 June 23, 2009 - 9:01pm | The lack of opportunity to use tech skills early in the volturnus campaign has always been a vallid criticism of the modules IMO. I just found this picture at deviantart.com and it just inspired me: http://samuelcroes.deviantart.com/art/Old-Starship-80081000 Why not let the PCs find and explore the stripped and burnt out wreck of the first survey expedition's ship in the desert? EDIT: THE ship in the desert, as all Red Devil ships will have nose art similar to this: http://www.clipartof.com/images/clipart/thumbnail2/14879_sexy_brunette_woman_in_a_rubber_dress_and_boots_lying_on_her_back_and_h... I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
June 24, 2009 - 11:18am | The main hatch wont be accessable (underneath the ship or burried) but the life pod ejection ports are empty: the PCs can climb into the port but the powered hatch lacks power requiring a tech to hot wire a std. 20SEU clip to its circutry to power the door open. All pressure doors aboard will require this and will drain 1 or .5 or .33 of an SEU to move the door. Pressure hatches have an auto close feature that I would rule as not requiring power so that PCs would have to jam them open somehow or keep burning through power to get out. Standard doors could be opened for .1 of an SEu and would stay open if left open or could be openned and closed by by two characters 1st making success strength test 2nd if their combined dice rolls total up to 70 they muscle the standard door open or closed: (Example: two characters who each have a STR of 40 make their strength test: one rolls a 12 and the other rolls a 38; the total of the dice rolls is 50- not enough to open the door.) this brings in an element of radomness as to whether they can get a door open. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
 June 27, 2009 - 3:54am | Oddly enough that's a concept I used in my reverse-Volturnus game (players portray the pirates)...the group stumbles upon Jameson's shuttle in "less than mint condition" in the Bachanda forest. Later on when the Sathar arrive, the Star Devils boogie out of dodge marrooning the players on the surface in mid-mission. It's up to them to get the shuttle up and running and rejoin the last remaining pirate vessel in orbit. But the whole ship? Interesting twist. The Star Devils are certainly not above wrecking a ship (they beat the Serena Dawn up pretty good), so there's nothing illogical about sending it plummeting to the surface. The real question would be what survived and what is salvageable, not to mention if the pirates think to check it after the crash as well. You could feasibly have a whole 'nuther pirate raid while the party is lurking around within. |
June 27, 2009 - 8:56pm | actually this idea has perculated through the old coffee machine (which is literally true as my mind really does run on coffee) but anyhow its evolved to a recycling of my hull size 2 thruster class privateer deck plans: a star devil craft is forced to make an emergency landing in the desert. once it lands the unstable ground gives way to a sink hole that swallows one landing strut and leaves the ship at a 45 degree. The decision is made to just strip and scavenge it. the derelick hulk is left dark and lifeless half burried in the desert sands to be stumbled upon maybe just as a sand storm is brewing. there really isn't much left but it will make a great shelter against the weather and there is a small opportunity to do the same sort of scavenging that is done in SFKH2 at the air ship wreck site. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
June 28, 2009 - 4:14am | I've actually done something similar in the past. More than once I've inserted a spacecraft wreck, usually a lightly armed pirate assault scout,* into the Volturnus campaign (although more toward the end rather than the beginning). Mostly so the players would have a ship. Sort of. It would need lots of work before it could become spaceworthy. Suffice it to say the 250,000Cr worth of Tomarillium and Vibrilliam (sp?) that the players find in Slave City One is sufficient enough to barter a freighter captain into airlifting the carcass into orbit and hauling it back to civilization (meaning as far as Prenglar, or with a PER check one more jump to either Cassidine or Timeon). |
June 28, 2009 - 5:39am | Of course there is a simpler solution than yours and mine: dont explode the life boat and let them scavenge that! But I think the authors of the module wanted the "your really marrooned" feel that would get gamers moving looking for a better situation. after all the life boat would act as shelter and it would have to have a beacon and for some even being picked up by the pirates would be perferable to dying of thirst in the desert. but I really do like the derelict hull in the desert and with a little GM fiat a sand storm shows up at the same time so they take shelter to wait out the storm. since the scavenger party that stripped the hull wired a control pack from a control panel to temporarily light engineering while they were working there it should get the party thinking in the right direction. There is also a chance to work a clue in here: if nothing else because the ship has nose art with the red devil insignia it reinforces that pirates are running amoc in the system. Incidently I had deck plans for the thruster class HS2 (3 decks) and the files became a little corrupted. so I deleted all the art from them that was corrupted and won't show properly in the software and "snap" I had a stripped hull- paint in some sand getting in through rents in the hull and write a map key next thing you know I had a 3 page PDF to submit to the zine. to bad that art link above wasn't public domain as that would be a great picture to go with the submission. Or even beter this pic from the same artist: http://samuelcroes.deviantart.com/art/Old-Rocket-70549876 I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
June 29, 2009 - 9:59pm | heres the link to a downloadable version of the Eleanor Mores Module; I meant to include it in the previous post but couldn't figure out where I downloaded that one. http://www.starfrontiers.org/modules/SFKH2.pdf see page 11 of the PDF for details on scavenging and salvage I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
August 6, 2009 - 1:42pm | This might be the ideal location for the PCs to turn up a hand held computer from the Dark Side of the Moon module. It will give the computer techie something to do for more story share and be on hand for trying to hack the pirate outpost computer during or just before the storming of that outpost. I've worked up a 3 deck Hull size 2 wreck based off this idea- we should see some deck plans soon. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
August 12, 2009 - 7:12am | Having committed to this encounter and after mulling things over I've decided to allow the party to find a little "magic item" as it were velcroed under the bunk covered in blood is a plasti-leather satchel (presumably still there cause thats the owner's blood splattered all over the bunk and becase the salvagers chose to leave the blood coated bunk rather than clean it up). In the satchel is a custom built "hackers" hand computer in a reinforced shock casing: <!--[if gte mso 9]> This computer is a portable lightweight (2kg) level 1
computer fitted with a chronocom and powered from an internal rechargeable
power pack (30 SEU max but currently 0SEU). It comes with a standard power cord
(stored internally behind a sliding panel) to recharge from any power recharge
station common throughout the Frontier but it also can port into a power belt
or backpack and siphon off energy from those sources for its recharge. There
are also standard interface cables (for interfacing with computers not equipped
for wireless interfacing) and an auxiliary communications port (for plugging in
a short wave radio or radiophone but the wire is missing). There is also a hand scanner interface port but its cable is missing as well (allows for downloading and compiling info from handscanners). Its reinforced shock casing can take 15 structural points of damage and has lost 9 already (unrepairable though replacable). Damage has gone home to the power pack and though it can be recharged it loses power at the rate of 1 SEU/day besides the power being used for its operation (repairable only in a repair shop). The hand computer has the following level 1 programs: analysis, communication, information storage, computer security, and computer hacking. The communication program allows it to be interfaced with a larger computer via its internal chroncom device or through external communication devices jacked into the computer. Information can be passed freely between two computers over the com link, allowing hand computer to access far larger amounts of data than it would be able to do with its restricted function point size. The communications program also has an application allowing it to re-code its chronocom’s com number to appear to be calling from any other known com number. The computer hacking program is an illegal program (on most worlds) provides a +5% bonus to attempts to defeat security on interfaced computers. It has enough wrong and missing to not be a monty haul item and once back to civilization the player will desire to tune it up as well as replace missing cords and the shock case. Since the party is small it could be a big boon for getting into pirate outpost one. As for what files are on it I plan to just make some downloaded scanner files which will be bio scans of some volturnus animals both seen and unseen by the players (just copies of the animal's stats and discription). Plus refferences to map locations detailing the results of some geo scans though no map (players get that at outpost 1) the geo scan info is of value but not without the map to locate the sites and could be sellable later on- if they think of it. I'll need a few more docs to simulate a computer that has been well used. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
August 18, 2009 - 8:28pm | The hand computer has the following level 1 programs: analysis, communication, information storage, computer security, and computer hacking. FYI --- without the "hacking" program that comes to 9 function points, a LVL:1 computer can support no more than 10 FP. I would presume any hacking software would have to be just as intense (if not moreso) than the equivlent security program. Since LVL:1 computer security is a 2FP piece of software, that would put it over the top for a LVL:1 computer, if my limited grasp of computers is anything near accurate. Then again, invasive viruses aren't that large in file size either, so perhaps it could be a 1FP piece of software...just rambling LOL
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August 18, 2009 - 9:27pm | Actually I believe if these are all lvl 1 programs then analysis 1FP, Communication 3FP, information storage 2FP, Computer security 2 FP and hacking 2 FP as per a judgement call I made is 10FP for a lvl 1 computer. That does max out the function points so if a player wanted a different program he has to dump one to load it. I kind of envisioned it as left behind because the crewman (I put it in the crews quarters) had smuggled it aboard and stashed it stuck to the underside of the bunk out of sight. Since the crew quarters had a large amount of dried blood from (2 donors) then its likely the owner died during the landing or soon after and since the bunk was splattered with blood it wasn't removed when the rest of the salvage was taken. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
August 18, 2009 - 9:42pm | Whoops, you're right...I cross indexed something wrong (possibly saw the 3FP Industry program wedged between Info Storage and Comp Security...) |
December 12, 2009 - 12:15am | I finally posted the PDF of the Wreck in the desert encounter in the files section- delayed doing so as I wanted woot to have first crack at it. for the fan zine. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
December 15, 2009 - 9:35am | I shared the Wreck in the desert PDF with Umungus who play tested it and gave great feed back Namely have the pirates with the jet copter ambush the party as they approach the wrech. Naturally at least one must escape and fly off with the jetcopter and to that end I've made the pilot a vursk so he has speed to run away fast enough. Also Umungus added mummified remains in an auto doc coffin device but I'm having them in a life pod close to the wreck with the idea being that the life pod was shot by a ship based laser and lost integrity killing the occupant by vacuum despite the bullet holes in him. He'll be a retired Royal Marine whereing an Old style RM combat harness though the power belt part of it is fully drained it can be recharged and the harnes allows for 1 small melee weapon and 6 clips or grenades to be carried at no cost in wt due to how it displaces the wt. (I charge for clips and grenades: .1 kg) They can save his ID card to return to people on Clarion (which could be a whole new adventure hook latter) plus the survive pack from this pod is still there (more or less- the water pack has ruptured and the power clip in the weapon is dead plus the food tastes nasty is probably too old to eat). An autopsy by the medic will reveal that he had serious but non fatal bullet wounds and that he died by vacuum. The life pod has filled with sand and it will be neccessary to dig it out to get at the body or the survival pack. Next point is that I had been planning to introduce a pain in the butt NPC in the form of a cargo handler from the serena dawn who has delusions of being the next great frontier novellist. He would be found dehydrated and suffering from heat exhaustion. and I thought he could be found at this life pod semi conscious having fired all of his ammo at the life pods door trying to force it open in the hopes of finding a survival pack inside. After that he made a small sun shelter next to the pod and lapsed into delireum. the team is approaching the wrecked ship which would hold their attention when they her "Jimmy" moaning or talking in his delirium. It maybe too much of a coincidence to have a life pod with a dead crew man from the first ship inside and a near dead crewman from the 2nd ship outside. so I'm now leaning to just making it a chronocom or some other speaker device left beside the pod that the pirates setting the ambush are making moaning noises into to pull the party into the heart of the ambush. This option has the very theatrical moment when they discover the walkie talkie/ chronocom and realize its a trap. Below is the maps I worked up from Google earth, the location is the desert somewhere in mexico.  and the full GM map:  The nice thing about google earth is that I've saved this location as a google earth file on my computer and I just need to click on it to activate the program and zoom to this spot on earth from the exact same orientation. Plus each of the push pins on that map can be edited and I can flagg them to not show thus producing player and GM versions of the same image/map obviously scale is a little loose for this and it is to be played out in a yahoo group so I'm just using abstract refereeing estimating distances and such. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
 December 15, 2009 - 5:24pm | The nice thing about google earth is that I've saved this location as a google earth file on my computer and I just need to click on it to activate the program and zoom to this spot on earth from the exact same orientation. Plus each of the push pins on that map can be edited and I can flagg them to not show thus producing player and GM versions of the same image/map obviously scale is a little loose for this and it is to be played out in a yahoo group so I'm just using abstract refereeing estimating distances and such. Open RPG allows you to use an image as a map and move counters around. I'd love to see the faces of the players (webcam needed) as the Ref places a jetcopter counter on the map. :-) |
February 8, 2010 - 6:37pm | Note to self: add a few jackets/ vests with both red devil logo patch and a patch with the nose art of this particular ship to be found in the wreck. they were left because they were in the "clothes refresher" when the environmental plant went off line and never finished being cleaned hence they are quite dirty still. they can be found and taken by the PCs with a thought to using them to infiltrate pirate installations but if the players dont remove the patch with this ship's nose art any pirate noticing it will know immediately something is up. PS delete the moan and the escape pod from this encounter its a little confusing to what's going on. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
February 17, 2010 - 11:28am | The PCs have reached the ship and I sprung umungus's pirate ambush on them- amazing how upsetting that the vursk running away and taking off with the jetcopter bother's them- plus one other pirate faded away into the desert and the scout character "smelled" a sand storm in the offing (it will be a small one). plan to run the encounter in the ship and in the "morning" the ul mor will have turned up with the pirate that got away on foot (tied up) and the "creative npc" at 1 STA on a traviolis and delierious from dehydration. Since the PCs fought and killed 2 sky demons the ul mor are positively disposed toward them and this will be the ground for their first contact. As per ulmor law the pirate will be executed for crimes against the tribe (strafing the tribe via jetcopter for fun) though the PCs can question him (telol will be neccessary to get anything out of him) Jimmy Crane can be revived by the team medic- he was a tech on the serrena dawn (wearing a serrena dawn ship suit) and has delusions of being the next great author in the Frontier- the ul mor have stollen all his personal equipment (be sure to discribe the items from his survival pack among the ulmor) except his file computer that he clutches tightly. Hes been describing the pirate attack on the ship and his wanderings in the desert. Once revived he will attach himself to the party and be a pest, constantly recording notes into the file computer for his book. sometimes he will narrate gun battles while they are going on instead of contributing to the fight. one adventure after the volturnus campaign the PCs will hear that he's publish his volturnus book and 2 adventures/campaigns after the tri-vid will be out but it will cast Jimmy as the hero and merge the 2 yazirian party members into one character. if any character says he buys and reads the book before the movie is out they'll learn of this change in the "facts" I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
