Tag Archives: Foreven

Adventures, The Base, Traveller

Tourist Trap

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Patron: Bureaucrat, Spy
Required Skills: social skills, combat(?)
Required Equipment: None

Players’ Information:
The team is contacted by Jakomo Sato, Assistant to the Second Foreign Minister for Trade on Fessor (2814 Foreven). He is seeking to hire experienced trouble-shooters to travel to Roopolaty (2712 Foreven) and determine the status of Deputy Third Foreign Minister for Trade, Stefana Kazlauskas. Kazlauskas has gone on holiday to Roopolaty, a balkanized world designated as an Amber Zone by the Travellers’ Aid Society due to internal political strife. Sato hastily explains that Kazlauskas had long been intent on touring the ruins of a long departed alien race in the Northern Uplands. He tried to convince her not to go but to no avail. In hushed tones Sato reveals that information obtained through diplomatic back channels suggests that an off world tourist or tourists are being held by militants in the vicinity of the ruins. Unable to prod the government of Fessor into formal action in a timely manner, he is turning to the characters for assistance. (If pressed he will reveal he has the covert backing of the Second Foreign Minister and his contingency accounts).

Sato will provide roundtrip middle passage to and from Roopolaty, cover all reasonable expenses and pay Cr 10,000 per person to find Kazlauskas and return her safely home. He can’t promise more than that up front but thinks he can secure bonuses based on how successful the mission is. If Kazlauskas, or other Fessori, are being held for ransom, the team is authorized to negotiate for their release and is advised to coordinate with the local consulate.

Roopolaty Ruins
Roopolaty Ruins : Image from wikimedia. Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

Referee’s Information:
UPP data: Roopolaty         2712 Foreven    C65667A-9 Ag Ni           A 303 Na

1. While travel to Roopolaty itself is relatively straightforward, it takes a fair amount of negotiation/haggling to obtain the services of a local guide and secure the use of a surface vehicle to travel to the Northern Uplands. The trip takes three days, the last half of which is via unpaved roads. Sato’s information turns out to be flat wrong; Kazlauskas is in no danger and will in fact be quite put out that the characters have been sent to bring her home.

2. As in option number 1 except that the characters’ vehicle will come under attack by brigands two days out from the capital city. They are mainly intent on exacting a “toll” from the party and offer token violence at best unless one or more of their band is injured or killed, at which point the gloves come off. There are 1d6+2 brigands armed with auto rifles and possessing stats consisting of all 7’s.

3. Sato’s information was correct and Kazlauskas is being held for ransom by anti-government militants intent on embarrassing the local regime. The militants’ base of operations is an outpost about 5 km from the ruins that supports approximately 30 persons, most variously armed with assault weapons. They seek kCr 100 in ransom and want the incident publicized as widely as possible, all the better if the off world news services pick up the story. The militants are not die-hard fanatics but they will put up a strong fight if challenged.

4. As in option number 3 but the militants have vowed to overthrow the government by any means possible. They have taken Kazlauskas, as well as a handful of other tourists, hoping to exchange them for political prisoners being held in the capital. It’s possible that a sufficiently skilled negotiator could secure their release in exchange for a cash ransom but it will take some effort. A military style raid might also work but the hostages will clearly be at risk.

5. In reality Kazlauskas works for Fessor’s intelligence service and was sent to Roopolaty in the guise of a tourist for the express purpose of meeting with the anti-government militants to arrange support for them. Sato, who is Kazlauskas’ handler, obtained information that the Zhodani were aware of her mission and hired the player characters to extract her before she could be compromised. (Sato gives the team an innocuous sounding message to pass to Kazlauskas informing her that her cover has been blown). Whether or not there are actually any Zhodani agents in the area and what their skills/talents are is left to the referee to decide.

6. As in option number 5 except that Kazlauskas was unwittingly sent to Roopolaty by Sato in hopes of triggering an interstellar incident as a pretext for intervention by Fessor. Word of her mission was leaked to the Zhodani though obscure channels, in theory insuring that she would be discovered. Things have not gone as planned as Kazlauskas has apparently been very successful in her mission to contact the militants. Sato, much dismayed at the situation, hired the team in hopes that the plan will work on the second pass. In the interest of plausible deniability, the Zhodani have dispatched their own group of hired travelers to investigate the situation with orders to secure any off-worlders found for questioning (and likely later disposal).

Adventures, The Base, Traveller

Nothing Here Is As It Seems

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Patron: Scavenger, Agent
Required Skills: none
Required Equipment: J-2 Starship

Players’ Information:
The group while on Wutubole (Pieplow/0819) are contacted by a salvage company to deliver a hold of supplies to Belt Maginum (Anika/1218) for Cr 200,000. The J-2 route takes them through the Zhodani Consulate. They are advised to skim gas giants and use water in the absence of gas to avoid contact with the Zhodani officials as much as possible.

Milky Way
Milky Way, seen from the Foreven Sector : Picture from wikimedia. Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.

Referee’s Information:
1. The captain and/or any ex-Scouts in the group are advised this is a cover. They need drop a load of probes in each system. These probes will check each system for a lost Scout Cruiser that misjumped and vanished some months previously. They are stored in the cargo and another ship will collect the telemetry some months in the future.

2. As above but in Clamp (Anika/1317) system the players arrive on the very edge of the system and sensors show dead a ship nearby. A large blocky ship of Hiver origin. The cargo bay is open and an exploration team will find 3 low berths smashed into a corner by open hatch as well as some yellow painted metal parts similar to open frame cargo haulers used on space stations and belter ops. The Hiver crew are dead throughout the ship. There are two dead humans aboard in vacc suits one has standard helmet, the other a Zhodani clamshell on deck near them. The non-Zhodani corpse has a dead chronometer indicating date is 1199 Imperial. Dated articles in their staterooms are about a year old.

3. As above but one low berth is on battery power. If opened safely a young lady named Mei Ling is recovered. She was a steward on a large passenger/freighter liner en route from the far Imperium to the Consulate via Fessor. She states the ship was jacked by a large group of men who gassed the passengers and packed them into the low berths they had in cargo bay of liner. After being forced to assist she was put in a berth too. The men were mixed race humans.

4. As above, when the ship lands to water they are contacted by Miriya a deep cover agent of the IISS and Hiver expert from the Rim. She is the only survivor of the liners’ passengers who were lost in the crash of the cargo sled. She was rescued by a Traveller who witnessed the landing in the hills. She is an expert Gunner and will request working passage. She keeps her IISS ID secret.

5. As above. On arrival in Belt Maginum they deliver the cargo and are paid by the contracted factor there. He advises that Miriya and Mei Lings’ ship left some days ago and picked up cargo and no passengers as was booked full, rare coming from the Consulate. There is an archeologist and a Universal Exports agent needing passage to Fessor at double rates.

6. As above, on arrival at Fessor the missing starship is in port. Mei Ling and Miriya would find no familiar crew and a look at passenger/crew list would tell both are still aboard. The crew and most passengers tend to be tall and swarthy.

Referee’s notes:
The Hiver ship were just used by the Zhodani to move the passengers into storage. But a misjump (temporal) accident destroyed the Hiver ship, the instant aging is why two human corpses appear aged. The crew were taken to a camp for holding. The hijackers were plain pirates. The liner is being used to infiltrate agents into the Imperium.

Adventures, Aliens, The Base, Traveller

Angry Tweeties

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The ship’s broker is approached about transporting a consignment of newborn Iptetean Tweeties, a species of genetically-modified pets that are increasing in popularity throughout the Foreven sector.

Iptetean Tweety
Iptetean Tweety : Picture from wikimedia. GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later.

1. Unbeknownst to humaniti, the Iptetean Triapus, from which the Iptetean Tweety is modeled, is sentient. This sophont has a subsonic language and once had some measure of technological civilization before humaniti invaded its homeworld. Due to the species’ psychology, it went into hiding at the first sight of humans, abandoning their towns for the forests, their ancestral home. Explorers eventually captured them and made some into pets, and as these creatures were taken into space, they’ve seen that the humans have also created a technomagically-modified version of themselves, the Iptetean Tweeties, which if caught at a sufficiently young age can be taught the language and history of their unmodified kin.

One of the passengers (or crewmembers), who has a pet triapus, notices that their pet seems to be drawn to the tweeties, which are in a large pen in the ship’s hold. This is made noticeable due to the fact that whenever the triapus and the tweeties get into sufficiently close proximity, they begin what appears to be a massive “purr-session” that is actually a pleasure to witness. The loud, “tribble-like” purring, once it stops being funny, is innately soothing to the human ear. It is apparent that even without being able to see each other, both the Triapus and the Tweeties appear to be able to hear each other, and they appear to be very pleased or possibly excited with each others’ presence.

In truth, they are calling out to one another. The Triapus wants to obtain the release of these young Tweeties, but there’s nothing that it can realistically do to make this happen, so it finally resigns itself to teaching them what little it can and otherwise accepting the situation, as at least it is being well-fed by an affectionate albeit hideously ugly, alien master.

2. As #1, but the tweeties are adolescents, and they can understand the triapus quite well, as many of have already learned the triapi language. The essence of their conversation is yet another reiteration the typical lecture on how they must prepare for the day when a savior will be born who will lead them in a Great Strangling against humaniti, and that wherever they are taken in the universe, they must remember their sacred homeworld and the terrible indignity that has been perpetrated upon them by their evil overlords. In the meantime, however, they are reminded that they must play the part of pets, for the time to strike is not yet. Hence, for all practical purposes, nothing remarkable happens, at least from the perspective of the ship’s crew.

3. As #1, but the tweeties are mostly adults, and many of them want to bust out of captivity and are actively trying to recruit the triapus to help them. The triapus, however, has been treated exceedingly well by its master, who takes time to play with it on a daily basis and who also generously feeds it table scraps rather than forcing it to eat some sort of bland, homogenized, pet food. Hence, it has grown genuinely affection toward this human and towards humaniti in general, and therefore it won’t help the tweeties, forever making excuses. Rightly or wrongly, it claims that there’s a technomagical, hidden surveillance system in the cargo hold, and that if it were to help its brethren escape, suddenly all humans would know that all Triapi, and by extension all Iptetean Tweeties, are intelligent, and this would permanently sever any hope of eventual freedom. No matter what they do, the triapus argues, they must guard this secret, each and every one of them, until the prophesized Great Strangling.

4. As #3, but the triapus feels mistreated and so it will help the tweeties escape. Hilarity ensues as many of them pile into an airlock and manage to escape into a very, very large space.

5. As #4, but one or more of the tweeties thinks it knows how to destroy the ship by causing some major system to malfunction.

6. As #5, but the primary goal is to strangle the crew and passengers and somehow seize control of the ship.

Supplementary Library Data:

Piolin Enterprises. A subsidiary of BeastMasters, LIC, specializing in the genetic modification of various animal species for the exotic pets market.

Tweety. A registered trademark of Piolin Enterprises, the term is also informally synonymous for any of a variety of genetically-modified pets, particularly ones that incorporate the color yellow into their modifications. Etymologically, the word comes from one of Old Terra’s first genetically-modified, pet species, an African Grey parrot colored yellow and given oversized eyes as well as expanded cranial capacity. Prior to this, the word “Tweety” can be traced to the name of a once-popular, animated character.

Iptetean Triapus (pl. Triapi). An omniverious climber/trapper/strangler of the planet Iptete (Foreven 2334), this creature resembles a small, three-legged octopus, except that it is purple with red splotches, similar to the branches of the Kokimovno trees which it chiefly inhabits, and its “face” resembles a large, green, Kokimovno leaf, which numerous smaller creatures eat. Despite being hideously ugly, they emit a calming, subsonic purr that can be felt more than heard, and so have made popular pets, but not nearly as popular as their genetically-modified variant, the Iptetean Tweety.

Iptetean Tweety. A genetically-modified variant of the Iptetean Triapus that has two of its three eyes hugely expanded, whereas the third, remaining at its normal size, is perpetually hidden behind a large yellow face that is generally more appealing to customers. This Tweety also has what looks like two large, yellow ears, but these are non-functional. Legal note: Piolin Enterprises holds an Imperium-wide trademark for the term “Tweety” in relation to the marketing of pets and the statement “They’re ugly, but they’re cute” in relation to the marketing of genetically-modified animals.

Inspiration: Featherless chicken

Adventures, The Base, Traveller

Dark Energy

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Required Skills: An array of maintenance, administrative, combat and ship skills.
Required Equipment: Jump 2+ Ship
Number of Players: 2-6

Players’ Information:
Baron Stron, formally Captain Stron (Rtr), of the Five Sisters fleet retired 1102; mustered out with the title Baron for services rendered. Using family money, savings, and retirement, Stron began a writing career. His stories are not just action-adventure but finely-veiled tell-alls of the rich and powerful of the rimward sectors of Marches. The books and holo films made the Baron a small fortune. He now feels it’s time to live the life of a Baron, but the books have made him persona-non-grate in the Marches so he relocated to Urnian (Urnian/Urnian 2834 of the Foreven Sector).

Urnians industry – especially the weapons industry – destroyed Urnians atmosphere so many people live in the cities, with the wealthiest living in domed estates. Baron Stron could afford a small domed estate outside of Capital along the Mebby river.

He now needs to hire a small retinue of servants including: maintenance staff, a ship and crew.

Additionally the laws allow estate holders to hire a small, lightly-armed bodyguard unit. The Baron will pay well for any position the players apply for. If a ship is provided he will pay the yearly upkeep, salaries, and fuel every time he takes it out for a spin. He also does not mind people moonlighting as long as they carry out their estate duties firsts.

Urnians polluted atmosphere
Urnians polluted atmosphere. Copyright P-O Bergstedt.

Referee’s Information:
The encounters can be played individually or as a campaign. Either way there is downtime for the players and GM to do something else..

1. The Barons estate is old and rundown, requiring a lot of upkeep. This time the mechanical cooling system has gone out after a storm and river flooding. The players need to investigate the vast water cooling system connect to the estate by a large maze of underground aqueducts.

After some time, the players reach a flushing pool that has flooded over its banks due to a blocked drainage system. In the flushing pool is a family of 4 Libersharks, a local fresh water amphibious predator similar to the Terrain Crocodile. They apparently made their way into the pool during the storm, The party needs to clear them out, unclog the drain, and get the flushing pool working again.

2. The Baron is laid up on the estate as he begins to write his newest book, Dark Energy. He not only gives everyone but the cook time off with pay, he orders them off the estates for three months. This frees up everyone for a nice vacation.

3. The Baron needs to do research on the Utsukushi family – Leila Utsukushi, the current ruler of Urnian, for his book Dark Energy. While he tells the players that the trip to Meepy is simply to visit the Utsukushi family archives, he is really there to get the dirt on Leila, The trip downriver is uneventful, as are the first two days at the Utsukushi family fortress complex.

During this time, the Baron has the players perform standard duties while he gets involved in court politics. He mangers to seduce Leila, angering the Court Vizier Sarsak who frames a payer for theft embarrassing the Baron. The Baron loses the favour of Leila and cannot get the player out legally – so the players have to rescue their comrade before they receive the traditional punishment: their right hand cut off.

4. The Baron needs more research for Dark Energy and really needs to get off planet, especially after the last research trip, so he decides it is time to go find some off world information. He plans a 24 week trip across the Urnian main then to Shoefrete and into the Five Sisters to Iderati and back. The Baron, though, leaves out the real purpose: he had received a message.

Dear Baron Stron I am Terka Kalvin, you do not know me but you know my mother the Lady Elize. I am your son! I am on Iderati and my mother is dying. She needs your help. Enclosed is my DNA card to prove who I am. Please Please come to Iderati and help.

Your son,
TK

Once on Iderati, the players must find TK and help the Baron sort things out. Unfortunately the group arrives to late for TK mother, who has just passed away. At this point the Baron decides to take TK back to the estate.

5. Several months pass as the Baron writes more of “Dark Energy”. A pre-publication interview with the Baron reveals the book is focused on her Ladyship Leilas often selfish, scandalous behaviour and poor judgement. This angers the Court Vizier again. The Vizier seeks to silence the Baron by kidnapping TK and holding him hostage until the Baron withdraws Dark Energy from publication. The players must find out who kidnapped TK, locate the remote hideout where TK is held and rescue him.

6. The Barons newest book Dark Energy is published, becoming his most successful work to date bringing more wealth to the Baron. The Baron is even nominated for the Imperial Pen Award for Fiction. This does not sit well with her Ladyship Leila, the ruler of Urnian the target of Baron’s poisonous pen.

Angered by her Viziers failure to stop the book before publication, Leila, orders the Vizier to lead a personal assault on the estate using an elite platoon of her bodyguard. The party must safely evacuate the Baron and TK off planet through a running gun battle from the estate up the Meeby river, to the downport. If they succeed the Baron orders the players, “Just get me to Szirp!

Once on Szirp, a world owned by SuSAG, and famous for its anagathics atmosphere, he uses the last of his wealth to buy a small cabin. He then dismiss the party without pay!

Adventures, The Base, Traveller

The Zhodani Base 76 Patrons Writing Contest – 2012

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It is now time for The Zhodani Base 76 Patrons Writing Contest – 2012.

This years first prize is a $30 Gift Certificate at DriveThruRPG.
Second prize is a $10 Gift Certificate at DriveThruRPG.

If you win you can buy lots of traveller goodies that you might have missed.

The style of the entries should be in the style of the patrons in CT Supplement 6, 76 Patrons.

Past winners are:

Two of my own patrons can be found here:

The contest starts now and ends 31 Aug 2012. Write as many entries as You like.

After the 31:st of August 2012, all entries will be posted on the Zhodani Base. The winner will be chosen by Berka.

By entering the contest You allow your entry to be posted at the Zhodani Base. All entries might also be posted in PDF format as a free down-loadable file at the Zhodani Base.

All entrants will be given credit for their work and will retain the copyright on their entries.

Some general guidelines:

1, Each entry should be less than 1000 words.

2, One image may be used in each entry. You must either own the rights to the image, or it must be used under some sort of free license. Wikimedia Commons is a good place to find an image that You can use. Please provide information about the image. (Is it Yours? If not, where have You found it? What license is used?) Note: You don’t need to use an image.

3, Each patron should offer 6 options.

4, Each patron should be placed in the Foreven Sector. You may use the version of the Foreven Sector that can be found here at the Zhodani Base. (You don’t have to use this version.)

5, Please don’t force the PCs to sign up for (what they think are) illegal activities. It is better if they find that out later, or in some way are forced to take illegal action… 😈

6, Please use a spell checker! 🙄

Send Your entries by e-mail. Please use plain text format and attach the image, if You select to use one. Word files will not be accepted!

Please include a preferred nickname (that can be Your real name) to show on the Zhodani Base. If You expect to win, include an e-mail address to send the first prize to.

Some help: (That you don’t have to use.)

You may use Mongoose Traveller rules to design something for your patron, since the Zhodani Base has a Foreven Free Sector License.

Fessor Subsector
Fessor Subsector – Map made using Traveller Map Post API.
Adventures, The Base, Traveller

The Zhodani Base 76 Patrons Writing Contest – 2011

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It is now time for The Zhodani Base 76 Patrons Writing Contest – 2011.

This years first prize is a $20 Gift Certificate at DriveThruRPG.
Second prize is a $10 Gift Certificate at DriveThruRPG.
I decided to stop giving away books, since the postage to send them all over the world was too expensive.

If you win you can buy lots of traveller goodies that you might have missed.

The style of the entries should be in the style of the patrons in CT Supplement 6, 76 Patrons.

Past winners are:

Two of my own patrons can be found here:

The contest starts now and ends 30 Sept 2011. Write as many entries as You like.

After the 30:th of September 2011, all entries will be posted on the Zhodani Base. Registered users (on the 1:st of July) and participants in the competition may then vote for the entries they like the most.

By entering the contest You allow your entry to be posted at the Zhodani Base. All entries might also be posted in PDF format as a free down-loadable file at the Zhodani Base.

All entrants will be given credit for their work and will retain the copyright on their entries.

Some general guidelines:

1, Each entry should be less than 1000 words.

2, One image may be used in each entry. You must either have the right to the image, or it must be used under some sort of free license. Wikimedia Commons is a good place to find an image that You can use. Please provide information about the image. (Is it Yours? If not, where have You found it? What license is used?) Note: You don’t need to use an image.

3, Each patron should offer 6 options.

4, Each patron should be placed in the Foreven Sector. You may use the version of the Foreven Sector that can be found here at the Zhodani Base. (You don’t have to use this version.)

5, Please don’t force the PCs to sign up for (what they think are) illegal activities. It is better if they find that out later, or in some way are forced to take illegal action… 😈

6, Please use a spell checker! 🙄

Send Your entries by e-mail. Please use plain text format and attach the image, if You select to use one. Word files will not be accepted!

As an alternative, contributors to the Zhodani Base may log in and write their entries here. Entries posted that way will be made visible when all other are.

Please include a preferred nickname (that can be Your real name) to show on the Zhodani Base. If You expect to win, include an address to send the first prize to.

Some help: (That you don’t have to use.)

You may use Mongoose Traveller rules to design something for your patron, since the Zhodani Base now has a Foreven Free Sector License.

Fessor Subsector
Map made using Traveller Map Post API.