Class of 198X Characters
How you make characters for use in Class of 198X – The Adventure is going to depend on what RPG rules you’ll be using, and what type of characters the players will be making.
For modern characters, I recommend using the D20 Modern rules, available here: D20 Modern SRD Rules. The D20 Modern statistics here should work with the monsters from the 3.5 D&D SRD and Monster Manual.
Otherwise, use whatever character creations rules are indicated by the rules you’re using.
When I ran this adventure for the CowChop guys, I used the base classes from D20 Modern, and changed the skills to be 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons style. The main difference is that D20 uses skill points, and in 5th ed. a character is either proficient with a skill, or they’re not. Doing this let me use the rules and monsters from 5th ed. D&D, which I prefer to the 3rd edition.
Here are their character sheets at the end of the adventure, after they all leveled up to 2nd level.
Posted in 3rd edition Dungeons & Dragons / d20 fantasy / Pathfinder, 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons, Editorial, rules agnostic and tagged Class of 198X by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Class of 198X
Class of 198X – The Adventure is now available at DriveThruRPG and RPGNow!
In a large shopping mall in the 1980s strange things are afoot. Under a veneer of everyday happy consumerism lurk sinister beings from another world, plotting evil deeds. First the mall will be plagued by a rash of mysterious thefts, followed by kidnappings, and culminating with a devastating fire. If the heroes fail to discover the evil behind these foul acts, they risk a horrible outbreak that threatens to enslave the entire world.
The Player Characters (PCs) could be teenagers, or they could be fantastic D&D characters transported to this modern setting. They could even be law enforcement agents, paranormal investigators, or science-fiction style space-time police.
Get it today at DriveThruRPG.com and RPGnow.com!
Posted in 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons, Adventure, rules agnostic and tagged ClassOf198X by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Galactic Death Squads, LLC (GDS)
The largest and most notorious killer-for-hire outfit in the rim, the GDS motto is “Anyone, anywhere. Guaranteed.” Their reputation on this point is impeccable.
As a result of their fearsome reputation they are variously called “Death, Incorporated.”, “Death Itself”, “Goram Dam Shit”, or even “The Gods” or “Gods of Death.”
Despite GDS’s mystique, they are more of a network of assassins than an organized mercenary company. Their agents are said to suffuse the galaxy, crossing all borders and able to strike at anyone, anywhere in the galaxy.
Posted in Uncategorized by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Planet of the Cybertank
~
an adventure for Traveller or other science-fiction role-playing games
for player characters with access to a light starship or armored fighting vehicles
~
In a quiet system the Player Characters (PCs) receive a distress signal from another spaceship – scrap salvagers stranded on a forbidden zone amber planet (UWP X642000-0). The small world, Zinah 2, was once host to a mining colony. Starchart library data indicates that it was irradiated by nuclear weaponry and abandoned 200 years ago.
Adventure Overview
This adventure has the players land to investigate a distress signal, only to also be stranded on planet by a massive tank piloted by an artificial intelligence. They will have to use skill and guile to escape from the planet.
As an alternative scenario, if the travellers have access to grav tanks or similar military equipment, they may be hired to eliminate the cybertank so that salvage can be collected or a new mining colony can be established.
The Cybertank’s Domain
From orbit the automated emergency distress signal appears to be coming from the highly radioactive wreckage of a type A Free Trader “SS SWAMPDOGE”. The wreck is on the outskirts of the ruins of a mining outpost.
When the players arrive in orbit the cybertank is in its repair bunker in low-power mode (see below). A difficult (-6 DM) sensors check is required to detect the cybertank there and the PCs will likely land before they are aware of it.
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Posted in Adventure, Traveller, Vehicle by Adam A. Thompson with 5 comments.
JAK Cargo Droids
Cargo Droids
These droids are the three best-selling models manufactured by John Doer’s Heavy Robotics (JDHR) division. All three feature wheels on an adjustable width suspension and a pair of cargo arms that the droids use to lift and carry cargo containers.
The JAK-10 is rated to transport one ton of cargo, the larger JAK-15 is rated up to 1.5 tons, and the big-wheeled JAK-AT-20 is rated to carry two tons of cargo across rough terrain. All JAK models are programmed with custom coordination software that allows groups of them to work together to move larger loads.
JAK-10 – Strength 25 (+6), Dexterity 9 (+1), Hull 1, Structure 2, Intelligence 3 (–1), Education 5 (–1), Social Standing 0 (–3)
Traits: Armour 1, Huge, Specialised Computer/1 (running Intellect/1 and Expert Trade (any physical)/1)
Weapons: Cargo Arms (Melee (unarmed), 2d6 damage)
Price: 65,000 Credits
JAK-15 – Strength 30 (+8), Dexterity 9 (+1), Hull 2, Structure 2, Intelligence 3 (–1), Education 5 (–1), Social Standing 0 (–3)
Traits: Armour 1, Huge, Specialised Computer/1 (running Intellect/1 and Expert Trade (any physical)/1)
Weapons: Cargo Arms (Melee (unarmed), 3d6 damage)
Price: 75,000 Credits
JAK-AT-20 – Strength 35 (+9), Dexterity 9 (+1), Hull 3, Structure 3, Intelligence 3 (–1), Education 5 (–1), Social Standing 0 (–3)
Traits: Armour 2, Huge, Specialised Computer/1 (running Intellect/1 and Expert Trade (any physical)/1)
Weapons: Cargo Arms (Melee (unarmed), 4d6 damage)
Price: 95,000 Credits
Posted in droid, Traveller by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Bounty Hunters of the Skein Reach – SS Razors Edge
Lovers and bounty hunters, Zab Brennick & Mista Noral were trained as special forces space marines and served in separate units for nearly a dozen years. Imperial Marine companies are strictly gender separated – they are sworn to put aside family as a sacrifice to the Emperor – but their respective companies were both deployed to put down the rebellion that had sprouted on Zaveros-8b. Their units fought side by side in the tunnels and habitations of that moon, and Zab and Mista were surprised to find themselves falling in love.
The Imperial response inflamed the rebellion, and soon the entire Zaveros system burned with the flames of uprising. When Imperial command decided to cut their losses and bombard the rebel capitol Zab and Mista were cut off from their units and left for dead. Determined to start a new life together, they escaped by stealing a ship and fleeing the Imperial fleet.
Now, they co-captain the SS Razor’s Edge, a modified Huntress-class starship. Their main trade is bounty hunting, and their preferred tactic is to follow a their quarry to a starport, sabotage their weapons with remote-detonating explosive charges, and attack them as they are preparing to jump out of system.
Zab and Mista wear custom combat armor suits with medical sensors which feed vital signals to double dead-man switches. The Razor’s Edge ship computer is programmed to fire all weapons, put the engine into thermal overload, and self-destruct if both of them die.
USS Razor Edge, a Huntress with a crew of four, Zab, Mista, and two crew.
Bounty Hunters – Zab Brennick & Mista Noral
Naval (Crew) 3, UCP 8 8 8 8 8 6,
Pilot (spacecraft) 2, Mechanic 1, Vacc Suit 1, Zero-G 1, Comms 0, Sensors 1, Gunnery (turret) 2, Engineer (P-plant) 1, Engineer (life support) 1, Remote Operations 0, Melee (unarmed) 1, Gun Combat (rifle) 1,
combat armor (armor 12), laser rifle (5d6)
Crew – Jim Heward & Mike Landa
UCP 777777, engineering 1, navigation 1, repair 1, sensors 0, gunnery 0, gun combat 0
boarding vac suit (armor 8),
laser carbine (4d6)
Encounter Hooks:
- The player characters (PCs) have crossed the wrong person and earned a bounty somehow, and the Razor’s Edge finds them by chance.
- It’s a case of mistaken identity, but the crew of the Razor’s Edge think the player characters are wanted. It may be that their ship is a close match to a wanted ship. Regardless of the truth of the situation, they sabotage the PCs’ ship’s weapons and attack them.
- The players have the opportunity to hire the Razor’s Edge to assist with a mission that’s beyond the PC’s abilities.
- The Razor’s Edge is hunting the same live-capture bounty the PCs are. Maybe they try to beat the PCs to the punch and get the target first. Or they might lay in wait and attack the PCs as soon as they have the target in custody.
- The PCs, who have no starship, sign on as crew of the Razor’s Edge.
Using the SS Razor in Your Game
When I whipped these guys up, I needed a bounty hunter ship that would go after my Travellers for raiding an imperial outpost and stealing a whole cargo-hold of renegade droids. They also stole the station’s main computer core curing the fracas. The Travellers got their turrets knocked out, then beat the bounty hunters when they tried to board. They’ve been much more careful about keeping guard on the ship since then.
Posted in Character, Encounter, Traveller by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Droid Military Ship 0110110100110001
This is the first military ship built by the Droid Uprising. It is entirely of droid design, designation 0110110100110001 (M1).
Armored front and back with fifteen tons of thick crystaliron angled plate, this is the toughest little jump-capable ship that the droids could build from the wreckage of the space hulk Cretaceous.
This ship has no life support capability or accommodations for living crew. Other than the bridge, drone storage, and one ton for cargo, every ton of this ship is designed for fighting. A 4 gravity maneuver drive, a 4 parsec jump drive, and a triple turret make up the majority of this ship’s systems.
Extensive stolen software is installed on this ship, giving it the ability to operate with no crew. In essence, the ship is a spacefaring droid.
| 0110110100110001 | TL | Tons | Price (MCr.) | ||
| Total Cost (MCr) | 81.96 | 12 | |||
| Hull | 2 | streamlined | 100 | 2.2 | |
| Structure | 2 | ||||
| Armour | 12 | crystaliron | 12 | 15 | 6.66 |
| Jump Drive | B | jump 4 | 15 | 20 | |
| Manoeuvre Drive | B | thrust 4 | 3 | 8 | |
| Power Plant | B | consumes 2 tons / week of operation | 7 | 16 | |
| Bridge | standard | 10 | 0.5 | ||
| Computer | model 4 | rating 20 | 12 | 5 | |
| Software | intellect, jump control 4, evade 2, fire control 4, autorepair 1, library | 15.4 | |||
| Electronics | basic military | +0 DM, radar, lidar, jammers | 2 | 1 | |
| Weapons | triple turret – particle beam, beam laser, pulse laser | 1 | 6.5 | ||
| Fuel | one jump 4 and two weeks of operation | 44 | |||
| Cargo | 1 | 1 | |||
| x Staterooms | none | ||||
| x Low Berths | none | ||||
| Extras | probe drones (5) | 1 | 0.5 | ||
| repair drones | 1 | 0.2 | |||
| fuel scoops | 0 | 0 | |||
| Maintenance Cost (MCr monthly) | 0.00683 | ||||
| Life Support Cost (Cr monthly) | 0 |
When first built the 0110110100110001 is crewed by four droids:
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- S432K – steward droid with diplomacy 0, electronics (scanner) 1 software – SENSORS / COMMS
- AT-504 – astro-repair droid with navigation 0, engineering 1, repair 1 software – ENGINEERING
- AQ-980 – astro-repair droid with navigation 1, pilot 1, repair 0 software – HELM
- VKT-43 – “Victor” – security droid with tactics 1, gunnery 1 software – COMMAND / WEAPONS
Posted in droid, Starship, Traveller, Uncategorized and tagged Droid Uprising, Skein Reach by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Ghost Snakes (arcanalisti spectralis)
These ghostly snakes are the remnants of magic users who befell disaster while traveling through the astral realms. Their bodies are empty husks, but the souls of some remain, thirsty for magical energy.
At first glance they look like faintly glowing transparent snakes or eels who swim through the air, winking in and out of sight and passing through objects. As they move and attack it becomes clear that they are actually little ghostly skulls with vertebra trailing behind, surrounded by an odd glow of magical energy.
Small undead, chaotic evil
Armor Class 7
Hit Points 3 (1d6)
Speed fly 30 ft.
Proficiency +2
STR 11 (+0) DEX 14 (+2) CON 10 (+0) INT 12 (+1 WIS 8 (-1) CHA 6 (-2)
Senses passive Perception 9
Languages none
Challenge 1/8 (25 XP)
Arcane Absorption. If a ghost snake is reduced to 0 HP with a magical spell it is not destroyed, but instead disappears until its next turn, when it re-incorporates at full health and 3 temporary hit points (for a total of 6 HP) and +1 to attack and damage.
Incorporeal Movement. Ghost snakes can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain. A ghost snake takes 5 (1d10) force damage if it ends its turn inside an object.
Actions
Bite. Melee Spell Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 3 (1d6 force damage) and if the target is a spellcaster the ghost snake gains temporary hit points equal to the damage done.
Posted in 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons, Creature, Fantasy by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Traveller’s Guide to the Skein Reach – Subsector 5 and Aurora Station
This subsector is in the center of the Skein Reach, a desolate scattering of stars near the galactic rim. Aurora Station is the most important trade hub here. Most of the other star systems here are small independent colonies, many of them low-technology worlds in relative isolation. There are also Imperial and Confederation settlements scattered throughout.
Regional Powers
Although Emperor Omerox claims the Skein Reach as part of his domains, officially he also claims the independent Confederation of Planets. The area is actually under neither power’s complete control. Many of the words in the region pay taxes, tithes, and fees to one or both powers, and have various treaties with their respective governments. Nevertheless neither power has enough economic interest or naval might in the sector to control trade or effectively deter piracy. Which is why some criminal gangs are so powerful in the Reach, effectively ruling systems such as Siegworld.
The Imperial Dutchy of Abiodun is neither interested in attempting to nor able to pacify the sector. A poor Imperial capitol, they don’t have a large navy, and the Duke is well known to be complicit in the piracy in the region. Rather than a proud Duke, he is the overseer of shady Imperial dealings and the host of occasional Imperial naval wargames in the Reach. Imperial Intelligence for the region is also headquartered here, and Imperial Scout reports route to the throne through here.
The Confederation of Planets has no plans to recruit worlds in the Skein Reach. They do have non-aggression and trade treaties with many of the independent worlds near their border, but the current peaceful stalemate with the Empire could be upset by recruiting worlds here into the Confederation. Additionally, Confederation Starfleet Command considers the difficult-to-traverse region a good natural buffer from the Empire. Their covert agents use the area as a “soft border” for information about and infiltration into the Empire.
There are also formal and informal polities among the various clumps of stars in the reach. Vohek and Orthmarion have extensive trade and mutual defense treaties, for example.
The Central Skein Reach Trade Confederation organizes trade route, data, and security along the trade routes in the broken ring centered at Aurora Station.
The Ragnarok Krew is the largest and most powerful criminal enterprise in the Reach. With a dozen or so small ships in their possession, raiding, piracy, smuggling, and slaving are their main occupations. The Krew is led by Jalvex “The Hammer” from the starport on Seigworld. Rival gangs include the Red Razors, the Ganymede Boys, the Sun Talons, and the Damned.
The Droid Uprising (or “The Departing”, as some of the droids call themselves) is a self-organizing group of artificially-intelligent droids. They are all intelligent robots who have been freed of the programming which makes them serve their owners. A new phenomenon, the Uprising currently controls no territory, but are building a small fleet of asteroid-hull ships using stolen parts. They have operations on Sareliox, and in the Micon and Cixan systems. Currently their main objective is freeing droids from their programming and transporting them rimward to their main refuge, called “Paradise” in Skein Reach subsector 2.
Systems
Posted in Region, Science-Fiction, Traveller and tagged Skein Reach by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.