested player would need 1 other tech (from that series or from another one of the target player's non-Curated techs) to grasp it.

Research Fields

All research has to have a Field, representing the required facilities and disciplines to accomplish it.

Aerospace

Construction of aerospace craft, as well as related technologies like missiles and air-breathing drives.

Biology

Research into medical solutions, augmentations and designer organisms.

Cosmonautics

Starship construction, space infrastructure and space drives.

Electronics

Sensors, C3, miniaturization, computer systems and AI.

Materials

Advanced armor systems, ammunition for kinetic weapons, engineering adaptations to extreme environments.

Physics

Directed energy weapons, reactors and FTL drives.

Planetology

Ground construction, most military ground units and terraforming.

Unlocked Fields

Players may uncover additional fields not directly covered by the standard 6, representing specialized or rarefied areas of study. In Ruins 1, players unlocked antimatter, plasma weapons and mind-machine interfaces through various projects. Alien ruins were also subject to intense scrutiny as players desired to unlock their secrets. These are already a known quantity in Ruins 2, but players may seek to refine their understanding of such principles by pursuing specialized research to unlock them as Fields. Doing so will be expensive, require significant study of alien ruins or some combination of both.

Example Unlocked Fields

• Antimatter
• Plasma
• Artificial Intelligence
• Mind-Machine Interface

Research Applications

All research has to have Applications, representing the broad aims of the project.

New Unit

A new kind of space or ground unit, typically an upgrade or specialized sidegrade to an existing one. The cost in Breakthroughs is typically associated with how dramatic of an upgrade it is over the baseline, while the discount from Flaws is based on a variety of factors. Once received, the technology is considered viable for research (see 2b.3 of the Research Summary). The player must expend Breakthroughs as normal to complete the project and become able to use the technology.

New Unit Breakthrough Costs

• 5: Sidegrade, e.g.: Espatiers who fight well in Forest
• 10: Minor Upgrade, e.g.: a slightly cheaper Battleship
• 15-25: Major Upgrade, e.g.: a Cruiser with many additional slots
• 30-50+: Paradigm Shift, e.g.: a Gundam

New Unit Flaws

• 1: A flaw that is problematic but does not detract from base functionality, e.g.: Bolos require double transport slots due to huge
• 3: A flaw that significantly compromises strategic effectiveness but doesn't hurt tactical power, e.g.: the Deltan Starliner is eye-wateringly expensive
• 5: A flaw that hurts both strategic and tactical effectiveness, e.g.: Xenomorph Infantry rampage after being set loose and fight until destroyed, no matter the opposition
• 10: A flaw greatly limits the usefulness of the new unit, e.g.: the Supercolossus has a build time of 5 years, has double upkeep cost and temporarily shuts down Jump Points when it passes through them

Attachments/Modules

New upgrades for ground units (Attachments) or space units (Modules), such as improved weapons, armor, ship systems, etc. The cost in Breakthroughs is typically associated with how dramatic of an upgrade it is over the baseline, while the discount from Flaws is based on a variety of factors.

Attachment/Module Breakthrough Costs

• 5: Sidegrade, e.g.: Grasers that fire in atmosphere
• 10: Minor Upgrade, e.g.: cheaper Grasers
• 15-25: Major Upgrade, e.g.: ER Grasers
• 30-50+: Paradigm Shift, e.g.: Assault Cell (L or S mount), launches like a fightercraft, attacks at Long Range and is armor-piercing

Attachment/Module Flaws

• 1: A flaw that is problematic but does not detract from base functionality, e.g.: ER Grasers only come in Large Modules
• 3: A flaw that significantly compromises strategic effectiveness but doesn't hurt tactical power, e.g.: due to limited ammo and safety reasons, Portable Atomic Bazookas can only be fired once per engagement
• 5: A flaw that hurts both strategic and tactical effectiveness, e.g.: the Annihilation Ram must be fired from short range and is destroyed upon use, requiring refit in yards
• 10: A flaw greatly limits the usefulness of the new upgrade/attachments, e.g.: alien-derived Psycho-Cloaking cuts off the wearer from the collective consciousness, making them completely imperceptible to human beings at the cost of eventual madness resulting in the infantry unit being destroyed after a year

Doctrines

Doctrines are universal upgrades or techniques distributed throughout the totality of a player's military forces. These include things like universal augmentation programs, designer conlangs, the ubiquitous distribution of a certain weapon, etc. Doctrines more expensive to research and maintain, increasing the upkeep cost of a player's armed forces while in use.

Doctrine Breakthrough Costs

• 7: Sidegrade, e.g.: Enkeividian troops have armored uniforms and folding polymer weapons that let them pass as plainclothes civilians
• 15: Minor Upgrade, e.g.: All warships have an S Missile module
• 22-37: Major Upgrade, e.g.: All ground infantry have a chance to revive if not encircled
• 45-75+: Paradigm Shift, e.g.: All warships and ground units are controlled via unjammable QE link from the capital, minimizing risk to the flower of the nation's youth

Doctrine Flaws

• 1: A flaw that is problematic but does not detract from base functionality, e.g.: everyone can recognize military Tantalan genemods by their even darker, almost midnight skin complexions
• 3: A flaw that significantly compromises strategic effectiveness but doesn't hurt tactical power, e.g.: all that quantum entanglement tech is expensive, increasing all military upkeep costs
• 5: A flaw that hurts both strategic and tactical effectiveness, e.g.: the decision to populate the armed forces with enslaved mental model clones has proven to be controversial domestically and abroad, and has made our battlefield commands predictable and inflexible
• 10: A flaw greatly limits the usefulness of the new upgrade/attachments, e.g.: Tempesti Death Cults doctrine is expensive, causes hazing deaths among recruits, extra collateral damage and can never be turned off.

Problem-Solving

Hazards encountered during exploration or as a consequence of player actions sometimes cannot be resolved with sheer military might. You can't get rid of diseases, nuclear fallout, jump point disruptions, etc by shooting at them and they rarely negotiate. Problem-Solving research intends to rectify these comparatively simple issues.

Unlike the other Applications, Problem-Solving costs are determined instantly or as GMs are available.

Problem-Solving Breakthrough Costs

• 5: Simple, e.g.: Save a city from an Active Volcano
• 10: Common, e.g.: Cure a Common Disease
• 25: Advanced, e.g.: Revive an Extinct Species
• 50: Paradigm Shift, e.g.: Make Contact with Extragalactic Life
• 100: Setting-Destroying, e.g.: Cure Death

Research Assets

Nation states begin with 10 research assets, which can be divided between Labs and Scientists. Their initial research capacity (maximum number of either asset) is 10. A state can have more scientists or labs than their capacity by kidnapping (or obtaining diplomatically) those of other groups, but cannot build more if they do. If a state is under capacity for any reason, they may build/recruit more until they reach capacity, which takes 1 year to complete.

Non-state players may assign some of their General Staff to be Scientists (up to their Staff Limit if desired), and begin with a single Lab at their base or flagship. They do not use Research Capacity rules and can always rebuild a destroyed lab in the standard time.

Research Capacity may be increased in the future by events, planned Curated Techs or certain player actions during and after nation creation.

Important Facets

• Electronics
• Engineering
• Medical
• Science

Progress Currency: Breakthroughs

Breakthroughs represent little bits of insight gleaned from the universe, the little nudge that can push research teams in the right direction and accomplish their objectives. Simulation cycles on advanced supercomputers, battle data from the high frontier or alien salvage can all be rendered as Breakthroughs in this way, with more Breakthroughs generated for more valuable hauls.

Breakthroughs are generated by:

• Idle Labs/Scientists: 1/year if they didn't do anything else
• Converting Intel or Discoveries at a 2 -> 1 ratio
• Appropriate events: players may request 1 Breakthrough as a reward after battles, adventures or other events of note
• Scientists generate 1 Breakthrough if present at a significant event relating to the focus of their current research
• Certain alien artifacts provide permanent Breakthrough income if in the possession of a Lab or Scientist
• Failed Experimental research produces 1 Breakthrough
• Curated Techs generate 1 bonus Breakthrough after completion
• Experimental Techs generate 2 bonus Breakthroughs after completion

Labs vs Scientists

Research requires appropriate assets, which for the purposes of this document are divided into Labs and Scientists. Labs can represent any particularly significant scientific infrastructure, from server farms endlessly running simulations to massive underground particle accelerators in the style of CERN, i.e.: scientific enterprises driven by the built environment, geography and culture of the place they are located in. Laboratories are easier to secure but inflexible, as they can be built into territories and heavily defended, hidden in remote boltholes or placed adjacent to vulnerable civilian population centres to dissuade indiscriminate strikes. If specialized however, their capacities become limited. Scientists are superb researchers (though this can represent small teams) with particular aims and passions who work best at the physical and metaphorical frontiers of science, who can be specialized with no loss of competence in other fields. However they are vulnerable, can be kidnapped or killed, taking their knowledge with them.

Lab Traits

+ Labs are built as General-purpose, being able to conduct research in any Field or Application. They can be specialized in order to increase their effective output and speed when performing research in that category by 50%, at the cost of being unable to conduct research outside that specific remit.

+ Labs can be physically expanded or their number increased to augment state research capacity.

+ Labs can be fortified with defensive structures or protected with ground units (typically Light Battlegroups).

- Labs are built in specific territory, this means they can be attacked by conventional forces destroyed or captured. Damage to territorial infrastructure can render them inoperable.

Scientist Traits

+ Scientists begin with a specialty each in a Field and an Application, gaining a bonus of +50% Breakthrough output and speed of conducting Feasibility Tests when participating in appropriate research.

+ Scientist production of Breakthroughs is based on their activity level: instead of the 1 standard per anum they may also generate additional Breakthroughs when exposed to events as befitting the focus of their current research.

- Scientists can be kidnapped or assassinated by hostile agents, or even simply die in lab accidents.

- Scientists by demand certain privileges in exchange for their services, such as relative freedom of movement, access to information and perks as befitting national elites. They will rebuff onerous security measures or restrictions of their person and conspire against such unjust treatment.

Exploration

Exploration Assets

Important Facets

• Command
• Diplomacy
• Electronics
• Supply

Probes vs Explorers

Probe Traits

+ Probes are Cheap

- Probes cannot deal with Setbacks and Challenges during Exploration, they are simply destroyed instead.

Explorer Traits

+ Explorers can be made out of any non-generic (customizble) starship, granting them durability and problem-solving in proportion to the capabilities of their vessel.

+ Explorers can survive most Setbacks and bad Challenge outcomes at least once, at worst becoming occupied for an indeterminate amount of time.

- Explorers tend to compete with eachother, slowing progress and jumping claims if made to explore the same system.

Espionage

Espionage Assets

Important Facets

• Covert
• Diplomacy
• Electronics
• Underworld

Agencies vs Operatives

Agency Traits

+ Agencies are designed with purposes as broad or as narrow as the player desires, with no penalty either way.

+ Agencies can have ground forces (typically Light Battlegroups) assigned to them to bolster their capabilities.

+ Agencies easily replace casualties from failed missions and never face downtime from such events.

+ Agency branch offices give the Agency an extra ongoing mission apiece.

+ Agencies not tasked with missions are assumed to continue to act on their governing directives.

- Agencies are assumed to be acting with the interests of their governing state or non-state actor.

- Agencies are physically located in territory and so can be attacked. Additionally, Agencies are limited to acting within 1 jump of an active Headquarters or Branch Office.

- If given too broad a remit and too many forces, Agencies can outgrow their parameters and become a rogue state-within-a-state.

Operative Traits

+ Operatives are trained with specific purposes in mind, as defined by their upgrades making them powerful in particular contexts.

+ Operatives are deniable assets, they can be burned with impunity if caught for minimal (widespread) diplomatic consequences.

+ Operatives are cheap, generally costing less than a Branch Office even when highly upgraded.

+ Operatives get better with time, gaining an additional upgrade slot for every successful mission they accomplish.

+ Operatives are difficult to detect thanks to their small footprint.

- Operatives must physically travel to the location of their mission, which can be complicated by travel restrictions, blockades, heightened security, etc.

- Operatives work alone or in small teams, limiting the scope and scale of their actions.

- When they fail Operatives can become compromised to a permanent end, subverted by hostile agents or even go rogue if mistreated.