It looks like I might be doing background development for Fading Suns RPG
Living Crusade Modules (ala, Living Greyhawk) and so I thought I
might practice using GURPS Prime Directive, which I recently purchased.
Here's a short adventure seed that allows the PCs to play any of those inside
the story which I've described through the eyes of a captain on a Federation
Merchant Vessel. This way the players can put together PCs they want
and the GM can add details or rearrange the mission as he sees fit.
I'm new to the SFU and any feedback would be appreciated. I've used my
own dating scheme SFU-171.145 means: day 145 of year 171 of the Starfleet
Universe.
GURPS PRIME DIRECTIVE: FIRST MISSION
Captain's Log
Free Trader Starlifter
Stardate SFU-171.145
I've got a funny feeling about my promotion.
I'd been a lieutenant on a tanker for the past two years and thought
I'd spread my wings, see about getting a shot at a command so I
applied to the Federation Merchant Service for a review and a
pending commission. I heard nothing for weeks and was on the verge
of forgetting about it when I received a subspace message. The
review board "liked what they saw" and decided I was worth a
promotion -- taking my place in the captain's chair of the
Starlifter, an relatively new (five years old) free trader, recently
refitted for duty. The ship already had a cargo and orders, which I
were to assume command of. Naturally I accepted. Currently we were
doing Warp-7, leaving Gordan's Planet and heading for the neutral
world of Denebola, near Romulan space, to dump our cargo of
foodstuffs and mining equipment. I'd heard of the place, but have
never been there, nor has any of my crew. By the way, Warp-7 is a
little fast for the average merchant vessel. My engineer says
according to the serial numbers on our warp drives, we've inheirited
military-grade technology. Curious.
It turns out the 'Lifter is also carrying passengers, six rather
impressive looking people who seem a "cut above" the average space
traveller. I've found out through the cook they tend to congregrate
in the ship's mess and seem to regard Mr. Johnson (1) with a bit
more respect than the others. Since this is MY ship and MY first
command, I decided to have a talk with Mr. Johnson.
He's a spy. Well, he never said it in so many words, but by the end
of our little chat, he'd left me with a plethora of information
concerning Denebola, so that I could only conclude his true reason
for being aboard was something official -- as in Star Fleet
official. Since the Federation Merchant Service takes its queues
from Star Fleet, I've no qualms about cooperating. Just as long as
the 'Lifter and my crew remain in one piece.
(1) Nod to Shadowrun :)
Captain's Log
Free Trader Starlifter
Stardate SFU-171.148
All was quiet until I received an emergency subspace message from
the ValTech Mining Consortium, the sponsor of our cargo load.
They've been in contact with buyers on Morkedia III, who've
experienced some sort of production problem. At our current speed
we'll reach Denebola in about 106 days, during which time mining
production would grind to a halt. ValTech's CEO directed me to
increase speed to reach my destination "as soon as physically
possible."(2)
I spoke with my Engineer and he checked the ship's technical
specifications, relaying to me shortly thereafter "no problem" and
we're currently at full warp capacity. I'm beginning to suspect I
could have checked with Mr. Johnson and received the same orders.
According to my navigator we should arrive at Denebola tomorrow, in
time for a "late supper."
(2) I asked about stopping at Morkedia III directly but was
rebuffed, which seemed odd given the original timeframe. I was told
to keep to the plan and that Morkedian representatives would meet us
at Denebola.
Captain's Log
Free Trader Starlifter
Stardate SFU-171.149
We're in orbit around Denebola. There's a massive Klingon D6
Battlecruiser called the BLOODSWORD in orbit too. We've stayed clear
of her though and are awaiting clearance to land. Strangely, Ground
Control is refusing us landing privileges. Perhaps I need to get on
the horn to ValTech.
Mr. Johnson asked to have a word with me and suggested I allow his
people to beam down in pairs first, as they seem to have developed a
derivative version of "cabin fever." Strangely, he wants me to beam
down with him and his assistant, since I'm acting on ValTech's
behalf in this endeavor. I need to reach the ValTech rep stationed
here anyway, so I agreed. I grabbed my communicator, tricorder and
stunner -- the latter just in case we run into any Klingons.
I've heard they're a bit gruff. I left my First Officer in charge,
to make sure the Engineer carries out the necessary maintenance on
our warp drives that we've pushed to their limits.
* * * * *
Denebola is a strange, almost barren world. Aside from the trading
settlement, there's very little here. The place is a collage of
steep valleys surrounded by mesas, mountains and hills. We transport
down into what looks to be a camp for indigent traders, not the
Administrative Center. My tricorder confirms this as I can't locate
any power sources for a communicator that is orbit-capable. This
obviously isn't the right place. Next, the darn thing tells me
there's a life form present but I can't see anything in the
darkness. I use my hand torch. I still don't see anything.
Suddenly, there's strange, reptilian creature standing before me
against the rock wall. I've no idea where he came from. He didn't
transport in, there was no transport signature, besides my tricorder
showed him present before he became visible. He's talking with Mr.
Johnson in some strange, hissing tongue and both are using odd,
jerky, head movements. The creature is obviously sentient, and
reminds me of a terran chameleon -- only man-sized. I
cross-reference my scan of him with the ship's database and find out
he's listed in the datapack Johnson gave me. His lifeform is known
as a Skolean. The tete-a-tete breaks up shortly and our new friend
guides us along a hilly path up near the top of a neighboring mesa.
Here, in a set of caves carved into the side of the rock is a group
of seedy looking individuals of various races: I spot two Gorn, a
human, what I assume to be an Orion (3) and a pair of Romulans.
Johnson seems to be buddies with the Romulans and the "Orion", while
the Gorn mercenaries mostly ignore us. Their chameleon friend left
earlier and I haven't seen him since. There's a small arsenal of
hand and shoulder weapons in the nearest cave. I don't have a
translator device so I've no idea what they're saying. Johnson and
this group head over to the cliff face and spend some time gazing
through some sort of hi-power scope at a point not-too distant.
Johnson informs me shortly thereafter to instruct my crew to beam a
portion of the foodstuffs and a few specially marked crates here.
(3) I'll check my tricorder later.
* * * * *
The Orion (4) and I break bread, while Johnson, the two Gorn and the
two Romulans assemble some sort of device from the parts in the
crates. The Gorns must be able to read english since they're
following instructions on a PADD inside the crates. The Romulans
seem to be in charge.
I'd spoken to my First Officer Lingter, who's maintaining a safe
distance from the Klingon ship and has still not received permission
to land from Denebola Ground Control. I order him to contact ValTech
for instructions. I'll be damned if I'm held accountable after our
mad-dash to get here. Lingter asked me what's happening where I am.
I told him we're "negotiating with the locals" and left it at that.
I'd fill him in later.
The Orion is fairly friendly individual for what most people assume
to be a race of pirates. He's also a poker player. We split up a
sack of pistachio nuts and are wagering with them. He's pretty good,
of course they're his cards.(5)
(4) I decided to ask him point blank.
(5) I'm also keeping close eye on his sleeves.
Captain's Log
Free Trader Starlifter
Stardate SFU-171.150
It's a weapon.
I got a glimpse of it before they covered it up with a camo-tarp. It
was just after dawn and I had come out of the cave after relieving
myself and saw the Romulans running diagnostics on it. It looks like
missile launcher, since there's another crate, top off, filled with
four, thick tubular items. Two were red-topped and two had
yellow-black emblems.(6)
Shortly thereafter a pair of Johnson's "friends" from the 'Lifter
beamed in along with our chameleon guide. Apparently they had access
to a local transporter. This time the conversation was in english
and I was able to hear most of it. Something about an attache to a
Klingon named Thad Vak Kaleen was here meeting with a ally of his in
the Romulan Empire, shoring up support. I guess he's not in with the
two Romulans in Johnson's crowd. The Skolean was able to plant some
sort of "target homing beacon" at a special location which would
activate when its passive sensors detected that the Klingon attache
had arrived.(7)
Lingter heard from ValTech and they've specifically requested me to
"obey the wishes" of Mr. Johnson. Not really much of a surprise
there.
The rest of Johnson's "friends" transport in from points uknown.
The mesa is getting crowded. After a quick, whispered conference,
Johnson tells me that I should beam back to the 'Lifter now and
"keep my ears open." He and his team are going to need a quick
transport if things work out.
As I gathered my gear together I watched as the others here began
checking their weapons in preparation for some sort of conflict with
the Klingons. My guess is that Johnson's and his "friends" are a
Starfleet Prime Team and they're going to snatch the Klingon or
assassinate him.
The first thing I did when I got back to the ship was check the
specifications of Klingon D6 ships on the datapack Johnson gave me.
The Engineer gave the warp engines the green light and now I'm in
the process of setting up a new orbit, keeping the 'Lifter within
transporter range and a safe distance from the Klingon vessel, so we
can leave immediately.
(6) Considering what I knew about Johnson, I assumed them to be
explosive and some sort of specially-made, Klingon sleep gas.
(7) Pretty fancy gear although how it knows it's the right Klingon
is beyond me. I guess they also know his itinerary.
Living Crusade Modules (ala, Living Greyhawk) and so I thought I
might practice using GURPS Prime Directive, which I recently purchased.
Here's a short adventure seed that allows the PCs to play any of those inside
the story which I've described through the eyes of a captain on a Federation
Merchant Vessel. This way the players can put together PCs they want
and the GM can add details or rearrange the mission as he sees fit.
I'm new to the SFU and any feedback would be appreciated. I've used my
own dating scheme SFU-171.145 means: day 145 of year 171 of the Starfleet
Universe.
GURPS PRIME DIRECTIVE: FIRST MISSION
Captain's Log
Free Trader Starlifter
Stardate SFU-171.145
I've got a funny feeling about my promotion.
I'd been a lieutenant on a tanker for the past two years and thought
I'd spread my wings, see about getting a shot at a command so I
applied to the Federation Merchant Service for a review and a
pending commission. I heard nothing for weeks and was on the verge
of forgetting about it when I received a subspace message. The
review board "liked what they saw" and decided I was worth a
promotion -- taking my place in the captain's chair of the
Starlifter, an relatively new (five years old) free trader, recently
refitted for duty. The ship already had a cargo and orders, which I
were to assume command of. Naturally I accepted. Currently we were
doing Warp-7, leaving Gordan's Planet and heading for the neutral
world of Denebola, near Romulan space, to dump our cargo of
foodstuffs and mining equipment. I'd heard of the place, but have
never been there, nor has any of my crew. By the way, Warp-7 is a
little fast for the average merchant vessel. My engineer says
according to the serial numbers on our warp drives, we've inheirited
military-grade technology. Curious.
It turns out the 'Lifter is also carrying passengers, six rather
impressive looking people who seem a "cut above" the average space
traveller. I've found out through the cook they tend to congregrate
in the ship's mess and seem to regard Mr. Johnson (1) with a bit
more respect than the others. Since this is MY ship and MY first
command, I decided to have a talk with Mr. Johnson.
He's a spy. Well, he never said it in so many words, but by the end
of our little chat, he'd left me with a plethora of information
concerning Denebola, so that I could only conclude his true reason
for being aboard was something official -- as in Star Fleet
official. Since the Federation Merchant Service takes its queues
from Star Fleet, I've no qualms about cooperating. Just as long as
the 'Lifter and my crew remain in one piece.
(1) Nod to Shadowrun :)
Captain's Log
Free Trader Starlifter
Stardate SFU-171.148
All was quiet until I received an emergency subspace message from
the ValTech Mining Consortium, the sponsor of our cargo load.
They've been in contact with buyers on Morkedia III, who've
experienced some sort of production problem. At our current speed
we'll reach Denebola in about 106 days, during which time mining
production would grind to a halt. ValTech's CEO directed me to
increase speed to reach my destination "as soon as physically
possible."(2)
I spoke with my Engineer and he checked the ship's technical
specifications, relaying to me shortly thereafter "no problem" and
we're currently at full warp capacity. I'm beginning to suspect I
could have checked with Mr. Johnson and received the same orders.
According to my navigator we should arrive at Denebola tomorrow, in
time for a "late supper."
(2) I asked about stopping at Morkedia III directly but was
rebuffed, which seemed odd given the original timeframe. I was told
to keep to the plan and that Morkedian representatives would meet us
at Denebola.
Captain's Log
Free Trader Starlifter
Stardate SFU-171.149
We're in orbit around Denebola. There's a massive Klingon D6
Battlecruiser called the BLOODSWORD in orbit too. We've stayed clear
of her though and are awaiting clearance to land. Strangely, Ground
Control is refusing us landing privileges. Perhaps I need to get on
the horn to ValTech.
Mr. Johnson asked to have a word with me and suggested I allow his
people to beam down in pairs first, as they seem to have developed a
derivative version of "cabin fever." Strangely, he wants me to beam
down with him and his assistant, since I'm acting on ValTech's
behalf in this endeavor. I need to reach the ValTech rep stationed
here anyway, so I agreed. I grabbed my communicator, tricorder and
stunner -- the latter just in case we run into any Klingons.
I've heard they're a bit gruff. I left my First Officer in charge,
to make sure the Engineer carries out the necessary maintenance on
our warp drives that we've pushed to their limits.
* * * * *
Denebola is a strange, almost barren world. Aside from the trading
settlement, there's very little here. The place is a collage of
steep valleys surrounded by mesas, mountains and hills. We transport
down into what looks to be a camp for indigent traders, not the
Administrative Center. My tricorder confirms this as I can't locate
any power sources for a communicator that is orbit-capable. This
obviously isn't the right place. Next, the darn thing tells me
there's a life form present but I can't see anything in the
darkness. I use my hand torch. I still don't see anything.
Suddenly, there's strange, reptilian creature standing before me
against the rock wall. I've no idea where he came from. He didn't
transport in, there was no transport signature, besides my tricorder
showed him present before he became visible. He's talking with Mr.
Johnson in some strange, hissing tongue and both are using odd,
jerky, head movements. The creature is obviously sentient, and
reminds me of a terran chameleon -- only man-sized. I
cross-reference my scan of him with the ship's database and find out
he's listed in the datapack Johnson gave me. His lifeform is known
as a Skolean. The tete-a-tete breaks up shortly and our new friend
guides us along a hilly path up near the top of a neighboring mesa.
Here, in a set of caves carved into the side of the rock is a group
of seedy looking individuals of various races: I spot two Gorn, a
human, what I assume to be an Orion (3) and a pair of Romulans.
Johnson seems to be buddies with the Romulans and the "Orion", while
the Gorn mercenaries mostly ignore us. Their chameleon friend left
earlier and I haven't seen him since. There's a small arsenal of
hand and shoulder weapons in the nearest cave. I don't have a
translator device so I've no idea what they're saying. Johnson and
this group head over to the cliff face and spend some time gazing
through some sort of hi-power scope at a point not-too distant.
Johnson informs me shortly thereafter to instruct my crew to beam a
portion of the foodstuffs and a few specially marked crates here.
(3) I'll check my tricorder later.
* * * * *
The Orion (4) and I break bread, while Johnson, the two Gorn and the
two Romulans assemble some sort of device from the parts in the
crates. The Gorns must be able to read english since they're
following instructions on a PADD inside the crates. The Romulans
seem to be in charge.
I'd spoken to my First Officer Lingter, who's maintaining a safe
distance from the Klingon ship and has still not received permission
to land from Denebola Ground Control. I order him to contact ValTech
for instructions. I'll be damned if I'm held accountable after our
mad-dash to get here. Lingter asked me what's happening where I am.
I told him we're "negotiating with the locals" and left it at that.
I'd fill him in later.
The Orion is fairly friendly individual for what most people assume
to be a race of pirates. He's also a poker player. We split up a
sack of pistachio nuts and are wagering with them. He's pretty good,
of course they're his cards.(5)
(4) I decided to ask him point blank.
(5) I'm also keeping close eye on his sleeves.
Captain's Log
Free Trader Starlifter
Stardate SFU-171.150
It's a weapon.
I got a glimpse of it before they covered it up with a camo-tarp. It
was just after dawn and I had come out of the cave after relieving
myself and saw the Romulans running diagnostics on it. It looks like
missile launcher, since there's another crate, top off, filled with
four, thick tubular items. Two were red-topped and two had
yellow-black emblems.(6)
Shortly thereafter a pair of Johnson's "friends" from the 'Lifter
beamed in along with our chameleon guide. Apparently they had access
to a local transporter. This time the conversation was in english
and I was able to hear most of it. Something about an attache to a
Klingon named Thad Vak Kaleen was here meeting with a ally of his in
the Romulan Empire, shoring up support. I guess he's not in with the
two Romulans in Johnson's crowd. The Skolean was able to plant some
sort of "target homing beacon" at a special location which would
activate when its passive sensors detected that the Klingon attache
had arrived.(7)
Lingter heard from ValTech and they've specifically requested me to
"obey the wishes" of Mr. Johnson. Not really much of a surprise
there.
The rest of Johnson's "friends" transport in from points uknown.
The mesa is getting crowded. After a quick, whispered conference,
Johnson tells me that I should beam back to the 'Lifter now and
"keep my ears open." He and his team are going to need a quick
transport if things work out.
As I gathered my gear together I watched as the others here began
checking their weapons in preparation for some sort of conflict with
the Klingons. My guess is that Johnson's and his "friends" are a
Starfleet Prime Team and they're going to snatch the Klingon or
assassinate him.
The first thing I did when I got back to the ship was check the
specifications of Klingon D6 ships on the datapack Johnson gave me.
The Engineer gave the warp engines the green light and now I'm in
the process of setting up a new orbit, keeping the 'Lifter within
transporter range and a safe distance from the Klingon vessel, so we
can leave immediately.
(6) Considering what I knew about Johnson, I assumed them to be
explosive and some sort of specially-made, Klingon sleep gas.
(7) Pretty fancy gear although how it knows it's the right Klingon
is beyond me. I guess they also know his itinerary.