User:SarahNewton/Mindjammer

Mindjammer - Starblazer Adventures in the Second Age of Space is the far future transhuman science-fiction setting for the Starblazer Adventures role-playing game by Cubicle 7 Entertainment Ltd, announced in June 2009 and published in January 2010. Written by Sarah Newton, it's a 196-page softback supplement also available in PDF.

The Mindjammer Setting
The Mindjammer setting takes place in the distant future of our own planet Earth, and features an interstellar civilization called The New Commonality. Its themes mirror those in contemporary science-fiction, including transhumanism, artificial intelligence, and cultural conflict.

Mindjammer is notable for retaining the space opera feel of the Starblazer Adventures game, but "updating" it to accommodate developments in science-fiction since the 1980s, when the original Starblazer comics were published. It's also the only role-playing game to deal explicitly with the theme of "cultural conflict", the clash of cultures when a powerful interstellar civilization rediscovers lost colonies and alien cultures, and affects them profoundly and is affected in turn. Mindjammer provides full rules for generating cultures as "characters", and running "meme attacks" and "memetic combat" with them.

Mindjammer is a unique science-fiction setting, but deals with popular contemporary science-fiction themes which can also be found in the works of writers such as Iain Banks, Dan Simmons, and Peter Hamilton.

As a Starblazer Adventures setting, Mindjammer uses the award-winning FATE 3.0 rules system devised by Evil Hat Productions. It also adds new rules, such as the above-mentioned rules for cultural conflict, as well as new skill descriptions and stunts.

The Mindscape
One of the key aspects of the Mindjammer setting is the "Mindscape", a vast technological shared consciousness which stores the entire cultural heritage of the human race. It does not only store information, but also the memories of its participants, living and dead. All human beings are connected to the Mindscape via Mindscape Implants, and can upload their own memories as well as "remember" those memories experienced by other people - even dead ones. Mindjammer provides full rules for integrating the Mindscape into play.

The Mindjammer Series
In addition to the Mindjammer core book, Cubicle 7 have also announced a second book in the series, "Mindjammer Adventures", which is scheduled to be released in spring 2010.