The Gorn: Alliance and Empire

Would you have objected if the person had merely described the Gorn background material that's presented in SFU without identifying it as such? In short, are you objecting to this because its different from what you suggested, or because it's related to SFU? Or for some other reason?

If your objection is because it's related to SFU: You mention consistency with canon. I've found that, despite (or possibly because of) the lack of enforcement of consistency by Paramount, SFU is (overall) at least as consistent with TOS as TNG and its spin-offs are.

Personally, I don't see a problem with people posting alternatives to your ideas; I, for one, can see possibilities in a setting where the Federation and the Gorn used to have a relationship similar to what the Federation and the Klingons currently have, for instance. This would even mesh with the Movie Era fairly well; ISTR members of a Gorn-like race appearing in Star Trek IV, at Kirk's court martial. A Federation/Gorn alliance during that era would fit in with this beautifully.

What I object to is every time I try to create something for the Gorn, there almost seems to be an automatic response of "Well, SFB has stuff on Gorn history" or "Gorn ships in SFB are like this" without actually providing their alternatives. Since I don't have SFB or PD, and I certainly don't read minds, the information is useless and gets annoying after a while.

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Originally posted by dataweaver
Personally, I don't see a problem with people posting alternatives to your ideas; I, for one, can see possibilities in a setting where the Federation and the Gorn used to have a relationship similar to what the Federation and the Klingons currently have, for instance. This would even mesh with the Movie Era fairly well; ISTR members of a Gorn-like race appearing in Star Trek IV, at Kirk's court martial. A Federation/Gorn alliance during that era would fit in with this beautifully.

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I can't speak for Sea Tyger here, dataweaver, but for myself, I don't object to people posting alternatives to my ideas. What I do object to is people shanghaiing a thread I started to post those alternatives, because generally those alternatives are posted in such a way as to say, "Well, your ideas aren't good enough; this is how ADB does it in their Star Fleet Universe."

This pisses me off something fierce. You don't like my ideas, fine; start another thread that says something like "Alternate Gorn Concepts" or whatever. It hasn't happened to me much here, but there are a number of threads on the Shadowrun forums I hang out at that turned out this way.

It seems to me that this is where Sea Tyger's objections come from. In my experience with him, he's not been averse to alternate views on his material. It's been the tone that he's not doing it right because someone else did it another way that seems to bother him.

ICOCBW; YMMV.

Based on Erik's excellent write up on the Gorn, here is an alternative, tweaked to my vision of their history and culture.

The Gorn

Personality
As with their powerful stature, the Gorn personality is based on the rule of strength. Even their starships follow the "push-hard-until-it moves" design philosophy, resulting in massive, but effective vessels. Sometimes brutish and unsubtle, Gorn prefer a straightforward approach to social interaction. Only in the last century have the Gorn learned the nuances of modern diplomacy. It is an art that many members of the species have yet to be comfortable with.

Physical Description
The Gorn are large, powerful reptilian humanoids native to the second planet of the R'zzana system. Descended from dinosaur-like creatures, the Gorn are strong and hardy, capable of amazing physical feats. They are also somewhat hampered by their inability to adapt to a wide range of climates, and suffer in regions of extreme cold.

Homeworld
Senzzarn is a large, lush, tropical world that has little change in climate throughout the year. The planet is home to several predators, which forced the Gorn to develop complex hunting tactics to survive.

Culture
The Gorn developed on a tropical world with several large predators, where competition for prey was fierce. They learned to be crafty and methodical to survive, studying their competitors' habits as well as the habits of their prey.

This competitive nature passed on through generations, creating a strong culture that placed the clan above everything. Instead of forming governments under chieftains and monarchs, individual clans in a region allied with each other for mutual defense and trade. Clan guzzaren (archons) consulted each other on policy that affected the alliance, but remained mostly independent otherwise. It was this early cooperation that would eventually form the basis of a world government in 2179.

Language: Gorn.

Clan Names: In normal conversation, the Gorn only use their given names. However, each Gorn is a member of one of hundreds of clans, and use them in official transactions and their many rituals. Clan names include: Aztagra, Bazzan'r, Bez, Gezz, Goru, Hovh'rastan, M'gara, Mugra, Ssenza, Suzzaru, Vh'magro, Zzurtagan

Male Names: G'senzza, Morza, Ragaran, Ss'ta, Vhazz, Zz'tag

Female Names: Baruzo, G'nzza, G'ssor, Hohva, Mezzat, Sesset, Tusso


Favored Profession: Any. A Gorn's clan often determines what profession he or she enters.

Species Adjustments: Strength +3, Vitality +2, Presence -2. Reptilian Gorn physiology makes them significantly tougher than Humans, and their great size and high muscle density grants them much greater strength. However, Gorn relate poorly to other species in general, and sometimes even to other Gorn outside highly ritualized social contexts.

Species Abilities
Armor: Gorn have an extremely thick, hide-like skin that provides some measure of natural armor. This armor deflects 6 points of damage from each attack.

Bonus Edge -- High Pain Threshold: Gorn skin is less enervated than that of most species; they literally feel less pain. Injury penalties for Gorn characters are reduced by 2, as it is usually the physical impairment and not the pain of injuries that most affects them.

Extraordinary Chemoreception: Gorn have exceptionally keen chemoreceptive ability (especially olfaction, but also taste to a lesser degree) and can detect trace chemical signatures with a Perception attribute test as a free action. Range increments for Gorn chemoreception are Perception x10/Perception x100/Perception x1000/+100 meters.

Bonus Flaw -- Intolerant (Romulans): The Gorn and the Romulans simply don't like each other, and all Gorn must spend 1 Courage Point to attempt any social interaction with their species enemy.

Bonus Flaw -- Slow: High muscle mass and density and a lower metabolic rate give Gorn measurably slower reaction speeds than species of mammalian descent. Gorn suffer a -2 penalty to Quickness reaction tests.

Bonus Flaw -- Thin-Blooded: Gorn are not homeothermic, and have great difficulty coping with cold temperatures. Gorn characters suffer a -5 penalty to Stamina reaction penalties to resist the effects of extreme cold.

Aging
Child (0-8), Young (9-15), Adult (16-125), Old (126-200), Very Old (201+)

Pick Breakdown: Strength (15), Vitality (10), Presence (-10), Armor (6), High Pain Threshold (2), Chemoreception (3), Intolerant 3 (Romulans) (-6), Slow (-2), Thin-Blooded (-2). Total: 16.