THE STAR*DRIVE CAMPAIGN IN A NUTSHELL HISTORY: Our Present - 2501 In the twenty-first century, the world nearly goes

to war over increasingly scarce energy supply. Then at the dawn of the twenty-second century, somebody invents the Mass Reactor, and all of the sudden energy is the cheapest thing in the world and the world almost goes to war over that. Then they slap the Mass Reactor in a spaceship and suddenly its a space race to own the solar system. Turns out there really were aliens skulking around, the ones with the big eyes. Theyd tried to communicate with humans before, but were mistaken for gods and fairies, and so waited out humanitys adolescence from an outpost on Ganymede. When we started colonizing the rest of our solar system, they got in touch, forming an alliance between our two races that continues to this day. We showed them our Mass Reactor technology, and they showed us their gravitic induction technology, and by combining them we figured out how to create the StarDrive, which would be capable of schlepping our asses far beyond any distance we had dared to hope wed see the likes of. Colonies spread out, and gradually sever ties with Earth, forming their own nations among the stars. Humans meet new alien races, and mostly end up dominating them. Only the Tsa managed to maintain their independence. Humans pretty much swept all over the Orion arm of the galaxy and moved in. Tsa independence becomes one of the issues that spark the First Galactic War, but there was also the issue that Earth still thought they should be in charge of all human colonies. 13 years later, the Terran Empire was dissolved with a treaty in which they promised to recognize everybody elses sovereignity. Some forty years are spent in relative peace, the highlight of which was the discovery of the Verge, a section of space at the edge of the galaxy, but full of a lot more interesting shit per cubic AU than the Orion Arm. Then theres a mutant uprising in Tau Ceti, and it kicks off a war that lasts for a century, during which time the colonies in the Verge are left on their Jack Jones as all the best resources are pulled back to the Orion Arm. This long war, which encompassed generations of humanity, ended with the Treaty of Concord, in which the Orion Arm was split up into a dozen nations, one of which was created out of whole cloth as a check against the rest the Galactic Concord. Subsequently, it takes the Stellar Nations another twenty goddamned years to get around to checking up on the poor schlubs they left behind in the Verge. The first message they get from the Verge was then seven years old, and it said somebody was attacking the Silver Bell colony in the Hammers Star system. When the Galactic Concord sent somebody around to check up on them, they found not an outhouse still standing. Rumor around the galaxy has it that the colony was destroyed by a hither-to unknown alien threat, but the Galactic Concord is keeping mum, and not so quietly assembling a huge fleet around the site of the attack. Meanwhile, the stellar nations have been making their way back to the Verge, offended to discover that after a century of abandonment, they cant just have their colonies back. Both the Stellar Nations and the Verge are now embroiled in an enormous game of politics and cloak-and-dagger as they compete with each other to secure holdings in the Verge, and Verge Nations play them off of each other to jockey for the best deal they can get when they are inevitably annexed by one nation or another. And that brings us to the present January 1, 2501. THE STELLAR NATIONS (a.k.a. Old Space) Austrin-Ontis

In Brief: Rednecks in space! The Austrin-Ontis nation formed as a multi-national weapons manufacturing conglomerate on Earth, but soon moved their operations to colonies off world to be free of repressive government. The Second Galactic War was kind of bad turn for them in the long run, because when you make war, your enemies stop buying guns from you. Now they work on making up for lost revenue. Austrins are reputed for being plain folk and straight shooters who largely still embrace Old Earth faiths. Borealis Republic

In brief: Philosophy majors in space! The Borealis Republic was formed in 2154 as an attempt to prove that Enlightened Monarchy would have worked but instead it devolved through revolution into an actual republic. Borealis lost a lot of territory in the Second Galactic War, on account of their navel gazing, and it was basically the Orions and the Orlamus who saved their asses. Now they pursue knowledge as the highest goal, with their government arranged in a plurality of parties founded on schools of philosophy. The Borealin character is one of contemplation, from the lowly poetically inclined gravedigger to the soul-searching bureaucrat to the classically trained politician, everybody is working on a novel. Hatire Community

In brief: Amish Mormon Scientologists in space! The Hatire religion ironically had to employ the StarDrive to find a place in the galaxy where they could practice their spiritual repudiation of technology without persecution, but the alien artifacts they discovered on their new home of Haven transformed them into an alien-worshiping religion, making them no less the subject of mockery. The need for some protection for their way of life led them to lend support to the Expansion Pentad in the Second Galactic War sending many of their holy Mind Knights and at least as much weight in inspirational pamphlets, both of which have come to represent their culture in the minds of other nations. Now that the war is over, they concentrate on their spiritual endeavors, including sending out missionaries to spread the good word of the Cosimir to the masses. They are quite aware of the irony of their need to use high technology to spread the word, bless you very much, so dont let them detain you, and may it not be your fate that the door should smite you upon your ass on your way out. Insight

In Brief: Mac Users in space!

Insight was the young and creative division of VoidCorp until it dramatically broke away leading to tensions that still plague international relations to this day, as VoidCorp will often refuse to even attend conferences in which Insight is given a voice. The animosity has a lot to do with the fact that the Inseers executed a subtle revolt that involved secretly informing VoidCorps enemies of the companys plans for decades, using intelligence gathered by the Insights elite core of hackers, during the Second Galactic War, which ultimately led to The Orion League backing their independence and to a disastrous retaliation which VoidCorp had to abandon when their Grid collapsed and many of their drivesats starfell on their own and never returned. Now The Insight bases much of its economy on its superior Grid and communications technology, formerly a VoidCorp monopoly. Inseers highly idealize what they do just ask them and be sure to rent a cot and can be extremely poetic and possibly kooky about the Grid. Nariac Domain

In brief: Communists in space! The Nariac Domain was begun as a workers paradise, although their actual workforce was small enough that they were forced to embrace cybernetic augmentation as a means of increasing production. During the Second Galactic War, they allied with VoidCorp for protection, and found themselves used as a buffer state between VoidCorp and its enemies in the Solar Union and Austrin-Ontis. These days, Nariac continues as a workers paradise, though some criticize the fact that it monitors all its free citizens through implants. Nariacs are raised seeing cybernetic modification as perfectly normal, and religion as oppressive. Orion League

In brief: The Melting Pot in space! The Orion Nation was one of a whole clutch of small nations in its area, but it was left off of the Treaty of Earth, and so offered to join with the other nations that were its neighbors; those neighbors instead dissolved themselves and joined Orion. They had barely unified by the time the Second Galactic War began, but they supported the Borealis Republic and the Orlamu theocracy. Their government is highly decentralized and democratic, and strongly supportive of the Galactic Concord. Despite the individuality Orion culture encourages, they can muster a great deal of patriotism in their citizenship, especially when those citizens see how little freedom people are allowed in other nations. Orlamu Theocracy

In brief: Unitarians in space! When Jeff Sendir became the first person to travel by stardrive, nobody knew it would take five days travel; he came out the other side after five days in the utter void of drivespace drooling and going on about the voice of God. To this day, Orlamism, in its main stream, doesnt claim that anybody but Sendir has actually had such a religious experience, but they nonetheless believe that there is some connection between drive space and what they call the Divine Unconscious. It was in Orlamu space that the planet Kurg, home of the Weren, was

discovered. The Orlamus joined the Second Galactic War late, about the time it was becoming clear who the winner would be. Currently, they have concentrated their efforts on drive technology, and they produce a full third of all stardrives used today. As important as their religion is in defining their nation, the Orlamus place observable truth over religious dogma, and really arent that dogmatic to begin with. Rigunmor Star Consortium

In brief: Liaises faire capitalists in space! Begun as an old earth trading guild, the Rigunmor Star Consortium took to the stars to escape from government interference in profiteering. They were involved in the Second Galactic War only reluctantly, because they crunched the numbers, and there was no money in it. They take pride in having prejudice only against poverty. Starmech Collective

In brief: Engineering majors in space! Originally a heavy machinery concern that relocated to space, Starmech didnt attract very many colonists, and so turned to the heavy use of robotics to assist with their expansion. In the Second Galactic War, Starmech robotic soldiers proved a poor match for human soldiers, so they turned to ship building, at which they excelled. This specialty has made them many trade allies since the war. As a people, Starmechs are steeped in technology in a hands-on fashion, and live fairly hedonistic lives of building robots and making them fetch pina coladas. Thuldan Empire

In brief: The Romans/Nazis in space! Gregor Kent dared to dream, dream that one day the whole of humanity would be united under one flag and by golly, nobody was going to get in his way. Long after his death, the Second Galactic War proved a glorious opportunity to take whatever the hell territories they wanted. Though they were eventually turned back, many stellar nations have Thuldan bootprints on their collective asses. Thuldans you meet anywhere in the galaxy have the arrogance of conquerors even well beyond their borders in everything they do, including getting the shit beaten out of them in bars for giving people that I bet youd like some of these territories back, huh, bitch? look. Union of Sol

In brief: The Epcot Center, with whores and blackjack.

The cradle of humanity got it in its head not only to reverse years of destruction to its environment, but to revive every culture they ever had. They started an Aztec realm, only with air conditioning and anti-biotics, an American Old West, only with air-conditioning and anti-biotics, and so on. The populations of these reconstructed cultures was not decided by heredity, it was decided by whoever showed up, which was often people with a great deal of pride in suspect claims to genealogical inheritance. The Ireland project nearly failed from a glut of settelers. The planet is now a big theme park where you can visit suspiciously modern recreations of earth cultures, some of which not much was known about to begin with, and hear people speak suspiciously english-influenced versions of previously dead languages. They tried to stay out of the second galactic war, but the Thuldan Empire started eyeing Sol in a way that made them uncomfortable, so they joined with the Rigunmors, the Starmech and Austrin-Ontis for protection. Today they enjoy a healthy economy and, in spite of a great deal less power than they once had as the seat of all humanity, a great deal of status. The habitable worlds of SOL are heavily crowded, but despite pressure this Sol maintains the ecology of the Earth through strict adherence to a policy of zero tolerance for polluters. VoidCorp

In brief: Microsoft in space! VoidCorp began as a division of Microtel, an Earth conglomerate that built its fortune by dominating the computer software market. VoidCorp itself lost its profitable Insight division in the Second Galactic War, when they defected to form their own stellar nation. VoidCorp continues to compete stridently, some claim quite viciously, for their piece of whatever resources are available. Employees of VoidCorp are known within their own world by their employee numbers, including the Sesheyans, whose planet Sheya is encompassed by VoidCorp space. THE VERGE The Verge is the frontier of human space. Far from the settled boundaries of Old Space, it turns out that life is very hairy indeed. The verge contains an extraordinary concentration of exploitable resources, alien life forms and precursor ruins. Because the colonies established in The Verge were abandoned for a century while Old Space had its 2nd Galactic War, Vergers have learned to be scrappy and independent. This rough period for The Verge is referred to as The Long Silence, which is considered to have begun when Kendai Station, the satellite relay station that was the main information gateway between Old Space and The Verge, was destroyed. When the Stellar Nations returned and expected to take their colonies back, they were told to piss up a rope. Unfortunately, most Verge nations will have to ally with an Old Space nation just for the protection from nations that would just as soon take them over by military force. The Verger have no less ill will toward these Arrivers (cf. carpet-baggers) just because they recognize that they cant stay independent forever. The best they can hope for is to play stellar nations against each other in an attempt not to get screwed any more than they absolutely have to. Tendril

(flag of Independent Alaundril) In brief: Gateway to the west Verge! This is the Verge system closest to the Stellar Ring. It has substantial mineral wealth, and is often serves as a gateway for ships traveling to and from The Verge. But its unstable sun and lack of good prospects for

colonization or even teraforming make it otherwise unpromising. The best prospect, the moon Alaundril orbiting the planet Sperous, was settled by The Starmech Collective and used as a nexus for independent mining operations in the nearby asteroid belt. Soon they built the station Darkhold, which developed into a sin city, soaking up any extra money the miners had laying around, in addition to whatever travelers to the deeper verge had to spend. The problem presented by Darkhold got so bad that Starmech built a space station Nova Station as a place people could go to resupply without getting robbed, buggered and cheated at dice. During The Long Silence, with no more support from their patron nation, the three settlements grew independent of eachother. When the war was over, Alaundril did not rebuff the attempts by Starmech to win them back, but they did woo The Galactic Concord to also provide patronage by selling them stockpiles of minerals at discount prices. So, Tendril is now a Starmech protectorate, though the several generations that grew up thinking of themselves as Vergers rather than Starmechs do not see this as anything more than a friendly relationship with strangers. Corrivale

In brief: Utah for Hatires, Israel for sesheyans. For almost 200 years, traders and explorers entering the Verge have made Corrivale their second stop along the way. From Tendril, Corrivale is only 27 light-years, a journey of no more than six starfalls for even the smallest vessels. Virtually abandoned during the Second Galactic War, Corrivale is now home to a thriving colony of independent sesheyans and a Hatire settlement on the jungle moon of Grith. It is also the site of alien ruins, a Concord station, and extensive VoidCorp mining operations in the cold reaches of the outer system. Despite this concentration of interests and outposts, Corrivale remains a thinly settled frontier region, a third world in every sense of the word. Today, tensions run high as the Hatire Community, the Galactic Concord, and VoidCorp all seek to establish military, economic, and political dominance over the system. All three nations must work against the opposition of the Grith sesheyans, who naturally want to remain masters of their own home. Blessed with a Class 1 world, extensive mineral wealth, and a prime location along the Verge spine, Corrivale is now rapidly becoming a point of contention among the great powers. Skirmishes, raids and corporate piracy are all to common throughout Corrivale. Visitors are advised to proceed with caution. Lucullus

In brief: The inmates took over the prison. Of all the systems rediscovered during the stellar nations return to the Verge, Lucullus is the one that most of the Stellar Ring would like to forget. Lucullus was once the dumping ground of the Solar Union, but the penal colonists of the system overthrew their oppressors in a prison revolt of shocking violence. Unlike many revolutions, however, the Lucullus revold didnt install a new government. Instead, the entire system degenerated into brutal anarchy; the strong took what they wanted. Despite the lack of a real government to restrain gang and corsair activity, not every Lucullan is a criminal. In the absence of a civil authority, current Lucullan society has organized around economic power. When the walls came down, everything in this system was up for grabs, and the former inmates seized control of the

various industries scattered through Lucullus. Over the course of generations, these pillagers became industrialists and merchants. Though criminal elements receive most of the attention, a thriving society based on unregulated free trade has evolved beneath the scarred face of the Lucullus system. Its dirty, dangerous, and corrupt beyond belief, but the Lucullan social order rewards the strongest and brightest of its citizens with the opportunity to build an empire with their bare hands. In this system, crime bosses, corsair fleets, merchant princes, and industrial magnates struggle for supremacy, with faction after faction wheeling and dealing to survive. Aegis

In Brief: A cross between Geneva and Hawaii. The Aegis system is an ideal system ideal, that is, as a vacation spot for anyone rich enough to slough off their cares or daring enough to take a trip to the edge of known space. Glamorized in hundreds of holofilms, the paradise resort is a sparkling gem of the Verge. Just as important, Aegis is the logical base for mankinds exploration of the Perseus Arm of the Milky Way galaxy. Aegis is more than a magnificent vacation spot; it is an ideal jumping off point for another of humanitys giant leaps. This strategic location has made it a target for every stellar nation with expansionist tendencies and that includes pretty much all of the except the Galactic Concord. The systems real treasure is Bluefall. The planet got its name from the brilliant blue oceans that cover 98% of its surface. When seen from space, Bluefall shines like a bright sapphire gem in the darkness of space. Even more amazing is the planets rich, breathable atmosphere of nitrogen and oxygen. Human colonists live without the need for burdensome bressure domes or e-suits. Volcanic activity has raised many habitable island chains above the waves, though Bluefalls islands are small, usually less than 1,000 squre kilometers. The whole planet is a tropical paradise, and it richly deserves its nickname: The Jewel of the Verge. Algemron In Brief: The rednecks locked in perpetual war with the Romans. The Second Galactic War isnt over yet, not by a long shot. The fight continues in the Verge as two planets, Galvin and Alitar, struggle for control of the Algemron system. A century ago, Algemron was perhaps the single most promising system in the entire Verge, blessed with not one but two Earthlike worlds and a host of secondary planets, asteroids and moons. In the dark, tension-filled days before the outbreak of the war, Algemron was a peaceful example of a system shared between two rival nations. War tore it all apart. Despite the fact that both sides of the Algemron conflict are now well aware that the Second Galactic War has been over for 30 years, theyre still locked in battle. Outsiders entering Algemron must pass a cordon of military ships, ground batteries, and security forces just to set down on either planet. In addition, the military forces of both planets routinely attack neutral ships in interplanetary space on the suspicion that they might carry valuable cargo bound for the enemy planet. Some traders from neighboring systems have made fortunes running critical war supplies to the combatants, but even more have lost their ships, their cargoes and their lives to the merciless commercial raiding employed by both Galvin and Alitar. Beyond Galvin and Alitar, the outer reaches of the system contain a wasteland of drifting hulks, ruined installations, and decimated stations. Over a century of intermittent warfare, the fragile network of space-based industries has been largely destroyed. With the return of the stellar nations to this war-torn system, both Galvin and Alitar seek new allies, new technologies, and new economic power to renew their fight.

Oberon

In brief: The Yukon, only deep underground. Come to the Oberon system and make your fortune. Riches beyond your wildest dreams. a Rigunmore Grid Ad. Such were the promises of the Rigunmor recruiting campaigns more than a century ago. The old propaganda posters and celebrity endorsements are common items in museums today, shining examples of the best marketing campaign in mankinds recorded history. These promotional items depict men and women working together in the mines of Lison for a few hours each day before retiring to the comfort of the pleasure domes on the planets sunny surface. For the Vergers living in this system today, the words of those old advertisements and commercials are a cause for bitter laughter. The planet Lison is bitterly fought over, despite the fact that its a brutal place to live and work, because it is rich in rhodium, a mineral necessary for the operation of the stardrive. Hammers Star