The SunRiders [update Jul 15]

[Sakurazaki]

Sugoi! Can't wait to see this one!

[LVUER]

Sorry, Samu-kun, but I can't hear the voice samples.

And it seems it's live feed (like YouTube) and my crawling internet connection really kills me (10 seconds lag every 3 seconds play).

Could you make the link to the files (download the files), if you don't mind?

[Samu-kun]

Mmm... Actually, seeing how it's not that large of a file, I'll try uploading it for download on this message board. :3

As for your question in the Art Dumpage topic, I'll just answer it here since it'd probably be too off topic if I got into a discussion about my game there. XD

Samu-kun, I've been wanted to ask...
How much science do you want to use in SunRiders?
Like the spaceships, will people floats in the ships (enabling the space efficiency)? Or they magically stick to the ground? Or there is a gravity generator 'thing' stick to the ship (things that always spinning but I think it's a bad idea for warship).

Well, most of you already know that have a particular distaste for scientists. XD I mean, I'm one of the few people in the world who actually trust politicans more than scientists. :3 But with that said, like most other people in the world, I've taken some introductory courses in physics and chemistry, so I have some idea of the basics of science.

First, there are the obvious rules of physics that must be broken just because this is a mecha. It's a given that there will be massive explosions in the vacuum of space, lasers that can be dodged, and faster than light travel. That much has become a staple of the genre.

But I honestly write more along the lines of fantasy rather than science fiction. I don't really think science is something that should be observed too religiously. Also, I absolutely hate techno babble. My least favorite scene in science fiction is when everything appears to be going wrong and it seems like the good guys are on the brink of defeat, but at the last second, somebody comes up with a brilliant plan to "inverse the polarity" or "re-route power from auxiliary systems" and everything gets magically fixed again. Baaaddd plot devicee. >_<;

What I generally do is, I write my own rules of physics and make sure that they are uniformly followed throughout the universe. For example, let's just take the SunRider into consideration.



In the universe we're talking about, she's one of the smaller ships. We have seven ship class specifications based on their total size. In order of increasing size, they are corvettes, frigates, destroyers, cruisers, battle cruisers, battleships, and dreadnoughts. The SunRider is a destroyer-class, so she's still pretty small compared to most other ships.

Up front, we have her most powerful weapon, the four vanguard cannons. These cannons, as you can probably tell, are not designed to be used on a destroyer-class. The vanguards are a weapon that is only mounted on front line battleship-classes and packs enough firepower to put almost any ship in the universe out of commission. Standard laws of physics would say that the instant the SunRider fires a single round, the cannons should just blow off or send the entire ship flying backwards. XD So I've just ignored the laws of physics (I think I gave it spacetime field distorters which make the recoil rails three times longer or something. Ask Chigara how it works, not me. XD) and just constructed my own laws governing its use. To make it so that it can't be used excessively, it's become the final shot weapon. To fire the cannon, all three of the mechas carried by the SunRider (ie. Ikkari, Chigara, and Asaga) must triangulate the enemy's location by laser pointing at the target for five straight seconds. So the goal of most battles will be to launch all three mechas, somehow defeat the enemy mechas protecting the enemy's capital ship before the SunRider is sunk, triangulate the enemy capital ship, and finish the battle with a single vanguard round. :3 When the rules of physics do not work, I just ignore them and create my own rules to replace them.

Now you absolutely must not ask me about the mechas because I can't spoil any details about their special abilities. >:3 Hahhh...

[LVUER]

Mmm... Actually, seeing how it's not that large of a file, I'll try uploading it for download on this message board. :3

Thanks ^_^

As for your question in the Art Dumpage topic, I'll just answer it here since it'd probably be too off topic if I got into a discussion about my game there. XD
First, there are the obvious rules of physics that must be broken just because this is a mecha. It's a given that there will be massive explosions in the vacuum of space, lasers that can be dodged, and faster than light travel. That much has become a staple of the genre.

Lasers couldn't be dodged (since it's faster than light), you need Superman to avoid them. In the other hand, beam and plasma could be avoided since they travel slower than sound (you could actually see them coming but one hit and you are history).

But I honestly write more along the lines of fantasy rather than science fiction. I don't really think science is something that should be observed too religiously. Also, I absolutely hate techno babble. My least favorite scene in science fiction is when everything appears to be going wrong and it seems like the good guys are on the brink of defeat, but at the last second, somebody comes up with a brilliant plan to "inverse the polarity" or "re-route power from auxiliary systems" and everything gets magically fixed again. Baaaddd plot devicee. >_<;

What I generally do is, I write my own rules of physics and make sure that they are uniformly followed throughout the universe.

So can I assume the people in the spaceship "magically" sticks to the floor? Even though there is no artificial-gravity engine (and no scene where people starts floating suddenly when heavy damage occurs and some engineer says "Artificial gravity failed!" ^_^ )

For example, let's just take the SunRider into consideration.

In the universe we're talking about, she's one of the smaller ships. We have seven ship class specifications based on their total size. In order of increasing size, they are corvettes, frigates, destroyers, cruisers, battle cruisers, battleships, and dreadnoughts. The SunRider is a destroyer-class, so she's still pretty small compared to most other ships.

Up front, we have her most powerful weapon, the four vanguard cannons. These cannons, as you can probably tell, are not designed to be used on a destroyer-class. The vanguards are a weapon that is only mounted on front line battleship-classes and packs enough firepower to put almost any ship in the universe out of commission. Standard laws of physics would say that the instant the SunRider fires a single round, the cannons should just blow off or send the entire ship flying backwards. XD So I've just ignored the laws of physics (I think I gave it spacetime field distorters which make the recoil rails three times longer or something. Ask Chigara how it works, not me. XD) and just constructed my own laws governing its use. To make it so that it can't be used excessively, it's become the final shot weapon. To fire the cannon, all three of the mechas carried by the SunRider (ie. Ikkari, Chigara, and Asaga) must triangulate the enemy's location by laser pointing at the target for five straight seconds. So the goal of most battles will be to launch all three mechas, somehow defeat the enemy mechas protecting the enemy's capital ship before the SunRider is sunk, triangulate the enemy capital ship, and finish the battle with a single vanguard round. :3 When the rules of physics do not work, I just ignore them and create my own rules to replace them.

About the same thing cross in my minds when I was thinking about SunRiders, only in my mind, SunRiders is equipped with Particle Buster, the most forbidden (it clearly violates "Warfare Permitted Weapons Treaty article clause I" and classified as Category I weapons) and strongest weapon available for strongest Battleship. The particles able to corrodes any material and barriers while the beam itself could penetrate just about anything. Of course TEARS-01 wields miniature version of this buster.

Since this is a beam weapon, there is no recoil. But the heat generated from one shot and the energy required burdens SunRiders A LOT! Like routing all energy to particle buster, opening all vents and barriers (to excess heat), etc.

Sorry for my babbling but this is just my wild-imagination (let's say Fanation or Fan-Imagination ^_^ ).

[Samu-kun]

The United Earth Alliance

Headquarters: Unity Station, in orbit around Earth
Member States: Earth and 100 off-world colonies
Leaders: President Alexander Luna, Prime Minister Ava Crescentia, Chief Justice Johnathan Hamilton
Establishment: Alliance Constitution, 2182

The United Earth Alliance is a economic, research, and military alliance between Earth and the 100 of the most affluent colonies of the galaxy. Following the widespread destruction of the first Intergalactic War, it became clear that a new galactic government was necessary in order to administrate the numerous colonies launched by the Earth during the early 22th century. Thus, it was agreed upon by the United States, the EU, Russia, China, Japan, and their respective colonies that they would unify under a single global government known as the Earth Alliance. While the early decades of the Alliance were marked with bitter conflict and it became a common practice for member states to frequently resign over them, once independent colonies rivaling the grandeur of Earth, particularly the New Empire of Tropicolis, began to develop, it became clear that the Earth nations would either have to set aside their differences or else lose their dominant position in the galaxy. As the years passed, the Alliance eventually grew to encompass virtually the entire globe, as well as 100 other off-world colonies.

Organization
There are four levels of government in the Alliance.

• The Galactic Government - An unthinkable concept for those living in the 21st century, this is the highest level of government in the Alliance. It is primarily responsible for setting a uniform trade and foreign policy throughout the Alliance. Wielding ultimate power, it has the final say on all matters within Alliance territory.
• The Federal Government - While individual nation states such as the United States still exist during this era, it can be said that they have lost the majority of their sovereignty as a direct consequence of joining the Alliance. In practice however, the federal government still plays a large role in shaping the lives of its citizens, especially in the realm of social and cultural matters.
• The Regional Government - These are the regional/state/territorial governments set up by the federal government.
• The Local Government - Finally, individual townships have their own government that deals with strictly local issues.

Branches
There are three branches of the government in the Alliance.

• The Presidency - Although in theory the president wields no more power than the other two branches of government, in practice however, he (or she) is widely viewed as the most powerful being in the galaxy. He is commander in chief of the military and has the power to veto legislation and appoint justices to the Galactic Court. He also forms various departments that control the day to day running of government. He is elected by direct popular vote.
• The Galactic Assembly - A bicameral forum of 1000 senators from across the galaxy, the Assembly is the chief law making body of the Alliance. The Upper House is composed of 101 senators, one from each off-world colony in the Alliance and a single presiding officer from Earth. Meanwhile, membership in the Lower House is appropriated based on the population of each nation state. The head of the Assembly is the leader of the current incumbent party and is addressed as the Prime Minister.
• The Galactic Court - The highest court of the galaxy, it rules on all cases in which an individual, organization, or a member state has sued the Alliance. In addition, individual cases may be reviewed by the Galactic Court at its discretion.

The Political Parties
The Alliance operates on a two party system. The first past the post plurality system is utilized by law in every member state and makes it all but impossible for most third party candidates to win office.

In addition, because the galactic level of government rarely deals directly with most social issues and instead focuses primarily on issues of trade and foreign policy, the traditional left and right wing structure of political association is seldom relied upon. Instead a new system has been created.

Political Association at the Galactic Level

• Outer Rim - Individuals referred to be "the outer rim" are strongly pro-colonial and threaten succession from the Alliance if Earth does met their demands. They want all taxes on colonial goods to be eliminated and favor a strong fleet capable of protecting the colonies. However, although they are certainly the most vocal of citizens, no party on the outer rim has ever won public office in decades.
• The Progress Party - One of the two major parties of the Alliance, the Progress Party mainly appeals to colonists. They favor lowering trade tariffs to allow more competition between Earth-based and off-world businesses. In addition, they favor a strong coalition military to keep the borders of the Alliance secure.
• The Universalist Party - One of the two major parties of the Alliance, the Universalist Party appeals primarily to those living on Earth. They favor increasing protective tariffs to keep Earth businesses safe from off-world competition. In addition, they support the creation of a small strike force military directly under Earth's control that will be capable of fighting quick lightning wars without the interference of the colonies.
• Inner Core - Individuals referred to be "the inner core" are staunchly pro-Earth and threaten succession from the Alliance if the colonies do not follow suit with Earth's decisions. They want a protective tariff to be raised on Earth to protect home businesses from off world competition and are extremely xenophobic of other off-world citizens. However, although they are certainly the most vocal of citizens, no party on the inner core has ever won public office in decades.

There are also a handful of other single issue based parties, such as the

• Machinist Party - A political association of AI constructs, sentient mechanical beings, and organic allies who favor expansion of robotic rights. In particular, they seek to eliminate all laws prohibiting different molecular structure marriages.
• The Genesis Party - A party that believes all technology is evil and favors halting research on genetic modification and cloning. They are also staunchly against the consumption of DNA.
• The Technocratic Party - A party that believes that technology can be used to achieve transcendence beyond the mortal realm. They favor removing restrictions on the responsible use of science and marijuana.

However, none of these parties have ever won public office since the creation of the Alliance.

On the federal, regional, and local levels however, the traditional left and right wing system of political association is still heavily relied upon. In general, the politics of the 25th century is little different from the politics of the 21st century, with much media frenzy, mud slinging, and assorted other shenanigans. In fact, with the expansion of the holonet, it can be said that if anything, it has gotten much worse.

[Samu-kun]

I feel somewhat repetitive saying this again, but like I said a few months ago, I'd love to have an original soundtrack for this game, so this is a small advertisement for musicians. For the better or worse, this game's going to take much longer than I've anticipated, so even though I'm not in desperate need of a full soundtrack right now, it'd be good if there was one talented musician with an interest in working on this project.

Also, a message for Chronoluminaire: Sorry I haven't been updating you lately with the story. >_<; I ended up throwing out the script out and rewriting 90% of it from scratch, so it took me some time to figure out a better plot. I can understand if other responsibilities have come up now and you're no longer able to edit the script. But if you're still interested in editing the story, I have over 110 pages of new material ready
for you now. :3 Just give me the word and I'll send it over your way. (And I promise I won't ever do a total script rewrite again from now on! ^_^;;;)

Also, I better give an update on the status of the voice acting. Right now, I seem to have lost track of all my VAs, but never fear, I made sure to grab all their emails the first thing I got them, so I know where they all are at. >:3 Unfortunately though, managing a team of 10 VAs on top of making a visual novel turned out to be just too much work for me to handle right now, so I've been holding off on the voice acting until after I've finished the script and the art. The logistics of it are kind of crazy, so let's wait until things have settled down a bit before worrying about the character voices. :3

Also, I better provide more job information on the musician.

If you're new here or understandably don't want to read through 150+ posts to figure out just what exactly this project is, then here's the skinny.

Genre: Real mecha ren'ai visual novel
Plot Summary: Kaito Jirou, a young space merchant, inadvertently becomes the captain of a top of the line warship, the SunRider, and must save the galaxy from impending doom. Between fighting a small army of enemy mechas, navigating through asteroid fields, and of course, saving the galaxy, he must also win the heart of one of the following girls: Asaga Okashi, an enthusiastic and energetic girl who remains smiling at even the most darkest of moments, Ikkari Ichinaya, a tsundere ace pilot, Chigara Akahadi, a shy, bookish mechanic, Ava Crescentia, a young, if inexperienced politician, Cosette Cosmos, a hateful space terrorist, or the shipboard AI.
Job Requirements: You must be able to create orchestral, symphonic, and cinematic music. In addition, you must be willing to devote a considerable amount of time for this project, as I require a full OST, with roughly 30 minutes of music. (This is an off the top of the my head approximation and subject to change. ^_^;;;) The music will mostly be fitting for a real mecha series, so there must be a lot of heavy bombastic battle music, heroic marches, and such. (ei. Star Wars, Star Trek, Macross Frontier, Gundam 00) In addition, there needs to be some more light hearted typical visual novel pieces for the ren'ai scenes. Finally, you must be self motivated and not prone to giving up or losing focus! This project will take a long time to complete, so it'll be a waste of all of our time if you can only provide me with a half complete OST. We're in this to finish it, that's just the message I want to get through. Also, since I will be very, very busy with writing, drawing art, 3D modeling, and programming, I won't be able to assist you as much as I'd like, so you'll have to be able to motivate yourself to work without me reminding you every now and then.

But I can promise that this project will be awesome when it's finished. :3 I'm extremely happy with how well the art's coming along for this project, and the script's already well on its way (around 33 000 words right now), so even though the development cycle will be full of work and effort, the final product should be well worth it. I wouldn't be working on this project right now if I didn't believe that. :3 Also, Haruhi will reward you in heaven. *nodnod*

[Nicol Armarfi]

I'd be willing to help out with that soundtrack . This is a very interesting idea for a visual novel, so if at all possible I'd like to contribute to it as much as I can. I have no problem with writing that amount of music, as I've written significantly more for a project--and in general--in the past. I've also been trained in writing orchestral/symphonic scores, with cinematic scores being one of my top influences =o. Anyway, if you're interested you could PM me, contact me through one of the ways listed on my profile, or find me on #renpy .

[chronoluminaire]

Also, a message for Chronoluminaire: Sorry I haven't been updating you lately with the story. >_<; I ended up throwing out the script out and rewriting 90% of it from scratch, so it took me some time to figure out a better plot. I can understand if other responsibilities have come up now and you're no longer able to edit the script. But if you're still interested in editing the story, I have over 110 pages of new material ready
for you now. :3 Just give me the word and I'll send it over your way. (And I promise I won't ever do a total script rewrite again from now on! ^_^;;;)

That's fine. Go for it - send me it either via email or via a PM here, and I'll get onto it (although obviously it may take me a little time! )

Also, I better give an update on the status of the voice acting. Right now, I seem to have lost track of all my VAs, but never fear, I made sure to grab all their emails the first thing I got them, so I know where they all are at. >:3 Unfortunately though, managing a team of 10 VAs on top of making a visual novel turned out to be just too much work for me to handle right now, so I've been holding off on the voice acting until after I've finished the script and the art. The logistics of it are kind of crazy, so let's wait until things have settled down a bit before worrying about the character voices. :3

I kinda guessed this was the case. I think this is a fair thing to do, but I really think you should let the VAs know. They volunteered, you cast them, they may have done a first chapter, and then... I don't think much happened from then on. At least, I haven't heard anything. (In fact, looking on the forum, I see an unanswered question from Boki asking what's going on.) So just drop an email to all the VAs explaining the situation, and saying you'll send another email when you're ready for them to start recording.

[Samu-kun]

I kinda guessed this was the case. I think this is a fair thing to do, but I really think you should let the VAs know. They volunteered, you cast them, they may have done a first chapter, and then... I don't think much happened from then on. At least, I haven't heard anything. (In fact, looking on the forum, I see an unanswered question from Boki asking what's going on.) So just drop an email to all the VAs explaining the situation, and saying you'll send another email when you're ready for them to start recording.

Oh sorry, I thought I already sent everyone emails telling them to hold off on making voice recordings for now. Thanks for reminding me, Chrono. :3 I'll get emails sent off right away.