[ICON] Species Database and Antedean Template

[redwood973]

Species Database for ICON.

As some of you may know I am making a species database for the ICON system. While it was not my original intent, I am looking into making it available to the public. But first I need a clarification: Adobe is not a word processing program? I would need to create the database on my word program then save it to Adobe? How would I go about revising and polishing the work once it was already saved to Adobe if it is not a word processing program?


Antedean Template

This is just speculation and guesses on my part (except for the attributes section which comes from TNG: Corebook). Comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated!

[Page One]

Antede III

Star System Data
---System Name: Antede
---Affiliation: Independent
---System Type: G3 v [bright, yellow dwarf]
---Inhabited Planets: Antede III ([Class M]).
---Other Planets: Five other planets, one a gas giant.
---Other Stellar Objects: A typical star system, Antede has many satellites, including planets, comets, asteroids, and other spatial debris. An asteroid belt orbits between Antede III and Antede IV; and there is an average Oort Cloud and Kuiper Belt.
---Artificial Objects: The system is void of artificial satellites or habitations.

Planetary Data
---Class: M
---Position in System: 3
---Distance from Star: 1.7 AU [254,155,100 km]
---Planetary System: Antede has three moons.
---Planetary Size
------Diameter: 15,042 km
------Equatorial Circumference: 47,259 km
------Total Surface Area: 710,869,878 sq km
---Planetary Conditions
------Gravity: 1.2 g
------Year and Day: 100 d/44 h
------Atmosphere: Nitrogen-oxygen, density 1.15 bars [thick].
------Hydrosphere: 80.5%
------Climate: A planet of tumultuous oceans and endless storms. Few features mark its surface, save for a few islands. The climate of Antede III is always thudery and rainy with high winds. [11c]

Lifeform Data
---Sapient Species: Antedean
------Population: 3.5 billion
------Tech. Index: Level Five/Six [Atomic/Antimatter]
------Government: Democracy
------Culture: Closed but peaceful
------Affiliation: Independent
---Animal: Sparse
---Vegetation: Moderate
---Aquatic: Extensive


[Page Two]

[Picture of an Antedean]

Appearance and Physiology
An icthyohumanoid (fish-like) species, scale tones range from bluish-white to purplish-silver. Antedeans have no body hair but have head-fins. On their chin grow two long tentacles. They have large eyes and webbed hands.

Although the Antedeans are capable of spaceflight, they find space travel disorienting and extremely unpleasant, and survive the ordeal by entering a self-induced catatonic state. Their half-shut eyes fully open upon awakening, a process that takes several hours. Upon revival at the end of the voyage, Antedeans require large amounts of food to replenish their bodies.

Society
Seen by very few Terrans, Antedeans are introverted with little outside interests, very few ever leave their homeworld.

Living in cities beneath the wide oceans of their nearly landless planet, their level of technology is surprising considering their limited resources and barely amphibious lifestyle.

Antedean culture centers on their environment and communities. Practical and conservative they are a pragmatic people, unwilling to trust or embrace new ideas or lofty concepts. Despite their high level of technology they prefer simpler ways over mechanically based advancements, which they believe conflict with the balance of nature.

Living much as they did a thousand years ago, simple fish farming and kelp cultivation are the planets major industries, universal material for tools is stone, supplemented by bone and shell.

The visual arts are practiced with great vigor by all people of Antede, but little evidence of their prehistory has survived, as the materials used—wood, ochres, shells, feathers, and clay—are short-lived. Nevertheless, Antede is enormously rich in the arts of sculpture, and architecture, as well as in such highly refined crafts of pottery, weaving, and matting.

There is no marriage, and reproduction is decided based upon the needs of the community and resources available to support an addition to the population. The community raises the children and as a result no Antedean knows who their relatives really are.

Political Structure
Ruled by a senate (the leader of which is the planetary Prime Minister), communities of no more than ten thousand individuals are scattered over Antede. Elected representatives are chosen every year to govern these communities in accordance with ecological law.

A small group of progressive government leaders were able to gain enough support to petition for Federation membership, but a resistance movement disrupted the negotiations and eventually reestablished less progressive leadership within the government.

Antedean Template

Attributes
---Fitness 1 [4]
------Strength (-1)
------Vitality (-2)
---Coordination 1 [5]
---Intellect 2 [5]
---Presence 2 [5]
---Psi 0 [5]

Skills
---Artistic Expression (choose) 2 (3) OR
---Craft (choose) 2 (3)
---Athletics (Diving) 2 (3)
------(Swimming) (4)
---Culture (Antedean) 2 (3)
---History (Antedean) 1 (2)
---Language
------Antedean (2)
---Persuasion (Storytelling) 1 (2)
---Planetary Survival (Ocean) 1 (2)
---Science, Planetary (Hydrology) 1 (3)
------(Oceanography) (3)
---World Knowledge (Antede III) 1 (2)

Typical Traits
---Intolerant (Non-Icthyohumans) (-3)

[Lancer]

Originally posted by redwood973
As some of you may know I am making a species database for the ICON system. While it was not my original intent, I am looking into making it available to the public. But first I need a clarification: Adobe is not a word processing program? I would need to create the database on my word program then save it to Adobe? How would I go about revising and polishing the work once it was already saved to Adobe if it is not a word processing program?

Nope, it's not a word processor in the sense that you could just open a blank page and start typing on it.
OTOH, if you create an Acrobat file out of a word processor you should be able to use Acrobat to make some changes to the text (font size, correcting typos, etc.).
Take note that (AFAIK) you will need Acrobat Writer to actually save any of those changes and you better make sure you have embedded your fonts in the Acrobat document. It may work if haven't, but I not sure about it and you better not count on it.

As for more complex changes ("revising and polishing") I wouldn't try it in Acrobat. Better make sure you get it the way you want it before you convert to Acrobat or redo complete pages, convert to Acrobat and replace the original page in the Acrobat file with the new one.


Which reminds me that I still need to give you some feedback on your layout. Might as well do it here:
Looks okay, but IMHO you should make the subheaders bold or underlined and add a little space before each subheader (about 6pts. should be enough).
If you make the subheaders bold you might want to make the primary header a little larger (i.e. increased font size) as well, to better distinguish between the different types of headers.

Otherwise I think the text layout is fine.

[redwood973]

Is their any other programs like Adobe but allows for eaiser use? (Ease of use is not the only issue. I have been checking into this and found that Adobe is expensive, considering I may only use it for this one project.)

I can't thank-you enough Lancer for the feedback. I played around with the sheet a bit and I like the look of the subheaders in bold, which had never occured to me. I increased the primary header font size a bit to compensate.

One thing I did not understand:

. . .and add a little space before each subheader (about 6pts. should be enough).

The only think that shows measures by points is the fonts. Did you mean I should tab the subheader over by six spaces?

Do you still have the sheets I sent? Would you be willing to take the time to adjust what you recomend needs adjusting and send it back to me? (Not a problem if time is an issue. )

Can I get your honest opinion (I'm a big boy so don't worry about my feelings). You have seen the sample sheets. Is this a good idea that I should continue with? Is it a good idea, but scrap the sample sheet and start over? If you think I should continue do you have any suggestions or ideas (not only about layout, but the project in general)?

[Lancer]

Originally posted by redwood973
The only think that shows measures by points is the fonts. Did you mean I should tab the subheader over by six spaces?

Ah no, not exactly. I meant adding a little space between the subheader and the preceeding paragraph, i.e. put them a little further apart vertically.
The programms I know give you the option to choose if you want to define this distance in points or mm; I just prefer to think about these things in points, not centimeters or inches.

As for going over the sheet and sending it back to you: No problem, but I think the text layout looks okay, so don't expect any major changes.

[Owen E Oulton]

As you may know by now, I am taking over the ICON content currently on the TrekRPG.Net as the focus shifts here to CODA. I would be willing to host the material on the new ICON site, Memory ICON. I have Adobe and would be also willing to take your word processor output in either WordPerfect 9 or Word 2000 and run it through Adobe to create the PDF. Just format it in your word processor to look exactly the way you want it, ZIP it up and send it to me by E-mail.

[redwood973]

D'oh! Line spacing. Der. [Please stand-by as Redwood reconnects the leads to his brain.]

Thanks for taking the time to format and resend the sheet back. That will be a great assist, even if it is just a few touch ups. Please if you have any other ideas let me know!

Owen thanks for the offer to assist. I would not be able to do this without your assistance. Thanks! I would love to make something to keep the ICON system going for those that still use it, but I am not sure I have the ability to produce such a game aid. But I am hell bent on giving it a shot.

I have WordPerfect 10 Version 10. Will that still work?

[Owen E Oulton]

WordPerfect is my preferred working format, but I've only got version 9. 10 should be able to save in earlier formats. If you're using any non-standard fonts, please include the .TTF in the .ZIP, or incluse a URL where I can dl them.