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S C I E N C E . F I C T I OAND V E N T U R E
I N T H E F A RF U T U B E

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Innocenttradersrun afoulof localpoliticsand arecaughtup in the battlesof the Rebellionitself.Butthat's
yustfor starters!They becomeprisonersof war,then fugitives.Alongthp w4y,they learnof a fabulouspre-
lmperiumlostcityof high-techwonders.Canthiscity'streasures give one sidethe advantage thal
w i l lw i n t h e R e b e l l i o n ?

Eight
successive
scenanos,
olus assorted random
nuggetsthattogethermake
this a tense, exciting
MegaTraveller !
adventure
H e r e ' sa n a d v e n t u r et o k n o c k y o u r
c h a ra c t e r ss' o c ks o ffl S ta rtw i th a n o r- CINEMATICNUGGETFORMAT
d inar ys i t u a t i o nan d g ra d u a l l ye sca l a te Each scenariois composedof several
t h e d a n g e r ,t h e r n t r i g u ea, n d t h e c l u e s
u n t rlt h e o n l y s o l u ti o ni s a t th e e n d o f a
E nuggets.Somearejustfor atmosphere,
olhers are identifiedas key nuggetslhat
mustbe played.
but

long,a r d u o u sj o urn e y.B u t th a t so l u ti o n Eachnuggethasa scene(information for

r s i m p r e s s i v ea. f a b u l s u sp r e - l m p e r i a l the playerson what they see, hear,taste,
c r t y o f u n d e t e r m i n e d( b u t v e r y h i g h ) and feel at the startof the nugget)and an
t e c h l e v e l .S o m e h o y rl,o n g a g o , i t f e l l € action(informalion to relereeon howlo run
o f f t h e m a p s ,a n d n o w o n l y a t r a i lo f theactioninthenugget)Eachscenario has
c luesl e a d st o i t s l o stw o n d e rs. a referee's summaryon lhe firstpage,with
O f c o u r s e ,t h e a d v e n t u r e r a sre pur- a brieldescription o{ eachnuggetby num-
sued by a g e n t s f r o m a l l s i d e sof the ber.Thissummary includes a specialsynop-
R e b e l l i o nS. t o p p i n ge v e n{ o r a d a y c a n sis diagramshowingvisuallyhow the nug-
getsf it together.
b e h a z a r d o u st o th e i r h e a l th .
K n i g h t f a l l ' s c i n e m a t i cn u g g e ts y s -
t e m c l e a r l yd e f i n e sa n d d e s c r i b e st h e
i n c i d e n t sp l a y e r c h a r a c t e r sw i l l p a s s HebellionSourcebook
t h r o u g l ri n t h e c o u r s e o f t h e i r e x p l o - is beingtor napadby the Re bel l i on;
The lm per ium the
rationsC . a r e f u ld e t a i l i n gm a k e se a c h once-stable1000-yearempireis rapidiydecayinginto
n u g g e tc o m e a l i v ef o r t h e p l a y e r sa n d dozensofpettypnncedoms. RebellionSourcebookcovers
r e fe r e e . sides,leaders,
everydetailofthe Rebellion:the territories,
Knightfall. A MegaTraveller ad- equipment.
fighting,
v e n t u r e .9 6 - p a g e b o o k . G D W : 0 2 1 9 . RebellionSourcebook.96-pagebook.GDW: 0214.
ISBN:0- 943580- 63-$13.0.
I S B N :1- 5 5 8 7 8 - 0 6 2 - 9 $ .10 .

973-
t - o o k l i t r ( i D W g a m e sa t y o u r k r c a lg a n r eo r h < l b b ys t o r e .I f i t d r t e s n ' h
t a v et h e m . i t c a n
s p e c i a ol r d e r t h e m .W r i t e f o r o u r f r e e ,f u l l - l i n eG D W g a m ec a t a l o g .

It-r'nrail, send a check,money tlrder, or Visa/Mastercardnumber and signature.

I)leaseadd ll\9o lirr shipping and handling.
l l y p h o n e ,( 3 0 9 ). 1 5 2 - 3 6 3b2e t u ' e e n9 a . m .a n d 5 p . m . C e n t r a lt i m c . P.O.Box 1646
B l o o m i n g l o nl L, 6 1 7 0 2 - 1 6 4 6
-
 Welcometo our tirstissueof the newyear.We VOYAGESSF 13 SURVEYRESULTS
havesome good newsfor our readers.With our Mechanics Of AclventureGamin9..............
............3.7
nextissue(# 15)we aregoingto a full-bleed KatlinC. Buchannon....... ..............3.5
cover.In caseyou don'tknowwhatthismeans,the Raic,On Ths NorthPole ....3.2
illustration on our coverwilltillthe entirecover
fromeclgeto edge.Thiswillincreasethe
illustration qualityof our covetsandmakethe
magazine moreattractiveon magazinestands.
We'repleasec, to seelhat our reaclerscontinue
Reviews......,............. .....................2.2
to rateVOYAGES SFastheirsecondfavorite
magazine. Considerin0 the numberofcompeting Railsln The Astusapes ............................................2.O
magazines that supportour industry,we are SanityIn Space............... ..............1-7
honoredby thisrating.Eutwe'renot goingto siton Q1: ls this issuebetterthan our last?50%saidno.
ourlaurels.VOYAGES SFwillcontinueto improve. 33%saidyes. Editor & Art Darector: JamesB. King
ln our lastissue,I failedto listHerbAltonburg Q2: Including yourself,
how many people read this
issue?2.0 Contributing Editors: clen Allison,
under'Artists in thisissue."My apologies,Herb. JerryCampbell
Also,our ReaderSurveylistedtwo articleswhich Q3: Ratingin orderof preferencethe most recent
issuesof the gamingzinesyou react,wherewould Oistribution Manager: ChantelleKing
wer€notin thatissue,anddid not includeonethat
you ratethisissueof VOYAGES SF (1 is high)?1.8
was,entitled"TheFortBlissClassDestroyer." This
isbecause lastminutgchangeswere madein the Q4: What one gamewould you liketo see more Artasts an this issue: cary A. Kalin
coverageof? MegaTraveller, shaclowfun, 2300AD, (cover);James B. King (10, 22, 24, 25);
contentsof lastissue,andI overlookecl correcting
SpaceMaster, Legionaire,
Sky calleonsOf Mars, Altrec,R. Klosterman(25); Matti Laakso
theSurvey.Sorryfolks.We'll certainlytry to avoicl Justifiers. (14,15);John McEwan(13): Phil Morris-
thismistakein the future.
sey (6, 16): Donald Riney (19, 20); Don
-Jamesg. K/hg w. shanks(21).

The Go-Betweens Trademark J{otlce: Mosl gamos are trademarks ot

lhs companies publishing lhoss gamss Use ot a
A Shadowrunadventure. trademark lo ldentlfy a product commonl€d upon In
G/enA//rson rhlc 6t^ar'^a ch^'ild n^r h6.^^clr"ad ac im^h,in^

lh6 sponso(shipol, nor challengelo, ths rademark

- A GunsmithsIn Star Wars holdaa.

.r:I1y:*:;;or repairins
andimprovins
brasters
t tl voyag€s SF copyright l9S by James B Klng. All
rlghtsressrved. Prinl€din lhe U S A Voyages SF ls
publishodquart€rlyby StarLancaPubltcatlonsCover
Unoff icial Combat ErrataForThe PallacliumRole-
I
prlce is 32.75 A tour-issuo subscr,ptionls 3100o
playing System (31l.0Oto Canada).All funds musl bs In U S. dollars
A ubrey Forest /Ae/chert Mail lo StarLanc€Publicallons.50 Basin Drlve, M€sa
wAs4it.
Solomani Space Fighters
T4 Two spacefighterdesignsfor MegaTraveller.
MattiLaakso
The Case Of The Haunted Car
Advertlslng: For ratos and space rsssrvallon or
contifmallon.contact Jam6s King al th€ address
abovo or call (509) 269-4497 aflel 5 0O pm or on
w€€x€nos.
I r
Submlssions: W€ w6lcoms unsollcllsdmanuscrlpls
I b I:;H:t*i;:e'|adventure and arl. However, bofore submilling you should
write and roqusst a guidslinBsshs€1. Includinga

EncounterAt Hesperus sslf-addrsssed, slamped 6nvelope (SASE). Also

I 2300aofictioninspiredby the adventurebook Invasion.

Don l,U.Shanks
EffectsOf Woundsln StarWars
Includga SASEor posl card wllh corrsspondencelo
assur6a r9sponsa

Distribution to retailers by:

22 Makingwoundsin StarWarsa littlelessclean.

JamesB. King
Corsair Contention
Actaon Dir6cr Dist. The Armory, Capltal Cily Disl ,
Chass6x Diamond Comlc Disl . Heroes World. Slyx
Inlernalronal. Wargames Wssl. Zocchi Disl-

Adverlisers:
adventurethwartingpiratesand savinglives.
A MegaTraveller Frazi6. cam€s (9)

James8. Krng Gam€ Deslgners Workshop (lnsld€ tront cover, back

cov6r)

Reviews G€mco (l?)

28 Rifts,ReichStar,AttackOf TheHumans,GUHPSCyberpunk,
Knightfall,Twilight:2000VehicleHandbks,StuffDreamsAreMadeOf
Rapporl Games (4)
Bevrr6sco (lns{de back cov€.)
Sag€-Lore Productions (33)
<^6L^r arfr,^^ <',.tahc a2?l

5 Co m m l i n k 15 Voyages SF 13Survey siarLancs Publlcalions (l l 27)

Sword & Starship EnlefPrises (23)
17 Future Voyages 26 Words To Game By
 'fhe
Garne:
The dreamis of the futurc. A futurewhere

orr
roleplayinghasbeentakento its ultimate:
Actual experience.Stepinto gamingcen-
tral, lie in the couch,and dreama dreamof
adventure.

Within a lVorld:
The neurallink promisedmany advantages
In the future,roleplayingwill be different. to mankind.Of them,f-ewwererealizedas
fully asgaming.The Morpheus Mind
Booksand character sheetswill go to thewayside Parkaroseas the leaderin mindgaming.
as real experiencesimulatorstakeover. Vastcom- Gamerswait for as long as two yearsfor a
puterswith the powerto projecta realitystraight few shorthoursin GamingCentralwhere
into your mind will havethe ability to makeyour their dreamscancomealive.
dreamscometrue. Literally.
Within a Came:
Hugefacilitieswill existto give gamersaccesstoNow you haveaccessto the Mind Park.
this power. It will be expensive.It will be worth
Morpheus will takeyou whereno other
it. gamehasgonebefore: the shadowreality
of the dreamworld. Heraldedas the best
It will happen.Until thattimewe haveMorpheus. roleplayingsystemeverdevekrped,
Thc roleplayingsystemof the mind'seye. Morpheus will allow you the lreedomto
play the kind of characterthat you have
alwayswanted. Charactersfrom the future
walk sideby sidewith figuresfiom the
pastandotherdimensions.Playershave
completecontrol over their characters,and
charactermodificationis allowed at any
time, evenin the middle of combat.

Playtestedfor over four years. The most

imaginativesystemto appearin years.
The future is availablenow.

I
If you candreamit, you can becomeit.
trl
I
Et
EI Rapport
Games
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$18,Dec The Graveyarclof Alderaan,
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 6
" J e r k i n ygo u rt h o u g h t s
Prologue arvay from what mtght
D o n a l dT o r v a l tl e a n e d h a v eb e e ny, o u t e a l i z ey o u
b a c ki n h r se r c c r r t i vceh a r r a r e b e i r r gl e d t o a s e t o f
a n d s m i l e dS . o o n .S o o n l t carved. double doors.
lvouldall cometogether. Opening them, the
When the hiredteam of b r u n e t t eb r i n g sy o u f a c e
'runnets lo face wilh your nerv
f a i l e dt o r c t r i e v e
e 'l-lere
the missing datachips, \ ,m
,,n
P l' n
v lvLc' .r are llg

F u g i t a k e - N o r b e r tC o r - p e o p l cy o u r e q u e s t e dM. r .
p o r a t i o nw o u l dq u i c k l yg o T o r v a l t .I s t h e r ea n y t h i n g
o u t o f b u s i n e s sT.h e n . h e e l s ey o u n e e d ? '
c o u l d o p e n l yg o t o w o r k " T h e m a n a c t o s st h e
ior JohansseT n oys. Inc. d e s kf r o m y o t r s h a k e sh i s
W i t h t h e d a t a c h i p st h a t h e a da n d m o t i o n sf o r h e t
h e h a d s o c a r e f u l l yp u r - to leave. The silence
l o i n e d f r o m r e s e a r c hh. e grows. Suddenly. he
h a d b e e na b l el o w r i t e h i s s p e a k si n a g t a v e l l y b , ass
own ticket with Johans- v o i c e .d r o p p e dt o a n e a t
'lt's about time
s e n .W i t h i n t h e h o u r .t h e whisper.
teamwould be back and you got here. This is
t h e y w i l l h a v e f a i l e d .H e i m p o r t a n t .a n d w e d o n ' t
h a dm a d es u r eo f t h a t . h a v ea l o t o f t i m e .I n e e d
l h e s e r v i c e so f s e v e t a l
p e o p l et o d o a l i t l l e j o b f o t
Introduction
T h e P C s a r e h i r e d1 o
b e g o - b e t r v e e n si n a n
The Go-Betweens n r e .Y o u h a v eb e e ns e l e c -
ted becauso ef yout tepu-
t a t i o n f o r g e t t i n gt h e j o b
e x c h a n g oe f a c r e d s t i cfko r
s t o l e nd a t a c h i p sI r. { r .T o r - A Shadowrun adventure done.' He half turns.
r e a c h e isn t o a d r a r v e a r nd
valt. an executive for s l a p ss e v e r adl r a w i n g so n
F u g i t a k c - N o r b e r t .g i v e s Glen Alltson t h e d e s ki n f r o n t o f y o u .
t h e m t h e r a n s o mp a y m e n t - They looklikeschemalics
a n d d i r e c t i o nass w e l l a s a f o r t h r e eo r f o u r d i f f e r e n l
d e s c r i p t i oonf t h e m t s s i n g t y p e so f d a t a c h i p s .
d t a c h i p sW . hen the P('s " T o r v a l ts p e a k a 'l
s g a i n . a m w i l l i n g t o p a y y o u 5 , 0 0 0n u y e n
g o t o m a k et h e e x c h a n g et h . i n g sg o w r o n g .N o t o n l y d o t h e y l o s e e a c ht o d e l i v e ar ransom p a y m e ntto t h e t h i e v e sw h o s t o l et h e s e . '
t h e r a n s o mp a y m e n tb. u t l h e y d o n ' tg e t w h a t t h e yc a m ef o r e i t h e r . 'l
H e p o i n t st o t h e d a t a c h i pp l a n s . n e e d t h e p r o t o t y p e sb a c k
W h e n t h e y g o b a c kt o t h e i re m p l o y e rM, r .T o r v a l ti s u n w i l l i n gt o i m m e d i a t e lTy h. e j o b s h o u l d n 'tta k em o r et h a n a f e w h o u t so u t o f
c o o p e t a laen dw i l l n o t g i v et h e ma n y h e l p .H e i s r e a l l yw o r k i n gf o r y o u rd a y .o r r a t h e rn. r g h t .W i l l y o u t a k e t h e j o b ? 'H e l e a n sb a c k
J o h a n s s eTno y s . I n c . .a r i v a l b u s i n e sfsi r m .a n d a r r a n g e fdo r t h e w i t h a n i n s c r u t a blloeo ko n h i sf a c ea sh ea w a i t sy o u ra n s w e t . "
i t e n r 1 o b e s t o l e ni n t h e f i r s t p l a c e .H e h i r e dt h e P C s f o r t h e
g o - b e t w e e nj o b b e c a u s ei n. h i so p i n i o nt,h e y w o u l db et h e e a s i e s t Backstage:
t o d u p e . T h a t i n f o r m a t r o nc a n b e h a d f r o m t h e c o m p a n y ' s O n c et h e t e a ma c c e p ttsh e j o b .h o w e v e ri n c o m p l e tteh e d e t a i l s
d a t a b a n kw s i t h a l i t t l ew o r k .T h e P C ss h o u l df i n dt h i si n f o r m a t i o n . h a v eb e e nu p t o t h i s p o i n t ,T o r v a l ts p e a k sa g a i n ". l k n e w I c o u l d
t e t r i e v ei t . a n df i g u r eo u t a w a y t o g e t t h e i n f o r m a t i otno T o r v a l t ' s c o t r n to n y o u t o d o i t . N o w . h e r ei s w h a t y o u n e e dt o d o . F i r s l .I
b o s se, i t h e rf o r r e v e n g eo r a t l e a s t o b o l s t etrh e i ra i l i n gr e p u t a t i o n g i v ey o u h a l fo f y o u rp a y m e nnt o w . Y o u ' l l g e t t h e r e s tw h e n y o u
f o l l o w i n gt h eg o - b e t r v e efni a s c o . d e l i v e rt h e d a t a c h i p sS.e c o n ds, t u d y t h e s ed a t a c h i pp l a n ss o y o u
E x p l a n a t i oo n f " D o r v n l o a d i nTgh e D a t a : "W h e n e v eyr o u s e e k n o w w h a t t h e yl o o kl i k e .A n d t h i r d ,d e l i v e trh e r a n s o mc r e d s t i c k
t h i sh e a d i n gr,e a dt h e s e c l i o nb e l o wi t a l o u dt o y o u rp l a y e r sI t, s e t s t o t h e p e o p l ew i t h t h e g o o d sa t m i d n i g ht o n i g h t .Y o u a r et o m e e t
t h e s c e n ea n d t e l l s t h e p l a y e r sa l i t t l e o f t h e i n f o r m a t i o n they t h e ma t t h e T e r r yA v e n u ed o c ko n L a k e U n i o n .F i n a l l y y, o u b r i n g
w o u l dk n o w . t h e ' c h i p sh e r et o m e a t f i v ea . m .I w i l l a r r a n g e for youto get in by
r v a yo f t h es o u t he n t r a n caen dl o a d i n gd o c k . "
T h e F u g i t a k e - N o r b eBrut i l d i n gi s l o c a t e da t t h e i n t e r s e c t i oonf
The Hiring Process: BellStreetandSecondAvenue,acrossthe streetf rom Damian's.a
Downloading The Data: l a r g ef i r s t - t l a s sr e s t a u r a nltt. i s a n e i g h t s t o r y b u i l d i n gm a d eo f
" H e r ey o u a r e .s t u c ki n a t o o s m a l e l l e v a t o ro.n t h e w a y t o t h e b r r c kT. h e m a i ne n l r a n c er e . v o l v i n g l a s sd o o t si.s o n t h e w e s ts i d e
f i f t h f l o o ro f t h e C o o r s o mBn u i l d i r r gF.i n a l l yt.h e e l e v a t ogr r i n d st o o f t h eb u i l d i n g .
a s t o pa n dt h e d o o r sh i s so p e n Y . o u s l e pi n t o a r e c e p t i oanr e aw i t h
Fixing The Glitches:
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b l a c kl e a t h e w r i t h r e dt r i m .a n d h e i s r v e a r i n g a h e a v yp i s t o li n a
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y o ua n dh o l d so u t h i sr i g h th a n d . ' [ - e t s' se ei t , ' h es a y s . "
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w o r k i n go n . J o h a n s s eTno y s r v o u l dg i v e h i n r a . 1 o ba s H e a do f N o n r a g i cd o w n t h e r eT . h e r ea r es e v e r apl e o p l ed o w n o n t h e p i e t
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) .a l l yh. e s p l i n t etrh ec r a t e a s n dr i c o c h eol f f i n t ot h e n i g h t . "
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Q r r i c k n e s)s : F , l i q u c t t(eC o r p o r a t c8) : p r c rt h a t c a n .r v i t ha l r t t l er v o r k .b e i n d e n t i f i e d1.' h ec o r p s ew o r r l d
S t r e n g t h2: N e g o t i a t i o n6: h a v ea l a p e lp i n .a f u l l , g o l d m o o nr v i t h a s i l v e rs t a rs l i g h t l yo f f
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I n t e l J i g e n c6e : SPECIAI-SKII-I.S r d c n t iyf a sb e l o n g i ntgo t h ei l l i d n i g h t e g r sa n g .
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Downloading The Data: B o d y :6 ( 8 ) A r m e dC o m b a t 4 :
" T h eb r e e z e f e e l sc o o la s i t b l o w sa c r o s L s a k e U n i o na n dp a s t Q u r c k n e s4s :( 5 ) B i k e :5
, v o uf ra c e sI .t b r i n g st h e s m e lol f r o t t i n gf i s h .r n r x e d
u , i t ht h eo d o ro f S t r e n g t h6: ( 7 ) Etiquelte ( S t r e e t )4:
s o y F r e n c hf r i e s .f r i e d f i s h . a n d s o y b u r g e rf sr o m t h e r e s t a u r a n t C h a r r s n r4a : F i r e a r m s6:
s e v e r abl l o c k su p t h e s t r e e t .A f o v s t r a g g l i n gp c d t ' s t r i a nasr e Intelligencc:5 Stealth:4
h u r r v i n gh o r n ea f t e rw o r k i n ga l a t c s h i f ts o m e w h e r T e .h e s i l e n c e W i l l p o r v e r5l [ J n a r m cC d o n b a t :6
s e e m st o e c h o o f f t h e r v a l l so f s u r r o u n d i n b g u i l d i n g sI.n t h e Essence:0.25 G u n n e r y 3:
d i s t a n c et h. e s o u n do f a p o w e r e db o a t b r c a k st h e q u i e t .s l o w l l , R c a c t i o n4:( + 8 ) L e a d e r s h i p3:
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t h a nt h e vo u g h tt o b c .N l o v e n r e cnat l c h e \so r r re y c t h e r eA . rat. ( i y b e r l : y ersv i t hl - o w L i g h t a n dF I a ; eC o m p e n s a t i o n
l a r g etrh a r ra n y r a t h a sa r i g h tt o b e .s c a n r b l eosu t o f t h e s h a d o r v W i r e dR e f l e x e s2:
a n dr u n sa c r o s)s, o u rs h o e sd.i s a p p e ' a r i n g t ot h ed a r k n e s s . N l u s c !R e c p l a c r ' n r c nI t :
" T h e n ,y o r rh e a rt h e c l i c ko f a w e a p o nb e i n gr c a d i e a d n ( la l o w l ) t ' r n t a[lt l a l r r r g2: ' \ r r u o ro f ( 6 / , 1 )
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Frankie Torvalt'o s ff i c e .Z i p p i n ga c r o sas h a l l r v a yy, o u g l i d et h r o u g ha d e s k
F r a n k i ei s a g o o df r i e n do f J a c k ' sH. e i s o n l yj u s tg e t l i n gs t a r t e d a n dc o m p u t em r o n i t o ra s y o u h e a db a c kt o y o u r b u d d i e sT. a k i n g
i n t h i s b u s i n e sbsu t h a sm a d ea g o o di m p r e s s i oonn J a c ka n d t h e o n e l a s tg l a n c ea r o u n db e f o r ey o u s c o o to u t t h e f r o n t d o o r ,y o u
r e s to f t h e M i d n i g h t e r sI f. F r a n k i ed i e s J. a c kw i l l d o h i sb e s tt o g o d o n ' ts e ea n y t h i n go f i n t e r e st to r e p o r t . "
a f t e r t h e p e o p l er v h o d i d i t . F r a n k i ei s d r e s s eadl m o s e t x a c t l ya s
S m i l i n ' J a ci ksu p t o i n c l u d i ntgh el a p epl i n . Backstage:
I f t h e p l a y e r rse t u r nw i t h t h e d a t a c h i p sT.o r v a l tr v i l l e x a m i n e
ATTRIBUTES SKILLS t h e ma n dd e c l a r teh e mf a k e sH . e w r l l r e f u s et o p a y t h e t e s to f t h e
B o d y :4 A r m e dC o m b a t2: a g r e ep d r i c ea n dw i l l b e r a t e t h e P C sf o rs l i p p i n gu p .
I f t h e p l a y e r sw a n t t o t r y a g a i nt o g e t t h e r e a l c h r p sb a c k ,
Q u r c k n e s s4: Car: 2
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C h a r i s m a6: F i r e a r m s3: h a sn o w b c e ns h o tt o p i e c e sa n d t h e y a r eu s e l e sasn d t h e r ei s n o
I n t e l l i g e n c e6: S t e a l t h 4: p o i n ti n t r y i n ga g a i n".Y o u w r l l n e v e rw o r k i n t h i st o w n a g a i n . h" e
W i l l p o w e r4 : U n a r m eC d o m b a t3 : s a y s",Y o u c a ns t a k ey o u rl i fe o n i t . "
E s s e n c5 e .: 4 R e m e m b et hr a l T o r v a l ti s h a p p ya b o u tw h a t h a p p e n eadn dh e
GEAR c e r t a i n l yi s n ' t s u r p r i s ebdy t h e r e s u l t sH . e p l a n n e di t t h a t r v a y .
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C y b e r E y ersv r t hl - o w I - r g h t b e f o r et h e yl e f t .N o m a t t e rw h a t h a p p e n e dT.o r v a l tw i l l t h r o w t h e
L i n e dC o a tA r m o r( 4 / 2 ) P C so u t o f h i so f fi c ei n d i s g r a c eA.n d i f t h e p l a y e r sa r eo b s e r v a n t .
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t h a t D o n a l dT o r v a l th a sa g u n .A n d h i s d e s kh a s a b u l l e t p r o o f e d
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B o d y :5 A r m e dC o m b a l 4 : a g a i n sl lu s ts u c ha h a p p e n i n g .
A n d i f t h e p l a y e rd s e c i d et o k e e pt h e d a t a c h i p sn,o t k n o r v i n g
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Charrsm5 a: F i r e a r n r s4 : h o n o ra n d d e m a n dt h a t t h e y c o m p l e t et h e m i s s i o na s a g r e e d .
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Willpower4 : S t e a l t h 4: w o r dw i l l s o o ng e to u t t h a tt h e ys o l dd e f e c t i v m e erchandise.
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l o a d i n gd o c k i s o p e na n d u n l o c k e da s h a d b e e na r r a n g e d W. h a t a
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f r o mt h i sm o r n i n gH. e s p e a kasg a i n . ' W e lhl .a v ey o ug o t t h e m ?I f I
c a n g e t t h e m b a c k i n t o R e s e a r cahn d D e v e l o p m e nbte f o r ee i g h t
o ' c l o c kv. c r yf e w p e o p l eu ' i l lk n o w t h e y ' v eb c e nm i s s r n g ' . "
Scouting Astrally:
" Z o o m i n gu p r v a r dy. o u d r i f t t h r o u g ha n a i r c o n d i t i o n evre n t .
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t h r e e o r d i n a r yp e o p l e :t w o s e c u r i t yg u a r d sa n d s o m e o n ei n
a t t h e w i n d o w u p s t a i r sA. n d t h a t c a r i n t h e p a r k i n gl o t h a s
s o m e o nsei t t i n gi n t h e f r o n ts e a t .s e v e r asl o m e o n eass a m a t t e ro f
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y o u re a r sY. o u ' v eb e e ns p o t t e dI t. ' st i m et o r o c ka n dr o l l ! "
Scouting The Apartment Astrally:
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b r a n c h eosf a s m a l tl r e e .N o b o d yi s u s i n gm a g i co u t h e r eo r i n t h e
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c a ri n t h e m i d d l eo f t h e p a r k i n gl o t .I t l o o k sa st h o u g hs o m e b o diys
keepina g n e y eo n t h ea p p r o a ctho t h eb u i l d i n g .
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m o n s t r o upsy r a m i da g a r n sat b r i g h tb l u e h a z e .T h e r es e e mt o b e
o b v i o ugs a t e st o g e ti n s i d eb u t y o u ' r es u r et h e ya r eg u a r d e dM. a y b e
y o uc a ns l i pi n p a s t h e m . . .
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r s l v e l ln r a r k e dA. n d l o o k i n gc l o s c ra n dd r g g r n gn t r r c idt e e p c ry.' o u
c a nf i n d T o r v a l t ' sp e r s o n af rl l c sR . & D s e c u r i t lyo o k st o u g hb u t
n o t h r n gy o u c a n ' t g c t t h r o r r g hu ' i t h a l i t t i e t i n r ea n d l u c k .N o w .
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t o d o i s s c o o ld o r v nt h c b r i g h ln c o nh a i l n ' a y st o t h e r i g h tp l a c e s .
g r a bt h ei n fo r m a t i o na.n dn r n . "

Backstage:
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t r a c kt h c i \ { i d n i g h t e d r so * ' n a n dm a n a g e t o t a l k t o t h c m .t h c y t v i l l
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S t a r L a n cP
eublications
5 0 B a s i nD r i v e
M e s aW A 9 9 3 1 3

Washingtonresidentsinclude30 centsstatesalestax
Copr 1991 SlafLanc€ Pubns
t2

lJnofficial CombatErrataFor The

PalladiumRoieplayingSystems
A ubrey,Foresl Me/c/terl

h e c o m b a ts y s t e mp r o v i d e dw i t h i n
thc Palladium R o l e p l a y i ngga m e si s
o n e w h i c h i s h e a v i l yb a s e di n l h e
a b s t r a c t a. n d i s s o a b s t r a c t h a t c o m b a t
e v e n t u a l l yd e g e n e r a t ei nst o a s e r i e so f d i e
r o l l sa n d t h e s r r b t r a c t i oonf h i t p o i n t s T
. o
add greaterflavor and variety to the
s y s t e mn, o t t o m e n t i o ns o m em u c hn e c d e d
r e a l i s m .I h a v e d c v r s c d t h e f o l l o r v i n g
-fhey
c o m b a te r r a t aa n d h i t l o c a t i o nc h a r t s .
h a v e b e e nt h o r o L r g h lpyl a y - t e s l e adnd I'm
sure that you'll find them an e'xccllcnl
a d d i t i o nt o t h e c o n r b a lp o r l i o no f y o r r r
roleplayg i nc x p c r i e n c e .
o r l e g ,m a ya c t r e f l e x i v e lwy h e nd a m a g ei s
s c o r e tdh e r eI.n t h e s ec a s e sa, s p e c i asla v ei s
r e q u i r etdo p r e v e ntth e r e f l e xT. h e s t a n d a r d
S a v ev s P a i ni s a 1 2 .w i t h t h e N , lE . .bonus
v sp s i o n i csse r v i n a
g sa n a l l o w a b lm e o d iife r .
Penalties
A l l p e n a l t r ei nsc u r r eddu r r n gc o m b aat r e
c u m u l a t i vaen di n e f f c c tu n t i lt h e c h a r a c t e r
r c c c i v c sp r o p c rt r e a t m c n ft o r h i s i n j u r i e s ,
r i n l c sos l h c r u ' i sset a t e dr v i t h i nt h e D a m a g c
- [ ' a b l e(si . e . :
IicsLrli S t u nd a m a g ea, l t h o L r g h
c r r n r u l a t i v cr v. i l l r v c a r o f f a f t c r a g i v c n
p c r i o do f t i m c ) .
t h e h a n do r a r mb e a r i n gt h e w e a p o nT. h e n
i n t h e n e x t m e l e ea c o n t e s to f s t r e n g t ht s
rolled between the attacker and the
d e f e n d eIrn. t h i st a s kt h e a t t a c k e a r d d sa n y
m e l e ec o m b a tb o n u s e st o s t r i k e ,p l u s a n y
b o n u s e tso d a m a g e( b a r e - h a n d eodn l y )t o
t h e r o l l o f a D 2 0 a n d c o m p a r etsh i s t o t h e
d e f c n d c r 'rso l l o f a D 2 0 p l u s a n y m e l e e
c o m b a tp a r r ya n d d a n t a g eb o n u s e sI .f t h e
a t t a c k e r 'rso l li s g r e a t ctrh a nt h e d e fc n d c r ' s ,
t h e d c f e n d cirs d i s a r m c dI f. t h c r o l l i s t r e d ,
t h et r v oc o n t i n r rteo g r a p p l cI.f t h c d c f c n d e t
, c h a sf r c e dh i n r s c l f r o mt h e
r o l l sh i g h e r h
grapple.

C a l l e dS h o t s A g a i n s t I . i v i n g
Targets
W h e n e n g a g c di n c o m b a t - m e l e eo r
r a n g e d - P C sN. P C sa n d m o n s t e rhsa v et h e
o p t i o no f m a k i n ga c a l l e ds h o tt o a s p c c i f i c
a r e ao f t h e b o d y .C a l l c ds h o t ss h o u l db e
m a d ea s r r s u a l - t h ea t t a c k e r o l l i n ga l 2 o r
b e t t e rt o s t r i k et h e d e s i r c d
t a r g e tI.f t h e r o l l
w a s b e l o w 1 2 b u t a b o v c5 t h e a t t a c k c r
m u s t c o n s u l t t h e R a n d o r nH i t [ - o c a t i o n
T ah l c f n r t h o an n r n n r r a t lcr i t l o c a t i o n .
W h e n a c a l l e d s h o t i s s u c c c s s f u lt .h e
a t t a c k e r o l l sd a m a g ea n d d i v i d e st h e s r r m
o f t h e d a m a g eb y l 0 ( r o u n d i n g d o r v n )a n d
'lhe
a d d st h i s n u n r b c r t o t h e roll o f a D20.
r c s u l t i n g n u m b e r i s t h e n c o m p a r c dt o
a p p r o p r i a t eI ) a m a g e R e s u l t T a b l c . t h c
e ff e c t s o f d a m a g e t a k i n g p l a c e i m -
mediately.
C r i t i c a lS t r i k e s R a n d o mH i t l - o c a t i o n ' f a b l e s
O n o c c a s i o na b l o w m a y b e s o ( ' l r a r a c l c rps e r f o r n r i nag c a l l c d s h o l
m u s td e c l a r et h c r rt a r g e t sb c ' f o r e
s u c c c s s f tuhl a t i t s e f f c c tr e s u l t si n n t u l t i p l e r o l l i n gI.f
n o t a r g c ti s d c c l a r c dt h. c n i t i s a s s t r m et d
c r i t i c asl t r i k e sF. o r i n s t a n c ca. b l o w t o t h e hat
all hits rvill fall somewhere
h e a dm i g h ti n s t a n t l ky i l l s o m e o nief e n o u g h on the main
d a n r a g ies d o n e .A C r i t i c a S b o d y .I n t h i sc a s ea. n d a l s oi n t h e c a s eo f a
l t r i k ex i d o e s
t h r e et i m e st h e d a m a g et h a t w o u l d n o r * m i s s ecda l l e ds h o ti n w h i c ht h e n u m b ew t as
g r c a l e rt h a n 5 b u t l e s st h a n 1 2 , u s e t h e
m a l l yb es c o r e dI f. a n a t u r aCl r i t i c aSl t r i k ci s
N 4 a i nB o d y H i t l - o c a t r o nT a b l e .I n c a s e s
s c o r e di n a d d i t i o nt o a n y o t h e r c r i t i c a l
w h c r e n o n - - c o m b ar et l a l c di n . l u t yi s s u s -
d a n r a g ec,o n s r d et rh e d a m a g ec u m u l a t i v c .
T h u sa n a t u r aC t a i n e ds, u c ha s f a l l i n gf r o m a g r e a th e i g h t ,
l r i t i c aSl t r i k ep l u sa C r i t r c a l
ctc., use thc Basic Random Danrage
S t r i k ex 3 w o u l dd o f o u r t i r n e st h e n o r m a l l y
s t a t c dd a m a g c . D e t e r m i n a t i oCnh a r t .I n e i t h e rc a s e o . nce
t h e l o c a t r o no f d a m a g e i s d c t e r m i n e d ,
D i s a r m i n gA n O p p o n e n t c o n s u l t t h e a p p r o p r i a t eD a m a g e R e s u l t
T o s u c c e s s f u ldl yi s a r ma n o p p o n e nat T a b l e f o r t h e e ff e c t o f t h e d a m a g e
y tangle sustalneo.
c h a r a c t emr u s tf i r s ts u c c c s s f u lcl n

D o d g e A n d P a r r yB o n u s
C e r t a i na r e a so f t h e b o d yp r e s e nat m o r c
d i ff i c u l tt a r g e t o t h ea t t a c k ear t t en p t i n ga
9/
c a l l e d s h o t , a n d t h e r e f o r ea r e e a s i e rt o The National Gaming Convention, and Exposition
d e f e n dW . h c n a c a l l e ds h o t i s s c o r e dt.h e
July 4-7,1991
i n d i c a t e dD o d g e / P a r rbyo n r r si s a d d e d1 o
Baltirnore Convention Center
t h e d e f e n d e r 'rso l l i n a d d i t i o nt o a l l o t h e r
b o nu s e s . Hyatt Regcncy & SheratonInner Harbor
elnco,PO Box609,Randallstown,
MD21133
S a v i n gR o l l s v s P a i n
S o m ea r e a so f t h e b o d y s, u c ha st h e a r n r
 l3
RANDOM HIT LOCATION TABLE ONE: RANDOMHIT LOCATIONTABI.E TWO:
M a i nB o d y H i t L o c a t i o n s - R o l l D l 0 - Roll D20
BasicRandoml)amageDetermination
1.,,......................Head | -) Llor.l

2 - 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .T. .ot .rIspop e r 3-,1................... LJpper Torso

4-6....................1-orve r Torso 5-8 ................... l-orverTorso
7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A. .r .m.Righ1 9 - 1 0 . . . . . . . . .R . . i. g. .h. .tA
. rnr
8 . , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . t. .A. .r.n. .r, i - e f I l - l 2 . . . . . . . . .L.e. .ft. .A r m
( -.fhi gr h
9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . , . . .I .-.e. .gR g1h) I 3 - 1 6 . . . . . . . .I.i.i .g. h. .t I - c g
1 0 . . . . . . . . . . , . . . . . .L. .e.g. .(iT - chfitg h ) 17-20..............1-ef t Les

N o t e : I n t h e c a s co f t h e R a n d o mH r t L o c a t i o n ' l ' a b lOc n e .t h ed e f e n d egra i n sa d o d g eb o n u sf o r t h e a r e ah i t o n l y i f o n er o l ii s n t a d eo n

t h ec h a rfto rt h a ta t t a c k .

D A M A ( ; I 1R I : S t I L l ' 1 ' A B L E S
'f
Headlt.lpper orso I-owet Torso
D e f c n d cr cr c c i v cas + . 1t o p a r r y / d o d gf oe r t h e [ ) e f e n d er re c c i r , cnso l m apl a r r y / d o d gbeo n u s e s
H e a d+.. 1f 0 1t h c l T p p c r ' f o r s o
I - 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .IN
) aonr rnar g
ae 1 I * 9 . . . . . . . . . . .N..o . .r. m
. . .aDl anrage
4-10..................S l cdc(s- 6 , S t r i k cP.a r r y& D o d g e )
I )t4t rnnrnc e l 0 - l I . . . . . . . . .-...).t.o. S p c c d
I i - 1 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . S tIuXnrn ct cdl c e s l 2 - 1 5 . . . . . . . . . . . t. o. .S- 5p e e d-:l S t r i k eP, a r r y& D o c l g e
I 4 - I 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 21 Ir)r4nm lrcd l e e sC: r i t i c aSl t r i k e l 6 - 1 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 1 uf )n6nncrdc . l e c-s2l S t r i k eP , a r r y& D o d g c '
1 6 -7 l . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . S 12u[ n ) 6nmc de l e e sC: r i t r c aSl t r i k ex 2 1 9 . . . . . . . . . . . .S. .t.u. .n. n d l ) 4 n r c l e c s-:3 S t r i k c P
. .e. .2 . a r r y& D o d g c :
1 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .OKuntoDc4k m c de l e e sC: r i t i c aSl t r i k ex l C r i t i c aSl t r i k e
1 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .OKtnr o tDc6k m c de l c e sC; r i t i c aSl t r i k cx l )0......................S 2 l1)u6nnnr ec lde c s- ;4 S t r i k eP, a r r y& D o d g e ;
2 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .OKu n to2cD k c4 dm c l c c sC l r i t i c aSl t r i k cx 4 C r i t i c aSl t r i k ex 2

Arm I-eg
D e f e n drccrc e r v cas+ 3t o p a r r y / d o d gSca. v cv s P a i nt o D e f c n d crre c e i v cas+ ) p a n y l d o r l gSea. v ev s P a i nt o c o n t i n u ca n y
k c c ph o l do f a n f i l c m i n h a n d . n ) o v e m r ' nFta. i l u r en t c a n tsh a tt h ec h a r a c t ei sr o n h i sk n e e s-,4 t o
initiative n e x tr o u n d .
i - I 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IN) a om r maag1e I - 1 0 . . . . . . . . . .N. .o. .r.m. .aD l amagc
i i - i 5 . . , . . . . . . , . .S. .l.r-i 2k e i P a r rwyi t h a r n r I I - l 5 . . . . . . . . .-.2. .S. .p e e d / D o d g e
l6-19..,.......S . . t. r. .i k- 4c / l ) a r r yv r t ha r m ;- 6 S a v ev s P a i n I 6 - l9 .,............ -4 Speed/Dodge; -6 Savevs Pain
2 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .p. .a. r. .aAl yr m z e du ,s e l e s s- ;l 0 S a v ev sP a i n 2 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .p d s. e l e s s- 1; 0 S a v ev s P a i nt o r e m a i n
. .a. .r.aLley gz e u
s t a n d i nogn l e g .S p e e d a n dd o d g er e d u c e bd y M i l
o n el e g lb y l / 4 i f b o t h .
*
l4

SolomaniSpaceFighters
Two space fighter designs for MegaTraveller
Mattl .[aakso
-

ThunderstreakClass
HeavyFighter/lnterceptor
CraftlD: SolomaniFighter/lnterceptor
Type SF,TL 14, MCr190.36
Huff: 1081270, DisP:120,
Config:1AF,Armor=50c
Unloaded:37O1.4 tons,
Loaded:3819tons
Power: 37174,Fusion=5004Mw,
Duration:16/48
Loco- 19/38,Maneuver:6,
NOE:180kph,
Cruise:3150kph,
Top:4200kph
Agility:4
Commo: RadioOomm,
+i\- '
=*.-_ =_-_
MaserComm
Sensors: ActiveEMS:FarOrbit,
Neutrino:10Kw, ,/
PassiveEMS:lnterstellar,
ActObjScan=Rout, __.--ra--_
---L
ActObjPin:Rout,
PassEngScan=Simp,
PassEngPin:Rout
Off: PlasmaGun:x03
i€=: --\\L-:=-ff-
J +-::= ---
^/
- =-:.-.-
Batt 1 :-
Bear 1
Missile:x03
Batt 'l
Bear 1
Def: D e f D M :+ 1 1 ''/'
Control: Computer=6x3 -+l
Panel=Holodynamic linkx53
Special:HeadsUp
Environ:BasicEnv, BasicLS,
ExtendlS,GravPlates,
InertialComp. /-.-7-='
-'--_
Accomm: Crew:3 (Bridge=1,
Engineer=1, Gunner:1), \.-- .-.-/
Staterooms=1,
SmallStaterooms=1
Other: Cargo=42.8Kliters,
Fuel:1067Kliters _ -\\
FuelScoops
_--_-\
ObjSize:Average, ---'--:--->- .-+4
EM Level:Moderate MATTILAAKSO
 t5
Off: PlasmaGun=xO3
HuitzilopochtliClass Fighter Batt 1
Bear 1
CraftfD: SolomaniFighter,Type SF,TL 15,MCr 74.97
Def: DefDM=+15
Hull: 23156,Disp:25,Config=1AF,Armor:soc x10,
Control: Computer:7x3, Panel:DynamicLink
Unloaded:324.5tons,Loaded=338.5 tons
BasicLS,
Special:HUD,Environ=BasicEnv,
Power: 3/5, Fusion:612Mw,Duration:18/54
ExtendLS,GravPlates,InertialComp.
Loco: 4/8, Maneuver:6(non-gravitic),
Accomm: Crew=2(PiloVGunner=1, Cmdr=1),
NOE=190kph,Cruise:3150kph,
Seats=Roomy x2, Bunks=1
Top:4200kph,Agility=6
Fuel=145.5Kliters
Other: Cargo=3.zsKliters,
Commo: RadioOomm,MaserOomm-far orbit
FuelScoops
Sensors: EMMask,Act EMS=FarOrbit,
ObjSize=Average,EM Level:No emission
Neutrino=10Kw,
PassEMS=Substellar,
is the most advancedSolomanifighter.
Huitzilopochtli
Densitometer=LoPen/250km,
Unlikemost lmperialsmallcraft designs,Huitzilopochtli
ActObjScan=Rout, ActObjPin:Rout
(lmperialdesignation SF-AT 1114)uses powerfulfusion
PassObjScan=Rout, PassObjPin=Rout
rocketsfor propulsion.The majordrawbackwith
PassEngScan=Simp, PassEngPin:Rout
non-graviticdrivesis theirhigh lR signature.The name
is an Aztecnamefor theirgod of war. fr
"Huitzilopochtli"

MATTILAAKSO

VOYAGESSF 14 READERSSURVEY
Readersare encouragedto completethe surveybelow.Eitherphotocopythis form or list the articlenumbers,with
ratings,on a post card.Ratearticles:Excellent=4,
appropriate Good=3,Far:2, Poor=1,Not Read=O.Pleasemail
completedsurveyby March15, 1991

1 Commlink 11 WordsTo GameBy

2 The Go-Betweens 12 _Graphics & lllustration
3 -' GunsmithsIn StarWars
4_ CombatErrataFor PalladiumRPGs Q1: ls thisissuebetterthan,as good as, or not as good
5_ Solomani SpaceFighters as our last issue?
6_ TheCaseOf TheHaunted Car Q2: lncludingyourself,how many peoplereadthis issue?
7_ Encounter At Hesperus Q3: Ratingin order of preferencethe most recent issues
8_ EffectsOf WoundsIn StarWars of the gamingmagazinesyou read,where would you
9_ CorsairContention ratethis issueof VOYAGESSF (1 is high)?
10 Reviews
t6
his is a GURPS AuloDuel ot Car Wa/'s
1r
I adventuretor two to five players,plus a GM
or referee.lt mightbe a good ideato haveanother
person to play the opponents and NPCS.This
adventureis describeclin mostly GADterms,but
cw conversionstatsareprovided.

The Players'Set-up
The playersare in a medium-small tortress
town somewhere in the Miclwest.They are
relaxingin the BrassBulletCafe,talkingabout
upcomingduelsand otherassortednews.A tall,
dark-haired man enters. Seeing them, he
approaches,and if they do not noticehim, he
clearshisthroat.
"l see you folks are duelists,"he says."My
name is Doug Kendall,and I'm the Mayor of
Cedarville. My town'sabouttwelvemilesaway.
"Abouta monthago.the citycouncildecided
to build a new solar power station.The present
one's over thirtyyearsold and fallingapart.Within
a few daysof the decision,some strangethings
startedhappening. A carwithouta driverhasbeen
blazinginto town along the road leadingto the
new station site. New parts for the old station
started turning up on people's lawns. And
everyoneon the council'sbeengettingpostcards
withweirdmessages on them.
"Thena weekago, that ctriverless car attacked
our two police cars.They'reboth badly shot up,
andwe'reprettyshortof cashrightaboutnow.
"Two nights ago, the car attackedthe Fire
Chief'shouse.His eldest daughterwas seriously
injured.She'sin thehospital here,recovering.
"l'd liketo askyou for your help.I wantyou to

The Case Of The

go afterthishauntedcar,seewho'sbehindit, and
see if they have somethingagainstour building
the new station.We'll give you free rooms at the
town hotel,free meals,and hall off all repairsand
reloadsthat aren't too unusual.will you accept
our otfer?"
They should,or they'reout of the adventure.
Gettingto town is no problem.Cedarville hasonly
HauntedCar
900 people, so it's too small for most gangs to
botherwith. An adventure for GURPSAutoDuel
Once In Town
As soon as the playersarrive,give them a Robert L Collins
map of the town. (You'llneed to draw the map
yourself.Any road map of a smalltown will do.)
There's no great celebrationwhen they arrive;
only if the PCs do their job will the townspeople
startpartying. PCs should not know when the next attackwill Armor (LRFP):Front & Back 4/18, 3/12 other
The townis similarto othersmallmidwestern come(there'sbeenno timepattern). sides:4798lbs.,$23,400
towns.lt has a smallpoliceforce (sevenolticers, This next attackshouldbe againstthe PCs, The sending set: Remote control trans-
one cruiser), MONDOS, and a city administration. specificallyoneof theircars.lt shouldcomewhen mitter,Hi-res targettingcomputer,long distance
The one thing that distinguishesCedarvillefrom the PCs are asleepor otheMiseoccupied.The radio;210 lbs.,16 cubic feet, $7100.(Driver+0,
other smalltownsis thal most of the peoplemake carwillpullup to the hotel(wherethe PCscarsare Gunner+0.)
their livings by selling home-grown vegetables pafted) ancttake two shots at the nearesttarget The group also has three Ha$4(s, two
andhome-madeartsandcratts. vehicle,thenleavealongit's usualescaperoute. Slashers, and a Vigilantepickup.Therearetwelve
All previousincidentsinvolvingthe haunted men in the group;ten soldiers,a leader,and an
car have gone this way: the car comes up Dry The Bad Guys expert.Eachgunmanhas an SMGwith two clips
Creek Roaclquickly anc, leavesthe same way. The hauntedcaf is operatedby a remote andbody armor.The leader,"Bull"Barton,hasan
Anyonewho tries to follow it loses it at the Dry controlunit hicldennearbythe town.Runningthe AR, a .44 pistol,and improveclbocly armor.The
Creek briclge.lt clisappearsin a bright flash, caris a smallgroupof "professional" gunmen. expert,l.-ouMccoy, has a gmm pistol anclbody
followedby plentyof smoke,and out of nowhere The haunled car: Mid size, standard armor.
a largelog is on the oppositesideof the bridge. chassis,heaw suspension, mediumpowerplant, In additionto the vehiclesthe "gang"has two
The PCs can now think the situationover. 4 PR radials;turretecl laser,smokescreensright& tool kits, a portablecomputer,tents, about ten
They can plan, conduct research,whalever.The left, spiKedropperback;remotecontrolreceiver; weeksof food, and a tripod MG with two clips.

Everythingis kept at thek hiclctenbase outside of
torrm.Ths base is on a path leaclingaflay from
DryCreekRoact,blockedby awreckedvehicle.
The Game Is Afoot!
It the PCssuspectan informer,they'llhaveto
do some diggino. only after a thorough searchot
the plans for th€ nsrr/ station (4 hrs of Research
rolls)will they finclthe feltowwho's going to lose
hisiob.
A Research-4roll at City Hall will come up
withanolct map of the atea.lt shows a small path
but must md(e Stealthrolls every five minutes if
thsy're trying to sned( up on something.In
adc,ition,all Navigationand Trackingroltsareat -3
(-1 inwinteronly).
Solving lbe Case
The PCs have plenty of suspocts.lclBatly,ths
GM will havethe answers.In this adventureit's up
to the GM to dBcidevvtlichis the rgal culprit.One
ol the gangs shoulclbe in on the attacks,hireclby
someone.The 'somsthing' that's hiclden,il it
l7
without gatting some kind of satellite survey of
the area, if you allow such a thing in your GAD
campaign.lt's expensive($15,000at least),and
might be contusing,but it shoulclgive the Pcs a
good idea of the 'gang's' supplies. It there's
somathinghiclclen,it will positivelyrevealwhat it is
on a roll ot 16 or less, but the PCs will have to
havean exp6rt interpretlho results.
Give the PCs one Experience Point fot
suMving, two if things ended without violence,
anclone more if they mad8 any triends, either in
town orels€,l,vhgre.

Iti,
nearthe site. lt might suggestthat somethingis
hicldenor buried at tho end ot th8 path. (This is
wherethe baclguys arehicling.)
A tew ot ths citizenswill confront the PCs as
fiey move through town. They'll tell them about
olcl Gus Mccann, on€-time owner ot th8 site
property.Elevenyearsago, the councilwanteclto
buy thB land and put an armory on it. McCann
refusedto sell, vowing that his lanclwoulcl never
A 0o io the city. A week lator h€ clied.Some will say
't.
lhey've seen his ghost prowling the svsets.
Otherswill r€port 'weird ooings on' out there.
They'reconvincsdthis is th€ reasonthsse attacks
havebeenoccuring.
As mentionedBarlier,ona man will b€ losing
hisiob u/henthe new stationgoes up. A trip to the
bank ancl a few questions to the manager will
rsvealhe isn't a big saver.whether he's in on the
crimesis up to thg GM.
Therears two gangs working the ar€a. Both
aresmall(lessthan tittsen members),don't have
steadynames,and aren't being ruthlesslypur-
sugdby the polics (neithor commits crimes that
causeoutrage or make cleterminedengmies).
Either gangcouldbe the "soldiers,'but theywon't
bethebrainsbehinclthe hauntedcar.
Therewas more than one solarcompanyin
ths bictclingtor ceclarville'snew ptant. Halt a day
anda R€search-sroll will rgvealong ot the tailed
bidders,Southwestern Solar,is tseteringon the
ed9sofbankruptcy.
Talkingto the Mayor lor at least 90 minutes
willr€vealthat businesseshave approachedthe
town about putting up factories of one kind or
anomeron the site. ceclarvillehas alwayssaidno;
pertlapson€ of those businessesdoesn't liks that
answer?
And what ot the hictden-something' the
recordshint to? They clon't go beyoncl hinting;
manyrecorcls were lost duringthe FooctRiots.lt's
possiblethat another company owned the land
b€for€Mr.Mcoann.
ll the Pcs head out to the station site, they'tl
tind the bridge unblockect,but Dry Creek Road
beyondthat point is more or less off-road. Any
pathsthat head a ray from it look even worse.
Onocan't be traversedbscause an olcl cat is in
tlsway.
Thisis the hidden base, ol course.Ths car
nas an anti-theft system linkecl to grenades.
unlessa Lockpick-3roll is macle,moving the car
setsoff the grenages,and a siren.The gunmen
willshowup withina few minuteswith all weapons
andtwocycles.Thecarhasno tires.
Eastof to\rvn,next to and eastof Dry creek, is
denseforest.PCs trying to watkthroughit wilt not
onlyhaveto deal with typical miclwestemtauna,
exists, shoulct either be gasoline or chemicals
(hazarclous or msrelyuniqus).
Attacking the site shoulcl be out. overlancl CharacterNotes
movemsnt is extremely clitficult,ancl thsre's no The abilitiesanclshillsot the citizensanclthe
chancefor surprise. Thereis ons way ot gettingin gunmen should be reflectedby the Pcs, with the
unseen:wait for th€ n€xt attack by the haunted townsfolk not at all powerful, and the nired guns
car, sneak insids, and hict6until it retums to the equalto the PCs.
oass. Most of the NPcs can be imorovisocl, or
The possible inlormer can be a hslp and a baseclon stockNPCS.The NPCSwho mightneecl
hinderance.It the ooeration'scontrolleris well woil betorehandare the Mayor, the Police chi8f,
financecl,it couldgivetho intormerbugsandhave the City Clert(,the head ot ths power station, the
him plant them. Even it the controller cloesn't intormant(if he exists),BartonanclMccoy, and
havea lot of cash,it still has to keep in touch with thg leaderof ths'ghost mob.'
it's agent. lf the GM allows ths infomer to exist,
h€ shoulclmakethe PCswork to get him or hsr on ConversionNotes
theirsicle. This adventurewill wofi in any backgtouncl
Anothericleais to negotiate.This would be that has powsrful corporations. lt won't work in
best it there feallyis somothinghidden.on the ptaceswith ponerlul aulhorities.lt can be set in
other hand, if the PCs and the ounmen start ths present with a fs\^, changes. lt might even
talking without letting the brains know, things wofi as a honor actvsnturg,with the haunteclcat
coulcl(andoughtto) get a lot uglier. rsallybeinghauntect,Ot course,eliminatingghost
Don't lot ths Pcs go through the aclventure carsisn'tas sasyas gangsanctcorporations.fr
FUTUREVOYAGES
A loot At Our Next Issue
*""f ise
il::i$9"
5,s
:I31a"d
"ldiotsDon't DriveBattleMasters"
BattleTechfiction.
GovernmentEspionageIn AutoDuel
Notesand guidelines
on playinga spy,completewithan adventure!
Advanced Task ResolutionIn GURPS
Optionalrulesfor addedrealism.
23OOaoShip Profites
Completewithnoteson makingyourownmodels.
CharacterPortraits
Fullbodyillustrations
usefulas playeror non-playercharacters.
We
delayedthisan issueto reallydo it right.Worksfroma numberof
talentedartistswillbe displayed in thispresentation.
These articles and more, plus Commlink,Words To Game By,
and Reviewsnext issue. Look for it in Aprit!
t8
lfO JUt{E. 23O1 - Contre-Admiral
Jean-Paul Bertrand's staff announced
that the Eta Bootis Defense Fleet will
depart to engage the Kafer yessels cur-
rently attacking the Hochbaden system
(less the two Australian yessels t /sr-
rangef an(J Kangaroo, which are still on
patrol near Arcturus)-l
F3 JUNE, 2301 - (excerpt trom the
communicalions fog ot H-rJ.A.,s- Easlr-
range4: '".-What do you mean the fleet
went off to Hochbaden? Send a couriel off
ASAP to brang the Detense FIeet back- The
whole frigging Kafel fleet dropped into
Arturus to discharge their stutterwarp
drive- They'll be here in a tew daysl"l
[18 JUNE. 23Oi - In the Hochbaden
system, the French battleshap Tauyran4
with contre-Admilal Jean-Paul Bertrand
onboard, was completely destroyed in a
one-on-one engagement with a Katet
battleship- Thasleaves the Uklainian com-
mander, Kontr-Admlral Se.gei Sergeayich
Borodin incharge of the combined Earth
Defense Force here an the outea
French Arm ot space.I
fahen from The Ham ao -Kafef
Uar btt/A ler Shane, pab- 23 12-
[21 JUI{E, 2301: 2lO7 hours
GMT - Tanstafll Starportl
Two men stood in the lighted
cloorwayto a prefab shelter,one of
manyon this sicteot the starport.Both
wore the typicalkhakidrill uniformof
the Britishcommonwealthof the 24th
century. Round garrison hats with
black visors, short sleeves,pressed
slacks,black,low top shoes polished
to within a centimeterof their 'lives'
completedthe perfectrecruitingpos-
ter image that all militaryforces wish
to proiect.One of the figureshad a lot
A femininearmcurleclits way aroundhiswaist "ln my first briefingwith Bertrancl,he played
anda headcameto reston his shoulders. "Sandy, down what happened dirtside," Shane said,
clutycomesearlytomorrow." grimacing. "Allhe talkedaboutwashis tinalvictory
Shaneclosedthe door andturnedto faceBeth overtheirfleet.'
Anderson.He staredinlo her face and encircled .That jerkcouldn'lfind his own assholeevenif
herin hisarms. someone helped.The Kafers stomped his ass
A smile soread across her face. "What's twicebeforehe f inallygot that'victory'of his."
wrong, commodore? Have I broken out in "Why,Beth,darling.Do you talkthisway aboul
bloodsucher spots?" me and othersof such high rankwith your other
'Ha, ha. Have no fear of that, lass.I was just friends?"Shaneasked,teasingly,turningonto his
thinkinghow we're lucky that we have this time side so that he could rest on an arm and lool(
togetherbeforegoingbackup." downinto herf ace.
Beth disentangledherselftrom his arms to Beth answeredwith a quick kiss, 'Of coufse
sleo back ancl let him admire the view. A red not, Sandy.I've only told the femalestafl whata
ribbontyingbackher ravenblackhairalsoservect lousyloveryou canbe at times."
l
to trameher lovelyface.Her browneyes shined shane collapsedback into bed. 'oh - well!
with the glow of passion.Barelycontainingher That'sditferent.lt's nice to know what the entire )
ampls body was a black satin and lace bustier squadronthinksof me."
with g-string and thigh-high, sheer stockings Beth laughed. "what?! You thought I was
hookedup by garters."By the smirkon yourface I seriousabout that? You're more uptightthanI
cantell you fike...eve/yth/h9,"
snesoftly stated. thoughtyou were. How'bout I massageyour
Shanesmiled,tosseclhis hat off to a chairin neck?Thatalwayshelpeclbefore."
the corner.andput hisarmaroundBeth."Shallwe 'Oh, might as well. YeFterday- | was on€ of
retire to the bedroom and finish practicing the greatestloversof all mankind.Tonight- the
lousiest.How the mightyhavetallen."
[22 JUNE, 2301 * Long range
sensor probes have teporled
the arrival of the long awaited
Katel invasion force. The Aus-
ENCOUNTER tralaanships plus the three mer-
chant ships hastily litted out
with weaponry have lett orbit lo
engage a lone Kater battleship
AT HESPERUS apparently making a reconnais-
sance of Aurore- This is one
reporter's wish of good luck and
good hunting to the newly tot-
med colonial Detense squad-
2300mfiction inspired by the ron-l
The Haman-Kafer ]/ar bf
adventure book "Invasion" Alex.thane, pua- 23t2.

ol gold braicton his visor,anclwas the

one standingjust insidethe dooMay.
Off in the clistance.a transoortblimo.
a common sight on colony worlds,
was on final approach to the main
landingcirclefor LTAs(Lighter-Than-
Airvehicles).
"Welcome aboarcl,Mister Green-
wood,"Alexander'sandy'shanetold the young
man who was standingin Shane'squarters. "See
you on l e Eushrangef tomorrow.' one final
shakeof the hands,then Greenwoodsnappedoff
a sharo salutein the line Britishtraclition.Shane
returnedit in the samefashion.
Shanewatched the retreatingback of Lieu-
tenantGreenwoocl as the wind ruffledboth men's
pressedkhakis.The brown giant Tithonusfilled
the sky is if it were some god watching lhe
strangeworkingsof man on its moon, Aurore.
Appearingoff to the sideof Tithonuswas the red
shining clot of Arcturus,the star by which the
enemypassesto reachEtaEootis.
The starportlookedlikeany old airporton any
ot lhe hundreds of worlds that man now
inhabited;the tower lightsflashedtheirwarnings
to aircraftlandingand takingolf , and lightsshined
in offices throughout the administrationblock.
But this slarport was also the gfound base
location of the United Nations Soace Fleet
Headquarters and Aurore (Mission) Control.
Security teamson foot or in hovercraftpatrolled
the perimeter of the starport looking tor any
Kafersthat mightstillbe around.
'dockingmaneuvers,' Commanden"
"Ayeaye,sir."
Later,the two lovers rested in each other's
arms and staredal the darkenedceiling.Finally,
thequietwasbrokenby Beth.
"Whatdo you thinkabout our new computer
operaton"sheasked.
sandy thoughtfor a moment before answer-
ing."Amazingthat he was ableto livethroughthe
tirst Kafer Invasion.lf ever someone suffered
througha walkabout,he clid.You shoulcthave
seenhis eyesas he told me abouthis cousin's
farm northeastof her€. We were over at the
O-Club, tossing back a mug or two, when
Malcolmtold me abouthis cousin,dying after
theirgroupstagedan ambush.Betweentryingto
hum a chorusof waluing Matilda,his cousin
quoled: '/hope you wt//remain with me here tt///
am quite dead /l is a comlon to knov that
someone /s by.'lt was tolcl to John King by
Robert o'Hara Burke in 1861 0n their failed
exploration of lhe outback."
"Hearingabout it from behind the door was
enough fof me. Now it looks liks we're in a
full-blownwarwiththem.'
[22 JUNE, 23Ol: 2lO7 houts
GMT - Eta Eootis | (Hesperus)l
FiveshipsgoingintoHarm'sWay.
The gas giant catalogedas Eta
Bootis| (namedHesperusby the first
humanexplorers)loomeclever larger
in the viewoorts of the five little
spaceships.Two of them looked like hunters.
Variousshadesof gray, white, and gold coated
theirhulls.The other threewere glaringwhiteand
each as massiveas a skyscraper.To an outside
viewer,the five shipswould appearto'blink' into
existencein one spot, then blink out, only to
reappearmillionsof kilometersaway;the ef{ectof I
vesselsusingstutteMarp.
Theleadshiowasof lhe Klevdass.Purchased )
trom the Russianssix years ago, it was a lean,
knife-likedesignninetymeterslongwith two thick
wingsrotatingarounclthe fuselagecontainingtho
maiorityof the livingquartersfor the crew.Along
the main hull were five twin-laser mounls and
three missile bays. Near the point of its
needle-fikeprow was it's name - H.M.A.S.
Eush/,anger, and right next to it, the proud flagof
Australia.
Bringingup the rear was a slightly larger,
barrel-shapectvehiclewith huge solarpanels,the
H.M.A.S.Kangaroo, a ship based upon an old
French design, mounting fifteen lasers,with a
landerto carrytwenty marinesinto combat.Thg
tntee Hudson class cargo carriers were hastily
modifiedto be warshipsby mountingfour lasers

andwerecarryingtwo AmericanSIM-14missile
packseach;threehastilyconvertedlreightersway
overdueon their maintenanceschedules.with
civilian
crewstryingto act likemilitaryspacers.
Onboarcllhe Busnt/ange,the flagship of the
AuroreanColonial Defense Squadron,its crew
watchedtheirmonitorscloselytor the lone Kafer
scoutvesselthat was supposedto be near this
world.
In a small broom closet of a cabin, a lone
figurein shorts sat at his computerterminal.A
mu9 ot lukewarmtea rested near the person's
rightelbow,waitingto be emptied."Sandy"Shane
I finishedreadinga reporton his computerscfeen
a thumbsandlackedthe strengthof a human'sgrip,
andsavedit underthe'Ship'sPapers"file.Then,
he calledup a data teadout of the squadron's
l, position.satisfieclwith his findings,he turnedhis
terminaloff and finishedclressingfor duty as his
mindreviewedthe currentsituation.
Thelittlefleel left the comfortableembraceof
Tithonus,a gas giant five times larger than
Jupiter.Theworlctof Aurorewas officiallylisteclin
lhestaratlasas EtaBootisllc (meaningthatit was
lhe thirdmoon orbitingthe second planetof the
EtaBoolisbinarysystem).Eta Boolis
A wasnamedMuohridand EtaBootis
B, Rubis The systems two stars
orbiledone anotherwith an annual
separation ol 1.425AU (Astronomical
Units).The systemwas first visileclby
the French.ln the 2240s, France,
Ukraine,and a cartel of American
corporations set up a colony on the
tidally locked world now namecl
Aurore.The colony grew in size and
population in the nexl fifty-eight
years.
Then,on April 4. 2298,the peace
wasshattered. A largefleet invaded
the Eta Bootis system from the
general directionof A.cturus,attack-
ingthe humanfleetand destroying it.
ByAril8, the alienshad begun lancling
on the planet.For three months, the
fightingwas severeat best,brutaland
d6.^ar.td.l \rr^rcl Th6 E.dh fld^r .r
Hochbaden, the next world withinthe
7.7 light year range of stutterwarp
vesselsin the ctirectionof Earth,
eventuallydefeatectthe aliens ancl
sentthemretreating. But the strandect
Kaferson the planet fought on for
anotheryear, waiting for reinforcements.Over
300,000 people,mostly civilians,died in that war.
Theeconomywas shattered.Citizensof Aurore
developeda blooctlustagainstthe Kafers.lf a
citizenof Aurorewas askeclhow to fight the war
I againstthe Kafers,a typicalanswerwould be to
t roundup the bloody lot and do awaywith them
on a scale that would have made the ancient.
t
I infamous Hitlergreenwithenvy.
CommodoreShanereflectedover the recent
past on the fringe of human space. For three
years we have stat/oned an ntemallona/ fleet n
th/ssystem. Eertrand d/dn't even tly to sed{ out
tlte a//ens,/Ust keep tnem away from the co/ony.
Adm/n/ Eorodn ttrs supposed to be a tacfi?a/
genlus.buthedldn'l wanl lo maleanywaves.
Shanemumbledto himselfunderhis breath,
"TheGermanKommodoreWilhelmLutkeis about
the most aggressiveot us all. And then the
American, RearAclmiralDavidFarragutParker-
buthe'sa littletoo concernedwith seekingglory
ratherthan protectingAurore.' gut lhe lhreeolus
agree that the lrght lor Ela B@tls shou/d be
1i tnged at Arcturus. /Vorv8e/'t/and nad b go of
ind /eayeme to plolect tlre who/e system tuth an
ad hoc squadron. whal b/oody foo/s the lot ol
lhem aret
Shanesteppedoutof hisquartersanclentered
the small companionwaythat was painted in
greenand brownearthtones.Fromthereit was a
shortdislanceto the hub and the entryway into
the null-0ravitypart ol the clestroyer.Once
through,he grabbedonto the'firemanpole,"then
moved hand over hand to the TacticalAction
Center (known simply as TAC) of H.MA.S.
Busnrange/,.AlexanderShane,a lean,fil gentle-
man in his late fifties with sveaks of silver
beginningto appearin his blondehair,floated
throughthe hatchwaywith the graceof a ballet
dancer in zero-g and pulled himself into the
commandchair.Shanewas fillingin as acting
caplainol lhe BushrangelwhileCaptainO'Conner
recoveredfrom wounds suffered at Arcturus.
Shane was dressed in the same off-white
coverallsthat some how harkenedback to the
AlphaCentauriWarin appearance; rankclisplayed
on the collar tabs, Ship and Destroyerclivision
patchesplacedon chestandupperleftarmbelow
the Australianllag patch. Zippercd pockets
coveredalmostthe entir€outfit, usuallyempty.
On Shane'srighl was the computeroperator, Fairchild,"Callup the other ships anc,havethem
Lt. MalcomGreenwood,an individualdiminutive go to BattlsStations.InformAuroreControlthat
in appearance, but long on intelligence; a man we arenow engagingthe loneKaferwarship.'
who had enduredthe rigorsof the KaferInvasion
the first time aroundwhile on leave.Along the
cabin'swallswereoiher comouterconsolesand
theiroperators.Lt.RichardLemmonsmannedthe
Fire Controlcomputerwhile severalChiefPetty battleshipcode-namectA/pha.rhis inlormation
Officersoperatedthe Remole Controlconsoles was flashingin the lowerright-handcornerof the
thatguictedthe smartmissilesand sensordrones. big displayscreen.
EnsignJudy Mayeroperatedthe main sensors
console.All were rugged indivictuals, the tinest
examplesot Australian heritage.
"All right mates,where is the little buggen"
Shaneaskedwhilebuckling himselfin.
Lemmonsanswered,"Dfonenumbettwo still
hasa positivetrackot the target.lt is closingin on
Hesperus.lt looks like the Kafersare going to
slingshotarounclit to arriveat Tithonus.'
'Nothing about the r€sl of the enemy fleet,
Mayen"
"Not a peep, Captain.I guess they'rewaiting
on theirmate'sreoort.'
Malcomcut in, "As lar as I can cletermine. sir. the DonsMayllas launchecltwo.'
l9
we are stillin their sensor shadow.The basta(cls
haven'tsmartenedup yet."
Malcomwas referringto one ot the few known
factsaboutthe enemythat humanson the colony
world labeledas 'Kafers.'These two meter-tall,
non-humanbipedswere real killingmachines.
The backs of their heads and torsos were
protectedby a tough,hornycarapace.Theirsmall
eyeswererecessedunderlargebrow ridges,and
their mouthsbore an impressivearrayof hooks,
needles, siphons, and mandibles that allowed
them to impale, tear, cut, shred, chew, suck,
handle,andpartiallydigesttheirlood. Theirhancts
wer equipped with three mutually opposing
butweresurprisingly dexterousfor a creaturewith
a reputationfor beingstupidand strong.since the
firstencounterseveralyearsago in thisvery same
system,humanshad wonderedwhy it took a few
secondsor even longer to resonctto an attack.
But, when a Kafer clid respond,it was as if the
creaturehad suddenlybeen transformedinto a
cunning,innovative, and deadlyopponent.
Lt. Greenwoodknew about these creatures
from personalexperience.He was a
member of the famous 'Ramrod
Teams' operated by the city of
Tanstaafl. Severaltimes,he hadfound
himselfin close combat with thess
creatures.None of those limes were
very pleasantwas what sandy was
tolcl.
Shane looked at the computer-
generatedtacticalon the big screen.
The whole solar system was laid out
anctorbitalmechanicswere just hap-
pening to help the defenders of
Aurore.Tithonuswas on the opposite
side of the twin suns from Arcturus.
The Kafer fleet appeared to be
dischargingthe static buildupin their
stutteMarpctrivesnear Eta Bootis V,
Astraeus,a smallgas giant.
'This lone Kafer ship is either
scouting the way or has an anxious
^a^t.:^ " Sh.^o cl2lo.l Mil^6m nn.l
ded in agreement.
The Commoclore thumbed his
headset mike button on anct said,
"Briclge,Shane here. Sound Battle
Stations. Commander Foster. Plot
interceptcourseanclmakebest speecl
to target." Then, turning lowards Lt. Linda
"Ayeaye,Commodore,'Lt.Fairchildreplied.
The target that the small human fleet was
heading for was a large, dirty, green-colorecl,
multi-spherical as a
craftthat had been ictentified
"Time?"askedShane.
"2118hours,sir,"Lt.Greenwoodresponcled.
'Lt. Fairchilct,tell the merchant captainsto
launchone missilepack each, and we will take
careof the guidanceinstructions.'
"Ayeaye,sir,'the lieutenantrepliect.
Mayer'svoice went up a note, "Droneis now
reporting that target is an 'lmprovecl Alpha'
battleship.
lt is launchingsix missiles."
Shanelookectover to Greenwoocl. "Havethe
merchantslaunchedthe sim-14syet?'
'We're getting two from lne Hasegawa and
one lrom the Bangkok.Kangarooislelling us that
20
'Tell Kangaroothat we will handle anti-missile
tire control while the rest of the squadron fires
their lasers at the battleship,' Shane ordered,
focusingbackon the tacticalplot screen.
Even with missiles equipped with stutteMarp,
time can clragby while waitingfor the incoming
strike.Yet it can flash by too quicklyto respond to
the situation.
PeEona/U thought Shane, / peler to hght by
Emote contro/. Wou/dn't t4zrntto fighl hand to
hand wrth a Kafec not aftel t+/ratMa/com bld me.
Aloud, 'Bridge, bring us about 275 mark 190."
Turningto look at Malcom Greenwood,he saict,
'Onca the freighters have unloacled all their
missiles,havethem fall benindKangalooanclus.'
'l have received reports that the three
treighters havs fired off the first pack of thr€e
missileseach,'Malcomrepliecl.
Lemmonsspokeup now.'l've usedthreeSlMs
to block ths incoming Kaler missiles one-
for-one. The othershavs so far macleit oast the
counter-battery fir€ - clamn! Spoke too Soon,
theregoes anotherone of ours.'
Out in space,the ten meterlong silvertubesof
cleath clos8d in on their resoective
targets and explodsd. Invisiblelaser
beamspumped up to gigawattpower
via their own nuclear c,estruction,
cutting into human and alien vessels
alike. The Hasegat+a was like a
massivgblockof wooc,that some god
had takena power drillto.
AlexanderShanestareclat the clata
readoutscoming in over his compuler
screens.The alienbattleshiolost one
of its four rotating 'arms' that he
assumectprovided artificialgravityin
the same manneras such deviceson
humanvessels.And some hull plating
would eventuallyioin the small,thin
ring of clebrisorbitingthis planet.He
peeredover at Malcom.'well,mister,I
guesswe showed'em a g'clay,what?"
A smile appeareclon Malcom's
previouslygrimlace.'Aye, sir.Thatwe
dict. we've taken some minor hull
ctamage.Kangarooloo\ an engine hit,
power piant ouput reduced by thirty
percent."
'What aboutthe treighters?'Shane
askect.'Did they get all thearmissiles
off?"
"No, sir. Hasegatn didn't get hers off . Also,
Hasegatn took most of the incoming missiles.
She's heavily damaged in engineeringanct the
toMard hull is iust so much swiss cheesenow.
Mayer,on sensors,was tellingme that Hasegirwa
is losingatmosphericpressure.'Malcomdirected
his attention to communications."Lieutenant
Fairchilcl,raise the Hasegawa for an updated
damagersport."
'Will do. sir.'
Shanerubbeclhis eyes, then locusecton the
plot baord.'Tell those other two lreightersto fire
off the restol thosemissiles'
Again, Lt. Fairchilclworked her comm board,
carryingout herorders.
CommodoreShanecalledup the vicleoimage
ot lne Hasegatn on one ot the smallermonitors
at his console.lce crystalstrailedbehindthe huge
spacecraftfrom the engineering/crewquarters
like the smoke trail an airolaneleaves behind
when shot down. The briclgetower was nothing
but a blackenedstump of metal."Linda,"he said
quietly,'have the Dons Maypick up any survivors
oll the Hasegawa, ancl inform Aurore Control
abouther.'
Greovvoodinterrupted.'Commoclore,another she coulch't see his knees behind his console.
group of missiles inbound!' within seconds, They wers pumping like mact,as if shane was
lasers from the alien battleship impactect the tryingto inflatea blimp all by himselfback home
Eushnngea iatring everybody. on hisranch.
'Continue trackingtho bastardand havethose The two warshiosclosed in on the woundecl
freightersfirs otf all remainingmissiles.Lasers! Kafer,with the freighterEangkokacluallykeeping
Fireott anothersalvoat himl' bafieclShane. station off ot Kangar@s port side, whils her
The human flset plunged cleeperinto the sister ship, lhe Dons /Vaj1 tecoveted both the
gravitywellot the gas giantafterthe enemy,who livingand deadolt the Hasegzn+a.
was attemptingto hide in the thin ice ring about 'Lemmons,how many missileshas our friend
Hesperus,Vac,ing laserfirealltheway. outtherefiredoff so far?'Shaneasked.
'TAC, this is bridgs,' Fostercalled.'That last Lookingup from his computer screen,Lieu-
laser barrage reduced us to quarter power and tenant L€mmons answsred, "Fourteen in all,
numberthreelaserturrstis completelygone.' whichmeanshs shouldhavssix left.'
'Damn, mutteredLemmons.'Damage Con- 'Mayer,what about our clrones.Ate they still
trol,Lemmons.How com€ statusof numberthree arouncl?"
laser has not been calleclup to TAC?' Whatever 'Only NumberOne now, sir. And it's dama-
ths answerwas, onlyths lieutenant heardit. ged.'
Shanekeysclhis mike.'Vsrywell,Commander 'send it on into the rings.lwant thatKaf€r.'
Foster.Carryon.' 'Yes,sir.'
'Commodore,'Malcomcalleclout, 'the Kafsr
has hidden in tho ring. He's gone cleadon us.
We'renot dstectinganythingon our sensors.' I23 JUNE, 23O1:. O142 GMT - Otf
Shanerubbedhis brow,then cailedup to the Hesperus'sRingsl
It took the Aurorean Colonial
Defensesouaclronalmost four and a
halfhoursto find any new signsof the
Dafer battlaship, and lne Bangkol(
suffered greatly when three Kafer
missiles,programmedto act like like
mines, suddenly came to lifg anct
spearectthe huge ship on invisible
lancesof nuclearenergy.severalhits
in the power plant area causecl the
Eangkok to explode, killing all
onboarcl.The EMP pulseof the ship's
nuclearreactorexplodingblossomed,
thenquicklyfadecl.
Before anyone could even mourn
the loss, Mayer callgclout, 'l've got
'em! 357 mai/.O47.He's coming right
at us!' she exclaimed, her voice
raising in pitch in the heat of the
moment.
On the TAC displayscreen,theblip
thatwasthe Kaferwarshipwas moving
on an interceptcoursewith the human
souadron.Shaneswitchedone of his
video monitors to long range scan
and input the coordinates of the
enemy. on ths small screen, the
wounded giant climbed maiestically
briclge again. 'Foster, have Lt. commander out of the planeof the ring'sorbit. Shanenoticed
Zeiglerplot a searchpatternin the rings.Closeto that the enemy battleshiphad sufferecla maior
within 10,000klicksol ths last reporteclpositionof blowout in the forwardspherearea.
thatbattleshio.' 'All weaponsare to tire anclkeep on firing till
'Will do, Commodore,'Fosterrsplied. thetubesmelt.Hit'em!' shaneordered.
Malcomstaredthoughtfullyat shane.'com- LieutenantLemmons and the petty officers
moctors,that Kaferhas now had enoughtime to underhis controldirectedtheirremainingmissiles
analyzeour attack.The bloke is getting smarter. at ths onrushingtarget.The lightsdimmed as the
Thislookslikea Vap.' ship's laserswsnt into action. "Lemmons here.
"l know,Lieutenant.'ltlookslikea traoto me as Assign mount four as close in, anti-missile
well. But we just can't hang around out here battery.'
watingfor it to come back out anclplay.' shane Greenwoort spoke up. "Commoctore,
directedhis attentionto EnsignMayer.In the red Kangaloonas iust lost her starboard solar panel.
light of the TAC center, she appeareclto be Her landerhas also been hit. She's jettisoningit
gettingpanicky.'Ensign,I want you to be really just in caseit mightexplocle."
alertnow.Can'thavethat bastardshowuo on our "Acknowleclgecl. What is the clamagereporton
rearallot a sudden,nowcanwe?" Hasegatld?"
Judy turnedto tace him, sweatglisteningon 'They're repairingthe thrustersto get the ship
her fair lace. "Don't you worry, sir. That Kafer back underway to Aurore. She may yet be
won't everhavethe chanceto closomethinglike salvagable."
thatwithme around." At that moment,a KafermissileexOlocledand
'Now thats the spirit, Mayer. Don't let 'em all of its pre-targetedbeams impacteclon the
intimidateyou andyou'lldo fine,'Shanesaidwith Bushranger,blowing off one of its missile bays
a smlle,noticingthat his worclshactthe expected ancl the deepsystem scanner, ancl hitting the
eflectasshoappearedsomewhatcalmer.Luckily, forwardhull and one of the rotating limbs. The

sensorfeedbackcausedthe consoleto blow up
jn Judy Mayer's lace. Lt. Fairchildcalled tor a
medicalteam to come to take careof the young
womanas commodore shane unbuckleclfrom
hischairand grabbeda fire extinguisher to help
one of the petty officers put out the electrical
otaze.
Thicksmokesoon filledthe red lightedroom.
Coughing, Shanestartedlo ordereveryoneto put
ontheiroxygenmasks,but theyhad alreacty done
so.He settledbackinto his chairand took his own
advice.
"Bridge,Shanehere. Put our bow on to that
battleship andkeepus likethat.Don'tlet'em get
ourprotileagain."
"Undersloocl,Commodore.We're having lo
stopthe gravitydrum now becauseof vibrations,"
Commander Andersonreolied.
Shanecoulcltell somethingwas
wrong."Beth,is somethingwrongup
there?"
'Yessir.Commanders Fosterand
Rhocles areclead.They - they were
fightinga fife here on the bridge
whenthe forwardstarboardviewport
washit. Both of them were sucked
oul before the automatic viewoort
shieldslid into olace." After more
thantwo hundredyearsof livingand
working in space, most people
would still call a blow out being
'suckedout'. There was
a slight
pausebefore she continued."zei-
glerandI areholdingon andthe ship
isstillanswering the helm."
At /east Eetn ls st/// a//ue. Snane
thought. "OkayCommander, we wilt
grieveafter the batfle. Not now.
You'reFirst Otficer now. Tactical
oul."Then.avertinghis attentionto
Ll. Greenwood,-Malcom, Swiclch
sensorconlrolto your board.Status
ontheKafen"
"Looks like our missiles have
totalled hisengines. He s just coast-
ingnow;stutteMarpemissionsread
zero. ThP commancl Focl looks
totallydestroyed."
"Commodore.message coming
in lrom Aurore,"Lt. Fairchildrepor,
ted. "Kontre-AdmiralEorodin and
the rest of the lleet have just
returnedto the system. They are
nowheadinglor Astraeusand the
remaining Kafer vessels."
Two Mecl-Techs trailing a
casualtybasket popped open the
hatchand propelleclthemselvesover to the
slumpedfigure of Judy Mayer. caretuily,they
strapped herinto the basketand left as quietlyas
theyentered.
shane looked at the time readout on the
bulkhead wall.tt read:0156- 23JUNE2301. Then
helookedover at Greenwood."ls that battleshio
deadyeP"
Greenwoodnodded. "Yes sir. Still getting
somelifeform reaclings, but all powergeneration
systems arereadingat ?erolevels."
"Lt.Fairchild, directthe Kangarootocloseand
sendovera boarclingpartyto capturethatthing."
Theywere lookingat the video screenswhen
themagnifiedview of their defeatedenemyblew
upintomillionsof pieces.
"Thenagain, Lieutenant,maybe not. stand
down trom Battle Stations and inlorm the
squadron to turnbacktowardsAutore.I wanta full
damagereport put together for my inspection
2l
withintwo hours.l'llbe in my cabin." CANSHAREA BOTTLEOFVODKAANDYOU
"Veryhappyto do so, sir.' CANRELATE WHATHASHAPPENEDAT
ETABOOTISI.
[23 JU[E. 23{)1: o2O1hours GMT - Eta Then,afterreadingthe firstletter,Shanecalledup
Eootis | (Hesperus)l thesecondandbeganto read.
Feelinglike the rock of ages,shane returned
to hisoffice/cabin.Thegravitydfumwasstopped, TOCOMMODOREALEX SHANE
awailingrepairs,so he tloateclthroughwhat the FROMREARADMIRAL D.F. PARKER:
crew labeledas 'The Main Gate' and down the SANDYYOUOLDOUTBACK AUSSIE
BASTARD.
companionwayto his quarters.sweat stains HOGGINGALLTHEGLORY ASUSUAL.AT
underhis armsmatchedthoseof the other crew LEASTTHISTIMEYOUSAVEDSOMEFORUS,
membersthat he passedin the companionway. SEEYOUBACKONAURORE.
Finally,he arrivedat his cabin.For a minuteor so
he just held onto the nearbyhanclhold, then slict AlexanderShane smiled while reading the
the thinmetalpanelot a door open,enterect, then messages.Two very differentindivictuals saluting
slidit backinto place.He allowedhimselfto calm him for a jJb well done.He laid down on his bunk
down, readying himself to write those clamn and stared at the ceiling.The question that all
warriors face raced through his
mind. one thal even the first cave-
man must have thought after killing
KIEV-class Destroyer hisfellowman.
"why?" shane asked his com-
LENGTH: 90 Mctors puterterminal. He didn'texpectany
FOTATIONALARC : 37.3Molers aswersto be forthcoming lrcm il. /t s
a// we// and good, ne $ougn\ that
we fnd a need lo c/or+n around
amongsl ourse/ves to he/p ease lhe
tE3 bulden ol ouf deeds. And to gieve
t{- dl)
oler our comlzrdes and jusl maybe,
a vo/thy opponent /l doesn7 mate
q@p much sense - but it ts a comlorl.
Y/ tl
And genen/U we are not /rearfless,
it /s s/mp/y that we a/e a// uat/ms o/
ll t{ar
t.T The Commodore got up and
went backto ship'sbusiness.Letters
to write, reporls to fill out. And for
tonight at least, the citizens of
COMMUNICATIONS Aurore could rest without fearing
ANTENNA
anotherinvasion.But he was inter-
f.h+ ruptedby a knockat his door.
Fro^r Sd6 Top "Comein,"Shanesaid.
(3) Missll. &ys
Beth Anderson slid open the
tun,slbr.,rop
HABITATMODULE
Pmtilcs
paneland lookedin. Shanecouldtell
l-f- T-}--...-.- evenfrom wherehe sat that shewas
| |-__-]l|F-rt lired. Har brown eyes wBre recl;
ruptured blood vessels from the
briefexposureto vacuum.Sheclictn't
l-l------r
say anything,just enteredthe cabin
andcloseclthe door behindher.
lf--_lt I J
Sandywavedher over to him and
pulledher into his lap."You can let
go now,Beth,'he whisperedinto her
ear,and they both helclone anoth€r
close.
letters every military commander sometimes
finds himselfhavingto write. A beep soundect IFROM THE S|EGE OF ETA AoOTTS -
from his personalcomputer.Over the intercom, 23 JUilE. 23Ol - The Aurorean Colonaal
Lt. Fairchilcl
spoke,"Sir,I havetwo messagesfor Detense Squadron engaged a Kafel
you. One from AdmiralBorodin,the other from battleship, destroyang it at a cost ol one
Aclmiral Parker.' ship destroyed and another badly dama-
"Send 'em on down to my computer,Lieu- ged- saxty-seven are listed as killed an
tenant." action, twenty-three wounded- Five are
'Alreadywaitingfor you, sir.Fairchilct
out." missing, presumed dead.
Tappinga tew keys and enteringhis security - Borodin's fleet has ar.iyed back in
code, the dark greenscreencame to life, tilling the Eta Bootis system early this morning
withamberwords. to engaoe elements ot the Kafer tleet now
tagged 'Task Force X-Ray.' driyin0 them
TOCOMMODORE ALEXANDER SHANE, away.l
AUSTRALIAN NAVY. CMDRACDS nte Hsman-KatcLlfar by Alrx Shane,
FROMKONTR_ADMIRAL S.S.BORODIN: pab.2312- *
EXTEND TOALLINYOURCOMMAND MY
HEARTFELT GRATITUDE ANDPRIDE INTHE
S U C C E SOSFY O U RM I S S I O N , I L O O K
FORWARDTO A MOREQUIETTIMEWHENWE
22
n n r a n y g a m e s y s t e n l s .r v h e n P C s
f
I engage in combat there are real
p o s s i b i l i t i eosf s e r i o u si m p a i r m e not r l a s t -
i n g p h y s i c adl a m a g ew . hichis appropriate
a s c o m b a ti s a f r i g h t e n i n g l vy i o l e n te v e n t .
B$ in "flar lfars; combal doesn'toffer the
s a m e t h r e a t .Y e s . a P C c a n d i e f r o m a
Mortal Wound, and will expirewithin
t w e l v e r o u n d sr v i t h o u tt r e a t n r e n bt .u t 1 ' o u
d r o p h i m i r r a t a n k o f b a c t aa n d i n 2 I )
w e e k s h e ' s b a c k t o h i s g o o d o l ' s e l f ,n o
r v o r s ef o r n ' e a r ! I 1 ' s j u s t t o o e a s y , t o o
f o r g i v i n g .B e l o w a r e o p t i o n a l r u l e s a n d
s u g g e s t i o ntso m a k e c o n r b a ta l i t t l c l e s s
" c l e a n . "a l l o w f o r l o n g e rt e r m r e s u l t sa. n d
i n c r c a s et h e o p p o r t u n i t i e fso r r e a l r o l e -
playrng.

Reiuve Tanks
The Star llars rules state that bacta
p r o n r o t ersa p i dh e a l r n gW . hilc the nornral
h e a l i n gp r o c e s os c c u r sm r r c hm o r er a p i d l y .
n o r m a l s c a r t i s s u e s h o u l d r c m a i n .( Y o r r
Effects Of Wounds In
r n a y r e c a l lt h a t L . r r k eS k i ' r v a l k e ri n
E m p i r e S t r i k e s B a c k , c a m eo u t o f t h e
. The Star Wars
b a c t at a n k b e a r r n gf a c i a ls c a r sf r o m h i s
r r r ni n r v r t ht l r cW o n r p a I. l)c c a r r sW eo u n d s lantes R. Ktiry
a r cf a r m o r en u m e r o utsh a nI n c a p a c i l a t i o n
-
a n d l \ ' l o r t aW
i o u n d s .w e w i l l i g n o r et h e n r
h c r e ,a s b e i n gc o n c c r n e d w i t h s c a rt i s s u e
f r o r n W o r r n d sr v o u l dp r o b a b l yb o g d o w n t h e f r r s t a t a I ) r f f i c u l tI e v c if' [ohl cl o w e db y y o u r r r s u a if l i r t a t i o u sn r a n n c ra n d p u n t p
t l r ec v e n t so f i o r r rc a r n p a l g n . 2D days in a bacta tank. s e c o n d h c r f o r i n f o r m a t i o ns. h c r e s p o n d sr a l h e r
S c a rt i s s u er v h i c hr e m a i n a s f t c rh e a l i n g o p e r a t i o i
n s i d c n t i c a tlo t h a t f o r l n c a p a c i - d i s t a n t l ya,n d h c r a t t c n t l o ni s c o n t i n u a l l y
f r o m I n c a p a c i t a t i oonr M o r t a lW o u n d sc a n t a t i o n . d r a r v nt o t h c r a i s c dd. c c p - r c ds c a r t r s s u e
b c r e m o v e dt h r o u g hc o s m e t i cs r r r g e ray n d E f f e c t i v cr o l e p l a y i n c
g a n b e u s e d t o c o v e r i n gt h e 's r d co f y o u r n e c kb e l o wy o u r
a r e t u r nt o t h e b a c t at a n k , f o l l o r v i n gt h e c a u s ep l a y e r s
t o c o n s r d e t h
r e u n s i g h t h n e s s lcftear..."
g u i d e l i n ebse l o r v . o f m aj o r s c a r t i s s L r c (. S o m e character I f a p l a y c rc h o o s c sl o l e a v e h i s s c a r s
A f t e r h ea l i n g f r o m I n c a p a c i - t y p e s s
. u c ha s t h e B o L r n t y
H u n t c r ,O u t - r r n r emoveh da . v e h i n r o r h e r r e c o r dt h e m
t a t i o n : ( D R , 2 x S R )S c a rt i s s u ei s s u raf c e l a w . N { e r c ,
e t c . . m a y n o t c o n s i d e tr h c i r a s p a r t o f t h e c h a r a c t e rd c s c r i p t i o n .
o n l y ' ,r e s u l t i n gr n t r n s i g h t l i n e sf sl o. s m e t i c s c a r st o b e u n s i g h t l ya n d n t a yb e p r o u dt o C o s m e t i cs u r g e r y c a n . o f c o u r s e , b e
s u r g e r yi s a t a N 4 o d e r alteev e l .f o l l o w e db y b e a r t h e m o r c o n s i d e rt h e m t o b e a c o n d r r c t et od r e m o v et l l e ma t a n y t i m e i n
2 D h o u r si n a b a c t at a n k .N o t e t h a t t h i s p c r s o n a ls t a t e m e n l . ") . . . W e l l ,a ft e r y o u t h e f t r t u r c .
d o e s n o t a p p l y t o a c h a r a c t e rw h o a p p r o a c ht h e a t t r a c t i v ec u s t o m sc l e r k i n
b e c o m e Isn c a p a c i t a t ef dr o m r e c e i v i n g
two
r v o u n d s .b u t o n l y t o a s i n g l e w c a p o n
s t r j k et h a t c a u s eIsn c a p a c i t a t i o n .
After healing f rom a Mortal
Wound: This is a rvound that rvouid The Slar l[/arsrvlesstatethat a medpacis expendedlvhcn used.To nre.rt
h a v e k i l l e d t h e c h a r a c t eirf p r o m p tm e d i - s e e n ras l i t t l e s i J J ay n d v e r ) , w a s t e f ut ol i n c l u d ec o m p u t e r i z ed di a g n o s t i ci ns a
cal attentionhad not been undertaken t h t o w a w a y p a c k a g eA. l s o .i t w o u l d h a r d l yr e q u i r ea s m a n y s u p p h e tso t t e a t a
a n d s h o u l db e t h o u g h to f a s d o i n gs e r r o u s W o u n da s i t w o u l dt o t r e a ta l v l o r t aW l ound.
b o d r l yh a r n r .E v g n a f t e r b e i n gh e a l e dt.h e l n s t e a d c, o n s i d ear m e d p a ct o b e a c o m p u t e r i z e dr e. f i l l a b l em e d i c a lk i t
c h a r a c t e rs u f f e r sa p e n a l t y o f - l D t o c o n t a i n r ntgh r e ep o i n t sw o r t h o f s u p p l i e sT.r e a t i n ga W o u n d e dp a t i e n lu s e so n e
D e x t e r i t ya n d r e l a l e ds k i l l sd u e t o m u s c l e p o i n t ,a n I n c a p a c i t a t epda t i e n tt w o p o i n t s .a n d a l \ { o r t a l l yW o u n d e dp a t i e n t
i m p a i r m e n t .T h i s s u raf c e a n d i n t e r n a l t h r e ep o i n t s .A m e d p a cw h i c h i s e m p t i e do f s u p p l i e sc a n b e r e f i l l e df o r 6 0
s c a r r i n gc a n b e r e m o v e dt h r o u g ha n l e d i - c r e di t s .
c a l p r o c e d u r er e q u i l i n gt w o o p e r a t i o n s .
 SWORD& STARSHIPENTERPRISES
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lroil) lhc essenlral to lhe
cxolrc Edch rlemiully
r l t r s l r a l e da n d p r o f l l e d
l\,4erchant 54 pirges S10 00
"?:3i.'"9 5 1 19 5
 24

Introduction
T h i s s c e n a r i oi s i n t e n d e df o r u s eu , i t l . r
,1legaTrare//er.To nrakeit easierto usein a
c o n t r n u i n gc a n r p a i g nn.o s p e c i f i cl o c a t r o n
o f o c c u r a n c ei s r n e n t i o n e dr:, i r t u a l l ya r r y
f r o n t i e r l o c a t i o nw o u l d b e a p p r o p r i a t e ,
t h o u g h t h e a c t u a lp l a n e tt h i s a d v e n l u r e
b e g r u sn e a r s h o u l dl i k e l y b e o n e u , i l h a
l o r v c rs t a rp o r tr a t i n g I. t r sn o t r e q t r i r etdh a t
1 h ep l a y e rc h a r a c t e h r sa v et h e i ro w ' ns h i p .
W i l h a l i t t l em o d irfc a t i o nt o t h i s s c c n a r i o .
t h e y m a y s i m p l y b e p a s s c n g c rosr c r e w
a b o a r da v c s s col f o t h c ro r v n e r s h i p .

Vessel In Distress
W I r c nt h c P ( ' s 's h i pc r i t s . l r r n r p s p a c c
n ( ' a rt h c r rd c s t i n a t r opl )l a n c t t. h e y d e t e c t
a i t c r n a t i nsgi g n a lG s K a n dS O S( s e cS i g n a l
C ; K . I m p e r i a l E n c y c l o p c d i a ) .R a d i o
conmllnrcatton l e v c a l st h a l t h c v c s s c l a .
S t r b s i d i z t l' td{ c r c l r a n rt .v a ss e v c r c l yd a r n a -
g c d b , v l a s e rfr r c fr o n r a p i r a t c ( o r s a i r .
l . u c k i l y ,t h c n r e r c l t a ni ts a r r n e da n d l v a s
a b l ct o r c t u r nf i r e .S c v c r ahl i t s r v c r cs c o r c d
o n I h c ( l o r s a i ra. p p a r c n t ldyo i n gd a n r a g ca,s
t h c a g g r e s s ocr c a s c d t h c a t l a c k a n d
r n a t t evrcr r c da u ' a r .I I r r f o rr rt n a l c l rt .l t en t c r -
c h a n t ' sr r a n c u v car n d j r r n r pd r i v c sa r cn o w
r n o p e r a t i vA e .s t h c v c s s cw l a sd e c e l c r a t i n g
p r i o rt o i u m p , i t i s n o w h e a d i n gi n l o d e e p
s p a c ea t a n u n c o n t r o l l esdp e e de q u i v a l e n t
l o o n e g e e . H o ' n v e v e irt. i s o n l y a b o u t
2 0 . 0 0 0k i l o n r e l efrrso mt h cP C ' s h i p .
A s t h e c h a r a c t c rasr e l i k e l y a w a r c .
I n r p c r r al al w r e q u i r etsh a t t h e y r e s p o ntdo a
v e s s ei lr -dt r s t r c s T s .h e r ca r en o o t h c rv e s s e l s
r n o r b i t ,a n d .a s t h c s t r i c k c nr n c r c h a ni st
CorsairContention
n o r v a l n r o s t1 0 0 d i a n r e t e rosu t . r t r v o r r l d A MegaTravelleradventure
t a k e s e v e r a hl o u r sf o r a c r a f t t o r e a c hi t
f r o mt h c p l a n e t .
T h i o u g hc o n t i n u ecdo m m u n i c a t i tohne
/ames E Kingr
p r c t u r eb e c o m ensr o r eg r i m .T h e m e r c h a n t ' s
hull is pierced in several locations.
I : n g r n c c r i ni sg i n v a c u u ma. s i s t h c c a r g o a t t e n d i n g t o t h e r v o u n d e db.u t s h ei s a f r a i d i n d i v i d u at le c h n i c asl k i l l sT
. h e m o s lu r g e n t
d e c k .a n d t h c r ea r e h u l l f r a c t u r eisn t h e o n e o f t h e m .a y o u n gg i r l .w o n ' t l a s tu n t i l n c e d sa r em c d i c aal t t e n t i o nf o r t h e w o u n -
p a s s e n g esr e c t l o n t h a t a r e l e a k i n g t h e s h e c a n b e t r a n s p o r t c dp l a n e t s i d ea n d d c d . r e s t o r i n gt h e h u l l ' s t n t e g r i t y , a n d
a t m o s p h e roeu t f a s t e rt h a n t h e l i f e s t r p p o r t d o e s n 'kt n o w w h a t e l s et o d o f o r t h e c h i l d . r e s t o r i nm
g a n e u v eO r . t h e rt a s k n e e d ss, u c h
c a nr e p l a ciet . A l t h o u g ht h c s h i pd o e sh a v e ( A l o w b e r t hi s n o t a v a i l a b l eM. o s t h a v e a s e l e c t r i c a lc. a n b e c r e a t e dt o i n v o l v e
a n r r m b eorf v a c cs u i t se q u atl o l h e n r r r n b e r b e e nr e n r o v e tdhl er e m a i n i nagr eo c c u p i e d . ) c h a r a c t eor sf o t h e rs k i l l s .
-fhe
o f p c r s o nos n b o a r da. s r e q r r i r ebdy I m p e r i a J m e r c h a nct a p t a i np l e a d sw i t h t h c T h i si s a g o o do p p o r t u n i t fyo r t h e g r o u p
l a u ' f o r c o m m e r c i atlr a n s p o r tr. n r e a l i t y , P C s t o m a k ea l l h a s t et o r e a c hh i ss h i pa n d t o m a k en e r va c q u a i n t e n c er vsi t h g r a t e f u l
n r a n y a r e n o n f u n c t i o n a lT . hough this g i v e a i d . I t s h o u l db e q u i l e c l e a rb y n o r v p a s s e n g e-f s t r a v e l l e rosf t e n n e e da f a v o r
situalion i s s e r i o uesn o u g ht ,h e r ei s a n o t h e r t h a tt h e n e e df o rt h e i ra s s r s t a ni csue r g e n l . t h e m s e l v easn, d t h e y m a y r u n i n t o s o m eo f
e v e n m o r eu r g e n t .S e v e r apl a s s e n g ear sn d t h e s ep e o p l e a g a i n( h a n go n t o t h o s eN P C s ) .
c r e w a r e w o u n d e da. n d o n e c t e r vn t e m b e r Aid And Assistance
w a s k i l l e d- l h e s h i p ' sd o c t o rA . passenger W h e n t h e g r o r r pa r r i v e st h e y w i J ln e e d A Shadow
w r t h s o m e m e d i c a l s k i l l ( l e v e l I ) i s t o d i v i d et o w o r k o n t a s k sf i t t i n s t h e i r . t l e a s to n e o f t h e g r o u p w i l l
S u r e l ya
 25
s t a ya b o a r dt h e i rv e s s eal s t h e p i l o t .I f t h a t t o h r m .a s t h e p i r a t e so' p e r a t i o npsl a n n r n g L t C d r V i c t o r L e C l a i t
personis operating detection sensors d i dn o t i n c l u d e a r a i di n t h e s y s t e mt h e ya r e 5 8 5 A 8 7 A g e 3 4 4 t e r m s C r ( W a r r a n t )
( r v h i c hw i l l l i k e l y b e t h e c a s e .k n o w i n ga c u r r e n t l yi n . I - e C l a im r u s tg e t h i s i n f o r m a - Navigation-2. Handgun-2, Ship's
p i r a t es h i pr si n t h e a r e a )t.h e y m a yd e t e c a t t i o n t o I N S ,a n dh e w a n t st h e c h a t a c t e t so B o a t - 1 ,C o m m u n i c a t i o n s -C1o, m p u t e r - 1 ,
v e s s em l a i n t a i n i n ga p a r a l l etl r a j e c t o r ya t t a k eh i m t o t h e n e a r e snt a v a lo r s c o u tb a s e F o r w a r dO b s - 1 , I - i a i s o n - 1 B . rawling-1,
s o m ed i s t a n c e N . o t r a n s p o n d esri g n a l i s a s q u i c k l ya s p o s s i b l e H.e w i l l p a y a l l c o s t s B r i b e r y - 1 .I n t t u s i o n - 1 ,G r a v V e h i c l e - { ,
d e t e c t e db,u t r a d i ot r a n s m i s s i oanrsep i c k e d t o d o s o ,a n d a s s u r etsh e g t o u pt h a t t h e y L a s e rW e a p o n s { )V, a c cS u i t { )
u p . e v e n i f t h e s h i p i s n o t d e t e c t e do n w i l l b e r e w a r d e d( N . o t e : T h e b a s es h o u l d S t a r p o rB t . MediumT , hin,Wet World.
s e n s o r tsh: e y a r e i n s o m ef o r m o f c o d e ,o r b ea t l e a s at c o u p l ej u m p sd i s t a n t . ) M o dP o p ,L o w L a w , A v g S t e l l a r
possiba l yn u n f a m i l i al ra n g u a g e . T h e p l a y e r n a yq u e s t i o tnh e v a l i d i t yo f
T h e v e s s eils t h e d a m a g e dC o r s a i rA. s V i c t o r L e C l a i r ' ss t o r y . U s i n g a s m a l l . Lying In Wait
t h ep i r a t e sl a c k b e a mc o m m u n i c a t i ogne a r . c o m p o s i t ek n i f e r e m o v e df r o m a s m a l l When the PCs arrive at the next
t h e ya r eu s i n ga c o d et o c o m m u n i c a trev i t h s h e a t hc o n c e a l eidn h i s b e l t .L e C l a i rs l i t s s y s t e mt,h e y r v i l l f r n d a v e s s ew l a i t i n gf o r
a s e c o n vd e s s etlh a t r sm a n e u v e r i ni n g from t h e s i d e o f h i s b o o t s o l e a n d r e n r o v eas t h e m . T h e p i r a t e s d e t e r m i n e dw h e r e
i t ss t a t i o na r o u n da d i s t a n g t a sg i a n t . p a t t e r n e dp.l a s t i cc a r d .N o t o n l y i s i t p r o o f I - e C l a i rw a s l i k e l y g o i n g a n d b e a t h i m t o
o f h i s i d e n t i fc a t i o na n d r a n k i n N a v a l t h e j u m p( fi g u r i n gh e w o u l db e o n t h e P C s '
Under Cover I n t e l l i g e n c ei t, i s a N a v a l W a r r a n t o f v e s s e lT ) .h e y w i l l r e c o g n i z e t h e P C s 's h i p
A f t e rt h e a d v e n t u r ehr sa v es u c c e s s f t r l l y r o v r s i o m
P n ,o r ed i f fi c u l tt o c o u n t e r f etiht a n b y i t st r a n s p o n dseirg n aal n da t t a c k .
r c s t o r e dt h e s h i p ' s s y s t c m s( o r p o s s i b l y I m p e r i aclu r r e n c yI t. i s w i t h t h i st h a t h ew i l l I f t h eP C ss h i pi s r o u g h l ya n e v e nm a t c h
r.r'hile t h c y a r e r v o r k i n gt o d o s o ) . t h e p a y t r a n s p o r t a t i o n c o s t s . W h e n u s ed . f o r t h e C o r s a i rt.h e n i t r v i l l b e t h e v e s s e l
c a p t a i (no ra p p a r c nPt C g r o r r pl c a d c ro) f t h c I m p e r i u m - m e m bweor r l d sm u s ts u p p l ya n y t h a t a t t a c k s( w i t h i t s p r c v i o u sd a m a g e
a d v c n t u r i nt gr a v c l k - riss a p p r o a c h ebdy o n e a n d a l l o p e r a t i o n anle e d sr e q u e s t ebdy i t s r e p a r r ef o d r t h e m o s tp a r t )I.f t h e P C s v' e s s c l
( w i t h i n r e a s o n )w, h i c h m a y e v e n
o f t h c m e r c h a n t ' sp a s s c n g e r sV. i c t o r h o l d c r is largeo r r m o r eh e a v i l ya r m e dt.h e r e f e r e e
, v h or e q u c s ttso d i s c u sas n u r g e n t i n c l u d et h c u s eo f t r o o p so r c o m n r a n d e e r i n gs h o u l dc h o o s ea p i r a t ev e s s em
I - e ( ' l a i r' n l o r ea l p r o -
m a t t e irn p r i v a c yW . h e nt h e y f i n d s u c ha a s h i p ( l - e C l a i cr a n c l a i mt o c o m m a n d e e r p r i a t e( t h i si s t h e s e c o n dv e s s etlh a t w a s i n
l o c a t i o nt h e m a n d e c l a r ehs i r n s e ltfo b e a t h e P C s ' s h i p .b u t h e w o u l d p r e f e rt h e i r t h cs y s t e m t h r ss c e n a r iboe g a ni n ) .
f r c l do p c r a t i v co f I n r p c r i aNl a v a l I n t c l l i - c o o p c r a t i oann. dh ec o u l dh a r d l yf o r c et h e m A f t e r t h r s s h i p - t o - s h i pc o m b a ti s f i n -
g e n c c I. - e C l a i rc l a i m sh e h a s b c c n u n d c r b y h i m s c l iff t h e y r e s i s t e dt h. o u g hh c n r a y i s h c d .t h e g r o u p c a n c o n t i n u eo n t o t h e
c o v e rf o r s c v e r a m l o n t h si n s i d ea p i r a t e p o i n t o u t h i s o f f i c i a l r i g h t ) .T h e p r o p e r I m p e n a l b a s e ( a s s u m i n gt h e P C s a r e
o t g a n i z a t i o n t h e v e r y p i r a t e s w h o n a v a la g e n c yl a t e rp r o v i d erse i m b u r s e m e n tv r c l o r i o uasn d t h e r rv e s s eils s p a c e w o r t h y ) .
-
a t t a c k c dt h e m e r c h a n tA. f t e r d i s c o v e r i n g f o r a l l p r o v i s i o nssu p p l i e d . I - e C l a iw r i l l p a y f o r a n y a n da l l d a m a g etso
t h c l o c a l i o n os f f i c l d b a s e sa n d c a c h es i t c s . ( N o t e :T h e S p i n w a r M d a r c h e st h, r o u g h t h e g r o u p ' ss h i p a n d , u p o n a r r i v a la t t h e
h cf a k c dh i sa c c i d e n t adlc a t hb e f o r el c a v i n g A r c h d u -kle'N o r r i s .h a s d e c l a r e d l o y a l t yt o b a s e ,w i l l a r r a n g ef o r a n r o n e t a r yr e w a r d
hrrd
s o a s t o n o t a l c r t t h e p i r a t e sa t h i s I - u c a n ' s I m p e r i u m H. o w e v e ri.f t h i s ( a r n o u ndte t e r m i n ebdy t h er e f e r e e ) .
d i s a p p e a r a nB c cu.t t h e y a r c a p p a r e n t loyn s c en a r i oi s p l a y e do u t i n a r e g i o nc o n t r o l l e d A f e w w e e k sl a t e r .t h e t r a v e l l e r w s ill
b y a n o t h e rf a c t i o n .a n d L e C l a i r i s a n s e eo r h e a ra m e d i ar e p o r st t a t i n gt h a t n a v a l
o p c r a t i v eo f t h e p r e v a i l i n gg o v e r n m e n t ' s e l e m e n t ss t a g e dc o o r d i n a t e da t t a c k s o n
Naval Intelligencb e r a n c h ,s i m i l a rN a v a l t h r e es e p a r a t ce o, n fi r m e dp i r a t eo u t p o s t rsn
W a r r a n tw s o u l dl i k e l yb ei s s u e d . ) t h e s u b s e c t oTr .h e n a v y h a s n o t r e l e a s e d
A f l e r t h e P C s h a v e a g r e e dt o h c l p f u r t h e rd e t a i l so r t h e n u m b e ro f v e s s e l s
L e C l a i r ,h e w i l l s u c c e suslfl y b r i b e t h e d e s t r o y codr c a p t u r e d .
n r e r c h a ncta p t a i nt o r e c o r dh i r na s k i l l e di n T h e p l a y e rm s a yc o n s i d et rh e p o s s i b i l i t y
t h e a t t a c k , a ft e r w h i c h t h e b o d y w a s t h a t s o m ep i r a t e se s c a p e d and may worrv
a c c i d e n t a l ljye t t i s o n e di n t o s p a c ed u r i n g a b o u ta c t so f r e v e n g ae i m e da t t h e m .
t h e c o n f u s i o nH . e h o p e st o t h r o w t h e
p i r a t e so f f h i s t a i l . a n d a v o i dp l a c i n gt h e
P C si n p o s s i b ldea n g eor f r e v e n g e .
Referee'sNotes
I f t h e P C sd o n o t h a v et h e i ro w n s h i p ,
The shadowingCorsair has now
t h e g r o u pc a n b e p a s s e n g eor sr c f e w o n a
m a n e u v e t etdo c x t r e m cs e n s o r a n g ea n d
c o m m e r c i vael s s et lh a t a n s w e r tsh e h e l p l e s s
willcontinue t o d o s ou n t i li t r sl o s t .I . . e C l a i r
merchant'd s i s t r e s ss i g n a l .A f t e r L e C l a i r
w i l l w a n t t o r e f u eal n dl e a v et h e s y s t e ma s
o b t a i n sp a s s a g eo n t h e s a m e v e s s e lt h e
s o o na s p o s s r b l Ief .t h e r ci s c a r g ot o u n l o a d
p l a y e r sa r e o n , h e c a n h i r e t h e m a s b o d y
o r s e l l t. h a t i s a c c e p t a btl o e h i r ni f i t r sd o n e
g u a r d st o c s c o r ht i m t o t h e n e a r e sI tm p e r r a l
q u i c k l y .b u t h e r v i l l v e h e m e n t l yo p p o s e
b a s e .I n t h e n e x t s y s t e m ,t h e P C s c a n
a t t e m p t i n gt o a c q u i r eo t h e rc a r g ot o t a k e
a c t u a l l yb e i n v o l v e di n t h e i n s u i n gc o m b a t
o n b e f o r eb e g r n n i ntgh e 3 u m pt o t h e n e x t
r f t h e y h a v et o h e l p r e p e la r m e db o a r d e r s
system.
t r y i n gt o k i l io r c a p t u r Le e C l a i r*.
26
It
',htil
ll)I
WORDSTO GAME BY
Jerry Campbe//
New Year's greetings!I'm going to review showingup with his stolen tank in the town of
more than my normal three books, to give you BarleyCross.Due to his 'heroic" pertormances,
more ideas tor literaryescapes on these long the gooctfolk of the town elect him Lord ol the
winter nights when the snow's too deep to go wholearea,endowinghimwith both the titlesand
gaming. priviledges
ol the nobilityof old.
Quitea bit of new SF has appearedsincethe A spafilinggood read,wellworththe effortto
lastissueof thismag;someof it is good,mostof finda copy.
it mediocreto ooor.No surorisesthere.
What caughtme off guard,thistime around, The Gifts Of The Gorboduc Vandal
wasthatone of thosemediocrenovelshadsome
Paulo. williams.210pp, 1989Del Rsy sF
VERYinterestingideasfor sF gamers!Let's look
at thatone first... ln the far-distantfuture.when mankindhas
spreadout throughthe galaxy.whenthe colonies
of the colonieshavelongsincebecomethe "Old
The Galactic Silver Star Worlds" and f efia is more myth than
KevinRandle.200pp, 1990Ace SF "Home"...therein liesa tale.Actually,
several
tales,
I havethe teelingthat Mr. Randleis or was a accordingto the author, whom I occasionally
Trave/lerplayet by the way he ties high ancllow correspond.
tech weaponry,humanoidaliensand 'evil' big The Gorboducare, by and large,a much
governments/megacorporations into hisstory. feared warrior race of humans, not unlike the
The main characterof this book, a young Dorsaiin ma(ial prowess,but subscribingto a
soldiernamed David Jefferson,is a true anti- ,anaticalCode of Conductthat makes Bushido
hero.Turningcowardunderfireon an alienworld, lookpale.
he is mistakenlyawardedthe U.S.Army's(yes, This isn't a story about tanaticalwarriors,
you read that right)highestaward:the Galactic though.Ratner,its a treatmentot humandiversity;
SilverStar.The tale rambleson from there to its beliets,language, ideas,andecological impacts.
somewhatdepressing conclusion. lf you wantto play aliensthat are completely
While he presentssome very interesting human,this book will show you how. lts a little
ideas,particularly with a gamer'spointof viewin hard to get into, at fifst, due to the sheer
mind,Ranctle just ctoesn'thavethe narrative skill 'alien-ness" of the Gorboduc.Pressingon past
to makethem go anywhere.Get this one trom the the first chapterwill providea rewardwell worth
or at a yardsale.
library, the effort.The spacebattlesand ideasfor "dirty
tricks"when equippingyour ships...well, read it
Masters Of The Fist anoseel
EdwardP. Hughes.281pp, 1989BaenBooks
A Princess Of Mars
ln issue #12 ol Voyages SF, I made
mention ot a tale that clealtwitn the practical EdgarRiceBurroughs
application of a tank, after the war is over. Orioinally publishedin 1912(!).
thisclassicis a
lncludedin After Armageddon Vol. 9, There "must' lor anyonewho claimsto be a SF fan
Will Be War. Ed by JerryPournelle.l Thisbook and/orgamer.lt's beenreprinted so manytimes,
is a collectionof that.andotherrelatedtales,set and in so manylanguages, thatyou shouldhave
in lrelandat anytimein thenearfuture. gettingholdol a copy.
do clifficulty
M/Sgt. Patrick o'Mear, the book's central classicVictorianfantasy:this is the story of
tigure.findshimselfcastin the roleof Hero,in the one John carter,late of the confederateArmy.
common andclassicalsensesot the word. after who is somehow transportedtrom a cave in
Arizonato the plainsof Barsoom,the nativename
tor the olanetwe call Mars,His adventureswith
the aliensthere,and the cletailin which E.R.B.
goes into describingtheir varioussocieties,are
no lessthanfanlastic.
space.'la'9players ought to reallyenioy this
andthe two booksthat followit. Thereareactually
eleven'JohnCarterof Mars'stories,but I'm only a
f anof the f irstthree.Formyourown opinion.
worth whatever trouble you have to go
through,if only to experiencethe "incomparable"
Dejah Thoris.The descriplionis an understate-
ment.
Little Fuzzy
H. BeamPiper.174pp, Ace SF
Anotherold classic. thisfirstcameout in 1962
andhasgonethroughseveralreprints.
The storylinegoes somethinglike this: You
are a big corporation(shadesot Trave//en).wifi
the sole rights and charterio a Terra-likeworld
that,as far as you or anyoneelseknewwhen you
got the charter,has no indigenous sapients.You
spend lots of money and time ctevelopingthe
planetfor coloni2ation,and mining it for a jewel
mineral that exists nowhere else in the
galaxy...when up pops a heretotoreunknownrace
of sentients!They'renot advancecl(TL 0 on the
f/,ave//erscale),they're not even big. but they're
so gol-darned cute l at they get noticect,and
you're about to lose your snil andyout chartell
What'reyou goingto do? Readthe book andlind
out.
One of threein this seriesthat Piperwrote. it
was so popularthattwo otherwritersalso penned
bookslor itl
Got a tavorrtebook that I have yet to review,
that would be of interestto gamers for gaming
ideas?Let me know!When fillingout the Readef
Survey,acld a comment to the ettect that you
want to see your favoritebook(s),and what they
are.reviewedin Voyages SF! I don't promise1o
sing praisesof whateverstories get chosen for
review,but lwill oe tairtf
 VoyagesSF13 s2.7s
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 EVIEWS
wheretheenvironment is everchanging
and
Rifts the life forms one must competewith are
nothuman."
256pp rulebook.$24.95.
Layout .
GameDes/gn.'KevinSiembieda.Editors. AlexMarciniszyn, Rfi,snasten basicsections:Glossary(1
Thom Bartold. CoverAftlst KeithParkinson. /nter/'erPalnl/hgs.'
pg), characterGenerationand skills(27 pp),
Kevin Long, Keith Parkinson . A di tiona/ Co/or/Paintng. Adam Combat (12 pp), OccupalionalCharacter
Siembieda,KevenSiembieda, LarryMacDougall. /nteio/'Art/sts. Classes,RacialCharacterClasses, andPsy-
KevinLong,KevinSiembieda, LarryMacDougall. chic Powers Descfiptions(81 pp), World
Overview (16pp),MagicSkillsandSpells(30
Pub/lsher'Palladium Books,5926Lonyo, DetroitM| 482'l0. pp), Weapons and Equipment (38 pp),
Cyberneticand BionicGear(14 pp), Wea-
pon EquipmentStatistics(6 pp), and a
GameMasterSectionwhichincludesintor-
Background mationon lntelligentsupernaturalMonsters
Rflsis sel in a world rippedapartwhena (9 pp).Also includedare 16 colorpagesin
nuclearholocausttook olace.The deathsof thecenterofthe book.
at least a billionpeople triggeredan over-
load of the magic (ley) lines.The surging Game Mechanics
powertore gapingholesin the dimensions To create a character,you need the
of spaceand time at the pointswherethe ley slandard 3D6. You roll these dice eight
linesintersected. This releasedevenmore times, once for each of the characler's
energythat killedeven more people,which attributes.ll you roll a total grealerthan l5
increasedthe energylevelsof the riftsin the for any one attribute,you get to rollanother
'lDO and add that to the original total.
dimensions. The energysurgedacrossthe
earth.Earthouakes buckledlhe surfaceand Nowheredo the rules state whether you
Atlantisrose from sea again,sendingthe mustassigneachdicerollto eachattribute
ocean inlandand killingmillionsmore.As in lhe orderrolled,or whetheryou can make
more people died, the energyincreased, eightrollsandassignthemasyouwish.
which killed more people, and thrJ pcwrrr To determineHit Points,startwith your Combat Resolution
built,increasing in geometric progrcssion. Physical Endurance andadda D6 roll.Rela- Hand-To-HandCrombatuses the same
The releasedenergydestroyedthe Earth ted to Hit Pointsis yourS.D.C., or Structural systemused in Palladium'sHe/'oesUn//mi-
as we know it. To quote KevinSiembieda, Damagecapacity.Dependingupon which bd and feenage Mutan t /U/n/ATurt/es.Fisl,
"Rittsis a role-playinggame that explores profession,or Occupational CharaclerClass everyonerolls 1D2o to determineInitiative
the Earthcreatedby the rifts.An Earththat (O.C.c.) you choose, you roll a certain (highestgoes first).Then the Attackerrolls
has been irreparablychanged and is still numberof dice.Whenyou recerve damage, 1D20to attack.Anythinghigherthan a 4 will
changing.An Earth more alien than any ti si first subtractedfrom your S.D.C.when hit, but not all hits will do damageas armor
world one might find in anothergalaxy.A this is used up, damageis subtfactedfrom s.D.c. can absorb some or all of the
world where man must not only conquer your Hit Points.Whenyour Hit Pointsare damage.The Defendernow gets a chance
himself and thg environment.but a olace gone, you're dead.Dependingupon who to Dodge or Parry.lf there is no successful
you are and what kind of equipmentand Dodge or Parry,the Attackerrolls 1D20for
armoryou have,you may haveto determine Damage.lf the Attack roll is a "natural20,'
your M.D.C.,or Mega-DamageCapacity thenthatattackis a'criticalHit,"whichdoes
(seethesectionon MegaCombat). doubledamage.CombinedCriticalHits do
Next,you tind out it your charactercan kiple damage.The Defendercan attemplto
uss psionics.There are three ways to get roll with the punch or kick (if bulletsaren'l
psionic ability.First, you can choose an involved). lf the Defendercan matchor beat
R.C.C.(RacialCharacterClass)that uses the Attacker'sStrikeroll, he/she takesonly
psionics.Second,you can pick an O.C.C. halfdamagefrom the attack.
that can use minorpsionics.Or third,you Mega Combat involvespowered armor,
can roll randomlyfor the ability.You havea tanks,planes,and robotic vehicles.The big
nine percent chance of getting Maior deal hereis that all thingshaves.D.c.,but
Psionicsanc,a sixteenpercentchanceof tough-skinned Defenderscan have M.D.c.
gettingMinorPsionics. (Mega S.D.C.)to representlots ot armor
Finally, you g€t to decide on your protcction. Hcavily gunncd Attackerscan
character'spfolession,if you haven'tdone also have M.D. (Mega Damage)weapons.
thatalready. O.C.C.s andR.C.C.s rangefrom
Cybo.gs,Glitterboys,and Rogue Scholars
to Line Walkers,Dragons, and Techno-
Wizards.Thereare31 Occuoational Charac-
ler Classesto choosefrom and it this isn't RIFTS:2.76
enoughyou can importsomethingfrom one Game Complexity:Hrgh
of Palladium's otherRPGS, sincetheyalluse
thesamemechanics.
RULES:3.O
Now you pick your gear and weapons ClaritY:3 Bealism:3
ancl determinestartingmoney. Then you Flexibility:3 Playability=3
determine yourcharacter's alignment. Once
you have done this, you can flesh your DEVELOPMENT:2-3
character out with a seriesof ootionalRules Background=3
that allow you to pick or randomlyroll on Technology=3Scenarios:1
charts to decide upon other information,
such as birth order, weight, height, age, PRODUCTION:3-O
disposition, tamilyorigin,sentimenlstoward CoverArt:4 InteriorArt:4
non-humans, and insanrties(phobias,psy- Layout:3 Editing=3
choses.etc.i. Charts:3 RecordForms=1
fifls art copr l9$ P a l l a d r u mG a m e s

4=Excellent 3=Good 2=
Fair I = Poor
One M.D.C. equals about one hundred
pointsof S.D.C.and one M.D.pointequals
one hundreclpoints of normal ctamage.
Wsaponsthat ctoonly S.D.C.damagecon-
not an M.D.C.opponent even if the com-
bineddamage is greater than 100 S.D.C.
pointsol damage.M.D.weaponsneeclonly
inflicta couple of ctamagepoints to com-
pletely blowan S.D.C.opponentaway.
WhatlLiked
The artwork is mostly very good. Anct
thereis a lot of it, with about one iltustration
on everyother page.The cover art by Keith
Pafiinsonis excellent as are the interior
colorplates. I like the large selectionol
character classesavailableto choose from
andthereis good varietyin the availableskill
listings.
One nic8 touch is lhe sueaestionsfor
incorporatingother Palladium RPGs into
Ril8.fnisgamecan standalone,but having
sourcebooks(olher PalladiumRPGSwith
q*-
EVIEWS
the same game mechanics)alfeady out
there is nice.And also, if you alreaclyhave
one ot Palladium'sother games, you ReichStar
alreaclyknow the system anclyou can iump
rightin withouthavingto learnthe basicsall Role-playing in a terrifying future that might
overagain. havebeen
WhatIDidn'tLike 241pp perfectbound book.$19.95($2.50P & H).
Rlts is a bit skimpy in detailingsome
A KenRichardson
things,like animaland people encounters, GameDeson.'KenRicnaftson. uthors.'
ell. Corer Altis t' Greg West. ln tenol
for examole. There is informalionon a SimonBell.Edilor Simon 8
Richardson,Alan
typical CoalitionWarrior, a typical High- Atttsls.PeletHollinghutst,DaveEadie,Ken
Bishop, Simon Bell,lanGonzales, Cheryl Davis.
Tech Bandit,a typicalCoalitionSAMAS,ths
Xiticix (insect-like aliens from another Pub//sherCteative Encounters. 1616W. HudsonBlvd.,
dimension),tury beetles,and typicalmons- castoniaNC28052.
ters. There are charts for creatingsuper-
naturalMonstersand AnimalisticPredators.
But where are the normal animals ancl Relch Sta/,paints a dark picture of an
people? Thers must be at least some of alternate past ancl tuture where the Axis
them in the world somewhere.A coupleof forcesof NaziGermanyanctlmperialJapan
pages of 'normals' would help this gam6 won World War ll when German atomic
betterstandon itsown. missiles clevastateLonclon and New Yo!k.
I havea couoleof othercomolaints.First EvenAmericais dividedin halfby occupying
o( all, there was no attempt to provide an Axis forces.Then beginsa dark,frightening
introcluctoryadventurein the rule book. fulurewherebrutalityand injusticeareas rife
Nothing.Zip. Nada.Thersaren'levensug- as we can onvisiona successfulThirdReich
gestions for creatingyouf own that I coulcl asbeing.Thatiniusticehasbeencarriedinto
fincl.The second complaintI have is this: spacewith the Nazis,anctthree alien races
T H E R E I S N O P L A Y E R C H A R A C T E R now existin virtualslavery.But thingsarenot
RECORDSHEETincludedto copy for use wellin the ThirdReich.The colctwarwith the
duringplay.Why non Empireof Nippon(Japan)has existedsince
shorlly after the war. And now, unrest is
So...WhatAbout The Game? gainingmomBntum.Bombings,assassina-
Firstof all, this is not a gameior begin- tions,anclminormilitaryactionsarebecom-
ning players.lt is too complexfor refereos ing a truethreat1othe stabilityof the Reich.
and playerswho haveless than six months Bul thesetreedomfightersface a daunting
to a year (or more) of gaming time under task,for ths miqhtof the Reichis vast.And
theirbelts.But if you havealreacty playedor everywhere, theGestapoiswatching....
refereecla PallactiumRPG, then you I was intrigued by the premise ol Reich
shouldn'thavs much troublewith this one. .t/r/ lt is fictionwhichtakesroot in fact.And.
However, Rfts reqvies a lol ol develop- because the villainousReich actually did
ment wofk on tho part of ths referee exist ancl was the instrum€nt ol teribls
because lne Rilts injustice,it is easy to jump right into this
worlcl atter ths holo- game with a fury to c,edicateyourself,
caust is not going to throughyour character,to the clestructionot
be verydetailedwhan the ThirdReich.Am I sayinglwould playthis
only sixleenpages is game?Yes,lwould, though thereare some
devotedto thetask. thingsI haveproblemswith.
lf you wantan RPG Th€ designerstrivectfor realism,anctit's
that covers all th€ here,anclclaimsto haveaimeclfor a balancg
game geiles, R/'/ts between realism and playability.But the
will do the iob. The is ruleshaveto manymoctifications, too many
not unreasonablefor 'specialguidelines"lor ms, as I like things
what you get and the more simplified.But simplificationalways
art is nice. Just don'l comes at a cost to tealism, and many
expect massiv€ or gamerswho preter realismmay not see any
equal amounts ot
detailin all asoectsof
the game system. I
thoughtthe gamewas
put togetherwill and I
liked what I saw, but
until Palladiumbrings
out a sourcebook on
the world ol Rflsandl
or severalaclventure
moclules, I wouldn't
recommendit unless
the buyer is willingto
put a lot of work into
gettingreactyfor play.
(Palladiumhas sinco
announcedthe future
*:"")E';i)|",aZ:rlesi
release of several
.qeich Star arl .opr l!.J0 Lrsali\/s Errgountefs
 EVIEWS
Psychic (or 'psionic") skills are included.

REICHSTAR=3.O
(Any more, it seems 'psionics' are as
requirect in a SFRPGas slarshipsare. My Attack Of The
Game Complexity:Hrgh
RULES:3-3
only complaintis that they seemto easy to
comebyin RebhSta/,.)
The quality of artwork in Rebh Slar
Humans
ClaritY:3 Realism:4 rangesfrom a few excellentpiecesto a lot ot 96pp perfectboundbook.$15.
Flexibility:3 Playability=3 tair illustrationsto some poor pieces.The
in the book is a sad€
most strikingillustration eame Desbn.' Devin Durham. Oiglha/
DEVELOPMENT:3 view of a slarshippilotingcockpit,in all its ConcepI and Cutdance.'Phil Morrissey.
con lnbutions to Design.' Nny sluart, Matt
Background=4 Technology=3 complexdetail.The illo looksverymuchlike Fairleigh,
John Macdonnell, Tim Baum.
the extremelyhigh qualitytechnicalwork of
Scenarios=2 clesignillustratorSid Msad (whichmay have covef Anls b.' PhilMorrissey.ln tenolArttsls.'
PRODUCTION:2.6 beena sourceof inspiration). unfortunately, MartySalsman,PhilMonissey,Tom Verre,
the overall illustrativequality is brought John Sies,Ma.kWallace-
CoverArt=3 InteriorArt=2
down by so many fair to poor drawings,
Layout=2 Editing:2.5 which is sad because,with the currenl Pub//sherRapportGames,'l031 East
Charts:3 RecordForms:3 suite1'148,
Batflefield, Mo 65807
springfield
competitionot so many companiesand
games,good illustrationis a primaryinitial
oroblems.There are soma rulesthat I was factor in delsrminingwhal a gamsrwillbuy.I
especiallypleasec,with.For instance,this is myselfbuy gamesandsupplements withthe
the first RPGwhere I've come acrossrules intention of using the art in games I'm
for attackinga male by'hitting 'sm whereit actuallyplaying.
hurts.'Well,there'sno arguingwith the fact Rebh 'talis an appealinggame, espe-
thatit's an eftectiveplaceto strike. cially so becauss of the premise. I do,
OtherrulesI enjoyedwas the procedura howevgr,expectto see publishergst som€
for applyingthe ConstitutionRating.A chart heatover it, becauseof someof its content-
shows the level of activity a characteris The Nazisthoughtlittlemore of non-Aryans
capablsof, determineclby his Constitution. than they did of Jews. This is reflectedin
Combat, poison. disease,and even pro- Rebh Star ln the futureReich,Blacksand
longed physicalactivitywill reducsthe cur- Slavsare enslavedraces,iust as the alien
rent levelof the Rating.The chartis not only racesare. Not only that, but 'Negrobased
applicableto damage sustainecl,but also musicreferredlo by the terms"rock,""iazz,'
shows a character'sdaily endurance.For and 'blues" will not be tolerated.'Readers
examole.a PC with a Constitutionol 24 is who takeoflenseto this shouldrealizethat
capableol eighteenhoursot actvityper day, the Reichandwhatit standsfor is oresented
where a Pc with a constitutionof 18is only as ct€spicable,and the Pcs can join in tha
capableof twelvehoursof aclivity.Damage strugglefor the downfallof the Reich. A
might reduce you to a Ratingof 6, which disclaimeris found in the front of the book
o
allowsonly one hourof activity,anda Rating which does state that Rebh stal,is, il any- E
6
ot 1 puts you in a coma.A Ratingof 0 is, of thing,presentedasbeinganti-Nazi.
course, the thresholdof death, though a Rebh .9ta/is a game that playerswill fincl
characteris not actuallydead until further easy to get into the spiritof. lt's also very o
tr
clamagehas used up his Life Points,which reasonablypriced, costing less than the n
are equal to lhe average of the ratings averageprice per page. As far as future di

Strength,Constitution, andWillpower. supportgoes,referenceis madsto a minia-

When creatinga character,the playeris turesrulesWarbook,and miniaturesmanu-
free to distributea set numberof points to tactureclby PrinceAugustaredue oul soon.
=
o

establishhis or her 10 characteristics. skills I myselt would liks to see more soufc€ 6
anctadvantagesare acquiredby spendinga materialfor the game.But I hope they hire
I
number of points equal to the PC's Intelti- moreskilledartists. o
gence Rating,though additionalpoints can F
-JamesB- Krngt
be acquiredby takingDisadvantages, such
as MissingEye,Allergy,Phobia,DeathWish
(my personalfavorite),etc. The skilllistingis
extensiveenough to safisfymost gamers.
Background
The whole idea of this game is to KILL
MONSTERSI Thats it. But you shoulclhavs
fun while doing it. For most ot history,the
monstershavehactthe upperhand.Now il's
our turn

GameMechanics
DEVELOPING A CHARACTER: Firslof AII,
there are only three characler classes:
Brainiac,Athelete,and TypicalPerson.Each
PC hasonly threeattributes:Erains,Fitness,
and Common Sense.These attributenum-
bers are already predeterminedto start
developing a character.Next, the player
fincts out how many attribute points are
availableto turn into ootential skills and
potential cash (each point translatesinlo
$150). ExperiencePoints receiveclduring
play can be converted into increasectAttri-
-
:',-\L butes,new or improvedskills,or cash.After
, EVlEWt
time during any givsn adventurs,they are Space, Cybelpunk, anctnow GURPSCyber-
reallyctead. punk. Hovt does this anti-hero genre fit into
ATTACKOF THE the concept of rolegaming?A very good
HUMA N S= 3 . 2 WhatlLiked question.But let's first look at the rules
Thereare severalthingsI like about this themselv9s.
GameComplexity:Low game.lt's short.lt's simple.Anclit's funny.
The artwork is all cartoon style and is well Layout And Components
RULES:3.25 clone.Readingthroughthe bookprovidesall fhe aURPS books always hav€ the
Clarity:3 Realism:3 sortsof chucklesand guffaws.lt's a laugh- highest production standards; GUFPS
Flexibility=3 Playability:4 a-minute.And I likeths ideaot usinga mail Cybepunkis no exception.The illustrations
ordsrcatalogfor an€quipmentlist. seem to be aMully sparsefor this genre;
DEVELOPMENT:3
there shoulclbe LOTSof picturesto give a
Background=3 Technology:3 WhatIDidn'tLike taste of the a/lennessofsuch a gameworld.
Scenarios=3 Usinga mailordercatalogis a good idea, (Thoughthere is an illo ot one young lady
but not everyoneis going to want to haul with what appears to be an artificial navel
PRODUCTION:3.3 one of those puppies around to gams showing through a see-through shirt ol
CoverArt=4 InteriorArt=4 sessions.A short, one page list of soms sorts on page six which gives an unrsal
Layout=3 Editing=3 very basic equipmentwoulcthave a goocl. feeling..)The two page bibliographyshows
Charts=3 RecordForms=3 And a lew pictures in the 29 pages of that Loyctreallydid do his homework,and
monsterlistingswoulclmakethat sectiona the inclexmakesit possiblefor the prospec-
littlemorsinteresting. tive GM to actuallyfndthings in this huge
this,the player rolls on the skills chart to massof text.
determinewhat skiils (s)he wiil start the So...WhatAbout The Game? Comprehensive indexesshouldbe man-
gamewith. Now the player purchasesany I likeit. But I'm not surethatlwoulctadmit datory in all games. The GURPSsource-
equipmentdesired. The equipment lists that I play AOTH. I'm supposedto bs a books excel in this; I only wish other game
cover weapons and body armor only. seriousgameranclthis could ruin my repu- publisherswould follow suit.Strongbiblio-
Everything elsehas to be locatectin....a,J.C. tation.Actually,I'm only kiddingaboutthat.I graphiesnot only ofler the gamer a list to
Pennycatalog." thinkmanypeoplswould get a kickout of a "followup" on ong's new inlerests,but give
USINGSKILLSAND COMBAT:SKiIIS can short sessionof AOTH. I cannol see this the work itself authenticity.When using
onlybe improvedto a ratingot 5. A ratingof gams as one that peoplewould ptay con- nontictiontexts,one truststhe researchof a
1 meansthat the PC has some knowledge tinually,but most people need a "humof book with a huge bibliography.I'm not sure
anda 5 meansthe Pc has the knowledgeof breakonce in while and I can see referees "trust" is a properworclwhen dealingwith
anencyclopec,ia on that particularsubject. pullingthis one oul lime and againto have the cyberpunkgenre,but a good GM likesto
Tousea skill,the playerroilsa six-sideddie. some quickand easy fun. Just reactingthe teelhisgameis accurate.
A rollequalto or less than the skilllevelis a book willgiveyou a laugh.I'd say buy it and,
success. A roll of six is alwaysa failure."skill rightabout ths beginningof Aprit,puil it out GameMechanics
Combinatics'is a feature ol AOTH that andsurprisetherestof the group. 'this
is aURPS which you eilher tike or
allowsa playerto combinedifferentskillsto you don't. GURPSpermits you to play it
accomplishsomething.Just add ths skill -GlenAlltSon
eithersimply(quick)or with lots of alternate
levelstogether and roll the dice. Several rules(realistic,but slow).lt requireswoft on
playerscan also combine skills,but each the part of the gamesmasterto pick and
playermust roll to try for a success. pro-
bablythe only reasonplayerswould try this
iswhenno one has all of the requiredskills
GURPS chooss th€ various rules, backgrouncl,and
flavorof thegamewhenit is playect.
GURPSCybepunk clemandsmore wofi
tohavea chanceot succeeding.
Combatis brokenclowninto turnsof fivs
Cyberpunk of the GM than the averagefantasy,horror,
or sf game. Ce incluclesso many rules
saconds. Eachturn is brokendown into five adclitions- methoclsfor simulatingnew
128pp sourcebookfor cURpS(inctudes
s9ctions:Humans Move, Monsters Move, programs,breakinginto systems,defining
"Campaign Plan'sheetfor photocopying).
HumansAttack,MonslersAttack,FirstAid. exactly what the world of programs
GURPSis recommendecl for effectiveuse.
To hit somethingin combat, a player must ("cyberspace")is. The rules for "netrun-
$16.95.
rolltwo dice;a six-siderand a ten-sidsrand ning" (breakinginto anctadventuringinsicte
addthe resultstogether.The base to hit is GameDes4?n.- Loyd Blankenship . A ddihdna/ ol computermemory)alone run 35 pages!
eighlor less, but skiil levetsin appropriats MatenAl'BtianEdge,CherytFreedman, Thisis a genreso complexthat eachGM will
weaponsand/or other modifierscan affect steveJackson,MikeNystul,creedLambatd, have to do as much work as the average
lhatbase number. DavidPulver,AlexVonThorn,KarlWu. sourc€bookwriterwould.lt mighthavebeen
Each PC and Monster has something CoverAn sL'DavidSchleinkofer./nteno/, less dauntinglo have actuallydesigneda
called DL,or DefenseLevel.Thisis the same Alttsts.'Ca(lAnderson,AngetaBostick,Rick specificworlctbackground,as was done fot
asHit Points.A human's DL does not go Lowry.
down(it drops when a pC gets hit, but it
comesrightback up beforethe next round) PublsherSleve JacksonGames.Box
when(s)he gets hurt but a Monsters DL 18957,AustinTX78760
doesgo clown (and it stays down the way GURPSCYBERPUNK:2.61
youexpectHit Pointsto behave).weapons
havetwo somethings:AL, or Atlack Level Background Complexittl: Hrgh
(thisis attackctamage)and Lethality(which "Cyberpunk"is a namegivento a genre RULES:2.25
ishowlikelyaweaponis to kiil). ot sciencefictionwhichincludesa ctystopian Clarity:2 Realism=3
Humans also have something called society, computernetworking(often with an
Healthlevels:Normal,OK, Wounded, Un- artificialintelligenceor two within the net- Flexibility=Z Playability=2
concious, and Dead.lf a successfulLethality work), direct human interfacinginto that DEVELOPMENT:2
rollis made againsta pc, the roil puils the neilvorl(,one or more cyborgs,is usuallyset Background:2
Healthdown by the number rolled on the in the tuture, and almost atwayshas anti-
Technology:3
die.This is the only way a PC can die in heroesfor protagonists. Scenarios=1
As a storyform,it's
combatand even then they might not be been effectivefor at least25 years,though PRODUCTION:3.67
dead.Once per adventure,a pC can b€ the term itselfhas becomecommononly in
ressurectecl it teammatescan get to them in the lastclecade.
CoverArt=3.5 InteriorArt=2.5
thesameturn that they ctiedanctgive them Lately,cyberpunkis makingofficiatin-
l-ayout=4 Editing:4 Charts=4
successfulFirst Aid. lf thsy die a second roadsinto rolegamingvia sh,rdowrun.cyhe/ llet;ordFornrs(orreonly):4
3l
 EVlEllfs
book - as prin-
ted, at least - is
l e s s u s e fu l fo r CYBERJUNK
computef crime Let me makeit very clearthat I don't lika
than any BASIC cyberpunk.ll can woft in fiction (and has,
programming verywellat times),but its just too opposed
handbook!). Theyto a continuingcampaign in rolegaming.
raicled the SJC Thatis, if you detinerolegamingas I do.
offices, taking Rolegamingis an opportunity lo ro/e
manuscripts, p/ay.This seemsobvious,but I read many
computers,disks, arguments about players preferring to
and ruining a "powergame,"whateverthat means.whai
good bit of office il seems to mean, so often, is that the
furniturs or playe(s) are only handlingviolent contlict
(i.e. - combat systems)and callingthe
q e q u a p m e n t .l t ' s
no real surprise
to anyone that
game finishectwhen the fight scenes are
over.To be sure,that is their right to play
our government Ihusly, but ft isn' I t o/ep/a/.
has a lerminal lf we take this tirst assumption (and
case of stupidity, that'sreallyall it is; takeit or leaveit), then
so a cover blurb the ethical player, the moral player, the
proclaiming"The playerwho's reallyin it for fun and wantsto
book that was face the other playerswith no shame,gets
seized by the a thritlfrom playinga heroiccharacter.The
U.S. SecretSer- charactermay or may not be powerlul,
vice!"really/3no handsome,rich,or any of the above - but
message. Atter the characterwill,when the chipsaredown,
the financialbur- "do therightthing."
cten which the Popularfictionis steepedin the tradition
raid causethem, ot the averageguy who risesto the occa-
no one can fault sion,trom Mosesto Kal-el.we're alsofond
SJGfor usingany of the scoundrelwith the heartof gold,who
promotional can be countedon to Showup when really
techniqueto sell needect.Han Solo, o( RicR( Casab/ancila(e
their merchand- typical of the characterswhich bring us
ise. Nor can backto the moviesover andover.
anyone blame Cyberpunk depencls on a dystopian
o
.'iadottruii. themfor a littlobit ot righteousandignaton. settlng,wherethereappearsno solution!o
the ills of the world or society in which the
o WhatlLiked So...WhatAbout The Sourcebook? protagonistis Vappecl.Much of the mes-
It you're usingthis soufcebookstricilyas It's an sncyclopectia,not a campaign sageof a gooclcyberpunk(yeah, llree9 a
o
researchfor a campaign,it's well worth it. moduleor an aclventure book. As such,it's contracliction in terms!)storyis of the "tf we
o You'llnot use all the datawithinit, any more nearly all,encompassing and ctaunting. don't slraightenour act NOW, this is the
@ than you'd use ALL of an encyclopedia.lt since sJG kindlyputs their authors'names sort of living hell we're condemning our
x
dt ooes a gooctjob ot putting ail the knownancl on the covers, every regularGURps player childrento" variety.In cyberpunk,the pro-
speculateddata about cyborg parts and who sees Loyd Blankenship's name knows tagonist is unavoidablyout for him ot
futuristiccomputerhackingall in one place. that thiswillnot be a "quickanctdirty" set of herseltonly...andthe worlcl is that much
The index goes a tong way to makingths rules,but will cover everythingwhichBlan- sadderfor heror him.
clataaccessible. k€nshiowasableto find. As a story, this wofks. Braye IIeu
o
Gamesmastershoping to lind a pre- Wotld is a nightmarishclassicwhichwould
WhatIDidn'tLike packagedscenarioor two herein will be lose its messageit the good in mankind
o
@
The price springsto mind. yeah, I know disappointed. Thereare none.This source- ever triumphecl.In rolegaming,it means
o
G that lhe cost of books is going up, but fol book is strictlya referencebook;imaginative every player knows that their characterwitl
l
o $16.95,l'd liketo actuallybe abteto open up plots will have to be provictedby the GM. nevermake a real differencein the game
the thing and pLAy. GC is a reseafch There ar€ a tew idea germs, designedto worlct, and that each player will play an
volume. PerhapsI've been tolegamingtoo helpthe newGM determinethe type or style unlikable, seltishboor.
long, but I grewwearyof all-encompassing of campaign...and that's as close as you'll lfound it sad, and not a titfledisturbing,
encyclopec,iac rulesduringthg daysof 6jtl_ get to an ofticiat ouRps cybepunkadven_ thattherewereso manyAD&Dplayerswho
va/4/& .,olcery - and those other loooong ture(forthe immediatefuture,at teast). thrilled al playing evil anli-paladins.For
setsof rulesFGUusedto publish. One of thesegermsis a very cleveridea. those ot you unfamiliarwith the anti-
Perhapsit's my ctislike for the genreitself, In it's sectionon "Cross-genre cyberpunk,.it paladincharacterclassin AD&D (toulectin
but I found too much emphasison the suggests the entertainingbackgroundof Dragon as a non-player characterclass,
dystopian(callecl"gritty" in toctay'sfandom) FASA'S Shadowun, wnerc cyber and net but immediatelyembracedby adolescent
type of story. eURp.9 has atwaysacrapted technologyintermingte with magic.snado- boys with little social life), these are
itsell to any styleof ptay (ourtavoritetends t4run ptayets who have given up on lhat characterswhich worship evil gocls &
to be the "cinematic"), and eL/RpS Cyber_ game'smechanicsmight thinkabout using oemons, make sacrificesof human chil-
punk leans too much on the side of the ,Shadot+run as source material and eL/RpS dren,pushlitfleolctladiesdown slairs,stab
downer syndrome. To its credit, il does Cybepunk and OURPSFantasy for playing theirmothersin the back,anctundoubtedly
incluclesix sidebarsfor we who are tiredof rutes. are the people who cut you ofl on the
the anti-hero(read:viltian)genre. WB never did addressthe issue ot the freewaytoday. They have NO redeeming
Finally,SJG seemsto behavejust a titue anti-hero cyberpunk genre litting into a value, except to be cut Clownby a good
sensationalistic in theirrecounlingof anoc,cl heroic role playino campaign, ctid we? guy.
incident.The SecretServiceseemedto have Guessyou'll just haveto read the side bar, lfind itjust as disturbingthat thereseem
some idea that the manuscript for this entitled'Cyberjunk.' to be so many people wanting to play
sourcebookcontainedsome hints and tios criminals in a hellish society with no
ior compijiei crime.(piii.loui mone.lback, - ChesterCox
escape.ls reallife becoming thatditticvftlo
32 all ye potentiathackinghoods.The source_ handfe? -Chesteraox

Knightfall
96 pg book. $10(Megartave/le4.
Des@n.'Joe D. Fugate,S(. Cot/erArfrst p aul
Alexander.ln teno/,Artsts..Rob Caswell,Tom
Peters,MikeVitardi,BlairReynolds,Kate
Lebhorz-Gelinas.
Pubrshel,.GameDesigners'Workshop,
P.O.Box 1646,Btoomingtont161702-1646.
Knightfall is a campaign adventure
whichstartsout with the pcs ptyingthe trade
toutesof MassiliaSector- a hightycontes-
ted region between the factionsof Lucan,
Dulinor,and Margaret- amictstthe chaosot
the Rebellion.The adventuresuccessfully
portrayswhat life is like for the common
citizenrycaughtin a civilwar - andwhat the
costsare when they are suspectedof sup-
portingan opposino taclion.Ultimatety,the
PCsgo in searchof "TheShimmering City,"
anancientcity of fantastictechnologywhich
is believectto have failen into obscurity
duringthe Long Night.Theoriginsof this city
come as a surprise,anc,are nol whal mosl
playerswillinitialybetieve.
Knightfafi is a very completeand satis-
fyingpackagereminiscentof The Travel-
Ier Adyentuae, a campaignlengthadven,
EUIEW'
ture the likes of which I myselt have long
wishedGDw would publishmore of. what
makes Knightfall even morB appeating,
leastto me, is the tact that this adventure
getsawaylrom the mor€militaryplotsof the
malerial published since ths release of
MegaTraveuel and presents a merchant-
orientedadventure witha richtyvariectmix of
plotfines similar to many earlier rraye//er
advenlures
Xnighttall uses a 'cinematic' nugget
format wilh an opening scene for each.
Manyot the nuggetsareoptional,andmany
of the keynuggetsdo not requirea particular
orcter.Thisnuggetformatis quitesuccesstul
and allows a lot of freedom in how the
refereeappliesthemlo hisor hercampaign.
And, becauseol lhe broadand variedplot-
lines,th€ bulkof this campaignbook could
be successfully usedin a numberof science
fictionRPGs.
Boileddown to one sentence,Knight-
lall is a well designedadvenlurethat will
provideseveralrewardingplayingsessions.
MegaTrave//erplayers will nol want lo miss
thisone.
-JamesB- Ktngr

TRAVtrLLNRS;
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 FI'TFTATI
EUIE}|T
American & SovietCombatVehicle The Stuff Dreams
Handbooks Are MadeOf
104 pg books. $12 eacn ( fwigh t'.W 2nd €dihod. 33 pg booklet.$9 (t lopheus).
Deslgn.'lorcnK. Wiseman,FrankChadwick. l/eh/'c/e///ustnhons.
SteveVenters,Kirk Adventul'eDeson.'CraigSheeley.A ddilronal
Wescom, SteveBryant,SheaRyan,CainBudds.Penci////ast/,at/ons.'TimBradslrset,Grant Desun' Devin Dwnam. CoyerAils ts.'Marty
Goleash. Safsman,Bob McFale./ntenorArt sts.'Phil
Morrissey,MartySalsman.
Pubrsher.'Game
Designers'Workshop,
P.O.Box 1646,Bloomington1L61702-1646
Publtsher RapportGames,'l031 E.
Battlelield,
suite 1148,springfielcr
Mo 65807

This is the first supplementtotlhe Mor-

pheus RPG. lt provides an aclventurefor
levels1-3 as well as sourcematerialcover-
ing the MorpheusTower where the 'mind
games"take place.The boclyof the module
is staplecl,but simply insertedloose inside
the cover,which is becausefloor plans for
the Morpheus Tower are printed on the
insidecover.
The interiorart is plentifuland gooctanclI
also likedlhe cover.The adventure,lhough
perhapsa littls too short, is different,but
would be oood for learninghow the game's
systemswork. lt has a very linearprogres-
sion,whichwill restrictplayerssomewhatin
their actions.Some additionalmaterialon
possibleoptional actionswould havg been
heloful.
A sectionot NPCSwith statsanc,a oicture
of eachis included.Thisis a good section,
but the materialis spacedout at one NPC
per page ancl the information provicted
didn't requirethat much space.lf the stats
had been condenseda little and tha extra
space used lor additional adventure
material,lwoulclhavebeenhappier.
Thismoduleseemsat lirstglanceto be a
bit expensivelor what you get. But it you
play Moptteus, you'll find this module to b€
useful.The idea behind/Vorpheusisrclnel
differentancta refereemight somstimesfincl
him or herselfstumpsclfor a creativeideaor
a way to get going. what you sometimos
need is a catalystto startthingsflowingor a
springboard to leap from to start creating
your own material,and The Stuft Dreams
Are Made Ot is just that. And that makes
i the oriceworthit.
o
o Eachot thesehandbookscontainvehicle handbookswas "wow.'Thequalityof illust-
listingsand statstor over 60 combat vehi- rationis exceptional,amongthe best in the -GlenAlltson
dt
cles ot varioustypes: light reconaissancs, gamingindustry.Everyvehicleis illustrated,
o
cargoworkhorsesand generalsupportvehi- but the truly impressiveillustrationis the
cles, anti-aircraft,infantryfightingvehicles, largenumberof pencilillustrations that will o
o engineer vehiclas, artillery,and, of coufse, iust blow you away - they look almosl real
o
o
main battle tanks.But that's not all. Each enoughto do just that! Most are obviously =
E book also contains an overvigw ot major done from photographs,and I woulcln'tbe
I
military units (army corps, divisions,bri- surprisedit they all ars. To maka a goocl G
g 0ades,regiments)tor eachsicle,provicling a thing even better,each handbookincludes
E
historicalsummaryof action,currentloca- eightpagesot color plates depictingvari- :
tion anclapproximatestrength.Unitorgani- ous vehicles in the color schemes and o
zation is also examinect,informingplayers markingsof the unils they are assignedto,
6
o
how unitswere structuredat the onset of war with completedsscriptionsol the vehicles
and how and in what numbersvariousvehi- clepictsd. o
;
o cles were deploysd to each unit. Obviously, obviously, thess books are well worth o
a E
€ ths units will no longer hav€ this same purchasing. |rolight .W playats, don't o
6 organization and troop and vehicle overlookthese books. h fact, if you're a
.9
o
strengths,but this data is not only interest- militaryhardwarofan, th9se books areworth
o
ingly informational,it is indicativeof the havingeven if you clon't day fwih?ht'M. o
organization likely to be found in cunent Thequalityot illustration is thatgood.
factionalelemsnls. -JamesB. King o

34 My tirstthoughtwhenI tirstopenedthose
o
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TheNew

T$TILIGIIT:
2000TM
Warhasragedonforyears. Thefrontlinessweepback
"WHATFOOLSWEWEREto al-
low ourselves to be lulledinto a
warm sense of securityby the
eventsof the late '80s and early
'90s.Howchildlike
andforthacrossthe ravagedfaceof Europe.Thehigh- we werein our
techammunition is dwindling.
Thehigh{echequipment
is failing,pieceby piece,as sparepartsand mainte- trumpeting ofthenewageofpeace,
nancetimeevaporate beforethe marchof an endless prosperity, and goodwill.Democ-
campaign.The frontlinesare
nowheldbyafewgrim and racyhadcometo Europe, andthat
desperate soldiers. meantthat peace had come to
TheU.S.FifthDivisionhastenaciously heldthelinein
centralPoland.Now,a Sovietencirclement hascutit off
Europe,for democracies never
in a regionruledby ambitiouswarlords,localmilitias, madewaron otherdemocracies.
andbandsof marauding deserters.
Headquarters is200 "Whatutterrot!
kilometers to the rearandhelpless.Yourlastordersets "How could we have believed
youfree...
suchnaiverubbish withthelessons
Goodluck. of historyso plainlybeforeus?De-
You'reon your own. mocracies havealwaysmadewar
on otherdemocracies; it hasbeen
Twlllght: 200G-the roleplayinggameof WorldWar a factof life sincethe earliestde-
il t .
Characters:Nationalities, new careertypes,skills, mocracies flourishedinGreece, and
characteristics,militaryand nonmilitary
backgrounds. warredcontinuously upon each
Combat:Revised,realistic, easy{o-learn system. other.
Travel:Typesof travel,timescales,vehicles,encoun- "Howcouldwe have forgotten
ters,maintenance, fuel,repairs.
Encounters: Dangerous environments,radiatio n,dis- thatin theWarof 1812 thetwogreat
ease,contaminants, reasonsforencounters, typicalad- westerndemocracies madeenthu-
ventures. siastic,aggressivewar on each
Equlpment:Weapons, vehicles,
supplies, munitions, other?
costs,availability. "How could we have forgotten
Danger:Placesto go and reasonsto go there.Plus
reasonsto wishyou hadn't. thatdemocracies represent thewill
Twlllght: 2000: Roleplayingin the devastationof ofthepeople, andthatthewillofthe
w wlll. peopleis oftenfor war?
2ndEdltlonTwlllght:20fl). "Howcouldwe have forgotten
Theboxedset Includesa 288-page baslcrulebook,
29x28"mapol Europe,andblankforms. thatHitlerwaselected?"
JanoszSkrivkin
Chancellorof Croatia
GDW:2001.
Boxed. rr: )\t
-
At your hobby
or gamestore
1999
$24.00. July28,1990.
P.O. lor lcl6
S|mhgfd,ll 6lt@-16a6