Summary

This is a bog standard, everything-but-the-kitch-sink, space opera setting well suited to adventures in the Traveller vein. When I ran it, I polled my players for all the tropes and major technology that they would like to have in it. But the ability list should be generic enough to support many, widely varying, interpretations - from "In SPAAAAACE!" wackiness to more gritty, "Aliens" inspired, visions of the future.

Abilities

These abilities replace the listed ones in the TSOY (except for the default Endure, React, Resist). My intention was to minimize the proliferation of skills that occurs in many science fiction games. But, as the list of abilities is very lean, this could impact long-term play. This could be addressed by adjusting #XP required for an advance or #advances for ability improvement. Note that all abilities are considered open unless the ability states otherwise.

• Aim (I) - Non-Thrown Ranged Attacks - Small Arms, Bows, Slings
• Astrogation (R) - Closed (requires Secret of L-Space Travel to learn). Allows plotting of Lorenz space transitions without the use of a jump gate.
• Athletics (V) - Running, Sports, Falling, Climbing, Swimming, Swashbuckling
• Business (R) - Finance, Administration, Foreign Trade, Accounting, Economics
• Combat Sense (I) - Sensing Ambushes, Tactics
• Craft (I) - Commercial Hand Crafts
• Etiquette (R) - Knowing all the right moves in high society
• Gunnery (I) - Heavy Unit and Vehicle Weapons - Rocket Launchers, Motars, Ship Guns
• Hand-to-Hand (V) - Brawling, Striking, Grappling, Throwing Opponents, Tripping, Throwing Objects
• Information Warfare (R) - Haxxor, Sensor Operation, ECM, ECCM, Comm Jamming, Electronic Forgery, Codes
• Investigation (R) - Searching for Available Information, Shadowing and Surveillance, Basic Forensics
• Medicine (R) - EMT Training, Neurology, Advanced Forensics, Toxicology, Genesurgery
• Melee (V) - All Hand Weapons - Knife, Sword, Club, Shields, Dueling
• Natural Sciences (R) - Chemistry, Zoology, Botany, Physics, Mathematics, Environmental Sciences
• Perform (I) - Singing, Dancing, Disguise, Oration, Music
• Persuasion (I) - Charm, Intimidation, Leadership, Negotiation, Seduction, Bribery
• Pilot (I) - All Vehicle Model, Stunts
• Social Sciences (R) - History, Anthropology, Xenographic studies, Archaeology, Literature
• Stealth (I) - Moving Silently, Hiding, Covering Tracks, Losing a Tail
• Streetwise (R) - Knowing who to deal with in the underworld to get information or goods
• Survival (V) - All Environments, Foraging, Shelter, Hunting, Navigation, Tracking
• Technical Sciences (R) - Repair, Demolitions, Robots, Electronics, Gravitics, Mechanics, Construction
• Theft (I) - Pickpocket, Shoplifting, Lockpicking, Simple Forgery, Concealing Items on Person
• Visual Art (I) - Drawing, Sculpture, Holo-orchestration, Body Design, Art Forgery
• Xenoform Handling (V) - Recognize Xenoform, Herding, Training, Riding, Breeding

Secrets

• Secret of L-Space Travel - Only a very few understand the mathematical basis of Lorenz space transitions. This secret grants access to the Astrogation ability, but no initial ability in it. To raise Astrogation to competent or above, it must be bought like any other ability. Without this skill, a ship can only transition between system via jump gates.
• Secret of the Flesh Pocket - A version of the Secret of the Hidden Pocket. The character has an integral cavity in their body that can be used to store one or more items whose total volume is no more than the size of a human fist. As the flesh that covers the cavity is re-knit by nano-activators every time it is closed, the character must painfully cut open the cavity each time (though this does make detection much more difficult). Character must spend 2 points from his Vigor pool and make an Endure check to cut open the cavity. If this is successful they may retrieve a suitable, reasonably common item from the cavity that they had not previously declared to be in their possessin. Alternately, they may store an item for later retrieval by the same method.
• Secret of Cybernetic Enhancement - You have a specialized weapon or armor that is built into your body in a concealed fashion. You must choose where the weapon or armor is located, what the it is, and what it gives a bonus to when you select this secret (e.g. Blaster concealed in arm grants +1 Harm in ranged combat; Subsonic voice modulator grants +1 Harm in when Intimidating someone; Blood filtration device that grants +1 protection against poison; etc). It costs 1 Vigor to active this weapon or armor for use in a single scene.
• Secret of Bionic Enhancement - You have some specialized weapon or armor that is built to visibly replace some portion of your body entirely. You must choose where the weapon or armor is located, what the it is, and what it gives a bonus to when you select this secret (e.g. Dermal armor that replaces your skin granting +1 protection in combat; One hand replaced by multi-tool that grants +1 harm in Technical Sciences checks; etc). This modification cannot be concealed but it is always active. Note that in most human cultures, especially high society, visible bionic modification grants a penalty die to social interactions due to predjudice. However, in these circumstances it may grant a bonus die to intimidation attempts, at the GM's option.

Races

• Human - Pretty much what you would expect.
• Llat - 1.4 - 1.8 meter tall, upright, green shrimp. They have 2 pairs of legs, a pair of heavy duty arms with sharp claws, and 12 pairs of tiny manipulator arms running down there chest. Llats see well in the infrared spectrum and are effectively blind to light in the human visual range. Llats are an oviparous hive race with a single queen ruling all known Llat star systems. The queen is the only source of new gene lines, as she is the one who mates with the few Llat males, her consorts. All other Llats are female parthenogenetic clones of other females in their gene line (this is a natural Llat biological function that can be performed at short notice). New gene line Llats, born from the queen, must be taught from scratch and develop into individuals that will found a gene line. Parthenogenetic clones of the same gene line are even more similar than human twins, are they are usually passed a partial genetic imprint of their "mothers" memory - though the more content passed the greater the metabolic cost to the mother when egg-laying. Llats are mute and communicate with each other via signs, made with manipulator arms, and "dance". Llats interacting with verbal societies wear voders that translate this into speech - disturbingly, most Llats use exactly the same vodor model with the same sultry female voice. The Llats are skilled with technology and, using their manipulator arms, are capable of rapid repair and improvements. Unbeknowest to most non-Llats, the Llat males are suffering from a disease know as the "Brittleness" which impairs or destroys their ability to mate with the queen. Llats arrived at their current colonies via Slower Than Light ships and therefore have reason to believe there is a Llat homeworld that could provide a new source of males. But knowledge of where this homeworld is located has been lost. Llat bars are know for their really cheap food, only some of which is directly toxic to human physiology. Llats apparently can taste alloys and trace chemicals, since they make a habit of adding nuts or washers to their cocktails the ways a human would garnish a drink with an olive.

Cultures

• Avate
• Fatimid
• Illuctrian
• Llat
• Narizian