Post by Null and Void on Dec 28, 2017 19:46:37 GMT
The 21st Century is when everything changes, we're told...
And it certainly has. The existence of extra-terrestrial life has been confirmed, at least as high up as national governments, to say nothing of the UN, and there is also a significant population of non-terrestrials living legitimately on Earth, even if hidden, in the person of the Zygons. The mandate of UNIT has never been more needed than now.
Site 247 is the official, dry, intentionally description-less code-name of a truly remarkable UNIT project base. It is located in a remote part of the Canadian wilderness along the border between Alaska and the Yukon Territories. Its a beautiful, unspoiled wild area, and about as far from civilization as you can imagine. Its isolation is by both necessity and design.
At some point, UNIT became aware of a Silurian science outpost there, and remarkably, came to terms with the handful of Silurians who manned the outpost (perhaps due to the influence of the negotiations at the end of The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood which would mean the setting would have to be post-2020AD.) The Silurian scientists were maintaining a sort of biological conservatory for the flora and fauna of their own era in underground caverns... meaning there were not only artificially maintained habitats and biomes containing Eocene rainforests, grasslands, swamps, and other environments, but also a broad sampling of stored seeds, DNA, and ... dinosaurs.
In order to protect the facility, UNIT established what is essentially a research base there, primarily made up of biologists, paleontologists, botanists and those interested in the Silurians or the contents of the outpost. Physicists, Chemists, and Engineers are on hand to study Silurian power sources and technology. Guarding them is a contingent of UNIT soldiers.
The original Silurian outpost has been nicknamed "The Petting Zoo" by the humans there, and it remains the heart of the base. The human portion resembles nothing more than a small cluster of nondescript, prefab buildings, and a strangely up-to-date heliport or landing facility.
UNIT also realized that they might also need a location for negotiations with other extra-terrestrials that was free from prying eyes, and so added to Site 247 what has been nicknamed "The Embassy".
"The Embassy" is nothing more than a conference center with an attached diplomatic barracks. It is staffed by United Nations appointed diplomats, translators, and other cultural experts, both Human AND Zygon, most of whom are bored to death, as there has thus far been little call for the Embassy to fulfill its purpose. However, it is a convenient location for the three known sentient species currently residing on Earth to come together and discuss matter.
Using Site 247:
At first glance, this seems like it would be a boring location to be stationed. One can imagine military personnel in particular bemoaning the remote assignment, the lack of nearby recreational facilities, and the apparent removal from where "all the action is."
However, consider the mix; Humans, Zygons, and Silurians... Military, Scientists, and diplomats... The oldest things on the planet, and the newest...
Tensions between the species are bound to be a little high, even if they are ostensibly allied with one another. Each race has its own secrets, their own cultures, their own agendas, and their own technology.
The presence of The Embassy affords an opportunity for some Alien intrigue. Sure, sitting down with someone is all well and good, but are the people at the table really trying to get along, or just feel out each other's weaknesses? What sort of beings might be brought to the table? Take your pick: Sycorax, Kraal, the "Martian" ambassadors from Ambasadors of Death, Slitheen or any one of a dozen others.
The presence of the Petting Zoo is there for a bit of fun with Dinosaurs... imagine one escaping into the surrounding wilderness, and the players have to track it down and recapture it... perhaps it goes and menaces some other remote settlement... or hunters.... or hikers... or all of the above.
Stories could be made of all sorts of secrets held by the plants and animals of the time: medicines, diseases, abilities... perhaps an Eocene disease begins to spread among the humans of the base? Or a modern disease threatens the dinosaurs?
What if there are nosy human conspiracy buffs that trek out to try and get the dirt on what exactly is going on at the "secret military base" in the Wilderness? Is it another Area 51?
For that matter, what if someone is trying to steal samples?
What happens if the unthinkable happens and Earth is actually invaded? As seen when the Daleks invaded in the Stolen Earth, many UNIT bases were targeted first... but would an invader bother with a remote research facility with no obvious significant military capacity beyond its garrison? Probably not, so Site 247 could potentially be the site where the resistance is lead from. The Diplomatic facility of the Embassy might be an ideal meeting place for coordinating resistance groups, and the already active presence of Zygons and Silurians might give them the upper hand they need.
Want more? Perhaps nearby there were the remains of Silurian spacecraft.... after all, the Dinosaurs on a Spaceship had to come from somewhere. Perhaps the base is excavating their remains and trying to get them activated again.
Personally, I see a lot of potential in this sort of setting and in this sort of campaign.
And it certainly has. The existence of extra-terrestrial life has been confirmed, at least as high up as national governments, to say nothing of the UN, and there is also a significant population of non-terrestrials living legitimately on Earth, even if hidden, in the person of the Zygons. The mandate of UNIT has never been more needed than now.
Site 247 is the official, dry, intentionally description-less code-name of a truly remarkable UNIT project base. It is located in a remote part of the Canadian wilderness along the border between Alaska and the Yukon Territories. Its a beautiful, unspoiled wild area, and about as far from civilization as you can imagine. Its isolation is by both necessity and design.
At some point, UNIT became aware of a Silurian science outpost there, and remarkably, came to terms with the handful of Silurians who manned the outpost (perhaps due to the influence of the negotiations at the end of The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood which would mean the setting would have to be post-2020AD.) The Silurian scientists were maintaining a sort of biological conservatory for the flora and fauna of their own era in underground caverns... meaning there were not only artificially maintained habitats and biomes containing Eocene rainforests, grasslands, swamps, and other environments, but also a broad sampling of stored seeds, DNA, and ... dinosaurs.
In order to protect the facility, UNIT established what is essentially a research base there, primarily made up of biologists, paleontologists, botanists and those interested in the Silurians or the contents of the outpost. Physicists, Chemists, and Engineers are on hand to study Silurian power sources and technology. Guarding them is a contingent of UNIT soldiers.
The original Silurian outpost has been nicknamed "The Petting Zoo" by the humans there, and it remains the heart of the base. The human portion resembles nothing more than a small cluster of nondescript, prefab buildings, and a strangely up-to-date heliport or landing facility.
UNIT also realized that they might also need a location for negotiations with other extra-terrestrials that was free from prying eyes, and so added to Site 247 what has been nicknamed "The Embassy".
"The Embassy" is nothing more than a conference center with an attached diplomatic barracks. It is staffed by United Nations appointed diplomats, translators, and other cultural experts, both Human AND Zygon, most of whom are bored to death, as there has thus far been little call for the Embassy to fulfill its purpose. However, it is a convenient location for the three known sentient species currently residing on Earth to come together and discuss matter.
Using Site 247:
At first glance, this seems like it would be a boring location to be stationed. One can imagine military personnel in particular bemoaning the remote assignment, the lack of nearby recreational facilities, and the apparent removal from where "all the action is."
However, consider the mix; Humans, Zygons, and Silurians... Military, Scientists, and diplomats... The oldest things on the planet, and the newest...
Tensions between the species are bound to be a little high, even if they are ostensibly allied with one another. Each race has its own secrets, their own cultures, their own agendas, and their own technology.
The presence of The Embassy affords an opportunity for some Alien intrigue. Sure, sitting down with someone is all well and good, but are the people at the table really trying to get along, or just feel out each other's weaknesses? What sort of beings might be brought to the table? Take your pick: Sycorax, Kraal, the "Martian" ambassadors from Ambasadors of Death, Slitheen or any one of a dozen others.
The presence of the Petting Zoo is there for a bit of fun with Dinosaurs... imagine one escaping into the surrounding wilderness, and the players have to track it down and recapture it... perhaps it goes and menaces some other remote settlement... or hunters.... or hikers... or all of the above.
Stories could be made of all sorts of secrets held by the plants and animals of the time: medicines, diseases, abilities... perhaps an Eocene disease begins to spread among the humans of the base? Or a modern disease threatens the dinosaurs?
What if there are nosy human conspiracy buffs that trek out to try and get the dirt on what exactly is going on at the "secret military base" in the Wilderness? Is it another Area 51?
For that matter, what if someone is trying to steal samples?
What happens if the unthinkable happens and Earth is actually invaded? As seen when the Daleks invaded in the Stolen Earth, many UNIT bases were targeted first... but would an invader bother with a remote research facility with no obvious significant military capacity beyond its garrison? Probably not, so Site 247 could potentially be the site where the resistance is lead from. The Diplomatic facility of the Embassy might be an ideal meeting place for coordinating resistance groups, and the already active presence of Zygons and Silurians might give them the upper hand they need.
Want more? Perhaps nearby there were the remains of Silurian spacecraft.... after all, the Dinosaurs on a Spaceship had to come from somewhere. Perhaps the base is excavating their remains and trying to get them activated again.
Personally, I see a lot of potential in this sort of setting and in this sort of campaign.