Sapphire and Steel Have Been Assigned - available now!

[misterharry]

Sapphire and Steel Have Been Assigned! In this sourcebook, you'll find background information on elemental agents, stats for those from the TV series including Sapphire and Steel themselves, notes on creating new elemental characters of your own, descriptions and stats for irregularities (Sapphire and Steel's foes), guidelines on how to design assignments (adventures), a chapter on each of the TV stories including advice on how to run them for your players, a handful of adventure seeds and an appendix of speculative stats for other known elemental agents.



Sapphire and Steel Have Been Assigned! is an unofficial sourcebook and can be downloaded for free from here. Enjoy!

[grinch]

Lovely stuff misterharry! The stats for other possible Elemental Agents was a nice touch as well. Diamond and Iron are particular favourites of mine.

I mentioned it on another thread but I would be curious to see if anyone does use the Irregulaties in their Doctor Who games. It would be very easy for entities such as the Shape or the Darkness to wipe out a UNIT or group of regular investigators. Not to mention, how a Time Lord PC would fare against them.

[thewarchief]

Nice!

[tampahawke]

Thank you for this. Not familiar with this show, but the writeup looks intriguing enough to consider inserting into a game.

[Catsmate]

Excellent work, especially given the nature of the series, not an easy setting to adapt.


Wrt one element (pun intended) I may be able to help.

The reference to there being twelve transuranic elements isn't that uncommon in the period. There was a lengthy controversy over the discovery, and naming¹, of element 105 (which would be the thirteenth transuranic element) lasting from the first discovery in 1970 (probably), through the "Transfermium Working Group" formed by IUPAC² and IUPAP³ in 1985 to determine a resolution to the issue.
Naturally this didn't work; the report, in 1993, wasn't universally accepted.
Several years of committees and meetings led to 105 being eventually named dubnium⁴.  

Of course now we're up to 118, so there are sixteen transuranics.

And, as a further complication (and more chemical geekery) there's the "Island of stability" (wiki) around element 126 where the elements might be more stable than most of recently synthesised isotopes.

It's entirely possible that one of the S&S writers consulted a textbook or encyclopedia in 1979 and, not being a chemist, got the impression that element 105 wasn't definitely accepted as existing.



1. Originally the name hahnium was proposed at Lawrence-Livermore and later bohrium, then nielsbohrium, by Dubna. Later joliotium was suggested by IUPAC.
2. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, the nearest thing chemistry has to a global body
3. The International Union of Pure and Applied Physics, the nearest thing physics has to a global body.
4. Though the Yanks didn't stick to this until papers started to be rejected over this.

[dam]

Thanks for this looks like another great addition to the xpanded universe. Would it be too cheeky to ask if your working on anything else ?

[misterharry]

Jan 4, 2024 11:09:17 GMT Catsmate said:

The reference to there being twelve transuranic elements isn't that uncommon in the period. There was a lengthy controversy over the discovery, and naming¹, of element 105 (which would be the thirteenth transuranic element) lasting from the first discovery in 1970 (probably), through the "Transfermium Working Group" formed by IUPAC² and IUPAP³ in 1985 to determine a resolution to the issue.
Naturally this didn't work; the report, in 1993, wasn't universally accepted.
Several years of committees and meetings led to 105 being eventually named dubnium⁴.  

Of course now we're up to 118, so there are sixteen transuranics.

And, as a further complication (and more chemical geekery) there's the "Island of stability" (wiki) around element 126 where the elements might be more stable than most of recently synthesised isotopes.

It's entirely possible that one of the S&S writers consulted a textbook or encyclopedia in 1979 and, not being a chemist, got the impression that element 105 wasn't definitely accepted as existing.

Ah, that makes sense. My personal preference is that not all the slots on the periodic table are filled by elemental agents as, in the fictional universe, there's no reason the elementals' authority would have got this wrong. So some elements are missing a corresponding agent, even if only on a temporary basis, which leaves more room in the 127 that Steel mentions for agents based on alloys, compounds, etc rather than elements. Other views are equally valid though.

[misterharry]

Jan 4, 2024 12:51:33 GMT dam said:

Thanks for this looks like another great addition to the xpanded universe. Would it be too cheeky to ask if your working on anything else ?

I'm not going to dive straight into another solo-project just yet - I need to focus on writing for the Doctor Who expanded universe sourcebooks for a while. But I still have plans for a full Hitch-Hiker's Guide sourcebook and an expanded second edition of The Quatermass Sourcebook. Beyond those, I'm tempted to turn to some of the more obscure British children's telefantasy series of the 1970s - things like Timeslip, The Changes and Children of the Stones - though I imagine these wouldn't be as popular as they're less well-known. There are a couple of more obvious TV series I'd love to see sourcebooks for but don't have enough knowledge of to be able to write myself - The Tomorrow People and Blake's 7. I'd be very happy to assist anyone else who wants to turn their hand to writing either of these.

[tenebrous]

What a fantastic start to 2024. Thanks for creating this and sharing it! It just so happens over the last year or so I've been folding elements derived from Sapphire and Steel into my Doctor Who Campaign so this will be most useful. I'm also incorporating stuff from the Avengers (UK TV series), Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion, Luther Arkwright and other predominately UK and Predominantly 1970s science fantasy influences. Don't support you've got any more like this in the pipeline? ;-) 

[misterharry]

Jan 4, 2024 14:28:14 GMT tenebrous said:

What a fantastic start to 2024. Thanks for creating this and sharing it!

Glad you like it!

It just so happens over the last year or so I've been folding elements derived from Sapphire and Steel into my Doctor Who Campaign so this will be most useful. I'm also incorporating stuff from the Avengers (UK TV series), Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion, Luther Arkwright and other predominately UK and Predominantly 1970s science fantasy influences. Don't support you've got any more like this in the pipeline? ;-) 

Sounds awesome! But no, nothing definite along those lines, I'm afraid. But I've been mulling over a supplement for Doomwatch as it would provide useful material for UNIT campaigns. But I was too young to watch it on broadcast and it seems that a significant chunk of episodes are missing, particularly from the final season, so I'm not sure how comprehensive it would be.

[grinch]

Jan 4, 2024 16:46:00 GMT misterharry said:

Jan 4, 2024 14:28:14 GMT tenebrous said:

What a fantastic start to 2024. Thanks for creating this and sharing it!

Glad you like it!

It just so happens over the last year or so I've been folding elements derived from Sapphire and Steel into my Doctor Who Campaign so this will be most useful. I'm also incorporating stuff from the Avengers (UK TV series), Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion, Luther Arkwright and other predominately UK and Predominantly 1970s science fantasy influences. Don't support you've got any more like this in the pipeline? ;-) 

Sounds awesome! But no, nothing definite along those lines, I'm afraid. But I've been mulling over a supplement for Doomwatch as it would provide useful material for UNIT campaigns. But I was too young to watch it on broadcast and it seems that a significant chunk of episodes are missing, particularly from the final season, so I'm not sure how comprehensive it would be.

That’s the frustrating thing about a lot of telefantasy from this era of television. So much of it would be appropriate for RPG material but unfortunately so much of it is lost.

[grinch]

Probably read through this manual about a couple of times now. The attention to detail is exquisite. And the added Elemental Agent stats does make me wonder how they would interact with the likes of Sapphire and Steel.

I like to think that at the end of Assignment Six while Silver is off chasing Transient Beings, either Mercury and Copper break Sapphire and Steel out of their prison. Safe to say, that when news reaches the Authority they all answer to of Silver’s disappearance, Copper gets very worried.

It did also make me wonder how you would craft a recurring, recognisable antagonist for a Sapphire and Steel campaign. Say a Master equivalent. Presumably one of the Transient Beings would serve in such a role? Unless of course, one of the Transuranic Elements goes rogue. Who knows what sort of personality the likes of Neptunium would have.

[misterharry]

Jan 5, 2024 20:18:14 GMT grinch said:

That’s the frustrating thing about a lot of telefantasy from this era of television. So much of it would be appropriate for RPG material but unfortunately so much of it is lost.

I briefly considered writing a sourcebook for Ace of Wands, particularly as it included episodes written by P.J. Hammond, but again, there's so much missing that I decided not to go ahead.

[misterharry]

Jan 5, 2024 20:25:25 GMT grinch said:

Probably read through this manual about a couple of times now. The attention to detail is exquisite. And the added Elemental Agent stats does make me wonder how they would interact with the likes of Sapphire and Steel.

I like to think that at the end of Assignment Six while Silver is off chasing Transient Beings, either Mercury and Copper break Sapphire and Steel out of their prison. Safe to say, that when news reaches the Authority they all answer to of Silver’s disappearance, Copper gets very worried.

It did also make me wonder how you would craft a recurring, recognisable antagonist for a Sapphire and Steel campaign. Say a Master equivalent. Presumably one of the Transient Beings would serve in such a role? Unless of course, one of the Transuranic Elements goes rogue. Who knows what sort of personality the likes of Neptunium would have.

I suspect Silver is either stuck in the distant past, sent there by the transient man, or he was indeed turned and now works for the transients' "higher authority".

As for a recurring enemy, I'd have liked to have seen Edward de Souza's transient being make a comeback if the series had continued. He was perfect in the role, at first taciturn and resentful, but then becoming utterly chilling. Beyond the transients, then something like the Shape, an agent of Time in human(ish) form. But probably one with more flexibility than the Shape, whose shtick would probably get a bit predictable if it returned too many times.

The transuranics, in my mind, are utterly monstrous creatures and could easily become deadly foes of the standard elementals.

[grinch]

Jan 6, 2024 10:52:37 GMT misterharry said:

Jan 5, 2024 20:18:14 GMT grinch said:

That’s the frustrating thing about a lot of telefantasy from this era of television. So much of it would be appropriate for RPG material but unfortunately so much of it is lost.

I briefly considered writing a sourcebook for Ace of Wands, particularly as it included episodes written by P.J. Hammond, but again, there's so much missing that I decided not to go ahead.

Ace of Wands would have made for a terrific sourcebook. But, as you say, if the vast majority of it wasn't missing.

Mind you, it did have elements worth pilfering. Mr Peacock and the Beautiful People would make for excellent antagonists for the likes of a Counter-Measures/Torchwood/70s UNIT adventure. 

[grinch]

Jan 6, 2024 10:57:58 GMT misterharry said:

Jan 5, 2024 20:25:25 GMT grinch said:

Probably read through this manual about a couple of times now. The attention to detail is exquisite. And the added Elemental Agent stats does make me wonder how they would interact with the likes of Sapphire and Steel.

I like to think that at the end of Assignment Six while Silver is off chasing Transient Beings, either Mercury and Copper break Sapphire and Steel out of their prison. Safe to say, that when news reaches the Authority they all answer to of Silver’s disappearance, Copper gets very worried.

It did also make me wonder how you would craft a recurring, recognisable antagonist for a Sapphire and Steel campaign. Say a Master equivalent. Presumably one of the Transient Beings would serve in such a role? Unless of course, one of the Transuranic Elements goes rogue. Who knows what sort of personality the likes of Neptunium would have.

I suspect Silver is either stuck in the distant past, sent there by the transient man, or he was indeed turned and now works for the transients' "higher authority".

As for a recurring enemy, I'd have liked to have seen Edward de Souza's transient being make a comeback if the series had continued. He was perfect in the role, at first taciturn and resentful, but then becoming utterly chilling. Beyond the transients, then something like the Shape, an agent of Time in human(ish) form. But probably one with more flexibility than the Shape, whose shtick would probably get a bit predictable if it returned too many times.

The transuranics, in my mind, are utterly monstrous creatures and could easily become deadly foes of the standard elementals.

I like your idea for the Transuranics. Perhaps their true form barely resemble humans and when they try to maintain said forms, it is otherwise imperfect. More like animals than anything else. 

Hard to say what sort of missions the Authority would send them on (maybe only as a last resort?) but an appearance by one during a standard S&S adventure would no doubt be a bad sign. 

[misterharry]

Jan 7, 2024 20:06:19 GMT grinch said:

I like your idea for the Transuranics. Perhaps their true form barely resemble humans and when they try to maintain said forms, it is otherwise imperfect. More like animals than anything else. 

Hard to say what sort of missions the Authority would send them on (maybe only as a last resort?) but an appearance by one during a standard S&S adventure would no doubt be a bad sign. 

My thoughts are that the higher the atomic number, the more inhuman they are. Neptunium and Plutonium might appear human, or almost human. But when you get up towards Tennessine and Oganesson, they're totally monstrous.

As for their missions, one of the reference books suggests that they'd be sent to worlds orbiting quasars and pulsars and such like. Those wouldn't make good locations for a group of human or even elemental agents. But it does mean that a transuranic's appearance on Earth would indicate that something has gone seriously wrong.

[misterharry]

Another thought - some of the names of the transuranics would be dead giveaways as to their nature. So having a pair of NPCs instead called Lawrence and Rutherford, for example, would keep their real nature a little less obvious.

[Catsmate]

Jan 7, 2024 19:49:10 GMT grinch said:

Jan 6, 2024 10:52:37 GMT misterharry said:

I briefly considered writing a sourcebook for Ace of Wands, particularly as it included episodes written by P.J. Hammond, but again, there's so much missing that I decided not to go ahead.

Ace of Wands would have made for a terrific sourcebook. But, as you say, if the vast majority of it wasn't missing.

Mind you, it did have elements worth pilfering. Mr Peacock and the Beautiful People would make for excellent antagonists for the likes of a Counter-Measures/Torchwood/70s UNIT adventure. 

I may be straying off-topic but I've always felt Freewheelers had potential for a quasi-UNIT campaign.

[grinch]

Jan 7, 2024 20:37:02 GMT misterharry said:

Jan 7, 2024 20:06:19 GMT grinch said:

I like your idea for the Transuranics. Perhaps their true form barely resemble humans and when they try to maintain said forms, it is otherwise imperfect. More like animals than anything else. 

Hard to say what sort of missions the Authority would send them on (maybe only as a last resort?) but an appearance by one during a standard S&S adventure would no doubt be a bad sign. 

My thoughts are that the higher the atomic number, the more inhuman they are. Neptunium and Plutonium might appear human, or almost human. But when you get up towards Tennessine and Oganesson, they're totally monstrous.

As for their missions, one of the reference books suggests that they'd be sent to worlds orbiting quasars and pulsars and such like. Those wouldn't make good locations for a group of human or even elemental agents. But it does mean that a transuranic's appearance on Earth would indicate that something has gone seriously wrong.

In such a scenario, I think Neptunium and Plutonium would best serve as the 'face' of the Transuranics. Although, in saying that, I doubt they'd be particularly communicative even towards their fellow Elemental Agents. And if they usually are dispatched to far more alien landscapes, they probably would be seen as very odd by humans not having much of a grasp of conventional social norms.

You could almost suggest that although Sapphire and Steel are clearly aware of the Transuranics (and their reputation for lack of a better term) they have never actually worked with one before. 

Having one appear on Earth would be the equivalent of a scorched Earth approach. If a pair were assigned to Assignment Four, they probably would have been able to stop the Shape. But it would have no doubt resulted in the destruction of the junk shop, Liz and probably a great deal of the surrounding area. 

[grinch]

Jan 7, 2024 21:48:34 GMT misterharry said:

Another thought - some of the names of the transuranics would be dead giveaways as to their nature. So having a pair of NPCs instead called Lawrence and Rutherford, for example, would keep their real nature a little less obvious.

I like to think that one of the Transuranics (shall we say 'Lawrence) when they arrived on Earth named themselves after the first thing they saw. Say a film poster or even a piece of advertising. 

[misterharry]

Jan 8, 2024 20:28:18 GMT grinch said:

In such a scenario, I think Neptunium and Plutonium would best serve as the 'face' of the Transuranics. Although, in saying that, I doubt they'd be particularly communicative even towards their fellow Elemental Agents. And if they usually are dispatched to far more alien landscapes, they probably would be seen as very odd by humans not having much of a grasp of conventional social norms.

If these two ever turned up on Earth, I picture them as Men in Black using the apparent code-names of Mr Neptune and Mr Pluto allegedly assigned by whatever organisation they claim to work for, their dark glasses probably hiding very literal fire in the depths of their eyes. Men in Black have a reputation of not behaving as normal humans, after all.

You could almost suggest that although Sapphire and Steel are clearly aware of the Transuranics (and their reputation for lack of a better term) they have never actually worked with one before. 

Having one appear on Earth would be the equivalent of a scorched Earth approach. If a pair were assigned to Assignment Four, they probably would have been able to stop the Shape. But it would have no doubt resulted in the destruction of the junk shop, Liz and probably a great deal of the surrounding area. 

Exactly. I suspect that Sapphire and Steel would actually be working at odds with any transuranics they encounter, even if their mission goal - the handling of an irregularity - was the same.

[misterharry]

Jan 8, 2024 20:33:17 GMT grinch said:

I like to think that one of the Transuranics (shall we say 'Lawrence) when they arrived on Earth named themselves after the first thing they saw. Say a film poster or even a piece of advertising. 

A vintage poster for Lawrence of Arabia, I assume? I hesitate to suggest that Lawrence's colleague spotted a poster for one of Margaret Rutherford's Miss Marple films (they're the same era, after all)...

[grinch]

Currently rewatching the series and it strikes me that you could probably run an adventure which is set simultaneously to the events of Assignment Four. After all, just where did the Shape keep vanishing off to?

I’m envisaging that now it has been released from its photographic prison, it may be causing trouble at some local archive or museum taking full advantage of the historical records it would have at its fingertips. Then, let’s just say, Diamond and Bronze have to contend with more than just photos of children brought to life. Add a few NPCS and you’d have a very different style of adventure.

Would no doubt result in a slightly different ending to the serial and you’d probably have to explain why the Agents your PCs are playing as are unable to communicate or pass on information to Sapphire and Steel who are still in the junk shop.

[misterharry]

Jan 23, 2024 20:42:58 GMT grinch said:

Currently rewatching the series and it strikes me that you could probably run an adventure which is set simultaneously to the events of Assignment Four. After all, just where did the Shape keep vanishing off to?

I’m envisaging that now it has been released from its photographic prison, it may be causing trouble at some local archive or museum taking full advantage of the historical records it would have at its fingertips. Then, let’s just say, Diamond and Bronze have to contend with more than just photos of children brought to life. Add a few NPCS and you’d have a very different style of adventure.

Would no doubt result in a slightly different ending to the serial and you’d probably have to explain why the Agents your PCs are playing as are unable to communicate or pass on information to Sapphire and Steel who are still in the junk shop.

Yes, there's potential for this assignment becoming a global affair, as the Shape can move to any photograph that exists anywhere in the world instantaneously. Though that would remove the claustrophobic feel of a limited location - unless of course each team of elementals finds themselves in their own (linked but separate) "Base Under Siege" scenario.

As for elemental agents being unable to communicate with each other, the Shape is itself psychic and is aware of Sapphire and Steel's telepathic abilities, so it could possibly set up some form of interference to block them. Not sure if this should be technological or an innate ability of its own. Could there be something it can access in a photograph to do this?

[misterharry]

Excellent news from Big Finish - they've re-released the complete Sapphire & Steel audio series as downloads. I guess I can now add an expanded second edition of the S&S sourcebook to my To Do list!