The Hidden Star Campaign

Quick Overview of Setting

Long ago humanity spread to the far corners of the galaxy. This is obvious by the fact that many planets across the galaxy have ruins giving testament to a once powerful and pervasive galactic culture/cultures (there is debate amongst the archeological community as to whether these ruins are indicative of a single or multiple civilizations). What is further obvious is that something went "wrong." Approximately 1,700 years (being measured in Earth-years until I come up with something more original but still identifiable) ago space faring across the galaxy came to an abrupt halt. Cutting off every individual planet from the interstellar trade network that facilitated that overwhelming majority of human life, whatever this cataclysm was resulted in the complete extinction of the human race on the vast majority of inhabited planets. The few planets that could naturally support life fell into varying degrees of chaos and anarchy. According to all evidence, it looks as if all technical aparatus simply stopped functioning simultaneously accross the galaxy and all data on all computers vanished. All the knowledge of the ancient civilization has been lost both to the cataclysm that caused their downfall as well as the chaos that followed. After roughly 1,200 years, a handful of planetary civilizations began to take their first fledgling steps back into space and extending their boundaries to the edge of their respective solar systems.

There are three civilizations that have made the greatest known progress with interstellar expansion. The Avaat Dominion, a theocratic society, has the longest history of interstellar expansion and is larger and more populous than all of the rest of the civilizations of the galaxy combine. The Colmarr Unity is a society heavily reliant on advanced control of biological entities and genetic engineering and are the single most secretive and ellusive of the interstellar civilizations. Lastly, the polity from which the PC's will come from, the Taldearen Federation is the newest member of the interstellar club and is an incredibly culturally and politically very diverse with a strong attachment to basic individual rights, aggressive market capitalism and drive to bring the galaxy into the Taldearen fold.

Liken this setting to a Space-Age equivalent to the "Age of Discovery " and the very earliest stages of the "Age of Colonialism "

Laser and other energy weapons only exist on large scale for use by capital ships and other supremely large vessels and vehicles. While most guns are powered by some form energy based technology, the end result is still a ballistic effect. In terms of the quality, style and level of technology of the Taldearen setting, think about Firefly and Cowboy Bebop settings for insight into most technological concepts of my setting.

Setting-specific game rules

1) Roll 2d12, twelve times. Drop six of the values and allocate the rest to whichever attribute you wish.

2) Starting Character Points = 100

3) All characters will come from the Taldearen Federation. While a handful of the worlds within the Taldearen Federation are listed below, feel free to come up with a world/culture/peoples and run it by me. However for the sake of uniformity in terms of space travel and general allegiance, everyone will come from somewhere within the Taldearen Federation.

4) Setting-specific skills are:

-Starship Operations (wits) – this skill allows you to have a rudimentary grasp of the systems and mechanisms most commonly associated with interstellar ships of any kind. This will allow only the most low level ability to repair, maintain or operate any part of any given space ship from your culture. For specific jobs and careers aboard a space-ship, you will need to take the relevant skills from the regular list. Treat this skill as a rough parallel to “Survival” but for spaceships.

-Pilot (Mental or Dex/Wits-9) – Having this skill will allow you to pilot small spacecraft. This ranges from small freighter (Millennium Falcon & Firefly) down to one-man fighters. Note, if your character does not have the implants necessary for piloting, you will use Dex as modifying attribute and incur an immediate -6 penalty. Please see details below on spacecraft tech.

Technology

Polities

Avaat - A theocratic society, the Avaat believe it is not just their right, but their burden to expand accross the stars and convert, peacefully or violently, all the peoples of the universe. Negotiating with the Avaat is difficult at best and quite often impossible. They view foreign figures of authority as mere perpetuators of heresy and view lay foreigners as unfortunate, ignorant and misled souls.

The Avaat Empire is the largest in the galaxy in terms of both their territorial boundaries, population and fleet. Their FTL technology is a form of instantaneous teleportation, referred to as "jumping" and "Jump Drives." The exact nature of their FTL technology remains unkown, but it is assumed to be "better" than other FTL technology which they have had more than ample opportunity to assimilate. Beyond their FTL capabilities, Avaat sub-light engines, weapons, armor and computing abilities are below average amongst space-faring civilizations.

Avaat religion, society and politics are all one single entity. Believing that this universe is literally Hell, people are continually reborn into this world upon their death. Their lot in life is tied to how well they were able to serve the will of God in their previous life. Escape from this cycle can be achieved by the accomplishment of truly "great" works in one's life. For most, escape from this cycle and admission into heaven follows many lifetimes of "good" works with progressively increasing status in society with each life. The one assumed to be at "front of the line" so to speak (even though one can skip the line with sufficiently notable accomplishments) is the Zennar, the holy despot of all the Avaat. All of the universe is Hell and what comes to be under the control of the Avaat is considered to be merely on lease from God to God's greatest living subject, the Zennar. From this, all material possessions are merely being leased from the Zennar in order to advance the overall aims of God. Subsequently, everyone's place, role and responsibilities in society are determined by how they fit into the rigid hierarchy of the Avaat.

The Taldearen Federation - The core of the Taldearen Federation, or Federation or "Fed" for short, is an exceptionally large and resource rich solar system. Consisting of 15 fully habitable planets, 8 questionably habitable planets, 27 uninhabitable solid planets, 7 gas giants and a handful of asteroid belts and other cosmic bodies. The Federation is an incredibly multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, free enterprise government with an extreme devotion to individual rights, freedoms, liberties and democratic governance. These ideals stem solely from circumstance and coincidence, not ideals.

The Federation is only 67 years old as the entire solar system was in a state of endemic warfare for hundreds of years prior. Originally, this system was a massive terraforming, explaining the large number of comfortably inhabitable worlds. Overtime, these various civilizations began to retake to the skies and it was not long before warfare followed. Individual planets were the base of any given government and due to the varied orbits of individual planets, no single faction could ever maintain dominance over the whole of the system. Warfare was endemic and scientific advances never made much more than loosely theoretical developments in FTL travel.

Then one day the Avaat arrived in the system, at the small planet of Taldearen. Taldearen lacked the population, military and resource base of the other planets orbiting nearer the star or around the various gas giants. All in all, they were relatively minor players in the endemic warfare of the system

Nemzet

Adhabu – Zulu/Sardaukar, adapted well to space mercernarianism

Cartref

Karstas

Barruan (b)

The Taldearen Federation (b)

Kultus

Tevyne