So after years of begging, pleading and otherwise trying to get my meatspace friends to take a chance and play Traveller again, I am once again a real live Referee.
We are playing T5 in an ATU I have generated for them and have quite by accident created what they called a "treasure box". In this case the box in question is an Old Empires Navy Depot on a world just inside the borders of the Permatic Imperium but that has not yet been brought under the Empire's control. The situation is that one of the PCs, Count Interhaus has his County just next door to this world and just found out that a world (actually an asteroid belt) one parsec outside the Red Line (which denotes the space and worlds that the Imperium claims but might not actually hold) is using political prisoners and other slaves to try and get into the Depot. The system in question is a TL-E, Non-Charismatic Dictatorship.
The Depot is from the Fifth Empire which was known to have achieved grand technological heights such as not seen in the present time, figure about TL-21 (yeah, too lazy to work out the Hexadecimal, sorry). It is known that the Dictator has been suffering an increase in slave deaths and INI believes this might indicate that they have cracked the first layer of defenses and might be working on the second layer. Don't know yet if this is true, or just that things are just getting really bad for the slaves as they have actually made no progress at all and are being killed as examples and such.
What I am wondering is what kind of defenses would you suggest that would keep our villain, the Dictator, busy trying to crack it for some years now? Also what goodies might be inside, you know for when the box is finally opened? (Which I am trying to keep from happening for a couple of game years, or basically till the war starts with the coreward Parthian Remnants.) Another bit of info which the players are not quite aware of is that the Fifth Empire was fighting "the Great Enemy" (okay they know that much), what they don't know is that the Great Enemy was a Kardashev Type-II Civilization. :devil:
Actually, if you have other suggestions for this Adventure, please don't feel limited to just the Depot.
Comments, critiques, suggestions?
For those interested here is the actual bait...ummm, I mean Adventure hook, or Rumor:
RUMOR 11: From an Institute Patron or INI File-X-I604. Abonai Belt (FS 0624) A0006B9-E. This belt is ruled by a Non-Charismatic Dictatorship backed with high interstellar level technologies. The ruler uses this high tech level and high law level "to maintain public order". Often "Safety" is touted as the reason for the draconian measures, which is a very serious thing when most of you live in the only habitable location…IN SPACE. Space being brutally unforgiving and killing quickly most residents comply. If asked about the extreme security measures of the Dictator when they could move to another location, such as planetoid, the average citizen will state "Well, it is Class A though, so it's not like your slumming it with the Belters. Here you have nice things." And they will then go on and on about the conveniences of the port and the nice things they believe they would have to give up if they left.
Imperial Navy Intelligence is quietly looking for Travellers to check out a system known only by its Hex designation 0724 and named "Colony A". If the Travellers take on the task they will be briefed with the information above. Then they will be briefed with the following: Colony A is actually a penal camp used by the ruler of Abonai Belt in attempts to crack an Old Empires Navy Depot. However the extreme technology difference is frustrating their attacks on its defenses. Every one in the Belt has heard the rumors that being sent there is a death sentence. No one actually knows what kills the prisoners and no one is to keen to find out except for maybe the rebels. Rumors abound but not one sophont in the Belt seems actually knows what goes on there nor they can prove what they espouse.
As a side Adventure, the Travellers can help the rebels get the irrevocable proof of the dictator's lies and brutality. More importantly, proof of what actually is going on there that is killing prisoners at increasing rates. Helping the rebels would gain the characters much favor in Court. The downfall of the dictator would allow the Imperium a excuse to install a Governor-General. In addition it could possibly result a Traveller News Service story about the participants.
Or the Travellers could set the rebels up by claiming to help and then turning them over to the secret police, who will most assuredly reward the characters handsomely for alerting them to the rebel cell and its intentions. The dictator understands what the success of the rebels' mission would do to their rule. It isn't like they are all that popular to begin with. Proof that they are spending people's loved ones to die trying to crack an Old Empires vault is not going to go down well. The Traveller's can expect a warm welcome in this port for some time.
We are playing T5 in an ATU I have generated for them and have quite by accident created what they called a "treasure box". In this case the box in question is an Old Empires Navy Depot on a world just inside the borders of the Permatic Imperium but that has not yet been brought under the Empire's control. The situation is that one of the PCs, Count Interhaus has his County just next door to this world and just found out that a world (actually an asteroid belt) one parsec outside the Red Line (which denotes the space and worlds that the Imperium claims but might not actually hold) is using political prisoners and other slaves to try and get into the Depot. The system in question is a TL-E, Non-Charismatic Dictatorship.
The Depot is from the Fifth Empire which was known to have achieved grand technological heights such as not seen in the present time, figure about TL-21 (yeah, too lazy to work out the Hexadecimal, sorry). It is known that the Dictator has been suffering an increase in slave deaths and INI believes this might indicate that they have cracked the first layer of defenses and might be working on the second layer. Don't know yet if this is true, or just that things are just getting really bad for the slaves as they have actually made no progress at all and are being killed as examples and such.
What I am wondering is what kind of defenses would you suggest that would keep our villain, the Dictator, busy trying to crack it for some years now? Also what goodies might be inside, you know for when the box is finally opened? (Which I am trying to keep from happening for a couple of game years, or basically till the war starts with the coreward Parthian Remnants.) Another bit of info which the players are not quite aware of is that the Fifth Empire was fighting "the Great Enemy" (okay they know that much), what they don't know is that the Great Enemy was a Kardashev Type-II Civilization. :devil:
Actually, if you have other suggestions for this Adventure, please don't feel limited to just the Depot.
Comments, critiques, suggestions?
For those interested here is the actual bait...ummm, I mean Adventure hook, or Rumor:
RUMOR 11: From an Institute Patron or INI File-X-I604. Abonai Belt (FS 0624) A0006B9-E. This belt is ruled by a Non-Charismatic Dictatorship backed with high interstellar level technologies. The ruler uses this high tech level and high law level "to maintain public order". Often "Safety" is touted as the reason for the draconian measures, which is a very serious thing when most of you live in the only habitable location…IN SPACE. Space being brutally unforgiving and killing quickly most residents comply. If asked about the extreme security measures of the Dictator when they could move to another location, such as planetoid, the average citizen will state "Well, it is Class A though, so it's not like your slumming it with the Belters. Here you have nice things." And they will then go on and on about the conveniences of the port and the nice things they believe they would have to give up if they left.
Imperial Navy Intelligence is quietly looking for Travellers to check out a system known only by its Hex designation 0724 and named "Colony A". If the Travellers take on the task they will be briefed with the information above. Then they will be briefed with the following: Colony A is actually a penal camp used by the ruler of Abonai Belt in attempts to crack an Old Empires Navy Depot. However the extreme technology difference is frustrating their attacks on its defenses. Every one in the Belt has heard the rumors that being sent there is a death sentence. No one actually knows what kills the prisoners and no one is to keen to find out except for maybe the rebels. Rumors abound but not one sophont in the Belt seems actually knows what goes on there nor they can prove what they espouse.
As a side Adventure, the Travellers can help the rebels get the irrevocable proof of the dictator's lies and brutality. More importantly, proof of what actually is going on there that is killing prisoners at increasing rates. Helping the rebels would gain the characters much favor in Court. The downfall of the dictator would allow the Imperium a excuse to install a Governor-General. In addition it could possibly result a Traveller News Service story about the participants.
Or the Travellers could set the rebels up by claiming to help and then turning them over to the secret police, who will most assuredly reward the characters handsomely for alerting them to the rebel cell and its intentions. The dictator understands what the success of the rebels' mission would do to their rule. It isn't like they are all that popular to begin with. Proof that they are spending people's loved ones to die trying to crack an Old Empires vault is not going to go down well. The Traveller's can expect a warm welcome in this port for some time.
