[OtherSpace] SoDu we make stuff up?

Dispatches Received in Error Archive | Southpoint Access

A moon faces foreclosure, a dragon argues with zoning officials, and Southpoint’s past starts surfacing. Catch up on installments of our fiction series for paid subscribers.

Southpoint AccessWes Platt

What happens when a journalist, a spaceship pilot, an investigator, and a kid with a questionable name crash a hacker’s divorce party?

I don’t know yet. That’s part of the fun.

They’re characters in OtherSpace, the online science-fiction universe I created in 1998. And although I set the scene and introduce complications, the people playing those characters get to decide what they say, what they try, and how much worse they might make things before they get better.

Think of it as improv theater through writing. We build a scene together, one contribution at a time. Someone makes a choice. Someone else reacts. A throwaway remark becomes a running joke, a new friendship, or a problem that follows everyone onto the next spaceship.

There’s no finished script waiting for us. We find the story by playing.

A long-running experiment in making things up

OtherSpace originally ran on Telnet, bringing together more than 100 players from around the world. People who might never have crossed paths otherwise built characters, relationships, rivalries, and adventures together.

Now, we play on Discord, and I’d love to bring more storytellers from the Bull City and beyond into the mix.

Through Southpoint Access, you’ve already seen some of my fictional side with Dispatches Received in Error. OtherSpace is an invitation to bring your own imagination.

Maybe you’ve done theater. Maybe you write fiction, play tabletop games, or invent elaborate backstories for strangers at the grocery store. Maybe you haven’t tried any of those things, but this sounds like fun.

You’re welcome here.

You don’t have to write a novel

A few lines of dialogue and action can give another player plenty to work with. Your character might ask an awkward question, offer a terrible plan, or admit they recognize the person everyone’s trying to avoid.

The trick is to give each other something to respond to. Pay attention, make room for other people’s ideas, and let yourself be surprised.

You control your character. Other players control theirs. Together, we discover what happens when those personalities collide.

We use Cypher game mechanics to help resolve uncertain outcomes (if we can't come up with a fun resolution on our own), but you don’t need to arrive knowing the rules. We can help with those. Start with someone you’d enjoy pretending to be.

There’s already trouble waiting

Our current adventure takes place in 2650. The Motherlode, a gathering place in the domed city of Freewheeling, has been bombed and is under reconstruction.

Meanwhile, Newt, Corrine, Ambermane, and Vechkov have an ancient Lou Reed compact disc with a mysterious gap in its audio. Their search for answers is taking them to a hacker who’s busy celebrating his divorce.

That’s the situation. What happens next depends on the people in the scene.

Come help tell the story

The new OtherSpace guide introduces the universe, its species, the current characters, and the basics of playing.

OtherSpace Roleplaying Guide | Southpoint Access

Your next adventure starts with a few words. Explore OtherSpace, create a sci-fi character, and help tell the story with fellow players.

Southpoint AccessWes Platt

If an idea’s already forming, submit a character concept. It doesn’t have to be polished. We can work with you to find a place for your character.

Or join us on Discord, meet the players, and ask questions.

I’ve spent years watching people surprise me in this universe. I’m looking forward to seeing what our neighbors come up with.

See you out there,

Wes

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Southpoint AccessWes Platt

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