Pocket empire in TNE (Long)

[JAFARR]

I am setting up a PE for TNE in the old Verge Sector. I found one source that emplied that there was a canonized version on Verge, but I haven't been able to find it, so I am using my own set to match the specs below.
Here are the basics for the campaign:
(1) A high tech pocket in the edge of the Claw.
(2) There are 2 possible entrances to the pocket and both must come through the same system. So defending fleets can be able to ignore other possible routes of attacking ships.
(3) Someone with a suspect motive has disabled the transponder of an escape boat on a ship that gets the Empire Builder strain of Virus. He was planning to use this craft to leave the ship in a system where he had a jump 3 capable ship hidden. It has never been made clear if he was a pirate, spy, or something else. After the ship became infected, he realized that his best chance to survive in a universe suddenly gone completely mad was to escape to this pocket of the Imperium. He managed to convince the ship that he knew where it could add to its empire and take him to the system where his ship was hidden. This system is the gateway to the pocket. It can be reached by several worlds but only if you have J-3 or higher. From there it is jump 4 or more to the main cluster in the pocket or jump 1 to the next system and then jump 3 to the rest of the pocket. All entrance to the main pocket must come through one of these two systems. When the vampire arrived in the gateway system, he escaped due to having sabotaged the escape boat's transponder so that the virus did not spread to the escape boat. In the process of escaping, he managed to cause an explosion that disabled the vampire's jump drives as a cover to his escape. Upon arriving at his hidden ship, he disabled it's transponder and then jumped to the next system where he notified authorities of the existence of virus. To make a long story short, he became the hero who saved the pocket from virus.
(4) The pocket was home to both a research station studying computer systems and a naval reserve. It has several major belts that supply building materials and several agriculture worlds that can feed the pocket without need of importing anything. As Verge was not part of any domain, it has escaped much of the damaging effects on the rebellion. The admiral in charge of the naval reserve declared martial law throughout the pocket due to the virus and thus unified the pocket with the goal of holding virus at bay. Massive anti virus patrols are stationed in the two gateway systems.
(5) With the resources at hand, it was decided that the best way to defend against virus was to increase the pocket's over all tech level. Several systems’ starports were upgraded. Some low pop worlds were more fully populated by enticing population from high pop worlds to migrate.
(6) In many ways this stellar community has become more of an empire than the Imperium ever was. It is hoped that other pockets of civilization still survive outside this one which has decided to call itself "The Phoenix League". In what would be year 1220 by the old Imperium calendar, there have been no attempted intrusions by virus bearing ships in the past 30 years. The last intrusion prior to that was 20 years. The Phoenix League has decided to look outward with a 3-part goal. First, look for other surviving pockets of civilization. Second, surely there are isolated worlds that need help to regain what they had before. Third, even though overall tech level has risen in the pocket (Up to level 17 on the capitol world of Davenci), there may be abandoned technology and equipment that can be put to good use here at home.
(7) A new class of scout ships has been designed and there is a call for adventurous souls to test them beyond the borders of the League.

Other details include a new minor race that inhabits a 3 star "pocket within a pocket".

I have generated the entire Verge / Phoenix sector and detailed the main worlds with in the pocket. Next I will create the mainworlds for the rest of the sector, setup jump routes and then do the entire system generation for the worlds in the pocket (at least the major ones like the naval reserve and Davenci).

Anyone who would like to supply ideas for world names for the pocket or the rest of the sector can either list them here or e-mail them to me. Here are the sector subsectors
Subsector
Code Name
A Six Steps (has 6 systems in the Claw)
B Star Path (6 systems also in the Claw)
C Star's Edge (3 in claw, 21 outside)
D Astoria (37 all out)
E Two Stars (2 in claw)
F Pathway (1 in claw & 3in pocket)
G The Web (25 outside)
H Brilliance (32 outside - 1 will be a class "B" beacon star named Brilliance)
I Wing (5 in pocket)
J Phoenix (21 main pocket 2 already named)
K Phoenix's Gate (Gateway and 1 other in pocket, 8 outside the Claw)
L Revival (32 outside)
M Emptiness (contains Star's End belt and 1 system within reach of Aslan Heirate but jump 8 from pocket)
N Devil's Trio (5 within pocket includes 3 system pocket within a pocket)
O The Void (no stars)
P Talon (3 in, 9 outside)

Worlds within the pocket need origional names and new names that are linked to techonology or siginifying renewal (ie. Phoenix, Davenci) or in the case of Gateway and the Star's End belt, something significent about the system. The system next to Gateway will be named for villian turned hero who brought the news of virus to the pocket, but I have not come up with a good one for him yet.

If you want to help build on this idea, please feel free.

 

[shield]

Did you really mean TL 17 on the main world. If they have that sort of TL they won't need to do much salvage work in the former imperium.

Cheers
Richard

 

[Flynn]

Andy,

It sounds interesting, but I have to admit I was surprised when I saw mention of a TL17 world in this pocket empire of yours. Even the Regency, with resources that probably greatly surpass those of your pocket empire, has only managed to have only a couple of worlds barely attain and hold on to TL16. To have something with TL17 within a couple of sectors of that location tends to bring up some questions to me:

1) Why aren't they the ones rebuilding space about them, instead of the Regency?

2) Why aren't they mentioned as part of the Regency's explorations? How did they go undetected throughout all this time?

Of course, these are only issues if you are working in the OTU, not IYTU. I imagine that IYTU, this pocket empire has had a greater impact on its region of space and would have been noted by the Regency and other PEs of note.

Personally, the way TNE is written, you can get that same feeling of Awesome Power Through Technology with a TL14 world, since on the average, most worlds outside of a PE rarely exceed TL12 in TNE 1200. But I can also understand wanting to explore the mystery of the higher, near magical Extreme Stellar tech level ranges, both to appease that power gamer side of me and because of the ramifications that TL17 technology commonly available would bring to the OTU.

I look forward to hearing more about your game, and your players' experiences with the Phoenix League.

With Regards,
Flynn

 

[JAFARR]

Originally posted by Flynn:
Andy,

It sounds interesting, but I have to admit I was surprised when I saw mention of a TL17 world in this pocket empire of yours. Even the Regency, with resources that probably greatly surpass those of your pocket empire, has only managed to have only a couple of worlds barely attain and hold on to TL16. To have something with TL17 within a couple of sectors of that location tends to bring up some questions to me:

1) Why aren't they the ones rebuilding space about them, instead of the Regency?

2) Why aren't they mentioned as part of the Regency's explorations? How did they go undetected throughout all this time?

Of course, these are only issues if you are working in the OTU, not IYTU. I imagine that IYTU, this pocket empire has had a greater impact on its region of space and would have been noted by the Regency and other PEs of note.

Personally, the way TNE is written, you can get that same feeling of Awesome Power Through Technology with a TL14 world, since on the average, most worlds outside of a PE rarely exceed TL12 in TNE 1200. But I can also understand wanting to explore the mystery of the higher, near magical Extreme Stellar tech level ranges, both to appease that power gamer side of me and because of the ramifications that TL17 technology commonly available would bring to the OTU.

I look forward to hearing more about your game, and your players' experiences with the Phoenix League.

With Regards,
Flynn

Justification for TL 17: As I stated, this sector was outside the sphere of influence of the Domains and therefore escaped the ravages of the Rebellion just as the Regency did, but (and this is the big part) the pocket had several TL-15 and 1 TL-16 world due to having been an old and established area long before the Regency was settled. Also the presence of the computer research station allowed the push to develop computer technology in response to the virus threat. Look at our present world, after a certain point in technology development, the human brain cannot process enough data fast enough without mechanical help. Hence slide rules and abaccuses which give way to adding machines which give way to calculators to full scale computers to faster, more powerful computers, ad infinatum. (Pardon my bad spelling). What is modern day earth's overall TL? Now what is USA's computer TL? (My guess is off the charts in Traveller) However, we don't have the threat of anything driving us to invest in more technology in some of the other fields needed to elevate overall technology, but that's a sermon for another day.

For a little more detail: 38 systems within the pocket. Pocket within a pocket is 3 systems requiring a jump-4 followed by a jump-5 to reach. TL breakdowns, H-1, G-2,F-2,E-1,A - D -5, 6-9 -15, 5 or less -9, I haven't decidec about ith inner pocket, but I think no more than 5 or 6.


As to being "close to the Regency": The jump-5 route through the Great Rift exits below the smaller claw of the talon in Aslan held areas of space. Verge sector sits on the web of the talon area. The pocket is located in subsector K of The old Verge sector with it's spinward side isolated from the Regency. As far as the Reformation, from any given hex in the Old Expanses M subsector to the Verge/Phoenix subsector J is roughly 130 hexes straight line distance so it will be years before these two groups collide.

In answer to Question 1, That is just what the Phoenix League intends to do. It feels that it has now developed adequate measures and protection to deal with virus and is setting out to build the 4th Imperium. There is no rush. First efforts will be in subsector L And the portion of K outside the pocket. After all, the Phoenix League has had no contact with any outsiders in over 100 years. They only know that the only outside contacts for the past 100 years have been vampire fleets and only 2 of those in the past 50 years. They have the old data for the Verge/Phoenix sector, but that data is approaching 150 years old.

Does that dog hunt? Or you still think I am streaching to far into the Hi tech zone?

 

[Flynn]

Andy,

While I still don't see having a world with that high a TL in the OTU, particularly during the TNE time frame, I have no problem with you having it in YTU. It's whatever makes the game fun for you, right?

As for your reasons behind justifying a TL17 world in your game, I'm going to let you in on a big secret for satisfied IMTU experiences on the web: for your game, the only opinions that should matter are those of yourself and your players. If you seek validation and acceptance from Traveller fans at large, you'll find critics as well as fans, and probably not a lot of validation for your efforts. So, if your reasonings work for you, great. No worries here. My opinion is just my opinion, neh?

Still looking forward to hearing about your group's experiences with the Phoenix League, as you have time to share them with us.

Enjoy,
Flynn

 

[DED]

I'll second Flynn's last post.

As far as the OTU is concerned, Verge sector was considered Dulinor's backyard. The folks in Verge didn't care for that. They seceded in 1122 to form the Verge Combine. Warfare ensued for the next year. A ceasefire was brokered but there is no mention in Survival Margin that the VC peacefully rejoined Dulinor's faction.

Another thing to note is that Virus was released just a sector away. It is quite likely that anything in Verge reachable by a jump 3 or 4 ship was likely infected relatively early into Virus' release.

But these are OTU concerns. IYTU, your mileage may vary.

 

[kafka47]

Maybe we ought to begin to think what was the composition of the Verge Combine.

Perhaps, this was a section of the Imperium that experimented with Memory Transfer into Machines thereby giving life and artificial intelligence a place within the Imperium. As this challenged both the Dulinor project of universal rights by challenging his legitimacy whilst denying a him a technological advantage with his slugfest with Lucan. Perhaps, a Hi Tech Verge Pocket Empire would not be a bad thing.