Introduction

Welcome to the universe of 2300 A.D.! Inspired by the 'The Game' used to simulate the future of humanity and create the Game Designers’ Workshop (GDW) 2300AD game universe this is a fan created PBEM science fiction strategic war game which will be moderated by a Director, a.k.a. the ‘Referee’, who in all matters will be considered to be omnipotent. A sandbox style game, we have taken it upon ourselves to play a nation from Earth and simulate Humanity's expansion into the stars, its fights against threats new and old, and our journey for a better life, wherever that may take us. As a sandbox style game there are no levels, character classes, set endpoint or victory conditions; the goal is to survive, grow and have fun. The reality of history is our starting point; the feel of GDW’s 2300AD game universe is our ideal; everything else is playability and fun. We make no distinction in this game between the civilian and the military, between the public and the private. It does not matter if a certain armed spaceship is officially controlled by the military, the national government, a local government, a corporation, hired foreign mercenaries or a private individual, it is simply ‘the player’s’.

Starting in the year 2010, and progressing until at least 2300 A.D., the game may see Humanity make contact with aliens, through a third world war, see the rise and fall of nations, or some cataclysmic event yet to be described. It will be a long and detailed game, progressing through the centuries, with strife and new technologies abound. To view the game's current progress follow any of the many links to player countries or examine the world at large.

Role of the Player

Players are expected to at all times act with respect and honesty. Players take the role of controlling one of the available player nations, including the government, media, military, intellectuals, and corporations. Players are the spirit of the nation itself, directing where goods and services are allocated; players are not just the national government spending tax money. Your direction can last for centuries, regardless of elections, revolutions and such. You are to lead your nation to the best of your ability, promoting its goals and interests, enriching its citizens, and attempting to leave its mark on history. Over the course of a Turn, representing five years of "in-game" time, you will submit a budget of your economic expenditures and detail what orders your nation will be undertaking. Players are expected to be familiar with the official rules, databases, maps, messages, etc; do not expect the Referee to be pleased to frequently restate just for you what is already written.

Always remember the enormous scope and scale of this game. If an action does not change the fate of a nation or shake the foundation of a world then it is at best just a throw-away reference to make a story sound better.

Use your initiative and imagination, do not expect things to get done for you, it will often be up to you to get things done and done right. Expect the Referee to throw in a few complications just to keep it interesting. We all have to find our niche and way to contribute to the game. What do you like to do? Find somewhere you can help and do it. Players commonly take responsibility for more than one role or nation and frequently switch as needed.

By necessity, much of the complexity of simulating real life has been abstracted by leaving most judgments up to the Referee. You can offer your opinion but in the end, it is important to accept the Referee’s judgment otherwise we will never get anywhere. Arguing about the game, its rules, its realism, the capacities of its members and their life choices, etc. does not constitute playing the game, such things are at best a distraction and will be treated as such by the Referee. If you really want to improve the game then offer your services to the Referee to adopt a webpage, or be the acknowledged judge on issues relating to a certain rules section, or offer to conduct the affairs of a distant non-player nation for the purposes of a negotiation or a battle, etc.

If you have made a mistake in your orders then expect the Referee to intervene only if your actions break these rules, otherwise the Referee will try to carry out your orders as best as he understands, not what the Referee thinks is best for your nation. Your actions are your responsibility, regardless if the Referee thinks they are unwise. No ‘my competent staff would have noticed and fixed the error for me’ type argument is sufficient; you are your own competent staff, if you made a mistake then they made a mistake too. Show your mettle as a RPG player by constructing an in-game explanation of why it all happened the way it did and role-play to that explanation.

There can be no expectation that each nation and player will always receive a treatment that is balanced or fair; nations are not created equal, fate can be cruel, and apparently the Referee is human. Unless the Referee directs otherwise, this game will not be run for the benefit or detriment of any particular political, religious, cultural, etc. point of view. Do not expect your pet projects, priorities, peeves and cherished beliefs to always receive from the Referee the attention and uncritical success that you think they deserve. You may have strong ideas on what is a ‘realistic action’ or a ‘good policy’; but as seen from the Referee’s point of view: A player is demanding to get into a time consuming and suspiciously self-serving discussion. If you were a typically harried Referee would not your response to such a haranguing be as simple as ‘No, because I said so’ or ‘Fine, but I am going to make you suffer severely from various unintended consequences to keep this from becoming an exploit‘? Choose your battles wisely.

Role of the Director

The Referee is omnipotent and has the right to do anything he sees fit to keep the game fun, playable and reasonable as he sees it. If a player wants to do something unusual and can convince the Referee to allow it, then it happens. If the player is just doing something to take advantage of a loophole or uncertainty in the rules then expect the Referee to at the very least forbid it. 'Because the rules say such-and-such' is just the beginning of a discussion, the word of the Referee is always the ending.

The Referee may be omnipotent but is not infallible, omniscient, has unlimited time to dedicate to the cause nor is he getting paid by you for this job. It is not the Referee’s job to repeatedly restate what is already written somewhere on the website. If you find something you consider to be a mistake then write to the Referee beginning with a detailing of exactly what you think is wrong and ending with a comprehensive solution to completely fix that one problem; leave out the internet standard snippiness and indignations as it just wastes everybody’s time. If a mistake has been made the Referee is not likely to back up and do a Turn over again; to do so could easily cause more problems than it solves. Expect the Referee to have reasons for doing what was done and to have little time or energy to fully explain why it happened that way, and even less to argue on why it must happen that way.

Much of the complexity of real life is left up to ad hoc judgment of the Referee to come up with something otherwise these rules would be far longer. So everything that you actually can or cannot do is limited only by your imagination and the approval of the Referee. The Referee will judge if a player’s idea works, if it is allowed or if there are any additional conditions and procedures. If you have an idea, make a good argument to the Referee, and if you can convince the Referee that it is a good idea then it will happen.

Join Us!

We are always looking for new players! Email the Referee at greatgamereferee2300ad (at) gmail (dot) com The subject header must contain the words "Great Game" or it is likely any message sent will end up in the spam folder. State your preferred email address* and request control of one of the available nations from the list of Player Character nations. Anything being played by the Referee or coGM is likely open for immediate pick-up. Many of the rest of the players are often doing double or triple duty, so if you ask nicely enough you could likely take one of their nations. Then join the RPOL site, search for and request to join the game '2300 Great Game Command Center', this is where we expect most communication between the players and the Referee will take place. When you click on the game, look for the box in the upper middle of the screen that says "You do not currently participate in this game, click here to request to join.", send a request to join it. Once approved this will give you access to the forums.

*This email address must be acceptable for use with Google. Specifically this means that it is a gmail address or be an account which is linked to a gmail address within the Google system.