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Four Spaceships

Four Spaceships

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Purely for amusement’s sake, here are the GURPS Spaceships writeups for four spacecraft in the Human Destiny setting. I’ve been finding it useful to draw up these ships using the GURPS rules, because they’re a pretty clean (and appropriately generic) system for spaceship design. Naturally, I’ll be adapting these to more system-agnostic terms as I write them up for the Human Destiny sourcebook. You’ll notice I’m already converting certain measurements to the metric system . . .

Human Protectorate Heavy Utility Lander (TL10)

Built on a 1,000-ton (SM+8) 60-meter streamlined hull, this large vehicle was a workhorse of the development of the outer Solar System.

Front Section

  • [1]: Advanced Metallic Laminate Armor (dDR 10)
  • [2]: Passenger Seating (60 seats)
  • [3-6]: Cargo Hold (200 tons)
  • [core]: Control Room (C8, C/S 7, 4 control stations)

Center Section

  • [1]: Advanced Metallic Laminate Armor (dDR 10)
  • [2-6, core]: Cargo Hold (300 tons)

Rear Section

  • [1]: Advanced Metallic Laminate Armor (dDR 10)
  • [2-3]: Cargo Hold (100 tons)
  • [4-5]: Fuel Tank (100 tons hydrogen fuel, 30 mps delta-V)
  • [6]: Fusion Torch (0.5 G acceleration)

Features

  • Exposed Radiators

Crew Requirements

  • Pilot (Lieutenant)
  • Co-pilot (Sublieutenant)
  • Communications Operator (Enlisted)
  • Sensors Operator (Enlisted)

Details

dST/HP 70. HT 12. Hnd/SR -2/5. Move 0.5G/30 mps. Air Speed 2,800 kph. Air Hnd/SR -2/5. SM+8. Loaded mass 1,000 tons. dDR 10. Occupancy 4+60SV. Load 606.4 tons. Cost $28.9 million.

Khedai Hegemony Utility Spaceplane (TL12)

Built on a 1,000-ton (SM+8) 75-meter streamlined hull, this large spaceplane can be found all across the Hegemony. It can ferry passengers and cargo to and from the surface of inhabited worlds, make short journeys in interplanetary space, or serve as auxiliary craft for a starship.

Front Section

  • [1]: Exotic Laminate Armor (dDR 30)
  • [2]: Passenger Seating (60 seats)
  • [3-6]: Cargo Hold (200 tons)
  • [core]: Control Room (C10, C/S 9, 4 control stations)

Center Section

  • [1]: Exotic Laminate Armor (dDR 30)
  • [2-6]: Cargo Hold (250 tons)

Rear Section

  • [1]: Exotic Laminate Armor (dDR 30)
  • [2-4]: Cargo Hold (150 tons)
  • [5]: Engine Room (1 control station, 1 workspace)
  • [6!]: Reactionless Engine (1 G acceleration)
  • [core]: Fusion Reactor (de-rated, 1 PP, 3,000 years endurance)

Features

  • Exposed Radiators
  • Wings

Crew Requirements

  • Pilot (Lieutenant)
  • Co-pilot (Sublieutenant)
  • Communications Operator (Enlisted)
  • Sensors Operator (Enlisted)
  • Technicians x2 (Enlisted)

Details

dST/HP 70. HT 13. Hnd/SR -1/5. Move 1G/c. Air Speed 4,000 kph. Air Hnd/SR +3/6. SM+8. Loaded mass 1,000 tons. dDR 30. Occupancy 6+60SV. Load 606.6 tons. Cost $73.6 million.

Human Protectorate Heavy Utility Vehicle (TL10)

Built on a 100,000-ton (SM+12) 200-meter unstreamlined hull, this ship has a deep and rich history in the development of the Sol system. One of these vehicles, named Enterprise, was the first (and for a long time the only) Hegemony spaceship ever placed under human control.

Under human command, Enterprise spent decades journeying tirelessly through interplanetary space. The ship was used to set up asteroid-mining bases, to place industrial colonies on the moons of Jupiter and Saturn, even to venture out to the Kuiper Belt and harvest comets for the terraforming of Mars. Along the way, the ship gave thousands of humans experience in deep-space operations using Hegemony technology. This cultural experience stood them in good stead when the Hegemony unexpectedly opened the way to the stars in the early  23rd Century.

Front Section

  • [1]: Advanced Metallic Laminate Armor (dDR 70)
  • [2]: Comm/Sensor Array – Science (C/S 13, 10 workspaces)
  • [3]: Habitat (600 CE, 10 workspaces)
  • [4]: Hangar Bay (3,000 tons capacity, 500 tons/minute launch, 10 workspaces)
  • [5-6]: Cargo Hold (10,000 tons)
  • [core]: Control Room (C10, C/S 11, 20 control stations, 10 workspaces)

Center Section

  • [1]: Advanced Metallic Laminate Armor (dDR 70)
  • [2]: Cargo Hold (5,000 tons)
  • [3!]: Factory – Robofac ($10 million/hour capacity, 10 workspaces)
  • [4!]: Mining (500 tons/hour capacity, 10 workspaces)
  • [5!]: Refinery (1,500 tons/hour capacity, 10 workspaces)
  • [6, core]: Fusion Reactor (4 PP, 200 years endurance, 20 workspaces)

Rear Section

  • [1]: Advanced Metallic Laminate Armor (dDR 70)
  • [2-4]: Fuel Tank (15,000 tons hydrogen fuel, 180 mps delta-V)
  • [5-6]: Fusion Rocket (0.01 G acceleration, 20 workspaces)

Features

  • Exposed Radiators
  • Spin Gravity (0.5 G)
  • Total Life Support
  • Auxiliary Craft: Human Protectorate Heavy Utility Lander x3

Crew Requirements

  • Bridge Section: 12 officers, 8 enlisted (Captain x1, Commander x1, Subcommander x2, Lieutenant x3, Junior Officers x5, Enlisted x8)
  • Technical Section: 11 officers, 99 enlisted (Subcommander x1, Lieutenant x3, Junior Officers x7, Enlisted x99)
  • Flight Crew: 6 officers, 6 enlisted (Lieutenant x3, Junior Officers x3, Enlisted x6)
  • Administrative Section: 4 officers, 8 enlisted (Subcommander x1, Lieutenant x1, Junior Officers x2, Enlisted x8)
  • Science Section: 26 officers, 54 enlisted (Subcommander x1, Lieutenant x3, Junior Officers x22, Enlisted x54)
  • Medical Section: 2 officers, 2 enlisted (Subcommander x1, Lieutenant x1, Enlisted x2)
  • Services Section: 3 officers, 29 enlisted (Subcommander x1, Lieutenant x1, Junior Officers x1, Enlisted x29)
  • Passengers: 26 (2 luxury passengers, 24 passengers)
  • TOTAL: 296 (64 officers, 206 enlisted, 26 passengers) (Captain x1, Commander x1, Subcommander x7, Lieutenant x15, Junior Officers x40, Enlisted x206)

Habitat Allocation

  • Luxury Cabins x2 (8 CE)
  • Cabins x145 (290 CE)
  • Passenger Luxury Cabins x2 (8 CE)
  • Passenger Cabins x23 (46 CE)
  • Briefing Room x10 (10 CE)
  • Establishment x10 (20 CE)
  • Large Astronomy Lab (20 CE)
  • Large Chemistry Lab (20 CE)
  • Large Geology Lab (20 CE)
  • Large Physics Lab (20 CE)
  • Office x6 (6 CE)
  • Sickbay x40 (40 CE)
  • Steerage Cargo x92 (92 CE)
  • TOTAL 600 CE

Details

dST/HP 300. HT 14. Hnd/SR -4/5. Move 0.01G/180 mps. SM+12. Loaded mass 100,000 tons. dDR 70. Occupancy 344ASV. Load 18,494.4 tons. Cost $16.34 billion.

Khedai Hegemony Long-Range Exploration Starship (TL12)

This starship, built on a 30,000-ton (SM+11) 150-meter unstreamlined hull, is a mainstay of the Hegemony’s mission to explore and monitor interstellar space. Thousands of ships in this class are constantly on the move throughout the wilderness spaces supervised by the Khedai Hegemony. In particular, ships like this began to fan out from Sol soon after the Conquest.

Early in the 23rd Century, the Hegemony began to recruit human crew for these exploration missions, permitting them to contribute to surveys within ten parsecs or so of Sol. Later, Aminata Ndoye (one of the first humans to earn officer’s rank in the Interstellar Service) worked aboard several ships of this class. Indeed, she was the first human to command one of them, the Challenger, during its history-making expedition toward the stars of Orion.

Front Section

  • [1]: Exotic Laminate Armor (dDR 150)
  • [2]: Comm/Sensor Array – Science (C/S 14, 3 workspaces)
  • [3]: Open Space (0.5 acres, 3 workspaces)
  • [4-5]: Habitat (400 CE, 6 workspaces)
  • [6]: Defensive ECM (-2 to hit, 3 workspaces)
  • [core]: Control Room (C11, C/S 12, 15 control stations, 3 workspaces)

Center Section

  • [1]: Exotic Laminate Armor (dDR 150)
  • [2-3]: Hangar Bay (2,000 tons capacity, 200 tons/minute launch, 6 workspaces)
  • [4-5]: Cargo Hold (3,000 tons)
  • [6!]: Factory – Nanofactory ($30 million/hour capacity, 3 workspaces)
  • [core]: Total Conversion Reactor (5 PP, infinite endurance, 3 workspaces)

Rear Section

  • [1]: Exotic Laminate Armor (dDR 150)
  • [2]: Defensive ECM (-2 to hit, 3 workspaces)
  • [3-4!!]: Reactionless Drive (2 G acceleration, 6 workspaces)
  • [5-6!!!!]: Super Stardrive (FTL-4, 12 workspaces)

Features

  • Exposed Radiators
  • Spin Gravity (0.3 G)
  • Stealth Hull (-12 to detect)
  • Total Life Support
  • Auxiliary Craft: Khedai Hegemony Utility Spaceplane x2

Crew Requirements

  • Bridge Section: 9 officers, 6 enlisted (Commander x1, Subcommander x1, Lieutenant x2, Junior Officers x5, Enlisted x6)
  • Technical Section: 5 officers, 40 enlisted (Lieutenant x1, Junior Officers x4, Enlisted x40)
  • Flight Crew: 4 officers, 8 enlisted (Lieutenant x2, Junior Officers x2, Enlisted x8)
  • Administrative Section: 3 officers, 5 enlisted (Lieutenant x1, Junior Officers x2, Enlisted x5)
  • Science Section: 24 officers, 48 enlisted (Subcommander x1, Lieutenant x3, Junior Officers x20, Enlisted x48)
  • Medical Section: 1 officer, 1 enlisted (Lieutenant x1, Enlisted x1)
  • Services Section: 1 officer, 11 enlisted (Lieutenant x1, Enlisted x11)
  • TOTAL: 166 (47 officers, 119 enlisted) (Commander x1, Subcommander x2, Lieutenant x11, Junior Officers x33, Enlisted x119)

Habitat Allocation

  • Luxury Cabins x2 (8 CE)
  • Cabins x90 (180 CE)
  • Briefing Room x6 (6 CE)
  • Establishment x6 (12 CE)
  • Astronomy Lab x6 (12 CE)
  • Biology Lab x6 (12 CE)
  • Chemistry Lab x6 (12 CE)
  • Geology Lab x6 (12 CE)
  • Metallurgy Lab x6 (12 CE)
  • Physics Lab x6 (12 CE)
  • Office x4 (4 CE)
  • Sickbay x20 (20 CE)
  • Steerage Cargo x98 (98 CE)
  • TOTAL 400 CE

Details

dST/HP 200. HT 14. Hnd/SR -2/5. Move 2G/c. SM+11. Loaded mass 30,000 tons. dDR 150. Occupancy 184ASV. Load 5,508.4 tons. Cost $14.0 billion.

The Final Burst of “Architect of Worlds” Research

The Final Burst of “Architect of Worlds” Research

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I’m currently in the process of a final editorial and layout pass on Architect of Worlds before the book gets released. For an idea of how that’s going, I’m up to page 62 out of 188, and as long as I can wrangle an hour or two in a given evening, that usually gets pushed another 10-12 pages forward.

I hadn’t planned on doing extensive rewrites of any of the existing text as part of this final pass – just polishing typos and stylistic inconsistencies, and preparing the layout for both e-book and print releases. However, I’ve recently come across some research that really asks for some revisions of the current model. (Thanks to patron Thanasias Kinias for putting me on this particular trail.)

The subject is what Architect calls Class 2 or “Dulcinea-type” worlds. These are super-Earths that have thick atmospheres dominated by primordial hydrogen and helium, and in the Architect model they almost invariably have lots of water as well. In astronomical circles, these are starting to be called hycean worlds (“hycean” coming from “HYdrogen” and “oCEAN”). It’s been one of my secret pleasures that the models used in Architect allowed for such worlds before they became a common hypothesis in real-world astronomy.

Some of my recent reading, though, tells me that Architect is probably dead wrong about some of the surface conditions of such worlds.

For one thing, astronomers modeling such worlds have suggested that they need more than just plenty of mass to hold onto that primordial hydrogen and helium. The issue isn’t simple Jeans or thermal escape (which Architect does model), but the fact that a world too close to its primary star will likely have that primordial envelope blasted away by its ultraviolet and X-ray output and stellar wind. Once the primordial atmosphere is gone, it’s not likely to be replaced by vulcanism and outgassing, so the eventual atmosphere will more closely resemble the nitrogen-carbon dioxide mix typical of a smaller world.

On the other hand, I’ve assumed all along that the primordial hydrogen and helium in the dense atmosphere of such a world wouldn’t generate any greenhouse effect. Molecular hydrogen and helium aren’t polar, so by themselves they don’t tend to be opaque to infrared light the way (e.g.) carbon dioxide or water vapor can be. Unfortunately, there is a way that a dense hydrogen atmosphere can generate a pretty significant greenhouse effect – I don’t entirely understand the physics of it yet, but in the papers I’ve been reading the effect is described as pretty pronounced.

Normally I wouldn’t be too worried about any of this, but both Architect and real-world astronomy suggest there there are a lot of super-Earths out there. Any plausibly realistic interstellar setting is going to have to contend with them. So I think I need to make some adjustments to the final release version of the text. I think the relevant steps in the design sequence are Twenty-Six, possibly Twenty-Eight, and Thirty.

One interesting thing about this change: not only should it model these hycean (Dulcinea-type) worlds more accurately, it may open the window to a wider variety of Earth-like planets. At the moment, Architect says that a world doesn’t have to be very much bigger than Earth before it starts retaining (at least) primordial helium. If I make the conditions for that a bit more restrictive, we may end up seeing more “just-a-little-bit-super-Earths” that have a fully Earthlike atmosphere. At least you’ll be able to land and walk around on them without sounding like Alvin and the Chipmunks.

So yeah, this is probably the last set of changes to the Architect design sequence before release. Which implies you’re all going to have to wait for said release to see the results, but at least that event is getting closer by the day.

Some links to useful references:

Innes, H. et al. (2023). “The runaway greenhouse effect on hycean worlds.” The Astrophysical Journal, 953:2.

Pierrehumbert, P. and E. Gaidos (2011). “Hydrogen greenhouse planets beyond the habitable zone.” The Astrophysical Letters, 734:L13.

Rethinking the Human Destiny

Rethinking the Human Destiny

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A big part of my creative process involves all the work that happens entirely in my head, usually while the “active” work is happening on a completely different project. Some of that has been happening over the past couple of months, while the bulk of my time was devoted to Architect of Worlds. The target has been my Human Destiny universe.

The Human Destiny is an extended meditation on what our future might look like in a universe that is very much not designed for human pre-eminence. Humans reach the stars, but only as clients of a far older, far larger, and far more powerful extraterrestrial society. Stories written so far in this setting seem to fall into two categories:

  • Stories set right around “the Conquest,” the time (currently set about twenty years from now) when the aliens arrive and very quickly reduce Earth to a client state. Published stories in this set include “Guanahani” and “Roanoke.”
  • Stories set about two hundred years after the Conquest, at a time when human beings are first being permitted to explore and settle worlds outside our own planetary system. Most of these center around the character of Aminata Ndoye, a young woman from what we now know as Senegal, who is one of the first humans to earn an officer’s position in the alien “interstellar service.” If and when I write a Human Destiny game sourcebook, it will probably be set in this era. Published stories in this set include “Pilgrimage” and In the House of War.

So far, the Human Destiny setting has been best described as “Star Trek meets David Brin’s Uplift novels.” The “Hegemony” that conquers Earth is non-human and rather paternalistic, but it’s also generally benign. Kind of like a Trek Federation that means well to its citizens but decidedly does not have a non-interference directive.

What I’ve been wrestling with is the technological assumptions of the setting.

To put the problem shortly: I think the technologies I’ve assumed so far have turned out to be at odds with the core themes of the setting, and I’m moving toward the decision to re-think that technological base from scratch. Which may mean rewriting a lot of the existing fiction, but may also give me good hooks for new stories in the future, so on that basis it may be a wash.

The executive summary is that I’ve been assuming a very Star Trek-like technological base. Magical normal-space and FTL drives, technical control of gravitational forces, the sort of tech that allows for cheap and easy space travel. Yet the themes I want to build into the setting are that the universe is vast, that intelligent beings on the human scale can easily get lost in it, that thriving on that stage requires a mindset that thinks into the distance in both space and time. Star Trek, for all its virtues, rarely offered that kind of perspective. It’s the Age of Sail in space, with exotic but fundamentally human cultures in every port. Jim Kirk needed to be cosmopolitan, but he rarely had to think far above the human level to succeed.

One oeuvre that I really appreciate, that I think hits some of the same themes I’m looking for, can be found in the late works of Poul Anderson. I’m thinking here of some of the novels he wrote in the last decade of his life, starting with The Boat of a Million Years, moving through his Harvest of Stars tetralogy, and ending with the magnificent Starfarers.

All these novels lean toward “hard” SF, mostly sticking to space travel that’s still tied to the rocket equation even if the engines are really advanced, avoiding FTL travel entirely. The stars are hard to reach in these stories, and it’s never clear that human beings are at all suited for life on that stage. Some humans decide not to try, huddling at home on Earth and rarely looking up. Others worry that humans are going to be eclipsed by other forms of life – mechanical or alien – that can thrive on the cosmic scale. Yet in these stories, some humans do manage to keep themselves relevant, finding ways to seek out free and worthwhile lives even out among the stars.

Yeah. I don’t know if it’s the undeniable influence that Anderson has had on my creative work all along, but those are very nearly the same themes I want to build into the Human Destiny. So the worldbuilding needs to match.

So I’ve been thinking about turning the “hard SF” dial up quite a bit, and working out what the implications might be for the setting as a whole. In particular, what will the vast, old, alien Hegemony look like if they don’t fly Star Trek-style starships? What will their conquest of Earth look like? How will Aminata Ndoye’s career be different, if she can’t fly a few hundred parsecs and back and still find her family and her home town more or less as she left them?

Lots to think about here, and I don’t pretend to have everything worked out yet, but once Architect of Worlds is out the door this may be where I’ll be spending some worldbuilding time.

Status Report (15 July 2023)

Status Report (15 July 2023)

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We’re making progress on getting the basement (that is, my living space, home office, and creative headquarters) repaired after last month’s flooding incident. The current state of play:

  • Furniture and almost all of my personal goods, including the bulk of my library, moved out.
  • Foundation repair and installation of a new drainage system and air-quality system complete.
  • Water heater replaced (this wasn’t on the critical path, but the old one was a few years past its warranty date, so better safe than sorry).
  • Replacement drywall hung, holes in ceiling left by plumber during emergency repair patched, everything trimmed and spackled and ready for painting.

We have painters scheduled to come in on 19-20 July, and the new carpeting should be delivered about then too. I’m hoping we can get the new carpet installed sometime between 21 July and 24 July. At which point, we’ll be ready to call the movers to bring back all my furniture and help us move all our goods back into the house.

Current best guess is that I’ll be able to call the move finished and release the storage pod we’re renting by about 26 July. At that point, at least, I’ll have my bed back and will have my workstation set up in its usual place once more. Unpacking all my books and games, and otherwise getting everything back to normal, may take some time beyond that.

Unfortunately, I am not making much progress on Architect of Worlds during this period of disruption. I’ve tried to do a few pages, but my current work area is very cramped and some of the physical materials I’ve been using are hard to deal with at the moment. I’ll keep at it, but I suspect the best time for me to forge ahead with that will be after that 26 July milestone.

Fortunately, there’s a solid weekend at the end of the month. I plan to get some minor creative work (notably my book review for July) out of the way over the next week or so, so I can focus on Architect editing and layout for 3-4 days at the end of the month. I see a good chance that, together with what I managed to knock out before the disaster, I should have enough new layout done to permit a free update for my patrons. Expect to see that by the end of July.

Meanwhile, I’ve been carrying out an interesting experiment with respect to my Danassos setting. I thought of a way to model some specific elements of the setting’s back story, and the results have been very interesting. Some revisions are underway to my “historical timelines” document. I doubt I’ll have a new version of that ready for anyone else to see by the end of July, but it’s already suggesting some new stories for that setting, and I suspect there may be some revisions to the Twice-Crowned draft before I’m finished. More about that as it develops.

David Kano

David Kano

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David Kano (150 points)

David Kano is in his late 30s, a burly man with dark skin, close-cropped black hair, and brown eyes.

  • ST 11 [10]; DX 10 [0]; IQ 14 [80]; HT 12 [20].
  • Damage 1d-1/1d+1; BL 24 lbs.; HP 11 [0]; Will 14 [0]; Per 14 [0]; FP 12 [0].
  • Basic Speed 5.5 [0]; Basic Move 5 [0]; Dodge 8.
  • 5’ 10”; 170 lbs.

Social Background

  • TL: 9 [0].
  • CF: Western (Native) [0].
  • Languages: English (Native; Native Language, -6) [0].

Advantages

  • Military Rank 3 (World Space Commission) [15]; Wireless Neural Interface/TL9 – Telecommunication (Radio; Reduced Range, x1/10, -30%; Secure, +20%; Sensie, +80%) [17].

Disadvantages

  • Bad Temper (12 or less, *1) [-10]; Light Sleeper [-5]; Low Empathy [-20]; Truthfulness (12 or less, *1) [-5].
  • Quirks: Proud; Refers to Computer as “she”; Tends to trust Computer’s output too far; Uncongenial; Uninterested in romance. [‑5]

Skills

Administration (A) IQ-1 [1]-13; Astronomy/TL9 (Observational) (A) IQ-1 [1]-13; Beam Weapons/TL9 (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-10; Brawling (E) DX+1 [2]-11; Computer Hacking/TL9 (VH) IQ-1 [4]-13; Computer Operation/TL9 (E) IQ+3 [8]-17; Computer Programming/TL9 (H) IQ+1 [8]-15; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Communications) (A) IQ+1 [4]-15; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Sensors) (A) IQ+1 [4]-15; Electronics Repair/TL9 (Computers) (A) IQ+1 [4]-15; Free Fall (A) DX [2]-10; Games (Backgammon) (E) IQ [1]-14; Games (Chess) (E) IQ+1 [2]-15; Leadership (A) IQ-4 [1]-10 *; Mathematics/TL9 (Computer Science) (H) IQ-1 [2]-13; Navigation/TL9 (Space) (A) IQ-1 [1]-13; Piloting/TL9 (High-Performance Spacecraft) (A) DX [2]-10; Savoir-Faire (Military) (E) IQ-3 [1]-11 *; Shiphandling/TL9 (Spaceship) (H) IQ-2 [1]-12; Spacer/TL9 (E) IQ [1]-14; Vacc Suit/TL9 (A) DX [2]-10.

* Includes -3 from Low Empathy.

Biographical Information

David Kano was born in 2011 in St. Andrew, Jamaica. He came from an impoverished family but showed considerable talent with computers at a very young age. He earned a full scholarship to study mathematics and computer science at Stanford University in California, earning his doctorate in 2043.

While at university, Kano became involved with early experiments in brain-computer interfaces. He volunteered to be one of three test subjects for a highly experimental wireless implant. The experiment was nearly a failure; the other two volunteers suffered severe neurological damage, but Kano emerged with the ability to interact with computers almost by instinct.

After earning his doctorate, Kano joined the World Space Commission and served in several postings on and near Earth. Early in 2049, he was transferred to Moonbase Alpha as the new head of the Technical Section.

Kano is a somewhat eccentric genius, very comfortable with computers and computer networks but awkward and standoffish with people. His colleagues in Main Mission rely on his technical skills, but he is rarely put in a command or leadership position.

Kano is very aware of his intellect and accomplishments; he sometimes loses patience with the slowness or clumsiness of others. He makes few friends and appears to have no interest in romantic attachments. He is quite fond of strategy games and sometimes challenges his colleagues to a round of backgammon or chess.

Sandra Benes

Sandra Benes

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Sandra Benes (150 points)

Sandra Benes is in her mid-20s, petite, with a round face, black hair, and brown eyes.

  • ST 8 [-20]; DX 12 [40]; IQ 14 [80]; HT 11 [10].
  • Damage 1d-3/1d-2; BL 13 lbs.; HP 8 [0]; Will 14 [0]; Per 14 [0]; FP 11 [0].
  • Basic Speed 5.75 [0]; Basic Move 5 [0]; Dodge 8.
  • 5’ 2”; 125 lbs.

Social Background

  • TL: 9 [0].
  • CF: East Asian [1]; South Asian [1]; Western (Native) [0].
  • Languages: Burmese (Accented; Spoken) [2]; English (Native; Native Language, -6) [0]; French (Accented) [4]; Hindi (Accented; Spoken) [2]; Mandarin (Accented; Spoken) [2]; Portuguese (Accented) [4].

Advantages

  • Appearance (Attractive) [4]; Military Rank 3 (World Space Commission) [15].

Disadvantages

  • Combat Paralysis [-15]; Curious (12 or less, *1) [-5]; Pacifism (Self-Defense Only) [-15]; Shyness (Mild) [-5].
  • Quirks: Attentive; Emotionally delicate; Imaginative; Nervous around doctors; Strong aesthetic sense. [‑5]

Skills

Administration (A) IQ [2]-14; Beam Weapons/TL9 (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-12; Computer Operation/TL9 (E) IQ+1 [2]-15; Computer Programming/TL9 (H) IQ [4]-14; Electrician/TL9 (A) IQ [2]-14; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Communications) (A) IQ+1 [4]-15; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Electronic Warfare) (A) IQ [2]-14; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Security) (A) IQ [2]-14; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Sensors) (A) IQ+1 [4]-15; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Surveillance) (A) IQ [2]-14; Electronics Repair/TL9 (Communications) (A) IQ [2]-14; Electronics Repair/TL9 (Computers) (A) IQ [2]-14; Electronics Repair/TL9 (Sensors) (A) IQ [2]-14; Engineer/TL9 (Electronics) (H) IQ [4]-14; Free Fall (A) DX [2]-12; Linguistics (H) IQ-1 [2]-13; Literature (H) IQ-1 [2]-13; Mathematics/TL9 (Applied) (H) IQ-1 [2]-13; Poetry (A) IQ [2]-14; Savoir-Faire (Military) (E) IQ-1 [1]-13 *; Vacc Suit/TL9 (A) DX [2]-12; Writing (A) IQ [2]-14.

* Includes -1 from Shyness (Mild).

Biographical Information

Sandra Benes was born in 2023 in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei. Her father was the world-famous engineer and inventor Lawrence Benes, developer of the Interstellar Transmitter system for deep-space communications. Her mother was Nan Sanda, a Burmese journalist and poet.

As a young woman, Benes lived in many places around the world, speaking six languages fluently by the age of twelve. She studied electronics while working in her father’s lab, and earned a doctorate in electronic engineering from Nanyang Technological University (Singapore) in 2048. Benes joined the World Space Commission early in 2049, and was quickly assigned to Moonbase Alpha as the new head of the Communications and Telemetry Section.

Benes is a brilliant and extremely competent technician, a talented natural linguist, and a self-taught expert in several fields of human literature. She has a strong aesthetic sense, and is often first of the Alphans to remark on the beauty to be found even amid the dangers of deep space. She tends to be underestimated in person; she is physically petite, and is rather shy and unassuming in social situations. She has been known to “freeze up” or faint outright when subjected to sudden stress or shock. Only when working in a professional capacity does she become assured and confident. Even so, she is a critical member of Alpha’s command crew, often involved in scientific investigations or first-contact situations.

Alan Carter

Alan Carter

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Alan Carter (150 points)

Alan Carter is in his early 30s, with boyishly handsome features, light brown hair, and bright blue eyes.

  • ST 10 [0]; DX 14 [80]; IQ 12 [40]; HT 10 [0].
  • Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 12 [0]; Per 12 [0]; FP 10 [0].
  • Basic Speed 6.00 [0]; Basic Move 6 [0]; Dodge 9.
  • 5’ 6”; 160 lbs.

Social Background

  • TL: 9 [0].
  • CF: Western [0].
  • Languages: English (Native) [0].

Advantages

  • Fearlessness 5 [10]; Military Rank (World Space Commission) 4 [20].

Disadvantages

  • Code of Honor (Soldier’s) [-10]; Honesty (12 or less, *1) [-10]; Overconfidence (12 or less, *1) [-5]; Sense of Duty (Large Group; Moonbase Alpha Inhabitants) [-10]; Truthfulness (12 or less, *1) [-5].
  • Quirks: “Send me in, Commander!”; Aromantic (lost love); Cocky demeanor; Congenial; Proud. [‑5]

Skills

Astronomy/TL9 (Observational) (A) IQ-1 [1]-11; Beam Weapons/TL9 (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-14; Beam Weapons/TL9 (Rifle) (E) DX [1]-14; Brawling (E) DX [1]-14; Climbing (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Computer Operation/TL9 (E) IQ [1]-12; Driving/TL9 (Automobile) (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Communications) (A) IQ [2]-12; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Force Shields) (A) IQ [2]-12; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Sensors) (A) IQ [2]-12; Electronics Repair/TL9 (Communications) (A) IQ [2]-12; Electronics Repair/TL9 (Sensors) (A) IQ [2]-12; Engineer/TL9 (Spaceship) (H) IQ-1 [2]-11; Free Fall (A) DX [2]-14; Gunner/TL9 (Beams) (E) DX [1]-14; Leadership (A) IQ [2]-12; Mathematics/TL9 (Applied) (H) IQ-2 [1]-10; Navigation/TL9 (Space) (A) IQ [2]-12; Piloting/TL9 (Aerospace) (A) DX [2]-14; Piloting/TL9 (High-Performance Spacecraft) (A) DX+1 [4]-15; Piloting/TL9 (Light Airplane) (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Riding (Equines) (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Savoir-Faire (Military) (E) IQ [1]-12; Shiphandling/TL9 (Spaceship) (H) IQ [3]-12; Spacer/TL9 (E) IQ [1]-12; Survival (Plains) (A) Per [2]-12; Swimming (E) HT [1]-10; Tactics (H) IQ-2 [1]-10; Vacc Suit/TL9 (A) DX-1 [1]-13.

Biographical Information

Alan Carter was born in 2016 in Sydney, Australia. He grew up on an Australian cattle ranch, where he spent most of his time outdoors and on horseback. From an early age he demonstrated talent as a pilot, earning his license as a pre-teenager and flying his family’s light aircraft all over the country.

In 2034, Carter joined the Royal Australian Air Force, serving in the Pacific War and flying many combat missions. After the war he applied for an astronaut’s position with the US/Australian Space Cooperation Program, later serving in the World Space Commission. He advanced quickly, commanding the third manned Mars expedition in 2047. Early in 2049 he was assigned to Moonbase Alpha as the Reconnaissance Section lead, and was the lead candidate for command of the upcoming Meta expedition.

Carter is a superb athlete and pilot, a natural-born adventurer who is proud of his abilities. He insists on being the first to venture into any dangerous situation, and he has the skills and the sheer courage to survive them.

Although Carter is widely respected and admired among the Moonbase Alpha crew, he is not known to have any interest in romantic relationships; female (and male) crew members who sound him out are all politely rebuffed. In fact, Carter was bitterly heartbroken in his youth, when a young woman he passionately loved was killed in a terrorist attack. Unwilling to risk such a loss again, Carter has transferred his passions to adventure, flying, and protecting his friends and colleagues.

Paul Morrow

Paul Morrow

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Paul Morrow (150 points)

Paul Morrow is in his early 30s, with handsome features, light brown hair, and brown eyes.

  • ST 11 [10]; DX 12 [40]; IQ 13 [60]; HT 12 [20].
  • Damage 1d-1/1d+1; BL 24 lbs.; HP 11 [0]; Will 13 [0]; Per 13 [0]; FP 12 [0].
  • Basic Speed 6.00 [0]; Basic Move 6 [0]; Dodge 9.
  • 6’ even; 165 lbs.

Social Background

  • TL: 9 [0].
  • CF: Western [0].
  • Languages: English (Native) [0].

Advantages

  • Military Rank (World Space Commission) 4 [20].

Disadvantages

  • Gregarious [-10]; Honesty (12 or less, *1) [-10]; Pacifism (Cannot Harm Innocents) [-10]; Sense of Duty (Small Group; Friends and current love interest) [-5].
  • Quirks: Fond of playing the guitar; Homesick for Earth; Mild womanizer; Outspoken; Responsive. [‑5]

Skills

Accounting (H) IQ-1 [2]-12; Administration (A) IQ+1 [4]-14; Astronomy/TL9 (Observational) (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Beam Weapons/TL9 (Pistol) (E) DX+1 [2]-13; Brawling (E) DX+2 [4]-14; Computer Operation/TL9 (E) IQ+1 [2]-14; Computer Programming/TL9 (H) IQ-1 [2]-12; Driving/TL9 (Automobile) (A) DX-1 [1]-11; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Communications) (A) IQ [2]-13; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Security) (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Electronics Operation/TL9 (Sensors) (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Free Fall (A) DX [2]-12; Gunner/TL9 (Beams) (E) DX [1]-12; Leadership (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Musical Instrument (Guitar) (H) IQ-1 [2]-12; Navigation/TL9 (Space) (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Piloting/TL9 (High-Performance Spacecraft) (A) DX+1 [4]-13; Savoir-Faire (Military) (E) IQ [1]-13; Shiphandling/TL9 (Spaceship) (H) IQ-1 [2]-12; Spacer/TL9 (E) IQ [1]-13; Survival (Plains) (A) Per-1 [1]-12; Vacc Suit/TL9 (A) DX [2]-12.

Biographical Information

Paul Morrow was born in 2017 in London, in the United Kingdom. As a young man, he studied administration and data science at the Imperial College London. In his spare hours, he pursued music, women, and the occasional brawl in London’s pubs. Even so, by 2039 he earned a master’s degree with distinction. A lifelong interest in the space program led him to apply for a position with the new World Space Commission.

Morrow was first posted to Moonbase Alpha in 2043 as a senior administrator. By 2049, he had been promoted to Main Mission Controller, essentially the base’s second-in-command, serving first under Anton Gorski and then under John Koenig.

Morrow is a competent administrator, technician, and pilot. Despite his para-military position, he has the demeanor of a lifelong civilian. He has a habit of speaking his mind, and has more than once come into direct conflict with Commander Koenig. Even so, he is a valued member of the command staff, and the Commander relies on him in a crisis.

Morrow has settled down considerably since his wild days of youth, although he still enjoys playing cards or chess or making music. He is often engaged in a polite and discreet pursuit of one or another female colleague. Under the surface, he finds existence on the runaway Moon to be stifling and alienating. He is often homesick for Earth. Whenever the Moon passes an even remotely hospitable world, he is often a strong advocate for Operation Exodus – the abandonment of Alpha for a new settlement.

Status Report (21 May 2023)

Status Report (21 May 2023)

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Things are moving along, if not as quickly as I might have liked.

As of today, I’ve finished initial layout for Architect of Worlds through Step Twenty-Seven in the design sequence (world albedo). At this point I need to do a little research and possibly reworking of the mini-model for atmospheric greenhouse effect. Once that’s done, I think I’ll be able to finish editorial work on the next few steps in the design sequence, and get those laid out in the interim draft. Probably won’t be able to get all the way to the end this month, but we’ll see.

Meanwhile, I need to write up two book reviews and get those posted before the end of May.

Some of my time has been taken up by a Muse-inspired side trip. I’ve been binge-watching the entire Star Wars continuity – the current canon, not the pre-Disney “Legends” canon. Kind of kicking myself for not having picked up on that earlier. The theatrical films are, of course, something of a muddle. On the other hand, the animated shows and the Disney+ mini-series have been superb. The experience has been tickling my world-building brain something fierce.

The concept that’s taken up residence in my head involves a kind of “alternate history” of the Skywalker Saga, with the (overt) point of divergence that Qui-Gon Jinn survives the Battle of Theed and lives to take Anakin Skywalker on as his student. I’m also indulging in some rampant speculation about the motives that Sheev Palpatine might have had for his decades-long campaign to subvert and take over the Galactic Republic. I may end up with a pretty solid outline for a divergent Star Wars RPG campaign, although actually running it for players (or writing a fan-fiction series on the premise) is probably out of the question. I’ll probably write it up here as time permits, rather like the Space: 2049 material I’ve been playing with at odd moments.

Don’t worry. Architect and my other top-shelf projects aren’t going to be neglected. Much.

For my patrons, I think you can expect to see a free-update of the Architect partial draft, with as much new material as I’ve been able to edit and lay out in May. No charged release for this month.

Status Report (27 April 2023)

Status Report (27 April 2023)

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Small course correction, with respect to Architect of Worlds.

A few minutes ago, I sent this month’s incremental update of the book design to my patrons. That’s a few days early and about 12 pages short of the goal I set for myself at the beginning of April.

The reason is that I just reached Step Twenty-Four in the main design sequence. That’s the step in which you determine the current geophysical parameters for a world under development – status of the world’s lithosphere, whether or not it has active plate tectonics, that sort of thing. The issue is that there are a couple really thorny bits of math in that step, probably the ugliest formulae anywhere in the previous draft. I’m also not entirely confident in the accuracy of the mini-model for that step. So I’d like to pause the layout long enough to do a bit of research, maybe develop a new mini-model, and simplify the procedure so it’s not as ugly and ill-polished.

While I’m at it, I also have similar concerns about some of the later steps, especially where we figure out how much greenhouse effect a world gets from its atmosphere based on its composition. I’m actually very happy with the way that procedure fits together overall – it models the evolution of an Earthlike world’s atmosphere very elegantly. However, the actual mini-model for greenhouse effect is again both ugly and not one I’m 100% confident in. So that might get some attention too.

So I’m going to set aside layout work on Architect for at least a few days, while I go off and do some of that redevelopment. In the meantime, I’m just one chapter away from the point in Twice-Crowned at which I was thinking another charged release of the interim draft for my patrons might be appropriate. So the last few days of April, I’m going to spend mostly on getting that chapter written and polishing up the last chunk of new material. Patrons should look for a charged release there, probably sometime on Sunday if all goes according to plan.

I also have another “bonus” book review I want to publish this month, but that will have to wait until I’m sure I can get this chunk of Twice-Crowned whipped into shape on time. if that doesn’t work out, at least I have a review ready to go early in May.