This is very IMTU.
The Rift Race were an alien race who inhabited a chunk of rift spinward and rimward of known space -- along the edges of the rift gulf just rimward of sector -21,-2, in fact. From an unidentified homeworld, they spread around this gulf in scattered colonies over 100,000 years ago, and established a few small outposts as far coreward as the Trojan Reaches and Verge, and as far rimward as where the Local Arm of stars ends at a Galactic Rift. Outposts had between 10,000 and 100,000 inhabitants. Colony populations averaged 1 billion inhabitants, and never were smaller than 100 million. There were never more than 100 colonies in existence at any one time. Thus a new colony planting was always of incredible scope and importance.
They never discovered jump drive. Content to colonize with cold-berth sleeper ships for a thousand years, they were drawn to worlds in their subsector along (or in) the rift, until their research and otherwise high technology finally isolated a property deep in the rift that allowed them to manipulate 'empty' space. The result was a 'rift drive' which allowed them to travel at 'FTL speeds' within a rift. Three pseudo-rules govern rift drives: when within a few parsecs of a star, the drive may move toward it or away from it only. When deep within a rift, the drive may freely (and very swiftly) carry the ship in any direction. When surrounded by stars, the rift drive cannot function. This tended to keep colonies perched on the rift edges, on systems that could give their ships access to the rift.
Antimatter power plants efficiently fuel the 'rift drive'. The rift drive itself is either built into the very hulls of the ships, or added as a module, not unlike a black globe generator.
Just for grins, I decided that this race is the very same race as the Shriekers on 567-908, and the Chamax Sapiens formerly from the Alenzar system. The difference is that the Shrieker and Chamax colonies are 'lost', low-tech colonies -- perhaps originally descended from a failed outpost, perhaps due to a rift drive mishap, who knows? -- both established 100,000 years ago for reasons unknown. Their efficient, high-TL maneuver drives might have carried them several sectors over twenty thousand years...
Adventurers might come upon this enigma by being on Garoo when Chamax Sapiens arrive via one of their sleeper ships, then (some time later) seeing Shriekers on 567-908. Searching Chamax for clues (what a fun trip that would be!) might bring to light a small chunk of starchart, perhaps embedded in a ceremonial artifact, centered on a system far down in the Trojan Reaches.
The Rift Race were an alien race who inhabited a chunk of rift spinward and rimward of known space -- along the edges of the rift gulf just rimward of sector -21,-2, in fact. From an unidentified homeworld, they spread around this gulf in scattered colonies over 100,000 years ago, and established a few small outposts as far coreward as the Trojan Reaches and Verge, and as far rimward as where the Local Arm of stars ends at a Galactic Rift. Outposts had between 10,000 and 100,000 inhabitants. Colony populations averaged 1 billion inhabitants, and never were smaller than 100 million. There were never more than 100 colonies in existence at any one time. Thus a new colony planting was always of incredible scope and importance.
They never discovered jump drive. Content to colonize with cold-berth sleeper ships for a thousand years, they were drawn to worlds in their subsector along (or in) the rift, until their research and otherwise high technology finally isolated a property deep in the rift that allowed them to manipulate 'empty' space. The result was a 'rift drive' which allowed them to travel at 'FTL speeds' within a rift. Three pseudo-rules govern rift drives: when within a few parsecs of a star, the drive may move toward it or away from it only. When deep within a rift, the drive may freely (and very swiftly) carry the ship in any direction. When surrounded by stars, the rift drive cannot function. This tended to keep colonies perched on the rift edges, on systems that could give their ships access to the rift.
Antimatter power plants efficiently fuel the 'rift drive'. The rift drive itself is either built into the very hulls of the ships, or added as a module, not unlike a black globe generator.
Just for grins, I decided that this race is the very same race as the Shriekers on 567-908, and the Chamax Sapiens formerly from the Alenzar system. The difference is that the Shrieker and Chamax colonies are 'lost', low-tech colonies -- perhaps originally descended from a failed outpost, perhaps due to a rift drive mishap, who knows? -- both established 100,000 years ago for reasons unknown. Their efficient, high-TL maneuver drives might have carried them several sectors over twenty thousand years...
Adventurers might come upon this enigma by being on Garoo when Chamax Sapiens arrive via one of their sleeper ships, then (some time later) seeing Shriekers on 567-908. Searching Chamax for clues (what a fun trip that would be!) might bring to light a small chunk of starchart, perhaps embedded in a ceremonial artifact, centered on a system far down in the Trojan Reaches.
